For the past month or so I have been waking up a little earlier to give myself time to write in my gratitude journal.

I know this sounds corny and cliché, but there's a reason we keep hearing more and more about gratitude journaling! From Oprah and Goop, the news stands, on blog posts and podcasts, books upon books about these topics – it’s truly everywhere all the time.

The words gratitude, self-care, mindfulness… They aren’t just a trend.

For me they are the key to having a really good day and a positive outlook. With all the crap that 2020 has thrown at us, I find it more crucial than ever to keep practicing my morning ritual.  It goes like this...

I try my best to wake up before the rest of the house, however this is almost impossible with three dogs and their internal alarm clock telling them it’s time to eat! But that’s fine with me. I love the quiet time with them before the hustle and bustle of the day really begins. I throw on my toasty slippers, grab a cozy blanket and a hot cup of coffee, and settle in to my favorite chair in the living room with my journal and pen.

I have a gratitude calendar that provides a prompt each day to be grateful for and to write about.

I find it to be a super helpful guide, especially in the early hours of the morning when I’m not quite awake yet. Some examples are “A friend you are thankful for,” or “a favorite vacation memory”... subjects that trigger a joyful response that you can write down on paper. I generally keep my journaling short and simple, but have found that throughout the day these warm and happy thoughts stay with me. How lovely is that?

I could also incorporate reading or listening to a daily meditation from one of the gazillion meditation apps out there— and sometimes I do. BUT to keep this routine from becoming too time-consuming, rather than another task to get done, I try to keep it super simple.

So what are the benefits of doing this gratitude practice you ask?

I have found that in general my days feel less hurried and I am less distracted. If I can keep coming back to whatever that gratitude prompt was from the morning it has a way of quickly grounding me.

Now listen, I’m not saying it’s this is some magic pill that will make you a more kind, grateful, and patient person. But I do think it plays a big part at least in my day. On the days that I set aside this time I am more likely to get outside and walk in nature. I’m more likely to eat a healthy for breakfast and start my day off right.

Side note: My go-to breakfast right now is overnight oats – why am I so late to this party??? I freaking love them! I’ve been working with a nutritionist since the summer and she asked me to replace homemade overnight oats with the packaged protein bar I was eating habitually. I could write an entire blog post on this topic alone, but I’ll spare you. I actually get excited to wake up each morning to have my coffee and oats. #nerdalert

I decided to create a daily gratitude calendar to share with you for November and December.

Download it, share it and use it as a guide to help you get started. Please tag me on Instagram and Pinterest! I would absolutely love to have a team of people doing this along with me. Let’s try it together throughout the craziness of the holiday season and for the rest of this unfortunate year.

ALSO! Let's try using this hashtag for the rest of 2020 and for all of 2021: #Gratitudismyattitude

I hope you find this helpful. We’ve got this everyone, and we’re in it together!

Much love-