In the beginning of 2014 I started focusing on the things I was grateful for in my life, instead of the things that were negative, or that made me sad or unhappy. I can’t tell you what a difference that one thing has made in my life! Every night when I lay down to sleep, I try and think of ten thing that happened that day, that I was grateful for.

My dear friend Mary at Tales from the Back Road, told me about a Blog Hop that was taking place on Tales from the Motherland, this hop’s focus is 50 Happy Things and here’s how it works.

Set a timer for 10 minutes; timing this is critical. Once you start the timer, start your list (the timer doesn’t matter for filling in the instructions, intro, etc). The goal is to write 50 things that made you happy in 2015, or 50 things that you feel grateful for. The idea is to not think too hard; write what comes to mind in the time allotted. When the timer’s done, stop writing. If you haven’t written 50 things, that’s ok. If you have more than 50 things and still have time, keep writing; you can’t feel too happy or too grateful!

1. We’ve had the money to give Sampson and Delilah the type of veterinary care we feel they need.
2. We got rid of one bad tenant who lived in our duplex.
3. My youngest daughter moved back to CT.
4. For the most part my family is healthy.
5. My mom made it through Thanksgiving and Christmas without ending up in the hospital.
6. I got an awesome fishermen’s rain slicker and pants for Christmas.
7. I went to Nashville to Blog Paws and got to hang out with and meet some really awesome people.
8. I went to a blogging conference in Pennsylvania and hung out with one of my blogging friends.
9. One of my dearest friends just came down from Canada and we got to spend some great time together.
10. I finally saw my granddaughter dance in a recital (It was a Christmas recital. I missed her original recital because I was in Nashville.)
11. I managed to pay off a couple of small credit cards.
12. And put a good dent in a larger balance card.
13. The first Saturday of the month I go to Home Depot with my grandchildren and make a little project with them.
14. I was done with all my Christmas shopping three days before Christmas.
15. My dogs haven’t yet killed me on a walk.
16. The price of oil came down and I was able to fill my oil tank for a reasonable amount of money.
17. My Uncle came down from Maine and we had some awesome talks when he joined me and the dogs on our walks.
18. I was able to help my sister care for our Great Aunt when she went into hospice.
19. I spent an amazing weekend with my other sister at Thanksgiving.
20. I have one good paying tenant in my duplex.
21. For the most part my dogs are healthy (with the exception of typical age related issues.)
22. Even though I’m gluten free I’m still able to satisfy my pasta and bread cravings.
23. I have amazing readers.
24. I’ve become good friends with some very special bloggers.
25. I finally saw the Newport mansions decorated for Christmas.
26. I saw the original Alice in Wonderland manuscript on a glorious day in New York City with one of my daughters and my niece. 

    
    

27. I found and bought a doll that reminded me of a beloved one from my childhood.
28. Delilah has blossomed into an amazing dog, who has become very affectionate and she’s extending it from beyond just my husband and myself.
29. I’ve managed to pay my bills on time despite some tight weeks/months.
30. For the most part we are in fairly good health.
31. The electric company took down a whole bunch of trees in the area, and while Hubby had to work really hard at it, we got a LOT of firewood for free.

Ok, so I ran out of time, but as the rules state, you don’t HAVE to get 50, the point is to just sit down and think about all the GOOD things that are happening in your life right now and to share them with others. You never know if sharing your positives can help someone else see the positive in their life and help them make a change. 🙂

If you’re interested in participating in this 50 Happy Things Blog Hop here’s what you do 1) Write your post and publish it (please copy and paste the instructions from THIS POST, into yours) 2) Click on the blue frog at the very bottom of THIS POST (That will take you to another window, where you can past the URL to your post. ) 3)Follow the prompts, and your post will be added to the Blog Party List. Please note: the InLinkz will expire on January 15, 2016. After that date, no blogs can be added. 

Please note that only blog posts that include a list of 50 (or an attempt to write 50) things that made you feel Happy or 50 things that you are Grateful for, will be included. Please don’t add a link to a post that isn’t part of this exercise; it will be removed.

It’s a great way to end one year and start another, don’t ya think?