It started early this morning.

The mental racing, quickly followed by the emotional overwhelm.

“How am I going to keep the food hot if we have to leave the house 8 hours before dinner?”

“What time does Josh get home Wednesday?”

“I need to get to the grocery store today, so I can cook tomorrow.”

“What was I thinking when I scheduled a dentist appointment the morning before Thanksgiving?”

“We still need to register for the ‘Turkey Trot.’ Whoever thought of that idea anyway?! ‘Thanksgiving day isn’t quite busy enough . . let’s add a 5 mile race to start it off?'”

It’s not even Wednesday, and I’m already tired.

And then I read these words:

“When we feel it in the veins, the stress racing ugly, the speed winding life angry, we were to audibly give thanks. Give thanks right out loud. That was it. It wasn’t complicated. It wasn’t easy. The great stress intervention – was a straight up injection of gratitude.” (read the rest of the article by Ann Voskamp here . . please do!)

Posting each of these 28 days so far hasn’t been easy either. I sit down, usually way too late and too tired, and think back over my day of what to give thanks for. Not always feeling very grateful. But always convinced and convicted there is much to count.

But counting on this blog is a walk in the park compared to giving thanks in the middle of stress and anger. This thought ups the ante on this personal challenge I’ve made in a whole new way.

What a great experiment! What an opportunity! What will my kids think when they see me giving thanks out loud when moments before I was ready to lose it? This could be fun!

I’m game! You?

And I’m so excited about the new FREE One Thousand Gifts app from Zondervan. Another way to start counting! Check it out here.

Practicing for the “great stress intervention” . . 

379. Emy’s piano playing floating through the house
380. Sam screaming with delight over the dog trying to drag his slipper off his foot
381. his passionate pleading when I said to stop
382. learning to lighten up and enjoy instead of police life in my home
383. smell of breakfast sausage
384. and how it brings back memories of mornings at my great grandparents’ house
385. Jeff
386. and his hugs
387. Ben 
388. and his quirky sense of humor
389. Emily
390. and her female camaraderie in this sea of testosterone
391. Joe
392. and his eyes
393. and the way he has loved music since he was a baby
394. Sam
395. and his indomitable spirit
396. Josh
397. and his devotion to all of us
398. Daniel
399. and his enthusiasm for knowledge
400. my new pin

401. being an original (and copywritten)
402. One Thousand Gifts app (read the first chapter of the book here)
405. this post at Emy’s blog
406. discovering that I love turnips