Finding inspiration through giving thanks

During my hiatus from blogging, I have forced myself to find times of rest.  Times to be quiet with no distractions.  I even spent a week without my iPhone (gasp!) and about 2 weeks without engaging in any social media.  This time has given me a chance to soak in the little things.  I find myself being more thankful for what I do have, and less upset about what I lack.  Time away has given me a better perspective on what I do, why I do it, and what is really important.  I don’t come back with everything figured out.  No one has it all figured out.  But I come back with more peace in my heart.
Jeff and I celebrated our 10-year anniversary a few months early with a trip to Cabo (excuse the blurry pics from Jeff’s phone).  I left my phone at home, and honestly that first day without it was strange, especially while traveling.  We had a layover in L.A. (why in the world didn’t we have a direct flight from Phoenix??), and I caught myself reaching for my phone so many times.  Seriously, every time there was a spare second, I was thinking about reaching for my phone.  Sitting in the airport, waiting in line at Starbucks, waiting to take off.  Everywhere I looked, people were staring at their phones.  I found that I really didn’t miss it, I was just in the habit of reaching for it.  Sitting in the airport, I actually started to enjoy being tuned in to what was going on around me.  The people watching was incredible (L.A., remember?) and I just felt myself relax.  Suddenly, my mind was no longer racing.  My anxious mind that never stops was at rest.  I spent the rest of the vacation enjoying the silence that comes with no distractions.  I sat on the beach, soaked in the sun, and let God refresh my soul.  I did take time to read a couple amazing books and drink a few margaritas, but what I really enjoyed was the silence (and of course, the time alone with my honey).

When we got back from our trip last week, I wanted to make sure not to dive right back into the busyness, so I took an additional week off of blogging and social media.  As I start to ease my way back in, I want to make sure I am doing it right this time, with the proper perspective.  For me, having proper perspective starts with giving thanks.  The more I can find to be thankful for, the less I will have to complain about.

Originally, I had planned to do Thankful Thursday posts each week.  After my trip, I decided to challenge myself (and you) even more.  What if we could list one thing we are thankful for every day in 2012?  That would be 365 days of thanks.  I bet we would be inspired.  At first, it might seem easy, but what about when the bad days come?  Will we be thankful then?  I think that’s when the greatest inspiration will happen.

I wanted to tell you of my plan now so you can start preparing.  Grab a button (it’s just up and to the right of this post) and start spreading the word if you plan to participate (oh, I hope you will!).

Button

I would love to have you by my side in this.  Whether you share your thanks on your blog, Facebook, Twitter or even face-to-face, I hope you will stop by to share your blessings here too.  If you take photos, please upload them to my Flickr group for all of us to be encouraged.  I will do a link-up each Thursday so that we can all find each other’s favorite post of the week.

If you want to start tweeting about it, use the hashtag #365thanks

Look for more in the coming weeks as this project evolves and takes shape.  I can’t wait to see what comes out of this next year!

P.S. I am thankful for each one of YOU!

 

 

 

  • Shelley (@momma_oz) November 21, 2011 at 3:47 pm

    I LOVE this! Seriously LOVE LOVE LOVE this… the post… the challenge… the pictures. I’m thankful in this moment for you sharing it!

    • inspiredrd November 21, 2011 at 8:33 pm

      Thank you Shelley! So excited to get started. Glad you are excited too!

  • Leah Segedie November 21, 2011 at 3:58 pm

    I find that days that I get away and experience People w/o the phone I’m able to leave it behind. Thanks for posting and sharing. 🙂

    • inspiredrd November 21, 2011 at 8:33 pm

      Thanks Leah. Definitely a needed break. Made me remember what real face-to-face conversations are like.

  • Jenn (@NutriNerd) November 21, 2011 at 4:10 pm

    Welcome back! What a way to be good to yourself and help inspire such wonderful ideas!!! I’m definitely going to participate in #365thanks … and spread the word 🙂

    • inspiredrd November 21, 2011 at 8:32 pm

      Thanks Jenn! I am so excited that you will be participating!

  • Melanie November 21, 2011 at 8:24 pm

    This is incredible, Alysa! What a great decision you made to unplug for 2 full weeks. I don’t think I’ve done that for more than a day or 2. I can only imagine how powerful that experience must have been (not to mention just plain relaxing.)

    • inspiredrd November 21, 2011 at 8:32 pm

      Thanks Mel, it was really nice! Definitely will plan to do it a couple times a year from now on 🙂

  • Danielle Omar November 22, 2011 at 2:42 pm

    I can so relate to your post, Alysa. I have gone on vacation without my phone and it’s so FREEING! You can really put things in perspective on a beach with a margarita in hand. Sometimes it’s hard to keep the momentum when I’m back home sitting in front of my computer, so I have a few sticky notes on my screen that say something to take me back to my “vacation mindset”…even if just for an hour.

    • inspiredrd November 22, 2011 at 9:17 pm

      It is SO hard to keep it up at home. I found myself sucked into computer land today. I am hoping that the #365thanks project will help me remember my priorities better!

  • Janelle@GraceTags November 23, 2011 at 10:17 am

    What an exciting challenge! And happy anniversary.

    Janelle
    GraceTags

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    I spent quite a bit of time “away” from my computer during the 1st trimester of this third pregnancy (I’m almost 22 weeks now). I came away w/ many of the same realizations. It’s a gift to live life slowly, intentionally, and not tied down to twitter. And yet the internet is a great tool too…

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