This month is the greatest month for counting blessings, now isn’t it? I see gratitude flying all over the place, and I just love to take it all in. But what about the rest of the year? Why just this month, are we to focus on all that is worthy of praise? Oh friends, lets try harder shall we?
I learned about this amazing idea somewhere, unfortunately I can’t remember how. But I do know that when I saw it and read about it, it truly STUCK. I loved it and wanted my family to pursue this ongoing project all year. And for the most part, we have been counting our blessings and writing them down every week. I absolutely love this practice of gratitude.
Have you heard of the Blessings Jar? 
Fill a jar with scribbled blessings as you go. Ours has been filled with countless pieces of paper for the last six months. I love our Sunday tradition during our family dinner time, taking a bunch of little pieces of paper and writing down all the things we are grateful for that happened during the course of the week. It teaches us to focus on all that is worthy of praise and take note of it, record it, and thank God for it. My family talks about all the wonderful things that happened while we eat dinner, and afterward, I get the pens and paper ready for all of us to write them down and place the papers in the jar.
Every New Year’s Eve, we will read aloud all the blessings of the year, and then start a brand new jar on New Year’s Day!
I share more about this wonderful idea over at my friend Lori’s place: Eternal Moments. Come read more about it… and maybe you too, will want to start this incredible tradition. This month would be a perfect time to launch it!
Our jar -with pens and paper, is on our shelf accessible all the time for anyone to add to it. I have had many people come by and add their blessings too, and I just love that!
There are always so many blessings we miss. As hard as we try to remember all the good things in our lives, it’s almost impossible to keep track of them. We have far too many blessings to even count. And for that, I am forever grateful. I pray I can continue to teach my children, just how blessed we truly are. I never ever want them to take any of it for granted. At least I know that daily we thank God for His Blessings, and weekly we write them down. It doesn’t feel like enough… but both are habits firmly planted in our lives.
If you have more ideas to add, please oh please share!! I would absolutely love your input. How does your family practice gratitude?
I love this idea! I will have to find a jar so we can do it. So easy and such a positive thing to think about!
I just love it too Sarah!!! And I think I have come up with another idea to supplement this for Christmas!!! Stay tuned!!
You are a LOVE to come by! XO
Hi, you have just been nominated for The Sunshine Award. Head over to http://bizzymommie.com/?p=141 to answer the questions and post to your blog.
OH WOW Kishea!!! Really? I have heard of this award and I am so thankful!! I must count this blessing and absolutely put it in our blessings jar!!! 😉
Will be over soon!
Hmmm. Husby and I don’t do anything like this. Perhaps we should start…it’s a great idea 🙂
Well Lizzi- your jar is your blog, and your blog is filled every single week for all to see!!!
Now about Husby….
😉
Somewhere here there is a ‘lateral thinking’ thing, which you can do, and I (apparently) cannot 🙂
DUH! Of COURSE!
Will work on Husby 😉
Oh my goodness!!!! I LOVE this idea & must go over to the next link and read more about it, I am totally starting one here on the farm… can you imagine I bet we get LOTS of blessings we don’t think we would, amazing. love it! xo.
YAY!!!! I bet you are SOOO right about that sweets!!! We – all of us- are missing out on blessings we take for granted. It’s so easy to do, when you live in a world of plenty. XO
What An Idea!!!
Sounds very good!
All need to try this out!
I am sure chances are
there to full even before
the stipulated time. 🙂
Thanks for sharing this
Great Idea.
Best regards
Philip
I absolutely love this idea too, Phil!!! It takes a significant value and puts it into practice. I do pray it can be firmly planted in the foundation of my children.
You’re a dear to come by, as always my friend!!!
This? THIS. IS. AWESOME!! I am getting a jar and we are starting this IMMEDIATELY!! I did a gratitude journal awhile ago and it was life changing (why did I stop?). When you take time to think about all of your blessings, it changes you and your life for the better. Then to have all of them to look back on at the start of a new year? GENIUS!!
I love this. –Lisa
Oh Lisa!!! I am THRILLED you love this idea!!! It is pretty GENIUS!!! I wish I could remember where I found it, so I could give proper credit where credit is due. 🙁
But lets go with it anyway!!! lol 😉
Seriously wonderful idea and have been writing down my thankful things for my blog once a week, but never thought to put them in a jar to share with my family. So, seriously thank you Chris for sharing this here!! 🙂
I love the “thankful things” theme- it’s just so cool!!! And that is important and I bet if you would just print those posts out and save them for your kids to read one day…?
But yes- kids need to learn how to practice the art of gratitude. I believe it’s so critical to their lives- because I think the very nature of us all- is to take it all for granted.
This is a great idea! I’ve also heard of a Thankful/Blessing box, wall, tree or book. It’s essentially the same idea, but varies on the sharing end. If you do it on a wall or tree, you can see it daily and not wait until the end of the year, and/or change it monthly which could allow you to use themes (like a fall tree or Christmas tree). The box is essentially like the jar, but you don’t have to wait until the end of the year to share – you can share whenever you want (you could do this with the jar, too). The book is more a personal one for your own records that you can share or not. Either way, these ideas are great!
I have some fall leaves made up (1 color per member of the family) that I am going to have the kids and my hubby and I write our blessings on for this month (we have not started yet, but I hope to by the weekend). I’m trying to decide if I want them on the wall or in a box. I plan on keeping them after November is over and doing another type of theme for December (i.e. ornaments) and every month thereafter. I want my kids and my hubby and I to practice being more thankful because honestly I think we all need to be, and I want these blessings displayed where we can see them whenever we are feeling humdrum or angry or sad. I think it will benefit all! 🙂
Oh Julie! You just have so many amazing ideas!!! You are ON IT girl!!! I love them all… now I want to do them!!! XOXO Thanks SO much for sharing them here!
I’ve heard of this idea before. It’s a wonderful idea. i agree, gratitude shouldn’t be limited to one month. I tried to implement the idea some time ago by asking the kids what they were grateful far then writing it down…it kinda fizzled in the frenzy, but I think I’d love to get it going again. The joy comes when we later read and reflect on the blessings.
I hear ya Hope. It is so hard to keep something ‘going’ that takes time and effort. My kids groan at this task more often than not. It is work. But I remind myself, what is more important really? It’s hard to prioritize- and sometimes I don’t do it well. It’s too much on overload. But we make it happen when we can.
Perhaps you can tweak it to something that fits your crazy hectic schedule? I’m sure you fill your house with more than a blessings jar anyway, my friend. XO
Love this idea, Chris. We should be grateful every day, not just around the holidays! We try to talk about the good things that happened each day at dinner. It reminds us that there’s always something good, even on a bad day.
I love your dinner routine, Jen! Your kids will have that firmly planted in their lives- and hearts!! XO
I think Husband and I try really hard to do this on a continual basis. Yesterday our youngest daughter brought home school photos which in turn made me pull out ALL our kids’ photos from the past years…just looking at them was a gentle reminder of how thanksful we are to be a family! 🙂
AW!!!! It sounds like you embrace every beautiful moment Suzanne!! GOOD for you!!! XO
This is really awesome. I had a blessings jar when I was 14, actually! I don’t even remember where I got the idea but it was a tough year for me in school, and counting my blessings really helped. And to think I was more wise when I was 14 than I am now sometimes?
WOW Tamara!!! That is just SO cool that you had one at that age!! It really is amazing how significant gratitude is to our mental health… it changes everything with me. XO
You. . .You are my blessing.
AW!!!!!! Mom you just filled my heart. Thank you. There’s no better comment than yours. XO
What a fun idea! I love that other people add to your jar!!
It’s really cute how someone will ask what that jar is on our shelf- with ‘easy access’ in front for all to see and use!!
After I tell them, they often say “Can I add a blessing?” OH YES OH YES OH YES YOU CAN!! 😉
I love this idea! What a great reminder of all that we have to be grateful for!
I really is a great reminder! It is something that is literal, instead of always saying we should be grateful. Well lets look at that then!! Why? Gratitude takes practice. 🙂
XO
This truly IS awesome. I’m so doing this!! My friend has a “rose and thorn” moment every day with her children. They go around the dinner table and say what that day’s rose was, and what the thorn of that day was. I think it’s magical and can’t wait to do it with my son (when he’s more cognitive in that sense). I love the jar idea so much though!!! xo
I love that “Rose and thorn” idea! We do something very similar when we eat together- but we just call it “Highs and Lows” of our day. Each of us picks one of each. I like this jar, because it’s tangible- and it makes my kids really document their blessings- which takes it to another level. 🙂
LOVE THIS!! What a fantastic idea! It’s such a great thing to be thinking of blessings year round and would be so fun to read them all and remember them at year end!!! Love it!!!
Leah- it IS such an incredible way to really focus on our blessings and document them!!! I am loving it along the way as we do it too- which sometimes the act itself of good ideas isn’t as good as the idea, ya know? This one WINS on both levels!!! Go for it!! 🙂
I see why this STUCK with you…it’s such an awesome idea!! We did something similar to this, but NOT on this level. Seems like the older our family got, we let go of some of our family traditions. What a wonderful way to start them back up! I’m so getting started on this now!! You’re right Chris, it’s so easy to forget ALL the many blessings God has bestowed on us. Thank you for this wonderful idea!! xoxoxo
I just LOVE the idea, Michell!! It’s been amazing- and I cannot WAIT to read them all New Year’s Eve! I have come up with a great idea for X-mas gifts from the kids to our family members too- can’t wait to share it!! XOXO
I love this idea! We don’t do anything and right now it would be such a good time to spend some time reflecting what we do have, instead of dwelling on the difficult.
It really does force you to really think about the good things in our lives… and actually be mindful of them more every day!!