Happy New Year, albeit a few days late 😉 My sister came to visit us for an impromptu weekend over New Year’s Eve and then we went back to work Tuesday so I’ve been getting my groove back and trying to catch up in the blogosphere.

I’ve seen lots of great new year’s resolutions — including anti-resolutions (i.e., bloggers who refuse to make any) and I decided to share my singular resolution here.

BE GRATEFUL.

Looking at it, it sounds simple. “Be grateful.” DUH.

Yet I feel like in the whirlwind frenzy of the average day, I have so many things to be grateful for — things that go unnoticed … but shouldn’t. And I intend to change that in 2012.

Some are related to family: I have the two most amazing parents a girl could ask for, siblings I’d do anything for (and vice-versa), a truly selfless husband who literally moved across the world to be with me and loves me unconditionally, and a daughter that is the epitome of love, in truly every sense of the word. Oh, and a dog that couldn’t be sweeter … we just wish he wasn’t QUITE so big 😉

Some are related to friends: I could not be more blessed in this department … from my childhood friends, to my high school friends, college friends in DC, to my friends here in Michigan … I have always known who my friends are, and they’ve proven themselves time and time again. (And to my best friend … I wouldn’t be who I am without you, A! I love you!)

Some are related to my body: I might not be in the best shape of my life, but my body is strong and delivered a beautiful baby girl a year ago. It can run, it can dance, it can skate, it can climb, it can swim. And thanks to my company’s wellness incentives, Weight Watchers and my gym membership are essentially free — both of which help make me healthier and hopefully will help lower my risk for diseases.

Some are related to financial stability: a great job at a company I love, a roof over my head, a car to get me from place to place, clothes on my body, a savings account, health insurance, the ability to travel and enjoy a little life (within reason). –> Unfortunately, I think I take these, in particular, for granted … and I most certainly should not. We all know, things can change in an instant …

Some are related to indulgences: my near-daily latte habit, my shopping fetish (especially for baby girl goodies!), my chocolate passion, my new-found love of Zumba, my blog (a place I can express myself freely and without reservation).

Typing this list out shows I have many, many things for which to be grateful … and served as a reminder that all too often, I lose sight of them and take them for granted.

Because let’s be honest … how much time do we spend wishing/wanting something more, instead of being grateful for what we have?

Being grateful, to me, also means being in the present moment … having a heightened awareness of self.

It means thinking twice about getting Maya that new tunic that is SO adorable, recognizing she has one in her closet already … and doesn’t need more clothes. It means thinking twice about admiring the body of that skinny girl in line at the checkout counter; for all I know, she could be working three jobs to support her family. It means thinking twice about comparing my husband to another husband; mine isn’t perfect but he’s pretty damn amazing! And it means thinking twice about envying my blogger friends who write for a living, recognizing I could do the same … if I had the courage (and means) to up and quit my job and focus solely on blogging.

Indeed, life is very much about opportunities … and opportunities don’t always come when we want or expect them to. And sometimes we need to create our own opportunities.

But while there is nothing wrong with striving for “more,”  sometimes, we need to be reminded to be grateful for what we have … in this EXACT moment.

No, it won’t always be perfect — sometimes the scales will tip in different directions. Maybe things in the work buckey won’t be as satisfying as things in the family bucket, but there’s always something for which to be grateful … even if it’s just the opportunity to live another day; see another sunrise.

At the very least, being grateful for what I have each and every day will make me a better person and, I believe, a more compassionate person.

If that’s what 2012 can do for me, well, it’s going to be a very good year.

How about you? Do you make resolutions? If so, what was your resolution?