What are your favorite things? Do you ever take just a second to stop and think about what they are?

A few times a year, I sit down and make a list of my favorite things. I tuck them safely away and months may go by before I dig them back out of the cabinet.

I can’t tell you what a joy it is to read those lists. Recently I found one I had written several summers ago. Things I had completely forgotten about were on there, like the August day our air conditioner broke but it was cool enough I was wearing a long sleeve shirt. Or the things I had listed about what Little Bit was doing at the time.

Over on my Unmeasured Journeys Facebook page, we are doing a 30 Blessings List Challenge for the month of November.

Each day I’ve been posting what I call a Blessings Boost. It is simply a question or statement in case someone needs help narrowing down their blessings and picking one for that day.

Blessing Boost examples are: Look around the room you’re in right now and choose one thing you’re thankful for. Or, what’s a favorite hobby you love and are passionate about?

I found something interesting with how I’ve been coming up with those Blessing Boosts. I’ve been using the words favorite and blessing interchangeably.

We know blessing and favorite don’t have the same definitions, but did you ever notice how they just seem to go together? It’s almost like we can’t have a favorite thing without it being a blessing.

What is the point of a My Favorite Things List?  I thought of several things:

1. The act of doing it, helps make us aware of things we love at this particular moment. I don’t know about you, but my favorite things change.

2. It ends up being a documentation of various parts of our lives.

3. It’s less time consuming and less of a commitment than daily journaling, yet is still a memory keeper for the future.

4. It is a great way for expanding our thinking of the word things. 

5. It would be easy to make it into a present for someone by simply adding two words: My Favorite Things About You. In fact, I think I may do that for Christmas!

6. If our kiddos are little, we can make a list of their favorite things and stick it in their baby book.

7. Older kiddos might like making their own lists, and you could even put them in a time capsule to open on a specific date in the future.

Last night after everyone went to bed, I stood in my living room and looked around the house at my life. Then, I sat down in the kitchen and made my list.

My Favorite Things,  November 6, 2015

• The blue of this November Sky
• The downpour we had last night
• When my cats follow me about
• Little Bit reading Archie Comic books
• I found out my dad has been reading and enjoying my blog
• My mom signed up to follow my blog and receive emails each time I publish something
• When Little Bit squeezes into the chair beside me to read library books
• That our yard needed mowed in November!
• That I have this blog and kind souls are reading my stories
• 3rd grade curriculum (it’s fun and we are learning so much)
• Chamomile tea
• Sweet potatoes
• Warm days and playing outside
• With the recent time change, it’s easy to see sunrise and sunset in the same day
• Feeling healthy today
• Looking in my china cabinet and seeing things Little Bit and I find on nature hikes, like leaves and acorns

When I finished, I went to bed feeling not only happy, but very grateful. Who knew that simply making a list could be such a gift?

Thanks for being here,

Jessica

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