There has been much to keep me busy lately, which has cut into my blogging time.  I won’t have much time for blogging today either, but I heard an idea from a neighbor a little while ago that I thought I would share quickly before I get started on the day. 

My neighbor is the mother of three very active little boys all under the age of six.  Like all moms, she can feel very worn out at the end of the day and has her days of frustration and boredom.  Apparently she has had a few days in which her thoughts about being a mom to her three boys were quite negative, and then she felt guilty for even having such thoughts, but didn’t know how to overcome the overwhelming feelings she was having. 

One day she had an idea pop into her head and decided to try it.  She got a spiral notebook and drew a big heart on the front of it.  She found a place on the kitchen counter to store the journal that is out of the way but easy to reach.  Whenever one of her boys says anything cute or funny or profound she immediately grabs the notebook and writes it down.  She records the cute things the boys do together, some of the things she and the boys accomplish during the day, and the times the boys show their love for her.  She even writes down inspiration about how to raise her boys as the ideas come.  She makes sure to record the date of each entry.

My neighbor reports that now, whenever she starts to have negative thoughts about being a mother to her three little ones, she goes to the notebook and starts to read.  It reminds her of why she has chosen to be a mom and how precious her boys are to her.  She has been able to see the individuality of each boy and more fully appreciate each boy’s quirks and personality.  She reports that the feelings of negativity have lessened and that she is more positive as she goes about her day.  She purposely chose to draw a heart on the front to symbolize her love for her boys and the notebook has helped in reminding her of that love.

I journal for my kids in a slightly different manner, but thought my neighbor’s idea was a good one.  Having the notebook in the kitchen where the family congregates most of the time has made it easy for my neighbor to record happenings quickly, as they happen.  So many times I have thought to myself, I need to write that in so and so’s journal, only to forget about it because I got too busy to write it down.   

My neighbor’s notebook has morphed into a sort of gratitude journal and she says that she now feels more gratitude about the blessings of being a mother.  It has worked so well for her that she now shares her idea with others. 

I agree with her.  It is an idea worth sharing.