Who to Thank

So far, I have thanked a variety of people/organizations.  Some were heartfelt...some were, uh...a little weak, but since I'm making the rules here, I say they still count.  Here are some examples of people I have thanked:
*  A very dear friend who has always been an inspiration to me (thanked via email).
*  The pastor at my church who I think does a phenomenal job (thanked via email).
*  The chick who cut my hair - she was so happy & fun the entire time - maybe it was the fumes from the hair dye, but I think she's maybe just a fun person (thanked IN PERSON...but I didn't go into much "thank you detail, since I didn't want to freak her out.  I do want her to cut my hair again).
* ConAgra foods.  O.K., this one is one of my more "weaker" thank yous, but I had what I felt to be an exceptionally delicious "Healthy Choice" meal for lunch the other day & thought they should know how much I liked it.  (Obviously, this was another emailed thank you.  If you are curious, I believe it was a lemon chicken meal with peppers & noodles.  Highly recommended). 

The list goes on, but that is just a sampling of the people I have thanked.  Pretty much, anyone who makes my life a little better gets a thank you (slowly but surely).  I am finding it REALLY easy to send emails and not so easy to thank people in person.  I'm talking a true, heartfelt thank you -not just a  "thanks" when someone holds the door for you.  Perhaps I need to step it up a notch to make this challenge a little more of a challenge...stay tuned to see if I can find the courage to start thanking more people in person...

Attitude is EVERYTHING

So, I have been reading some books & articles on positive thinking lately and as much as I'd like to "poo-poo" it, I think they're on to something...I read in one book that once you have some negative thoughts running through your brain, chemicals (I don't remember what kind exactly, but for now I'll just call them "icky") get into your bloodstream and can remain there for HOURS.  So, according to this - it is actually physically bad for you to think negatively.  It makes sense then, that once you start to have negative thoughts it seems to spiral, making it easier to have more negative thoughts.  Before you know it, (to quote the ever famous Pastor Mike at a certain church I attend) you're "walking around like Eore from Winnie the Pooh." 
My intentions for this particular post were not to talk about positive/negative thinking, but to give my latest "up-date" on how the project is going.  Yesterday, driving down the road I was reflecting on what I would write and decided that this project was going MUCH better that previously reported.  I was feeling great about things and on top of the world.  I had also just finished a good, healthy round of positive thinking.  Today, as I actually sat down to write my post, I was feeling considerably less excited about things.  My husband and I had just finished discussing some not-so-uplifting financial issues (always a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon) and my toddler woke up from his nap in which he was magically transformed from the sweet, loving little boy who said "bye-bye, Mommy" when I laid him down, into a crying, un-happy version of the Tasmanian Devil. 
So, do your thoughts have anything to do with your perception?  I say yes.  And if you can give me a second while I give myself a quick shot of positive thinking and plug my ears for a minute, I will give you a more accurate up-date on the project...
I have successfully doled out 3 more thank you's in the last 3 days.  I made them a priority, they were heartfelt & I can feel good about putting more "positive" into the world.
Now, please excuse me while I try to find out if Tasmanian Devil's eat snacks.  Wish me luck.

How I'm doing so far

Quite honestly, I'm not doing as well as I had hoped... Even though I just started this blog, I am actually on day 18, I think & have only completed something like 10 "real" thank you's.  Not exactly the "reach for the stars!" kind of start I was hoping for...BUT - to quote Bob, from my Biggest Loser workout on my Wii, "If you fall down, that's just another chance to get back up."  (That may be only 1/2 accurate, but you get the gist.  I'm usually falling down and severely out of breath when he says it, so I don't exactly have my best "listening ears" on).

So why am I 8 days behind?  Good question.  I'd like to blame someone else...or even just a lack of time, because (just like everyone else) I'm pretty "busy."  Truth is, I think I'm just not making it enough of a priority.  Honestly - it takes 30 seconds - 5 min. to thank someone (depending on the method used - more on that later).  So, THANK YOU Bob Harper (or is it Bob Greene?  I can never remember which one is Oprah's little buddy & which one is on BL...) for reminding me that today is my chance to "get back up" and start making thank yous more of a priority in my life.  (No, this doesn't count as my thank you for the day). 

Stay tuned to see if this little pep talk I just gave myself worked...

TIP OF THE DAY:  For anyone inspired by the Thank You project, here is a tip...make a list (it doesn't have to be 100 people long) of all of the people in your life you would like to thank.  It could be a "real human being" or a company/organization.  Anyone or anything that makes your life better - add them to the list.  Good luck!

Mysterious Ways...

God works in mysterious ways...well, mysterious to me, anyway.  I started the “100 Days of Thank You” project just over a week ago and I am the first to admit it was no idea of my own.  It was one of those ideas “placed” into my head that if I were not a believer, I would have no idea where it came from.  But there I was, at 10:30+ at night, supposed to be asleep and all at once sleep was the farthest thing from my mind.  All I could think of was this project - “100 Days of Thank You.”  It sounded so simple - thank one person/organization for 100 days in a row.  How easy is that!  Well, one week in and I can already tell you not as easy as I thought.  

Probably, the biggest surprise has been how hard it is to find the time.  Maybe it’s just me, but you would think it would be easy to know who to thank and to find the 5 min. (or less) it takes to do so.  Unfortunately, I have found myself (on more than one occasion) getting ready for bed, looking at the clock & thinking, “O.K., who can I thank at 9:30 PM that won’t take much of my time because I need to go to bed!”  Perhaps it’s a matter of organization...but I originally was thinking this was something that didn’t require a lot of organization...

But, I trust in God & know he has a plan for all of this -and I stand by my belief that putting more “good” into the world HAS to be a good thing!