I remember a lot about those last couple of months of 2006.

I remember our last Halloween, the first trick-or-treating.

I remember visiting my grandparents and Henry playing with our old toys and running in the leaf-filled yard on a beautiful, warm fall day.

I remember that night. Oh, how I remember that night.

I remember taking our last family picture right around Thanksgiving with the intent to put it on Christmas cards and announce our second baby.

I did give out those cards, but they had a letter attached. A letter talking about how unfair life was, and how instead of becoming a family of four the following summer, we’d be back to a family of three again.

family 06

When you take a picture like that, you never think this picture will have a million different meanings a couple of months from now, and forever after that.

You don’t think this is the last picture we’ll take as a family, the only picture of all four of us.

family 2006 2

You probably won’t be thinking this smile. I’m going to miss this smile.