I drove on the freeway for the first time since last year March. I wasn’t sure if I’d feel too anxious but it didn’t feel terrible and I managed to make it there and back just fine.

I get to do it all over again tomorrow and then again Monday and Tuesday. I expect I will have it totally down by then.

I got a tiny glimpse at the life before all this and it was eerily familiar. All the same and yet all a little different. Seeing people. Having conversations face to face.

It felt good.

Yes to seeing people and yes to mk snacks and yes to glimpses of life.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

Since Sunday I’ve been taking photos of our ordinary life to capture a typical week in our current life.

I did this @aliedwards week in the life project back in 2012, when I had a 3 year old and a 7 year old. I did it again in 2014 with a 5 and 9 year old and now I have a 12 and 16 year old and we are all at home doing school and work from here.

Ordinary life is anything but ordinary. And these tiny, irrelevant seeming moments of life are ephemeral and they are made of gold.

I know that when my kids are off living their own lives, I will miss these moments the most. The seemingly inconsequential experience of my teenager eating cereal as he surfs on his phone. Or my younger one watching movies. I will miss the sounds they make as they work. The laughter when they are chatting with their friends. I will even miss the mess in their rooms.

Because our everyday ordinary life is filled with their life and their souls. It’s us in this moment of time that will never be here again. We get to be right here right now only this one time.

And through this magical project I get to capture a tiny sliver of that and keep it with me forever.

How is that not the best deal ever?

Yes to capturing our everyday, yes to telling our stories.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes #weekinthelife

Here’s the incredibly thoughtful present my lovely husband got me for mother’s day. (He got me some fun scrapbooking stuff too!)

This is an exact replica of my climbing shoes that I wear each time we go climbing. And now I have a little keychain where I can carry them around with me.

How sweet is that?

Today was a tough day at work as expected, so I took a lot of downtime and went climbing with my husband. When I was up on the wall I forgot all about work. And everything else.

And now I sit here and write up my week in the life noted and feel okay. So we will call this a win.

Yes to stepping away when needed. Yes to being present and doing things that help you be present.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes