Today is Monday. Monday is often the most dreaded day of the week because it means we have to shift out of weekend mode and get back to the scheduled demands of every day living. This Monday has done its best to live up to its reputation starting with my husband waking up to a teeth-clenching gout attack; this is particularly challenging as I wrestle with the physical wear and tear of being in my 36th week of pregnancy while trying to maintain a consistent routine for our 3 little people.

As I hung up my third load of laundry I reflected with gratitude on God’s gracious mercies: I had energy this morning to handle these unexpected challenges and my emotions were leaning in the direction of blessing-counting rather than hormonal weeping. And then it clicked! This is life: the break from routine, the being there for the ones you love, the recognition that life isn’t always about what tasks you accomplish but instead about those in between moments that you weren’t expecting.

This Monday I’m grasping that my housekeeping, meal-making, laundry-hanging, preschool-teaching routine isn’t about accomplishing what’s next on the list but is about meeting the needs of the ones I love and interacting with them in a variety of ways. Life really happens when I can embrace the routine and the unexpected.