Having an attitude of gratitude

Do you remember the story of Alexander and his horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day? Well… today I am Alexander. The kids were bickering (I’m sure you read my earlier post, no?). We had a minor crisis involving the fence that we’re putting up in our backyard. And then? When I went to make dinner, I realized midway through that I didn’t have all the ingredients I needed. It’s not as bad as poor Alexander getting gum stuck in his hair, but… little things added up and I got a little cranky.

BUT.

In the midst of all the wonky things that seemed to go wrong, so much is right in my life. I am grateful for so much, like:

My family

Yeah. In spite of the and those crazy-making moments, my family makes me tremendously happy. And they make for good stories. And good hugs.

Creativity

I love my creative mind. I love that I get so much joy from music, from art and photography, from writing. I feel that using that part of my noggin brings me a lot of joy. It also makes up for the fact that I can’t do math in my head.

Good coffee

I am skilled in many ways. I am not skilled in the mechanics of making a perfect cup of coffee so I am so grateful that there are people who can make soothing, rich coffee that is pleasing to my brain.

That whole having a job thing

I am so aware what the job market looks like and how the economy is right now. I may not always love my job, but I’m glad to have one!

Carbs

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Without carbohydrates, I would be a tremendously not nice person to be around. I know, I know, all that refined white whoosy-whatsit crap is bad for your body – But GUESS WHAT?! That’s why I work out. I make sacrifices in other areas of my diet, or spend more time with my running shoes laced up because I love bagels, cookies and Cheetos.

Laughter

It’s contagious. And even when I can’t find a smile, the sound of my daughters’ laughing? Puts a smile on my face and chills me out so I’m less of a crabby-abby. The best is the unabashed, gleeful, uncontrollable laughter that leaves the laugh-er gasping for breath. Love that.

This lesson on remembering what I’m thankful for was a post written for the Real Zest peeps. Thanks y’all, for inspiring me to be a little bit more glass-half full on an Alexander day.