Our Backs Against the Wind, Smiling

Here we are at the beach for my mom's birthday, we all love the beach so this seemed like a good idea. End of April, fifty degrees, sweatshirts and blankets packed up and ready to go. Not a cloud in the sky, so far so good. We stopped at Iggy's Clamshack for chowder and clamcakes, and headed for Fisherman's Cove beach in Point Judith. It was windy, and cold. Did I say windy? It was windy, very windy. And cold. We ended up huddled against the granite stones of the Fisherman's Memorial eating our lunch with the wind at our backs. The cold made the warmth of the chowder that much sweeter, to say nothing of the piping hot steam rising out of the clamcakes with that first bite. Perfection.

Only the boys would brave a walk on the beach with me afterwards. Heads down against the wind. Laughing.

We have been through a lot of changes in the year since my sister passed away, some good, some difficult. The hardest has been the struggle to hang onto our house, after a year of jumping through loops for banks and lawyers, worrying, waiting, we have decided to move sometime in the near future. All that really matters is what is in that top picture, all of us together (with me behind the camera) sharing the day. Celebrating all of the good things that we have, and we do have a lot. This decision is so new we don't even have a plan yet. We just know we want to stay together, (the worst legal advice,the lawyer who told us to give "those" kids back to the state and take care of our family. That was his last moment as our lawyer). Our new lawyer is wonderful and helping us figure things out in a way that accomplishes what matters, and that's staying together. Look at that bunch, I love them all so much my heart could burst. We lost one member of our motley crew just over a year ago, we have no plans to let go of each other anytime soon.

We can't say exaclty what is going to happen or where we will be a year from now but we will be like this - Huddled together our backs against the wind, smiling.