“Oh it’s always this crazy”. He laughed a little before replying, “I thought my day was crazy. I wouldn’t trade it for your kind of crazy!”

And that’s where he was sorely mistaken.

“But Mama…” And this is when his voice cracks and his bottom lip begins to quiver. “I don’t want to die.”

No matter the circumstance or context, when for the first time words of their own death pass from the lips of your child, your own heart stops beating for a moment or two.

When a giant millipede tramples all over your hope for an enchanting morning, follow this simple rule that has led our family to grand discoveries and adventures…

There is a bigger promise I should have made to you that day as we slipped gold bands of promise around each other’s fingers; one I could not have imagined back then would need a vow to stand behind it.

It begins at that first introduction with a first impression so strong and beautiful enough to graft two souls into one, but it does’t end there. There is a whole melody playing out as we find ourselves surprised my motherhood time and time again.

Here it is friends, the secret I’ve been keeping under wraps for six months–the one that began with that humble jar of 936 Pennies.