4 Ways to Practice Gratitude All Year

In the month of thanksgiving, we often reflect on the things we are grateful for. It’s gotten me thinking about ways I could make this a habit that extends beyond the holiday. Here are 4 ways to practice gratitude all year:

Make it a dinner-time ritual:

Share one thing you are grateful for over dinner. We do this a lot as a family and, though it can sometimes it feel difficult to answer this question if we’ve had a bad day, we always feel better once we find our one thing. It also gives us a chance to share about how our day went and celebrate achievements that may be overlooked.

Create a gratitude jar:

Get a pretty jar or vase, and when you feel a moment of gratitude write it down and toss it in. Feeling low? Take out a slip of paper instead. It will remind you of what makes your heart happy. Keep slips of paper and a pen near the vase, so they are always on hand. It will encourage your family and friends to participate! Last year, I used a birch box I’d been saving– it made the perfect container for our gratitude because I received it as a gift! Read my post here: Practicing Gratitude + How to Create Your Own Gratitude Box

Send gratitude texts to people you love:

We all have those moments when we feel grateful for someone in our lives. Why not send your friend or family member a text and tell them why you’re grateful for them? It will make their day, and you’ll feel a boost too. You can wait for inspiration to strike, or take a few minutes each week to reflect and send.

Care for those in need:

Helping others makes us feel good. It gives us purpose, strengthens social bonds, and it can be a powerful reminder of all that we have. Last year, we created care-packs for the homeless with friends from our church. You can read my post about that here: Organizing for a Cause. We all brought something to contribute and even the littlest ones were able to help with assembly. I loved having something useful to give those in need on my daily commutes. This is something you could do quarterly throughout the year!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Lauren