Quickly.

I am sleep deprived like I haven't been sleep deprived in a long time.  I don't believe that I had more than 2 hours of sleep last night. We returned from Charleston this morning (two blessedly undelayed flights - but still 5.5 hours beginning at 5 am) and everyone went to work or school or on with life today.

I will write more later about how wonderful the trip was, but right now, I want to remember, I want you to know how grateful I am for nights like this. 

We all melted down at one point or another this afternoon, but we worked hard at treating eachother gently, at recognizing that we weren't at our best. And somehow we got through the homework, unpacking, etc (we did skip soccer) and extraneous stuff that happens when you're living as a family.  You were all asleep by 7:30, soundly.  But before you fell into your pillows you each had a moment to treasure: 

• Thomas, even with disrupted sleep all day, strange eating habits and very little time to crawl around, smiled all night long, until at last daddy put you to bed.  You find peace in chaos.   It is a blessing.
• MJ you remembered Connie, Mairaid, Celia, grandma Dougherty and your Schneeman grandparents, but especially "all the people who I love but am too tired to remember and all the people who love me but forgot to pray. Amen."
• Finn you stopped me as I closed the bedroom door wishing you all goodnight to tell me that you accidentally carried a piece of candy up to bed and asked if I would bring it back downstairs. You thanked me for reading with you after school.
• And Seamus you apologized for "melting down" during your homework. And thanked me for sticking with you as you fell apart. 

This is life in a nut shell. Do your best even when you're not at your best. Be grateful. Apologize when you need to. Say goodnight to the people you love.  And pray.

I love you so.