Joy, week 15
Spring break is over and we’re working on an early bedtime tonight. It’s so hard to give up my kids for another seven weeks! Our little taste of freedom has yielded some good ideas and observations from which to plan the summer and I’m excited to change gears for more than a week.
It was a fantastic week. I’m so thankful for the things we were able to do, for the time the children spent playing outside, for time with my sister, time as a family, time in the temple, and a hundred other little things.
I definitely felt joy this week. Joy in my children, joy in my relationship with my sister, joy in watching my son handle his new challenge with such humor. I have felt joy in the flowers blooming all over my yard and joy in the blossoms on my trees. Joy in laughing with my husband at the non-stop narrative of our two year old this afternoon, laughing until my eyes were filled with tears. Joy in time spent talking with friends. Lots and lots of joy. It was certainly not a week without difficulty, but it was a joyful week. Yesterday my husband walked through the kitchen and said to me, “Aren’t you so glad we’re not all sick to our stomachs right now?” Yes, we found joy in healthy appetites and no illness in our home.
As far as my goals go, I was happy to spend some time sewing. I also reached a goal I’d set to go spend time in Logan – just me, without kids – with my sister. It feels good to have made that a priority.
Yesterday I spent a couple of hours working on our summer calendar and hope I’ve got some things figured out. I feel like I’ve got a good handle on the next couple of weeks and I really hope to make it through the end of May in good form. It’s the busiest time of the year for me, but I’m starting to feel like I just might be finding my stride. Lots of little things are still falling by the wayside but they’re little things, things I cannot sacrifice to the big things, so I’m learning to let them go and with them, let go of the self-criticism I usually give in to as I watch them litter the path behind me. That’s easily said after a simple week. The test comes as we dive in tomorrow morning and sprint through the week.
And so I’m going to leave this post on the lighter side in order to enjoy some quiet time in bed with a good book before I attempt to get a full night’s sleep. I am grateful to be alive, grateful to have this loud, messy, happy, fun family, grateful for my husband who makes things much more fun than I do, grateful for my Heavenly Father who makes everything work out. Life is joyful!
Jennifer