As a school counselor, a big part of my job is to be a manager of emotions.

I fail… a lot. Blame it on my Irish temper and sass, both of which can be strong, but I often find myself in need of managing myself.

Part of this managing is to take a few minutes every day to mentally make a list of 5 things for which I am thankful. Thankfulness is a positive step when managing difficult emotions… or so I’ve read.

I think it’s safe to say that I’m thankful every day for: family, friends, my home, my car, being able to live with “first world” problems instead of major hardships, etc. So, this project is really meant to force me to stop and smell the roses and find thanks for the little minutia that make up this thing called “life.”

My 5 for Today:

• Our school has a new ice machine that is BOMB. I’m so thankful that I can walk down to the cafeteria any time of day and reload my tumbler with awesome ice and enjoy a refreshing ice cold water with…
• True Lime/True Lemon packets!! I’ve seen people use these in their diet cokes on TikTok, but I LOVE jazzing up my water with a little bit of lime/lemon and these are PERFECT!
• The weather yesterday and today has been amazing! I took a leisurely stroll around my hood after work yesterday and was SO thankful for sunshine and 75° perfection.
• The nail on my index finger (left hand) has had a janky few weeks. I have no idea what happened to it, but it was almost buckled on the edge (not the whole nail) — but regardless, with the passing of time, it’s straightened out and no longer janky. This is a very small, petty thing, but it was just a weird look for about a two weeks.
• Easy meal prep and lunch prepped for the next two days! Y’all – it truly is the small stuff. I’m thankful I had enough energy and foresight to take my left overs and divide/prep into two more lunches for this week. Why I don’t do this more often is beyond me, but one day I will be a real grown up and take care of myself more consistently! 🙂

What are you thankful for today?