Grumpy or Grateful?

Are you a half full or half empty kinda person? How about one of your kids?Are you looking for something to help them see the silver lining?

One of my kids has a tendency to be grumpy. (I even bought him the book, "What Are You So Grumpy About?") In order to curb his negativity and start him off early on seeing things in a better light, we started a "Grateful Journal" when he was about 2 years old. He understood happy and sad and was able to articulate himself well.

Our Grateful Journal comes out at dinner time. We go around the table and ask, "What are you grateful for today?" The date is put at the top of the page, then the family member's name and their answer. The journal is nothing fancy. I bought it at Walgreens and it's about 2" x 2". We have been doing this off and on for about 6 years. 

As a family, it gives us an opportunity to reflect, to connect, and find out about each other's day. We like to go back and see our answers from the past too. Some are funny, some serious. Here's a don't crack up in front of him answer from Grumpy when he was 3: "There is nothing to be grateful about." Oh my!

Even though he can still be grumpy and fuss he has been given the tools to look at life with a better outlook. Sometimes he will ask if he can be the scribe for our journal. It makes this Momma smile.

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