I can honestly say that I can’t think of any negativity in my life right now.  Wow.  Writing that feels really good and almost seems impossible, but it’s true.  I work at always finding the positive in all situations, and it looks like it’s paid off!  I also work at being grateful for the things in my life, good and bad.  That’s what I’m here to do today too – to give gratitude for the negative things.

I’m by no means perfect and I absolutely do have negative thoughts at times, and “bad” things do happen, but I realize pretty quickly that negativity is swarming my brain.  When I realize it, I switch my thinking immediately.  Sometimes the negativity will leave almost instantly and sometimes it takes a little while, but I know it’s there so I will focus elsewhere.  Soon it’s gone.

I’m very grateful though for the negative things I do experience, whether in my head or in my so called “reality”.  (Isn’t it always in your head though?)  So…I’d like to give my negative thoughts and feelings a little message.

Dear Negativity,

I’m so grateful you exist.  Without you I wouldn’t know the positive.  In order to know what I want (a positive) I need to know what I don’t want (the negative), so it’s good that you’re around.

Negativity, you teach me so much and for that I’m thankful.  When something happens in my life that I perceive as negative, I always know that there’s a lesson to be learned.  Thank you for that.

And lastly, you challenge me and encourage me to be creative.  When something is not working or I’m feeling my limitations, you nudge me to find a new way.  I like that about you.  Thank you for encouraging me to grow.

With love,

Katrina

Related articles by Zemanta

• World’s most effective spiritual connection. (using-spiritual-energy.blogspot.com)
• Relax Already: Make a Gratitude List (fitsugar.com)
• The Happiness Experiment: Lessons in gratitude and irony (somedaysyndrome.com)

Today, I’m grateful for family…my family in particular.  My mom drove down yesterday evening to take me to dinner for my birthday.  It was a great surprise.  She’s such an amazing woman with a heart of gold.  She has done so much for me that I can’t even begin to thank her enough.  She is truly an inspiration and I have so much respect for her.  I’m so grateful to have her in my life.  She not only lights up my life, but my kids are wild about their “Bebe” (no, she’s not French).

She stayed the night with us and we had plans to spend the day at a pumpkin patch.  Unfortunately, she had to leave early because my Grandmother was sent to the hospital.  BUT, everything is okay.  In fact, my Grandmother (aka Nanny B) is wondering why she’s even there.  We won’t know until test results come back tomorrow, but I’m so thankful it’s nothing too serious.

Nanny B…I’m so grateful she’s my grandma.  She’s awesome.  She wears my jewelry in the nursing home, and is the self proclaimed Queen Bitch.  She’s an amazing woman and I’ve never met anyone that didn’t just love her to death!

So back to the pumpkin patch…  Ben (yes, I hit the husband lotto), Max (my oh so incredibly sweet son), Miles (my oh so incredibly cute other son), Gaga (my wonderful mother-in-law), and I had a fabulous time at a pumpkin patch today.  It was in Celina, Tx and well worth the small drive.  I’m so thankful to get to spend time with my family and that we get to go out and enjoy stuff like this.  The weather was perfect and so was the company (yes, I even enjoy my mom-in-law!).  I’m thankful we’re all healthy and happy.  I love and appreciate my family so much.

The older I’ve gotten the more I realize how important family is.  I’m so grateful to be really close to them, and that we all stick together no matter what.  Thank you!

(We are family
I got all my sisters with me
We are family
Get up ev’rybody and sing)

Sorry, just had to do it.  It’s taken me extra long to write this because I can’t get this song out of my head!

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Happiness Experiment: Lessons in gratitude and irony (somedaysyndrome.com)
• The Power of Gratefulness (kevineikenberry.com)
• Gratitude on the Run (depressionmarathon.blogspot.com)

So it’s day 2 of my 21 day gratitude challenge.  Here’s the ABC’s of all I’m grateful for today!

A – Apples are so juicy & delicious.

B – My husband, Ben, is an all around great guy!

C – My Car.  I love my Car.

D – I appreciate all the Dollars that flow in and flow out.

E – Everything I have in my life, the good & bad, is a blessing.

F – I Feel great.

G – We have Groceries in the house.

H – I absolutely love the House I live in.

I – I am thankful for who I am.

J – I’m so grateful that I get to make Jewelry and that people buy it!!

K – Katrina.  I like my name

L – For the Love I feel, that which I give and receive.

M – Max and Miles, my sweet sweet boys.

N – I’m really thankful for Noses.  I mean it would be really strange if we couldn’t smell, & even stranger without one on our face.

O – Oxygen.

P – I am Physically healthy.

Q – I’m thankful that I don’t Quit too easily.

R – Rain.  I love a good thunderstorm!

S – Sunshine.  It’s makes everything so pretty.

T – I appreciate the Truth.

U – I’m really thankful for Umbrellas.  What a great invention.

V – Velcro shoes for kids, when you’re in a hurry, rock!

W – The weather today is just amazing.  I’m sitting outside as I type this and absolutely enjoying the moment!

X – X-rays.  What would we do without them?

Y – Yoga.  It has totally opened my internal world!

Z – Zebras!  Because their stripes are just too cool.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Gratitude Challenge – Day 9 possibly (momblognetwork.com)
• The ABC’s of Thanks (petroville.com)

Today has got to be one of my most favorite days of the year.  Wanna know why?  It’s my birthday!  Today, I turned 37 years old.  I can’t believe I’m 37.  I feel like I’m 27.  I really love getting older.  I’m definitely wiser than I was at 27, and that’s what I love about getting older.  It seems like every year I grow more and more, and with the growth I feel younger, fresher, more alive.

I’m so thankful for the amazing day I had.  I woke up this morning with really no birthday plans, but my day has ended and I got a massage, went shopping for myself (which I never do), brought home sushi to enjoy with my family (okay, so my little guys didn’t indulge in the sushi, but a Sonic grilled cheese and chocolate milk to them is like a fresh, melt in your mouth volcano roll to me!).  And, I topped all that with a fabulous cupcake (white cake with buttercream icing, my fav!).

I was just about to go to bed when I learned about a gratitude challenge.  It’s 21 days and the idea is to help people see the brighter side of life.  This is right up my alley so I had to share.  I would love for you to join me!  Click here to get the deets.

Gratitude Challenge on YouTube

I’m accepting this challenge because I want to blog about my gratitude and share it with you for 21 days.  I have a gratitude journal that I try to write in most days, but I want to see if anything differently happens when I express my gratitude for all to read!  So today, October 1st, the first day of my challenge, I’m so extremely grateful for being born!  I have so much gratitude for my awesome mom who brought me into this amazing world and who taught me so much about life.  Thank you, Mom!  And, thank you to my awesome husband and cutey kids for allowing me to have such a great day today.  I love you!!

Wanna join me?  There’s all kinds of great guidelines and calendars to use on that site.  So please join me…what do you have to lose?

Related articles by Zemanta

• 14 Bloggers Complete The Gratitude Challenge (blogherald.com)
• Gratitude Challenge – Day 9 possibly (momblognetwork.com)
• Thanks …for Me? (petroville.com)

This came to my inbox this morning and I just love it.  It’s an excerpt from the book “Money and the Law of Attraction: Learning to Attract Health, Wealth and Happiness” by Jerry and Esther Hicks.

Love and appreciation are identical vibrations. Appreciation is the vibration of alignment with who-you-are. Appreciation is the absence of everything that feels bad and the presence of everything that feels good. When you focus upon what you want – when you tell the story of how you want your life to be – you will come closer and closer to the vicinity of appreciation, and when you reach it, it will pull you toward all things that you consider to be good in a very powerful way.

I find this to be so true.

I have a gratitude journal that I write in everyday…okay, not everyday, but 5 or 6 times/week!  And what I’ve found in doing this is that out of the blue, almost when it’s least expected, I’ll have this overwhelming feeling of appreciation.  It’s this amazing feeling that just comes over me out of nowhere.  Sometimes it’ll last for just a few seconds, and other times it’ll stay with me longer.

It makes me smile just thinking about it!

Each journal entry starts with “I’m so happy & thankful now that…”.  I’ll list things that have happened (or I’ve gotten), things I currently have, things I want to happen, and how I want my life to be.  So it’s important to understand that it doesn’t just have to be things that have happened, but how you want your future to be…all put into the present moment.

My suggestion today…get a gratitude journal!  Quick!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Why Show Gratitude When We Can Be Selfish? (healthmoneysuccess.com)
• What Are You Thankful For Today? (mashable.com)