Morning Routine

They have been awake for about 20 minutes I would guess. Morning sounds echo down the hallway and push under the bedroom door to greet me as I rise. Coffee is waiting just how I like and the boys have been fed and clothes lain out for the oldest. It’s a school day after all, but not for the little one. This is our morning routine. Such comfort there is in the sameness, in the ordinary.

There is an impatient energy in the air that is my husbands. Follows him around like an old friend. I have gotten used to the energy over the years; have found a way for it to mingle with my need for stillness and quiet. They coexist in harmony, but it has taken some time.

Jackets and hats in place and back-pack found. Good bye kisses and I’ll pick you up from school for the older one and a reassurance that this day started the same as the last. Routine. Mundane. But it’s ours, and we wrap it around us like a well worn blanket.

At last it is just me and the little one. We sit. Snuggle in. Wrap ourselves around each other. He pulls my face toward him with his little hands and begs me to listen. I wouldn’t miss it! This time we have together. And I try not to think about next year. When they are both in school full time and a new routine must be made.