She is teaching us how to make the cutest Gratitude Bags! I just love these! I hope you will take the time to visit Jen’s at Kitchen Counter Chronicles and follow her on social media.
I am always looking for new ways to introduce a little gratitude into our lives. I am so very grateful for all that we have and finding new ways to express my gratitude is an ongoing personal goal of mine. I discuss gratitude all the time with my two daughters. I hope that as they grow up they will come to always appreciate what that they have. I don’t necessarily mean the material objects, I mean the family and the love they have.
So, this year when my youngest daughter (7 years old) was inspired by a classroom project it lead us to create gratitude bags for our family. My daughters idea came from a project they are doing at school called “Morning Smiles.” The students write and exchange notes, sharing things they like about each other. Once a month they read the notes. My daughter said the exercise is all about relationship building. Sounds great to me. She wanted to try something similar at home and I agreed.
Gratitude Bags
To make the bag, we started with a 5″ x 12″ piece of craft felt.
We folded one end of the felt up to create a pocket, leaving enough felt to cut a handle. I sewed on my daughters’ first initials on their bags and a heart on the pouch for my husband and I.
Next, I folded the bag in half and cut the shape of the handle.
Finally, I sewed the sides of the bag closed.
Once the bag was sewn, I put a small hook in each of our bedroom doors and hung up the bags.
Everyone in our family understands that they are to write down a note to another family member and place it in the family members gratitude bag. The notes are to express gratitude, thankfulness, love and appreciation for the other person. At any time we can read the notes in our gratitude bags.
My hope is that these notes will help my daughters learn how to express gratitude for others and understand how wonderful it feels to make another person feel valued. The gratitude bags are in place, the note paper has been delivered and now we wait and see how this gratitude experiment goes.
So far, I have heard some little feet pattering across the floor and pausing to drop a note or two in a gratitude bag. What will the notes say? I’m looking forward to writing and receiving some gratitude notes in the very near future.
In Jen’s “previous life” she was a mental health professional…in her current life she is a stay-at-home mom with 2 beautifully adventurous kids. Jen shares everything that lands on her kitchen counter over on her blog, Kitchen Counter Chronicles. Swing by and learn how they are greening their lives; what they are crafting; what they are cooking and what they are reading. While you will often find Jen and her girls inside the kitchen, you will also find them out and about getting our hands dirty, exploring and learning outdoors.
You can also follow Kitchen Counter Chronicles on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.
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