Affirmations & Gratitudes

After re-reading my blog posts the past few weeks, I've decided that it is time to move on, my dears. Time to look at the good . . . turn off the drama . . . take deep breaths . . . focus . . . affirm . . . and be grateful.

I can't take total credit for it, though. On Saturday, I had a therapy session at the Scrapbook Cellar. Yes . . . we scrapbook, we create, and we "therapize" (I thought I was so clever coming up with that word, therapize, this very minute. However trusty google has found that Urban Dictionary claimed that word long before me . . . therapize: to perform therapy on someone.) In any case . . . "therapize" is EXACTLY what the cellar girls and I do. And Saturday was a particularly GOOD session.

My dear friend Peggy (from "Small Steps to Giant Leaps") shared a great idea with us in starting an "Affirmations & Gratitude" journal. The idea is simple, and something that you have probably heard of before . . . twice a day, you should write down 10 affirmations and 10 gratitudes in life. It took one little mention of this journal, and I new that this is exactly what I needed in my life right now. So Sunday night I put my little journal together, and I wanted to share just a few photos of it with you.

 The journal is just a simple little Mead notebook that I picked up at Office Depot. It's tiny (only about 5 X 7 inches), but just the right size to keep on my nightstand. And jazzing it up with some swirlies and the butterfly makes me happy. Just the way to start (and end) the day. 

The inside of the notebook has this plastic page and envelope, where I placed some free-flowing charms and an email from my friend that helped me focus on the affirmations part. I struggled with the affirmations - because I wasn't sure what it was that I wanted to affirm. Peggy's email remind me that the "Affirmations are what you want of your life. It’s what you know you want your life to be. Because when you affirm it, you begin to feel it. And when you feel it, it manifests itself. Just make sure your affirmations are in present tense." That Peggy . . . she's a good one.

I also had a little pad of inspiring quotes in my scrapbook stash (something I had for years and never used) that I decided to incorporate into the journal. So I tore out of the book those quotes that fit with my theme of "affirmations & gratitudes" and placed them in various pages throughout the notebook. As I journal day to day, I will come across these thoughts and ideas and continue to be inspired and focused.

The next page inside includes a little note to myself about this journal. Just something to reference and remind . . . and a photo of myself that I printed in black & white. I kind of like that studious look I have there, don't you?

I don't think there is anyone who can keep a daily gratitude journal and NOT feel good. Just a few days into this, and I feel a greater sense of peace inside. It's not all deep thinking items, either. This morning, one of my gratitudes was coffee . . . because I am truly SO grateful for it on those mornings when I am dragging. It's remembering the little things, and the big things, that make this a great life.

Thanks so much for letting me share this little book with you. If you sometimes have a hard time remembering the good, I encourage you to start one of your own. It helps. Really.

Peg - thanks for all the therapizing!

Oh, and remember those chakras that were so blocked last week?  I think they are cleaning up a bit. My energy is a little higher, I have a clearer focus, and feel like I am on my way.

One gratitude at a time.