Home Grown Gratitude

         I've encouraged you to spread your gratitude this week through a happy spirit.  Certainly there are many things each of us can do to make the journey through life just a little more cheerful.  Since I've given that encouragement, I don't suppose it would be inappropriate to share a few of my favorite ways of accomplishing that, and I think that home is a really good place to start.
         Home is the place we cherish most.  As the late America religious leader, Gordon B. Hinckley once said, "The storms stop at the door."  Home should be a haven, a peaceful refuge from the rest of the world.
True, it often falls short of that when kids are being kids (i.e.noisy and rambunctious), tempers flare, and patience seems hard to come by.  We all have those moments or those days.  However, as flawed and human as we are, home can still be our best and most favored place as we make the effort to share our lives in an atmosphere of gratitude and love. So, today I thought I'd share a few thoughts about how to do that.  Here are 10 simple ideas:

• Make the bed for a family member who was in a hurry this morning.  If you have time, leave a note.  Something simple like:  "The bed making fairy was here." 
• Talk to your child about the day he or she was born and the excitement you felt with his arrival.
• Put the children to bed early (or leave them with a neighbor) and make your husband a candlelight dinner.  Keep the conversation positive and focused on what's important to him.
• Fix your wife breakfast and bring it to her in bed.  Discuss her plans for the day.
• Ask your spouse or child what his/her most cherished dream is.  Consider how you can help it come true.
• Find a jar, decorate it, and place some positive words inside, each on a seperate slip of paper:  happy; smile; thanks; fortunate; beautiful; capable; friendly; appreciated;  peaceful; nurturing; accomplished; abundant, etc.  Remove one word each day and use it in your conversations.
• Have a special family night where everyone is given the opportunity to express one thing they admire about each family member.  No one is allowed to repeat what someone else has said. Sit in a circle and let everyone take a turn.  When our children were growing up we did this once or twice a year. 
• Read bedtime stories instead of watching television.
• Work side by side with your child doing the after-dinner cleanup.  Talk about your child's day, or take time to express some things you notice and admire about him/her. 
• Have a one-on-one ice cream date with a child or your spouse.

         I'm sure you also have great ideas for enhancing the spirit of gratitude, love, and happiness in your home.  I'd appreciate being able to share them with other readers of this blog.  So, please post them in the "Comments" section. 
         If you have trouble doing that (several people have told me this has been a problem), I think if you set up a g-mail account, posting a comment will be easy.  G-mail accounts are simple to create.  Just type in: sign up for g-mail in the Google search bar, click on their site and follow the instructions.  Then go back to the Comments section, type in your comment, then in the drop down box next to Comment as:  click Google Account. Then click on Post Comment.

Thanks, and have a wonderful day!

NOTE:  I've heard that you are still having trouble posting comments.  Not being tech savvy, I don't know what direction to give to clear up this problem, but I will be searching for an answer.  My apologies.  I really was eager to hear your ideas!


TODAY'S AWESOME BLESSING:
I hadn't been feeling well and my grandchildren came by with homemade get well cards. They also brought flowers they cut out of paper, colored, and scented with perfume.  Now that would make anyone feel better!