A few years ago I bought my seven-year-old daughter a simple gratitude journal on Amazon. When I first gave it to her, she wasn’t interested, but every night before bed I took it out and encouraged her to write in it.

I quickly realized that the writing part was challenging for her because she was still learning to spell, so we decided that she would do the talking and I would do the writing.

Before long it became a nightly ritual that we both enjoyed. She would think about her day and tell me what she was grateful for and the highlights of her day.

Some days my husband would do this with her and I found myself asking him what she shared because I enjoyed hearing her thoughts so much

Then we filled the journal.

I didn’t buy her another one right away and our nightly ritual stopped.

In that time her anxiety also increased, she became moody, and life for my sweet girl was challenging to say the least.  My daughter is a loving, kind, and empathetic, however, she has struggled as a highly sensitive and anxious child her entire life.  Having a positive mindset can be challenging for her as she navigates all the worry monsters who try to control her.

When I realized what an impact our gratitude ritual had had on her I decided to create a gratitude journal of my own.

Sharing this practice has allowed my daughter to share things with us that she may not have otherwise mentioned. She talks about her excitement over something fun she did, her sadness when something happens at school and her gratitude for things like lunch, her family, sunny days and her favorite toys.

❤️❤️❤️

This year my youngest started engaging in our nightly ritual and we end each day reflecting on our day together as a family.

It’s my dream to see thousands of families experience the connection and positive mindset through journaling with their children.