Attitude of Gratitude

I hear it said a lot that it's important to have an "attitude of gratitude." Yeah, yeah, whatever... What I've realized lately is that when I do actually allow myself to be grateful for any and every situation, I'm overall a happier, less stressed, and definitely less disappointed person! It has to be a mind-shift though. It's easy to say, "I'm so grateful for all of the wonderful things in my life", but to actually BE grateful, and have a grateful heart is something totally different...and it changes you from the inside out!

Here are some recent examples. I'm a busy woman. I have a career as a Mary Kay Sales Director which is a demanding, yet flexible schedule. I have a toddler, a school-age child, and a teenager (ALL FEMALE), and a husband... for whom my ultimate goal in life is to impress. There is always something that needs to be done! Dishes to wash, lunches to make, dinner to prepare, shopping to do, etc. However, rather than being stressed about the 5 million things that I want to accomplish before 10am today, I've chosen to be grateful that I have those jobs in the first place. I'm so grateful to God that he has blessed me with a beautiful and healthy family. I'm so grateful that I'm able to provide them with meals, which of course requires dish washing! One thing I've started doing that has helped me a lot with my attitude about 'chores' is that when I'm folding the laundry (which I severely dislike) I say a little prayer with each article of clothing I pick up. I pray for the owner of those little bloomers, or that pink Hello Kitty t-shirt, or the work socks with the holes in the toes and heels. That, is how you have an attitude of gratitude!

Now let's face it, as women we sometimes set unrealistic expectations of what our wonderful husbands are capable of. Admit it, you do it too! I married an AMAZING man with a multitude of great qualities. He is ambitious, a great father, hard working, and always willing to help me with things around the house. However, it just so happens that one of the items NOT in his skill set, dishing out praise and affirmation, is MY love language. I thrive off of words of affirmation and a wise woman recently helped me put things into perspective. She asked if he was ever good at giving praise and affirmation. The answer to that is a resounding 'no.' I MUST reiterated that he has MANY amazing qualities and I'm by no means complaining about my Mr. Delicious. I digress...so she simply says, "Well then why do you think he is all of a sudden going to start now?" DUH! What I need to do is look for affirmation from the people who DO dole it out fervently, like my mom (she's my biggest fan), my Mary Kay sisters, and of course my kiddos! In doing this, I'm able to stop resenting my husband for not speaking my love language and start receiving all of the ways that he DOES show me he loves me, appreciates me, and is proud of me.  This is freeing and helps me to have an attitude of gratitude for my wonderful hunk of a man.

So, fellow bloggers, I see a choice every morning;  Do I want to wake up and remain grateful for the life God has entrusted to me, or do I want to spend my day sweating, stressing, and stewing?  Easy choice for me!!!