Made This/Said Goodbye to This

Arranged this.

Held this.

 Made this.

My siblings, siblings-in-law + niece + nephew, slightly blurred out of respect of their mama.

Said goodbye to this.

This weekend I went home to D.C. to attend and help with a retirement party for my beloved stepmom, Barbara. I literally have THE BEST "other mother" in the whole entire world. No understatement or exaggeration there, just a fact. 

Barbara created her own Montessori School over 40 years ago, and it quickly became a well-known institution in the D.C. area. My sisters did an amazing job putting so much of the party together and we all collaborated our efforts to celebrate the woman who made our lives, home, and up-bringing possible. After the party, we had our last night in the home that we grew up in before my parents move out of it later this week. Saying goodbye to the house that held us all together was sadder than I anticipated, and brought back a lot of sweet memories. Will and I ended our evening as we always do, with a nightly walk around the neighborhood. I kept having to walk around the block "one more time" to say goodbye and told Will stories of growing up with my siblings there. The highlight of the walk was seeing an exquisite fox walk out into the moonlight and stop to gaze our way. Thank you for that last memory, little fox friend. 

I will miss our incredible home on Hurst Terrace in Northwest D.C. and am so grateful to have grown up in such a loving and beautiful environment.