The first quarter of the year is over – how time really flies! Reading back on my daily gratitudes, it appears that I’ve been grateful for more than one thing on most days.

Perhaps this gratitude journal is making me appreciate things more, to stop and smell the flowers, so to speak. Or perhaps this month has been quite full on and so I’ve been purposefully trying to think of more than one thing I’m grateful for to attempt to shrink the stress in me.

It appears I’ve been really grateful for TV, food, and people this month. Some escapism from work, eating foods that I haven’t eaten in so long, and receiving validation and support from cheerleaders. So, here is my March gratitude journal:

1 A few things today. Grateful for work for organising an event celebrating the release of an interesting project. There was food and crafts and a photoshoot, all really good fun. Grateful for Artemis who was super adorable today and loving all the hugs and cuddles. And grateful for our neighbour who helped walk Artemis today.

2 Disney: grateful for Disney today, as I was listening to some Disney tunes on the way to and from work. Some really good belters and I’m grateful that I can listen to these brilliant songs.

3 A few things today. Grateful for Girls 5 Eva, as it is absolutely hilarious and the songs are really catchy too. Grateful for the hubby, offering big soothing hugs. Grateful for Artemis, for just being so adorable throughout the day.

4 A few things today. Graceful for ear muffs, protecting my cold ears during obedience training today. Grateful for my body, letting me know when I’ve overdone it – my neck/ back is in pain. Grateful for the hubby, helping me reach and get things as I can’t really pivot or move around so much today. And grateful for Artemis, who was lying on me and keeping me company through the pain.

5 A handful of things today. Grateful for medicine, as my neck/ back is still painful so pills have been relieving said pain a little. Grateful for the hubby, helping me do things due to my limited mobility. Grateful for Artemis, who is just hilarious snorting next to me on the sofa. Grateful for carving out time to plan out the following week, I feel having done so has allowed me to feel ready for the busy days ahead of me.

6 The hubby: grateful for the hubby today, giving me lots of hugs and cooking dinner too. What a day – absolutely exhausted!

7 Uninterrupted sleep: grateful for uninterrupted sleep today/ last night. I feel I zonked out as soon as my head hit the pillow! Grateful to get some rest, quite literally, and grateful that I didn’t feel too tired today considering how late I got to bed. Grateful that my body can still function on minimal hours of sleep.

8 A couple of things today. Grateful to be able to work from home, as it was snowing quite heavily this morning. Also grateful for heating, we awoke to lower temperatures this morning – hence the snow – but we’re able to still keep warm.

9 A few things today. Grateful for caffeine today, helping me get through the day. Grateful for cupcakes, as it was a colleague’s milestone birthday and there were lots of yummy cupcakes. Grateful for my old jobs and the experience I gained from them, helping me think and convey my thoughts diplomatically.

10 Women: grateful for women today. Work had a panel discussion for International Women’s Week, where women from multiple sister companies shared their thoughts and ideas and it was very enlightening and inspiring. I had no idea of some of the initiatives that some of my sister companies have and I’m interested to know if some of those initiatives will now be rolled out to my company and other sister companies. One take away I had was to be a role model or mentor, or to find one, as one panel member said “you can’t be what you can’t see”. Ah, so inspiring!

11 Grateful for people in my life who make me feel safe, seen, and heard. I listened to an episode of the podcast Barb Knows Best and am so grateful to hear the podcast hosts shine a light on so many mental health issues; I’ve learnt so much from this podcast.

12 Grateful for a little lie in today, resting and recuperating. Grateful for M&S chocolate biscuits, as they are so tasty. Grateful for Korean drama Extraordinary Attorney Woo, which has made me laugh, cry, and think – a great show.

13 Grateful for toasted hot cross buns today, super tasty and warm! Grateful for some sunshine today, it was shining when I was walking Artemis this morning. Grateful for reading last night, as I pretty much got to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

14 Grateful for a mini couple’s dog walk this evening when it was still light, we haven’t walked Artemis together in a little while so it was nice doing so this evening. Grateful for WordPress, I got a reminder that I first joined WordPress 12 years ago today – 12 years! So I guess I’m also grateful for writing, since childhood writing has been a great way to get my thoughts out of my mind and onto paper. Grateful to have this cathartic outlet as well as this platform to do it.

15 Grateful for good news, as there is something happening at work that has been signed off that will greatly reduce my workload. Grateful for being a cautious driver, as there was a potential incident today where I swerved a little to avoid a car coming into my lane (they decided to signal after trying to move) and I’m grateful that I saw them in time. Grateful for driving a car, as I believe it’s almost a year since I’ve had the eco car – how time flies!

16 Grateful for validation, as I spoke with my line manager about something and we are in alignment so I’m pleased to know I’m seeing things clearly. Grateful for Artemis who napped on me this evening. Grateful for conversations with the hubby, who listens to me and I feel seen and heard by him.

17 Grateful for hot cross buns today, toasted with butter, mmmm. Easter is coming up so looking forward to eating more hot cross buns.

18 Grateful for nice parks near me, I walked Artemis in a lovely park that we haven’t visited in months and she was loving it. Grateful for Artemis who was super cuddly today. Grateful for Pringles, because I had them for the first time in months. Grateful for U2, we’ve started watching a documentary about my all time absolute favourite band and some songs are played in the documentary that just really speak to me.

19 Grateful for sleep, as I had an epic lie in. Grateful for roast dinners, as we cooked one and it was delicious.

20 Grateful for tapas, as we had Spanish tapas today and it was super tasty, shame we didn’t get any sangria though. Grateful for finishing my studying days, as I was reminded of student days and studying. Grateful for the hubby, as I’m watching a Chinese drama where there are some questionable relationships.

21 Grateful for soup, as we had broccoli and stilton soup which is delicious. Grateful for birds and sunshine, which I saw both in the garden this afternoon. Grateful for Artemis, who was all cuddles on the sofa – I think it’s safe to say that she knows this is her forever home. Grateful for digging deep and facing the past, I had a breakthrough conversation and it was enlightening. It’s really interesting what the brain does to protect itself.

22 Grateful for some sunshine, as it was sunny and bright when I was out today. Grateful for my neighbour, who has been helping out with Artemis and letting me know about the goings on in our connected gardens. Grateful for the hubby, spending time with me and listening to me today. Grateful to have a garden that is surprisingly starting to bloom again, I say surprising as Artemis dug and trod on the flower beds last year so I wasn’t expecting anything to grow this year but flowers appear to be more resilient against Artemis’s paws than I thought!

23 Grateful for lie ins, as I slept in today and it was great! Grateful for a wealth of accessible knowledge on the internet, I’m getting back into skincare so it’s really useful learning about all things skin related.

24 Grateful for pictures capturing precious memories, as I looked back at old pictures of our old dog Merlin and looked at recent pictures of Artemis. Grateful that camera phones and digital cameras exist, otherwise I wouldn’t have taken as many pictures of my dogs with a film camera. Grateful for Korean drama Amazing Attorney Woo, as it is funny, heartwarming, and gets you thinking. Also grateful for sushi, because one character in the drama eats sushi a lot and we also ate some drama-inspired sushi tonight and it was delicious.

25 Grateful for the hubby today, offering some sound advice and helping me think things through. Also grateful for family dog walks, even if Artemis pulls on the lead. It’s funny seeing her sniff around and be curious about the world, it really helps remind me to try and stay present and mindful.

26 Grateful for physical books and post it notes. I’ve been reading non fiction lately and I’m grateful to be able to refer to pages quickly as I want to remind myself of insightful passages.

27 Grateful for light, the clocks have gone forward and it was nice waking up to some daylight. Grateful for the hubby who has been helping me work through some annoying issues and offering really good hugs.

28 Grateful for Artemis, who is gaining more independence via lounging on the sofa instead of sleeping by my feet during the working day, but is always super excited to see me when I leave my work chair – she has such a wiggle butt.

29 Grateful for Artemis who was absolutely adorable when I collected her today, she’s got such a wiggle butt, like it’s separate from the rest of her body. Grateful for having lunch with colleagues, which hasn’t happened in a while but quite a few of us managed to get together and it was lovely.

30 Grateful for free lunch today, as well as free dinner. Went into the office and there was free food ready which was super tasty and of course free dinner where I had dim sum for the first time in ages. Grateful for my colleague for suggesting this place for food too.

31 Grateful for the hubby, giving really good hugs, offering sound advice, and making all the food today. Grateful for Artemis, who is adorable with her wiggle butt. Grateful for One Note, helping me plan the next few intensive weeks.