"It's morning!" David comes racing into our room. He climbs up the ancient wooden frame of our bed, knocking over the lamp. He crawls on top of me. "Good morning!" He hugs me.

David does not want to clean the living room (my idea). He does not want to clean the bathroom (my next idea). He is grumpy and pissy and flinging his limbs about. He finds a Ladybug magazine on the floor and hauls himself into my lap all bent elbows and jabbing knees. I snuggle him close and read.

David is on a mission. He and Rose are building a fort in the middle of the livingroom and this involves racing to all the other rooms in the house to grab pillows and bears and random boxes of puzzle pieces. I've had to make quite a few annoying corrections. "David you can't stand on the table. David pick up all the pens. David come here." He comes over, and I give him a big hug. Then he goes back to tearing the house limb to limb.

David is in the shopping cart. We have transitioned from the pre trip temper tantrum to the cheerful buying of hot chocolate. I lean over him in the cart. He puts him arms up, and we share a slow tender hug. He says, "I love you." I say, "I love you."