The Gobble Story

Have you ever felt a nudge that said, “Tag, you’re it!”? Well, I have, and there really isn’t any other way to describe how Gobble or the book, The Gratitude Game, came to be. I have learned to follow the promptings that are placed upon my heart, and they continue to lead me to places, I see in hindsight, that were meant for me.

So, what came first, The Gratitude Game book or Gobble?  I know this may surprise most people, but Gobble came first! Here is how this entire journey came to be….

It was November 2014, and our children were 2 and 5 and I really wanted to begin to cultivate a heart of gratitude within them. I didn’t want them to simply learn about gratitude, most importantly, I wanted it to become part of who they are. I also wasn’t opposed to upping my gratitude game either, if you know what I mean?! I had gratitude on the brain, but it was the ‘what’ and the ‘how’ that had me perplexed.

If I can be perfectly honest, I wanted to buy something! I wanted to cross it off the list and carry on with life. Life was (and still is) very busy!  I know you can probably relate; it’s a busy season of life. I began the search, but I just couldn’t find anything that I thought would make the connect with our children.

I knew it didn’t have to be big or fancy, but it did needed to be something they could engage with, something that would make sense through the eyes of a child. So, I grabbed some construction paper and crafted this poster board turkey that I thought no one would ever see!

Throughout the month, I would ask our kids what they were thankful for.   Then we would write it on one of the feathers and add it to our construction paper turkey. We brought him to the Thanksgiving table that year, and our kiddos and family shared what was written on each of the feathers. It worked! It was such a simple thing, but gratitude came to life in our home.  I was excited, but I knew I could be more creative!   Hmmmmmmmm???

So, the following year, November 2015,  the turkey got an upgrade and a name! I am crafty, but a seamstress I am not!  However, I do have a figure-it-out personality, and like most parents, I will broaden my horizons for our children to make things happen.

With a quick trip to the craft store, I bought lots of different patterned pieces of felt fabric. I came home, did some cutting, laced up a needle and thread, and stitched away with no idea of what I was doing! The gratitude jar concept that didn’t seem like a good idea just a year ago somehow seemed like a fabulous idea surrounded by a loveable hand-stitched turkey named Gobble!

We placed our friend (again, something I never thought most people would ever see!) on our kitchen island. We each made it a goal to fill out one notecard per day with what we were thankful for and place it in the jar. We filled the jar up with all kinds of moments of gratitude, and then we read them together as a family at the end of that month.

Long story short, it worked!  Seeing Gobble every day on our kitchen island was our reminder to “Look for it!” to notice and appreciate the little and the big things. Such a small gesture while putting into practice the life-giving principle of gratitude.

That’s when I knew! I knew we needed to share Gobble with your family too!  But, he needed an intro, a launching pad because otherwise, why would you just want a turkey gratitude jar? There needed to be a connection, a story that came first.  Gobble went from a construction paper creation to a stitched masterpiece to a character in my very first children’s book titled, The Gratitude Game.

I wish this process unfolded as quickly as that last sentence, but it was far from it!  The idea began in 2014, and The Gratitude Game wasn’t published until 2020!  Why, you ask? So many things, but I think you probably know, you probably feel the same things yourself.  It was and is a busy season of life!  Raising a family, working, and all the things in between do not leave an abundance of time to take a bath, let alone write a book! 

I almost let it go! There were so many times I said, “I just can’t! Not right now,”  but I was nudged again. I was reminded this assignment was for me, and I could say no if I just couldn’t do it, but something said, “Find a way!”.  I did what I could with the time that I could find or create.  The Gratitude Game was literally written from voice notes that I recorded into my phone in the carpool line, at stoplights, after jumping out of the shower, during a workout, or after something that had happened in our family that prompted a thought.

In all honesty, there were so many times that I doubted why I was qualified to write a children’s book on gratitude? What about the days that I didn’t even think about being grateful or did but just couldn’t get myself to do it.  How could that possibly make me the person who should follow through with the endeavor? But, again, another nudge that said, “This is why you are the exact right person to write this book! You are just like most people, and you can speak a language they will understand”.

And there it was, another important reminder about gratitude! I literally remember the stoplight that I recorded the voice note that said, gratitude will never give you a pass or fail grade, but will always say, “Welcome back!” and remind you to “Look for it!” again!

Oh, my goodness, if I needed to hear this message, how many others do too? And, what if a child learned it at a young age instead of as an adult?

Once your children meet Gobble in the book along with Grace and Graham (Our children’s middle names), they are going to want to have this sweet friend in your home reminding your family to “Look for it!”.

This has become our Thanksgiving tradition every year since!  November 1st, Gobble can be found perched on our kitchen island.  We usually do our gratitude party (take turns reading all the notecards together as a family) at the end of November.  It is also fun to have the gratitude party on Thanksgiving Day. Do whatever works best for your family!

Gobble isn’t just one of our favorite holiday traditions; he and his “Look for it!’ message have us celebrating the big, the small, and each other in a way we didn’t even realize we needed. Family traditions are one of the sweetest parts of childhood and provide some of the very best memories. Our children have genuinely fallen in love with Gobble, and I hope yours do too!

The good news! The Gobble that is going into the world, is not one of the above versions!  I would like you to meet Brenda, she is the creative genius/seamstress extraordinaire that has joined me on this journey. It is with great joy, we present to you Gobble 3.0! We’ve laughed, we’ve almost cried, and we have created something we are proud of for you and your family. We truly hope you enjoy Gobble and the gratitude that he will bring to your home!