And then what happened?

My original name for this blog that I had in my head was "And then what happened?" because it seemed to me that in our life (especially after the kids came along) that our stories had a heightened sense of normalcy that always turned ludicrous at some point. An everyday occurrence went awry, if something could happen it did, and most of the time that was hilarious stuff. Except when it isn't. Then the "and then what happened?" takes a different turn.

I have vowed that I will not really share anything of consistent substance and meaning on this blog. I'll lightly touch on some subjects dear to me, or pour my heart out declaring my love for my family, but I don't feel it's a forum for sharing my innermost thoughts and feelings. My wish for this blog is that my kids can one day look back on it and it will be a chronicle of the everyday moments of their growing up years. I'd like it to be a photographic journal with some details of what our daily life and experiences were like. I don't need the "fluff" and I don't need to pepper it with my thoughts and feelings on the subjects that could cloud these beautiful gems in the everyday.

I've been looking forward to this weekend for a long time. Jeremy and I jokingly called it our home make over weekend and just like those HGTV shows, we were on a strict timeline of trying to finish before we both head back to work. And while I am amazed at how much we got done (Lord knows how with the two littles needing  A LOT of problem solving minute to minute), I also had one of those emotionally charged, gut wrenching, take-over everything moments that threw me for a major loop. I downward spiraled for much of the rest of the weekend and sweet Jeremy kept righting my ship to keep me going. I'm heartbroken, trying to heal and forgive, and trying to wipe away the tears. A good friend advised me to do my best to choose joy. So, in this moment, I am doing my best. I will choose joy, but still feel free to work through my sadness and anger. And I'll do my best to see joy in this weekend I was looking forward to for so long. Choosing joy is hard, hard, hard sometimes. And not something I think I'll be able to do well for a little while. But I'll do my best.

 Joy in the form of new counters underway for the office.

 A joyful boy, proud of his clay creations.

 A little girl, overjoyed at "new" hand-me-downs. 

She HAD to put these on for lunch.

 A joyful, creative mess.

 Our lawn, which should be declared a disaster zone, but will surely provide some joyful moments this summer when it's healthier than ever after all the work Jer did on it.

 Two sweet kids who don't even notice the pouring rain. 

One is *possibly* dressed appropriately...at least for the water.

Their greatest joy right now is the mud pond they've created off the driveway.

Some joyful noise during a tickle fight.

~ Lord, help me to choose joy right now. ~