Did You Know?  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in America, with a planned production total of 46.5 million in 2011. (via)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!  Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday ever!!!  It’s a holiday where you eat, relax, meet up with friends/family, eat again, and hopefully be grateful.   This is the bee knees of holidays people, there’s nothing better.  (I also love all the shopping sales that closely follow. Ha!)  But it simply wouldn’t be a Thanksgiving without being able to say what you’ve been thankful for…

Wafiq and I have a ritual of saying what we’re thankful for almost daily. When times were a little tougher I think we would say them twice a day… Taking time to challenge each other in a grateful war always makes the mood brighter.  And it takes your mind off all that negative shit that’s stuck up in that brain of yours.

This year, I have TONS to be grateful for, so lets get into it!

Gratitude List

1. I’m thankful for owning my anxiety: This is the year a light switched for me with my anxiety.  I made a decision.  Instead of constantly trying to “cure” my anxiety, I owned it.  And started considering anxiety a superpower of mine.  I finally realized anxiety is part of me & it likely won’t ever go away, but that’s ok.  I’ve learned to use it & work with that mother fucker to make sure every day I’m doing things that are fulfilling.  Things that make me feel good.   I feel like I can get more into anxiety this year with blog posts because this is the first year in my life I’m not totally afraid of it & am finally starting to feel confident touching the subject… But trust me, being able to shift my mind into believing anxiety is my superpower rather than my sickness, has taken a huge weight off my shoulders.
2. I’m thankful I’ve been brave enough to push away people or events that don’t suit me:  One thing anxiety has helped me do is push away negative people or events, tasks, jobs, that don’t make me feel good.  It’s that simple.  Slowly, over the entire year, I’ve been tuning into things that don’t make me feel happy or fulfilled or purposeful or necessary – and been eliminating them.  This process has both felt amazing and awkward, but after a year of working at it, my life is completely different!  Saying no, and being kind to myself and my own goals sounds like common sense but it’s hard to do – at least it was for me.  I’ll keep working on this next year, but am thankful I started!
3. I’m thankful Wafiq is working: Is it bad to say I’m thankful my man is finally making money in a career he loves?!  There are two parts to this thankful sentence that need to be acknowledged.  (1) I’m thankful Wafiq is working & making money, duh.   (2) I’m thankful Wafiq loves his career!! My whole life I hear people bitch & moan about their careers and it’s the biggest relief in the world to go home to someone who talks with passion about what the does everyday.  He stuck to his gut with his career choice and it’s the best thing (ever) to watch!  I constantly brag about him & I love watching him be successful on a path he chose.  He’s incredibly inspiring, I remind him all the time.   (Also, the money.  I enjoy financial assistance sometimes too :0 )
4. I’m thankful for my furniture: Last year, we had a house that was filled with bright red, dark brown, mixed matched, dog chewed, donated furniture.  Now, this may sound like a materialist thing I’m grateful for but let me tell you… After changing our bedroom white, and having an aesthetically pleasing space we quickly realized how much that affects our mood!  I knew it needed to become a priority to change all of our spaces.  Slowly we got piece by piece of furniture we picked out ourselves and made a home we love walking into.  No matter what room.
5. I’m thankful for HEALTH!: Another year of healthy peoples & doggie deserves mentioning! What a celebration!

There’s my gratitude list for the year… What are some of yours?! If you can’t confidentially think of something you’re grateful for then you’re the one that needs to be doing this activity!  And may I just mention, you should try to do this daily – because every day there’s TONS to be grateful for, even in times that feel otherwise.

Before I go, any Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales that I need to be aware of?!  Let’s be honest, I can’t wait! hehehe

Have a great long weekend & be thoughtful…

Xx

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