Weekend mornings are bittersweet. I remember the days when I could sleep as late as I would like with no one interrupting me looking for breakfast or a butt wipe. But in those moments between asleep and awake, the most beautiful things start to happen.

McKenna pads out of her room around 7am. She jumps into bed with me and we snuggle for a while. I don’t mind as I drift back to sleep. Theo starts to stir at the foot of the bed and I know I will have to leave the warmth of my blankets. But I don’t. Aaron gets up and takes the baby for a diaper change and to make a bottle. He deposits him between McKenna and myself. Instinctively, she takes over.

The four of us snuggle together as we wait for George to wake. McKenna chooses a movie and Theo and I settle in for a morning snooze. I am comfortable and content. It’s not often that I am afforded this luxury and I am soaking it up while I can.

I awaken with a start. I am alone except for the sleeping baby next to me. The bed has cleared out and TV turned off. I can barely hear the big kids somewhere in the distance. It’s near 11am and I’ve been sleeping for a couple of hours. I am rested but uncaffeinated.

And yet it doesn’t seem to matter.