This time of year, you can’t be online without seeing all the amazing things people are doing. Things that encourage thankfulness in their families. My friends are posting picture on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Blogger’s are out in full force letting us on know how important this is. We need family traditions to pass down. In this day when we have so very much, we need to remind everyone to be grateful and appreciate it. I don’t disagree, I felt overwhelmed.
Everyone it seemed had this down so much better than me. I wasn’t feeling grateful for all that we had, I was feeling disconnected and overwhelmed by it all.
Can you relate?
I finally admitted this feeling to my homeschooling mama’s tribe, and the response I got was amazing. They all felt it too. Even the mama’s with those amazing traditions. Some years, they didn’t know how they would get it all done. They didn’t feel particularly thankful or grateful, I was shocked and humbled. I was putting these women up on a pedestal, when they needed me as much as I needed them. To be real.
So real we are. At the end of that conversation I came away with a new perspective and I have spent all year, mulling it over. My conclusion? I needed to get over myself and put my own twist on this holiday tradition. Teaching thankfulness and gratitude isn’t only for November, it’s a year round problem. That needs year round effort.
This year I am implementing the Thankfulness Tree. Starting in November because it seems like the perfect kick off month.
What is a Thankfulness Tree?
It’s a tree I painted on a neglected wall in my house. It doesn’t have to be painted directly on a wall, you could get a large canvas and do the same thing. On a small scale you can take a piece of construction paper and have each child do this individually.
I am so lucky that I had this big blank wall. I am blessed that my husband doesn’t mind when I get creative like this. It’s just paint after all we can always paint over it if it bombs as a projects.
Once you have the bare bones of your tree, you need leaves. I went and found leave stickers. Every day I’m asking each member of my family to think of 5 things they are thankful for. I won’t be stopping on Thanksgiving Day either.
I can make my tree seasonal and take off the leaves and start over with each season. I’m even thinking of adding a few permanent leaves in the shape of each of our hands. On the smaller personal versions you can use fingerprints as leaves. 
What do you think of my Thankfulness Tree?
How do you tackle Thankfulness and Gratitude in your house year round?
Shannon L. Mokry blogs over at https://whimsyandpurpose.blogspot.com/. She has also written several children’s books, you can find those here. Shannon describes herself first and foremost as child of God. She is also a wife and homeschooling mama, with three daughters.
