When does the new year start for you?
For me, it’s the day that I take down my Christmas decorating…
Which happens to be today!
Now I can think about 2015 and all that it holds for me.
Do you get excited about a new year too?
I already have several projects underway for the early part of the year and there’s one very exciting one that I can’t wait to share with you. It’s also something totally new for me, so it fills me with anticipation for the coming year.
Some people start the year with a New Years Resolution…
Others have a focus word for the year.
My word for 2014 was Balance… which I was semi-successful at last year. Having the focus word did help me to remember to find the balance in my life.
This year I’ve chosen…
Sometimes when life gets super busy and ‘out of my control’ I get weighed down with the negatives and lose focus on the good things.
I hope by being mindful of all the things I’m ‘thankful’ for in 2015, that the positives will always outweigh any negatives in my day.
To keep track of my daily list of thankful thoughts, I made a gratitude journal using a year planner and a handmade fabric book cover.
You can see my tutorial for making fabric book covers HERE.
It’s my intention to write something every day… and to reflect on the good things that come my way.
I know a few of my friends are also doing gratitude jars, where you write something you are thankful for on a piece of paper and put it in the jar each day. At the end of the year the jar can be opened and all the entries read.
It feels like such a positive thing to be focusing on and allows us to celebrate even the smallest things in life.
I’m going to start today by recording that:
- I am thankful for the amazing people I’ve have met through blogging.
- I am thankful for their kind and supportive comments.
- I am thankful for the blogging communities we form and for the generous spirit in which we all share our knowledge.
- Happy 2015 my friends,
- Kerryanne
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Love this post. I reckon being thankful is a great way to start 2015. I think apart from a few other words that will lead me this year, thankful will be among them. I love your journal cover and thanks for providing a tutorial. I was given a most beautiful journal for Christmas that is going to be used a lot.
You are welcome Jan. Hope there is lots for you to be grateful for in 2015 🙂
What a lovely journal Kerryanne – the cover is beautiful.
Thankful is a wonderful word and it is a shame that we sometimes forget all about the positives when just one negative knocks our lives a little off kilter. Enjoy your beautiful journal.
Toni xx
Thank you Toni. I’m totally embracing the word… it’s a gentle reminder to not overlook the ‘little things’ each day.
Hugs ~ Kerryanne xx
this sounds like a wonderful idea but I do not think I will have much to put in a book, one day is very much like another boring!!
Maybe you need a gratitude journal to find a little something special in every day Margaret. Some days I’m just grateful to be breathing 😉
thank you so much for sharing your ideas and talents with the rest of us. I do appreciate it, and have learned much from you. Have a wonderful and healthy new year — may it be a kind one to us all!
That warms my heart Rita… I’m glad you are enjoying the tutorials and projects here at Shabby Art Boutique. Happy New Year!!
As you count your blessings we give thanks for the blessing of you and your blog. xo
Awww… thanks Mar!! I can always rely on you for support and encouragement. Happy New Year sweetie xx
Hi Kerryanne and thank you for this positive and inspiring post. Now I`m thinking to do something in this way. At the end of 2014 when I did a blog reflection, I realized I had a wonderful blog year! Thanks the beautiful photos I took… And that`s the same with the journal! Enjoy your days ♥ Alexandra
I hope you too can enjoy the benefits of a gratitude journal Alexandra. Happy New Year!!
Wow, it almost feels like you have read my mind! I received a beautiful diary as part of a Christmas gift and am going to make it my ‘thankful diary’ for the year. I intend to write something each day I am thankful for….today it is simply for the lovely rain we have so needed. I think sometimes we get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life that we easily forget about the simple, little pleasures we take for granted. I wish you many blessings and happy times in 2015 🙂
I couldn’t agree more Rhonda. It’s early days, but I can already see the benefit in taking a positive approach to life with the ‘thankful’ journal.
Happy New Year 🙂
Kerryanne,
I couldn’t agree more that gratitude is truly the path to happiness. When we think about the smallest blessings in our life, we should smile and realize just how fortunate we truly are. I enjoy your blog and the wonderful things you share with all of us. Thank you and Happy New Year!
Thank you Sue. I’m glad you are enjoying visiting SAB and I’m ‘thankful’ to have such lovely followers, just like you. 🙂
Hi Kerryanne,
Thank you for the feature last party! I am honoured that you wished to share it.
I like the idea of choosing a word for the coming year to help stay focused. You’ve inspired me.
What a lovely journal you’ve made! It would want to make me write in it everyday, too!
All the best in the coming year,
Linda at Beautiful Ideas
You are welcome Linda!!
You have probably guessed by now that I love everything around me to be pretty, so it was only fitting to make a pretty cover for my daily journal. 🙂
Kerryanne, It is amazing that when you have a word or a subject on you mind and heart, it seems you find reminders everywhere. My husband is in a nursing home where he will remain until he goes to a better place. He has dementia and suffered a severe stroke and this has been quite difficult for me to see my best friend, my partner, my love in this condition. I have found that everything is easier if I maintain an attitude of gratitude. On my bad days, I actually count on my fingers all the things I have to be grateful for and it helps me get through the day. I have copied your word “grateful” and put it places in my home and car so that I can see it frequently as a reminder. Thank you.
I’m sorry to hear about your husband Kay. It must be such a difficult time for you, so I’m pleased that you can still find gratitude in your heart. I’m finding a gratitude journal to be very good for my soul. Wishing you much happiness xx