day 189 : the post that started this all {and thoughts on 365 days of kindness}

hi everybody!
as you read this, blake and i are on vacation for SEVEN days!
i am super excited to recap and share everything when we get back home.
we made a pact that we would be as 'technology-free' as possible this week.
we wont be instagram-ing each moment, i took facebook off my phone a few weeks ago and we wont be live-tweeting our trip.

we have been planning this week away for the past 4 months and i want to be in the moment as much as possible. its so important to me to step away from the magic of technology for the week.

some of you have been following this blog since the beginning {whoop!} and some of you are new-er! either way, i just wanted to take a minute today and reflect on this project.

when the boston bombings happened one year ago {last week}; i was so bummed. the sandy hook school shootings happened the day of my birthday and i remember feeling sick for WEEKS. just so sad. and hurt. and pissed off.

the day after the bombings, i wrote this post on my other blog. i created a list of 26.2 acts of kindness to complete in honor of those affected by the blast. as i was writing it, it made me think.
we always do this.
every time something happens, we always say 'okay, i will call my mom more often.' 'i won't be such a hardass on my husband for leaving his socks on the floor.' 'i will be nicer to the person who serves me coffee in the morning.'
and we try. for a week or so, we try to be less nag-gy, a little nicer, more considerate.
and then we go back to normal.
until, a couple months later, yet another tragedy happens...

in the days that followed my 'good deeds' post, i decided to issue a challenge to myself.
can i complete one act of kindness, every day for an entire year?
could i do it? would i run out of ideas? is it really possible to be nice every single day?
so, i took the challenge.

on may 1st, 2013, i launched this blog. i spent HOURS compiling a list of 400 good deeds. i asked my friends and people on my social network.

i still have 176 days to go {because i didnt blog weekends and went stretches where i didnt blog anything at all}
there have been tons of small acts of kindness that i have completed that i have never blogged about. some seemed too easy. sometimes i just didnt have the time to record them. other times, i wanted certain acts to be completely anonymous.

you guys, this project has changed my life!
i know that it sounds silly.
when i first started, i would plan out my good deeds and was so worried that i wouldnt be able to be 'nice enough.'
and now that i am almost 200 days in, it just feels so natural. each situation i am in, it just feels so easy to smile and be genuine.
this project has given me the confidence to say 'how can i help?' 'what can i do to make things better?'
and dont get me wrong. i am not always kind.
i use the f-word quite often. i recently quit a really horrible job. sometimes i get really mad at blake.

i am not perfect. 
but this project has given me such an amazing eye for kindness.
all i want is to make this planet better.
i dont have a lot of money. i dont have a lot of power. i will never be a world leader or a famous actress. there is a huge chance that millions of people will never know who i am.
BUT, i have kindness.
each day, i am able to make a moment better for someone or something else.

thanks for joining me on this journey, everybody!
i would love to hear any fun good deed story you have to share {whether its something YOU have done, something you have SEEN or something that has happened to YOU}