…oh, just hitting a little bit of a low point by 11am! i’d previously hoped we would make it to church with daddy + sister, mostly for the sake of pulling myself together and feeling like a decent looking human out for a family morning, but… you can see how well that plan worked out!
…the little bunnies take their cute new driving routine very seriously. 🙂 and steven is probably squinting from sun and/or thinking about a sore muscle or his upcoming monday, as that expression is pretty standard for any of those things. 😉
…she is literally the best big sister on this planet. i love how well she loves him, and i hope it lasts forever!
…desperately attempting bed time, but both of these sweet little weasels have now gotten a limb caught underneath the rocking chair. so…
…notice how much happier he is at 11pm rather than 11am! mmmhm, that is my child! i love you, baby boy!!! but… please, please, let’s go nightynight!
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aaaand so! there you have a fantastic little set of the ONLY photos i took on sunday! haha! generally unimpressive, but totally accurate… and just about the only ones i took all weekend long, actually. it wasn’t our best weekend on record, but you know? it was fine!
“you never see the hard times in a photo album, but those are the ones that get you from one happy snapshot to the next.” that line from the movie, just married, always rings so true in my mind! life is not always so charming, and that is okay. that’s how it’s meant to be! and typically the less adorable moments don’t find a place in my camera roll, but many of them are just too humorous to completely let go. 😉
so, did i find a reason at all this weekend to pull out my big camera? nope! did i lose a lot of sleep this past week and wind up a little bit cranky? yep! am i constantly worried that i’ve already screwed up motherhood beyond repair for no specific reason? of course! do i feel pretty and special? no. confident? in some ways, and not in others. am i healthy and grateful? absolutely!! do i despise the granite in our kitchen? yes, i do. but would it be completely superficial and self-indulgent to change that when so much else needs attention? it very much would! do i get stressed out a lot and want to run away? yep. do i have a perfect marriage? far from it! but do we love each other? yes, and that has never changed for me. am i an awesome christian? check my church attendance record! do i sometimes feel like God has me on mute? yep. did i almost mutter the F word this weekend? almost! then did i ask myself, “WWDKD?” [what would duchess kate do?] let’s be real… that thought gets me through many a low point! so, if she does have a foul mouth, don’t tell me. or do. i probably need to know. but, as usual… i digress!!
back in high school, i can recall several moments where someone would make a comment to me about how “happy” i was… even when i didn’t feel so happy. “are you always this happy?!” this came from mostly acquaintances, mind you, not typically the people that saw me in my darkest hour, but still. it surprised me sometimes! i had crazy teenage hormones, a number of less than loyal friends, an all-out hatred for math, and you know, some other standard high school disappointments, i guess… but i generally showed up to school in the morning smiling and in decent spirits! because… i don’t know? i had fun seeing people and starting new days and life is good! not always easy. but good. those are two different things.
anyway! fast forward. i obviously have a different set of concerns now than i did at 16. i’m a little tougher. and also more sensitive in some ways. our start to 2017 has been sooooooooooo far from ideal, if i’m being completely honest, and our most recent imperfect weekend hasn’t been the only! but… i still love hearts and exclamation points, and i still woke up on a gray march monday happy. and grateful. because while superficial happiness can change moment to moment, true joy is not situational. the contentment that stems from within, the knowledge that hard times will pass, that good times should be savored, that’s the foundation you build upon, right there. 🙂
[and for the record, i’ve had seasons, too, where everything just feels bad from the moment you open your eyes. those times are the absolute hardest, and i’m so sorry to anyone who is in that place!]
all that being said… i really enjoy capturing the treasures in life’s little moments, as well as the big. i love documenting the things i want to look back on, and more importantly, the things i want my children to look back on. i really enjoy taking photos in general! and i work really hard at letting go of negativity and disappointments, and i am thankful that’s always been a daily goal of mine. but you know what? some days i can’t. some days i’m consumed. and then, some days life is magically magical for no apparent reason. but either way, my goal remains the same: strive for joy. for better living. to savor the best parts of even the smallest moments. and to know that every breath is a gift.
so, if you think someone’s life looks easy, maybe it is! or maybe they are just sparing you the details of what makes them feel sad when they’re alone with their thoughts, the moments they snap and think, “it’s really happening! i’m actually losing my mind! i think i understand now why britney shaved her head!” a nice closeup of ants on the windowsill, or a glimpse at their DIY hazmat suit while they scrubadub the toilet.
either way! life is good. 🙂
Gosh, you took the words right out of my mouth! I think i could have written this post. But, you are so eloquent and Im not. So thank you for saying what i say in my head about lots of things.
And, you love your littles and your fluffies and your coffee and I do, too!!
oh you are too sweet!!!! i am often very very very very NOT eloquent… in which case, photos take over. haha!!!!
Love that quote, and the honesty, so true, thanks for sharing mama 🙂 Isn’t it wonderful to have your own little space to find joy in? When those hard moments come and you take a breath and look back at some of the best memories with those you love most, and then, most of the time, can take a step back and say “this too shall pass” but in the spirit of honesty, all us mamas know some days you just cant snap out of it, which is why it is so wonderful to share the hard times too a bit, to let other’s see they are not alone in the struggle and to let them tell you you are not alone either 😉 You are not alone mama, love to you and the fam!
i agree, it’s an interesting balance to try and focus on the positive, but be honest about the struggles… in a non-negative way! right? but it’s all there! 🙂 thanks for the sweet words, lady!!
I love this post so much! You truly never know what is going on in someone’s life behind the smiles and perfect pictures. In just 4 weeks of being a mommy I have definitely questioned myself but at the end of the day we are so very blessed and I am so thankful for this imperfect life!! Xoxoxo
it’s true, you never know!! life wasn’t meant to be easy!! i’m always reminding myself that some of the most important outcomes in life would never have happened without the tougher times!
I am dying at the hazmat suit reference! I sure am guilty of thinking other’s lives are so perfect and happy and well, charmed, but that’s not real life now is it? We all have our moments and they are all so vastly different from the next but they are there. Filtered or not. Tough weekends are real weekends and I wouldn’t have it any other way!!
you should see it – hair coverings and all! at the very least i just have to change my outfit and wash my arms! haha. toilets are the worst. and oh yes, it’s way easy to think that another person’s shared happy moments mean that life is easy peasy. totally agree. i always want to assume that, too. everyone’s got stuff to go through! then again, i know there are many a third-world country that would love to have our “problems.” it’s all relative!!