Today I finished the blanket I started for Henry before he existed.

 

Tomorrow is the Moment of Truth: John goes back to work!

 

Saturday is the anniversary of what we believe to be the day we lost Ethan. There were some tears when I brought this up to John tonight, but there are few words. (Surprised? I am.) I hope to work on a novel edit in the morning, enjoy my family all afternoon, and keep the next day’s Gospel in mind when I get sad. The end.

 

Sunday is Epiphany, aka the feast of the three kings or magi. It is one of my favorite days in the liturgical calendar. At the end of the aforementioned Gospel reading (Matthew 2:1-12), “having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, [the magi] departed for their country by another way.” It’s a reminder that our plans are all subject to change, that the way home is not always—and perhaps not often—where we expect it to be.

 

After that, we get back into ordinary time in more ways than one. In the Church, the Christmas season officially ends. In our home, especially with John off work for two weeks (thank God!) the Christmas season has been about Henry’s birth as well as Jesus’. There have been lots of visits, coffee, wine, cake, and mirth in general. The next week will be about my finding my groove as the mother of two little boys.

 

Expect reflection. Expect hilarity. Expect sleep deprivation. Things are about to get much more . . . interesting around here.