Thanksgiving is that holiday many of us love. It means sharing some of our favorite foods with family and friends. In America it has been a tradition formed based on a celebration of a good harvest. Over the many years it has transpired into something of a family centered tradition of food and football and remembering things we are thankful for; things we are grateful for in our lives.

Cruising around the interweb one day I found this wonderful idea.  It's something that I wish to incorporate into our family as a new family tradition. From what I've read some people use this idea by starting it and ending it with the New Year. I am thinking Thanksgiving is the prime and appropriate time to make it a family tradition.

What is this idea you are asking impatiently. The concept it to take an empty jar and through the year fill it with notes about good things that happen. On the next Thanksgiving we will empty the jar and see what awesome things happened and what things people in our family were grateful for during the year. It seems if each person can take a moment, even once a week, to purposefully write down something, one thing or several things that happened or that they noticed that they are thankful for it will encourage and preserve this process of gratitude and thankfulness in their hearts and heads. I will be sure to remind everyone that it need not be a lengthy note but just a sentence or two of recognizing something they are feeling genuine gratitude.

We'll see how it goes.  I love the idea and hope my family will embrace it.

What about you, what does your family do for Thanksgiving traditions?