In Gratitude.

Community,

Recognition,

Grief,

Wiggles &

Companions.

Prep.

A Jim Kovaleski Long Pie that's been waiting just for today.

Split.  Wide.  Open.

A day of baking.

Sage bread cubed and drying out just anticipating it's transformation into stuffing!

And a the rare turkey bird taking a 24 hours bath in a simple brine.

Walking Along

Those sweet little downy hairs

There are these moments as a Mama that are magical.  They are calming, centering, heartening.  They come on the tale end of chaos, nipping the heels of meltdowns.  They are the moments of peace, of rest and quiet.  There is a curling, a molding of one small body to one large body.  There is a comfort there.  A hand held, a tear wiped, a silence of breath.

We as mother smooth our child's curls.  We stroke the head, the hair, the cheek and back.  We notice the baby-like softness of our child's cheek, those eyelashes that bring us back to all those quiet moments of nursing and rocking our infant.  These quiet moments are far between, the moments our child allows us to comfort them as if they were so small they could be tucked in the crook of our arms.

It is a sweetness and softness that soothes the heart, the soul, the mind.

tears. of. joy.

The Pride in Maine swells in my heart today.

Grows, Expands, Inflates, Catapults & Rises.

We.  Did.  It.