goodbye again...

She looked so different on this goodbye - one year later than our last.
Then - i kissed my sweet five year old goodbye -
this time... my six year old - her teeth more grown in than the year before, her hair pulled back into a tidy little pony tail of her own fashioning.
Why i wound myself with this tradition of goodbyes, i may never understand - but she wouldn't let me forget and climbed into my side of the bed for a goodbye snuggle and a prayer of blessing.
My youngest daughter is seven.
She - so much a part of the older crew - and yet nostalgic about being the baby.
Today my shirt was riding up as we sat on the couch - she's still tiny enough to fit in my arms. She ran her little finger over a silvery stretch mark on the side of my tummy and wondered what it was...
i told her that sometimes when momma's are growing babies, their bellies grow so big - so quickly - that they get little stretch marks on them.
She looked at me quickly - in hopeful anticipation, "There's a baby growing in there right now, isn't there? i know there is! It's a girl! Let's name her Emily!"
No, sweet one, there's no baby growing in there now -
But how tender - to think of sharing your nesting place - on the anniversary of your birth.