may moments

hey y'all!  i've recently been thinking a lot about the month of may, and all it contains for so many people and families.  like me, you may read many of the articles about surviving through the end of school; they are usually hilariously written, share oh-so-true feelings, and are words we can all relate to.  but also perhaps like me, you read them and laugh, yet you yearn to finish your school year differently.  i don't know about you, but i want to finish stronger than when i started.  i want to have loved better, to have been present more, and to have my cup be filled more when i head into summer with my kiddos than when we started the school year.

i've decided to adopt the mantra that "may turns moments into memories" versus our cultural "may is madness."  yes, may is filled with the end of the year...which often entails graduation of some level [kindergarten, fifth grade, high school, college...you name it].  if your kiddo isn't the one graduating, maybe it's a family member or close family friend, so you're still invited and involved in the festivities.  maybe you have weddings to attend in may [or you got married in may like me]! or maybe you *just* have preschoolers, babies, or kiddos in non-graduating grades, and the end the school year is just. a. lot.

i refuse to buy into the lie that says may has to be madness.  will may most likely be full?  absolutely.  there are gifts to buy, pictures to take, events and ceremonies to attend, but all of these things do not have to be done with your tank empty.  i firmly believe that less is more in terms of schedule and things.  i'll also give you a tip: mother's day is in may. every. single. year.  planning ahead helps me a ton.  i know who the women are who we get gifts/cards for mother's day.  i know how many teachers my kiddos have and who needs to be acknowledged at the end of the school year.  i also know our may birthdays and plan ahead for those.

i've been thinking a lot about may because it's the month in which little lucy passed away two years ago.  i was telling someone that while our schedule allows, we hope to go somewhere on lucy's heavenversary [or near it] to celebrate her life.  after those words left my mouth, i thought, we make our family schedule.  we can control whether we go or not and whether [to a large extent] we are overwhelmed or not. thus, i started channeling the thought that may is for moments that will turn into memories.

even though there is much to do in may, i do not want the doing to replace the being.  i want to be present for popsicles on the playground and chatting with new friends.  i want to go into summer excited to have the only schedule be the one i make for my little family.  i want my kiddos to come home on their last day of school with grand ideas for summer in their head and me be able to say "YES!" to their visions of grandeur [now, i may have a cup of coffee in my hand because it is may after all], but i want to be just as excited as them and be ready for the adventure and wonder of summer!

all of that to say...who's with me?!  praying for a summer of abundant sunshine, adventure, and energy for us all!