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Happy Sunday Reader!
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It is the week leading up to Thanksgiving and this week is all about being thankful! It's no secret that feeling thankful for what you have can give you a serious mood boost. Studies have found that those with a grateful mindset sleep better, show fewer signs of depression, and even make smarter financial decisions than their not-so-grateful peers. Let's challenge ourselves to do something good and practice gratitude all week!

Self care tip.....

Keep an eye on our Instagram this week for a daily gratitude post to help you recognize and respond to the areas of life you are thankful for. If you don't follow us, jump on over to our page here and click the follow button!

What are some easy ways you can practice gratitude this week?

• Use your social media platforms, or alternatively a journal, to list what you are grateful for weekly. Try to keep this up for over six weeks.
• Say thank you in-person to someone you care about.
• Say thank you to yourself before you go to bed, recounting three things you appreciate about yourself.
• Send an out of the blue text or email to someone you haven't connected with in a while, showing your appreciation.
• If possible, appreciate the love shown to you by others by showing it back in ways shown above.
• Add a reminder to your phone or lock screen to reflect on moments of gratitude when you use your phone.
• Create a gratitude mantra or phrase that you can easily recall when things get difficult.
• Volunteer, donate, or find a way to pay your good fortune forward.
• Set an alarm or appointment to remember to look for gratitude in your day.
• Appreciate your body for all that it does for you on a daily basis.
• Look for a gratitude app to help you with your gratitude habit.

There is no one best way to start a gratitude practice. It takes some trial and error to figure out what works best for you and fits into your life. Try one of the se this week and see how it goes!

Etsy Find of the week.....

A great way to get started with a gratitude habit is to use a journal. Here are a few of my favorites in various formats!

This digital download will be helpful and easy on your budget!

I love the floral cover of this journal!

​Customize this journal with your own cover!

Go paper free with my favorite gratitude and self-care app!

Upcoming week intention......

For this week, I want to challenge you to find something you are grateful for DAILY and write it down. It can be in a notebook, post it note, on your phone, or text it to a friend. But be intentional about looking for things that make you thankful and actively acknowledging them during this week!

PS Our Instagram page will have a daily post to help you with this!

Weekly good news to share.....

A way to supercharge your gratitude habit is by getting a good night's sleep! A recent study shows that a good nights sleep dampens the effects of negative emotions, which results in us feeling happier overall. How neat is that!

Featured blog post of the week......

My favorite way to use a gratitude practice is when I am having a bad day. While gratitude cant always fix a bad day, it can soften the edge on some of the badness and help you realize that this bad day is not the end of the world or a complete failure on your part. Here are some other ways to deal with having a bad day. Bookmark this for the next time you have one!

One thing I am loving this week.....

One thing I am always grateful for are books! I love to read, especially novels that allow me to "escape" and experience a world in another time or location. Here are some great recommendations for winter books to read this cozy fall/winter! Which books will you add to your list? I think Beartown and How to Do Nothing are going to be the first on my list to check out!

Katie

PS: Don't forget to join us on Instagram or Facebook to share your thoughts on our topic this week!

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