Many years ago on this blog, I would write a post weekly (back when I used to write two to three times weekly WHO THE HELL WAS I?) titled Three Things.
I only ended up writing 11 of those posts back in 2011, and then abruptly stopped.
Essentially it was three things I did within that week that made me happy.
For example, within two of the posts I found, one was about shopping at Goodwill with Anna, spending time with my forever best friend Rebecca, and good movies I found at the library.
Maybe I stopped because I thought it was a post more for me and less for my readers or maybe I stopped because I had SO MANY DIY PROJECTS TO DO, back when I was trying to impress the world with my new blog.
But when I went back and read all of them, they were some of the best posts I had written.
Not the best writing BY FAR, but it was honest, it was personal, and it was like having a real journal from that time.
Within those 11 posts, I got to revisit when Anna mowed the lawn for the first time.
Or when Ella became a “big girl”. .
It was nice to see good things that happened back when I was in the thick of parenting. Oh sure, I knew a lot of great things happened, but some of those great things get lost in the details.
For the past two months, I have been struggling with my anxiety more than I usually do. I won’t go into detail but let’s just say January and February were harder than normal.
In the midst of this, I decided that I was going to write three good things about each day in the notes section of my phone.
I needed proof that within each day that good things happened even while my brain was malfunctioning on me.
My head was telling me that nothing good was happening in my world and I wanted to prove the a-hole wrong.
I was saving my soul with each entry.
So each night, I would write in my phone three good things about each day.
Sometimes I could only write two, which made me think even harder about my day, analyzing what really was good in my life rather than what was wrong with me, what my body was feeling, what my brain was desperately trying to convince me otherwise.
Other days, I had to add a bonus 4th good thing which would make me feel so hopeful; I was winning on the war against my psyche.
But it’s stuff like this that will make me go back in a few years from now and romanticize this part of my life.
Kind of like the Three Things posts of 2011 did for me right now.
While I was in that time period, I remember there was a lot of stressful things going on in our lives, but now it seems like a happier, simpler, time.
Someday, I will wish for the winter of 2019.
I can’t wait for that.
A Grace Full Life 
Kari, what a great idea to write down 3 good things about each day! I think it really makes you appreciate the good things God has provided that we/I take for granted, but it helps you see the progress you’ve made. And about Jan/Feb being hard for you, I think those are hard months for most of us, what with it being cold, dark, dreary weather most of the time. Anyway, I think I’ll start writing down 3 good things for myself.
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AMEN, Florence! It was hard for almost everyone I know, so I am glad it wasn’t just me. Safety/comfort in numbers. 🙂
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I love this! It’s so easy to forget about our blessings and instead dwell on the bad things. This is a nice reminder!
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Exactly. 🙂
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OH I just love this! I write my Friday Favorites each week for the same exact reason; it’s so easy to get bogged down in the day to day of parenting and adulting but there is good in each day and I try to focus on that. Plus I love going back through and seeing those glimpses of each week with the highlight reel.
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A highlight reel! Yes!!
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Time is so funny, the way it plays with our heads. There’s always a mix of good and bad going on, isn’t there? I will say, though, that I don’t think I’m ever going to feel nostalgic about the second half of 2016. It was just a sucky time, in pretty much every way (for me).
Sorry the winter months were so rough. Hoping your a-hole head gives you a break when the sun comes out. 🙂
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It is so much better now that we have had two weeks of decent weather and the sun is out until almost 7 now. It is amazing how weather and sunlight can affect my anxiety.
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This is awesome. I plan to start recording things that sparked my day and made me happy . . . if I start now while I am in Tampa on spring break, will I be cheating? Because- like EVERY moment feels glorious when your biggest challenge is choosing what beach to lay on for 5 hous in 78 degree, sunny weather! This post does make me wish that I had started blogging when the kids were younger. So much material from their goofiness. Ah, but that is why I took 7 million pictures. Are you in Destin now? If so, hope you are having an awesome, relaxing time!
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Enjoy Florida!!!
We are going to Destin in a few months. We usually go this exact week each year but it is a little too chilly in the panhandle during break time, so we are going when we know it will be much warmer. 🙂
Have a great time!
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I try to write down three things every day that I am thankful for, and it really does help get me out of my fog. Even if just for a moment. Also, I know what you mean about looking back on blog things and thinking about how great things were ‘back then’. I have my old site archived, and every once in a while I go back to seven years ago, and everything looked so much easier. Granted I only had one kid, and a job that was so unchallenging that it was soul-suckingly boring. But it feels like it was a nicer time, even though I had the same struggles, only different. I would love to see this as a regular series. Your happy, makes our happy even happier!
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That is one of the great things about having a blog. I love being able to revisit a time when the kids were small. Much better at times than a photo album. 🙂
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I really like this idea about writing down three good things about each day. I’ve been struggling this year so far and in my daily notebook, I’ve been writing a lot of negative stuff. Sure, it gets it out of my system but I do need to remember to count my blessings, too. Even if they’re just little things. Thanks for the reminder. xoxo
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I think it’s also healthy to write those bad things too to, as you said, get them out of your system. It’s a balance for sure. 🙂
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It’s always good to have those things to look back on especially when you’re in the middle of a stressful or down time. For the past 4 years now, I’ve been doing the One Happy Year project. There’s no limit to how many things you write down. My husband is way more detailed in his but mine are more like bullet points. Some days all I can write down is “didn’t need bail money.” I especially needed it last year as it truly was the worst year of my life and being able to look back and see that not every day of the worst year was a bag of suck, was good for me. On New Years Eve, we sit down and read our entries aloud to each other.
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I love this idea! Are you writing these down in your phones or actual paper and pen? This is such a great idea.
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Nice to know someone else does this, too. 2019 has been a challenge so far, and I write down things I am grateful for in my journal. When I look back, it helps to see those things. Been doing this for a few years.
Hope this new format works out for you!
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YES. I love this idea so much. I may keep doing it even into the “good” months. 🙂
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I think I will try three things with my kids as a way of helping them to be more thankful. Thank you so much for the idea and for linking up to Best of the Weekend.
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Such a great idea for kids! Thank you so much for visiting! 🙂
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I feel ya girl! It seems like these last few months have been hard on a lot of people. The depression and anxiety hit me so hard I admitted myself to the psych unit. It was while there that I’d decide to do something along the same lines, only I’d write it out on paper. It’s helped my mind focus on the good.
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I am loving hearing how this is working for others too. It is amazing what refocusing can do.
Sending you a big hug; this winter was pretty bad. 😦
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