First Walk

Since we were let out of the hospital the night before Thanksgiving, we had a very simple, very small, very calm celebration with our own little family of five this year. It felt surreal that while we were in the hospital, the world was moving on, and a holiday was taking place. Of course we missed getting to spend time with our extended family, but it felt very cozy to just hunker down and enjoy our own little family this year. Certainly this was the year when we most keenly felt the importance of being thankful on Thanksgiving! How lucky we are to have all of our dear children! While Pat stayed at home to prepare our dinner, I took the kids out for our first walk around the block with Catherine. It felt so wonderful to be out! How invigorating to walk around, to see Lizzy and Peter scootering down the street in front of me, just like we've done hundreds of times, but this time with a tiny one strolling behind. We loved finding beautiful fall leaves, and looking for "winter" trees. Every time Peter found an extra special leaf, he told me it was for Catherine, and placed in on top of her blanket. By the time we got home, she had a gorgeous bouquet of fall leaves. What a perfect way to spend an afternoon.