Hey, hi, hello! I’m writing to you from Wisconsin, where I’m staying for 10 days to visit family, and celebrate my nephew’s baptism and my other nephew’s birthday.

Setting myself a measurable goal of writing one blog a month has been helpful for keeping me accountable. (Thanks, SMART goals!) The problem is I’m not sure if I’ll ever stop being a procrastinator.

My body knew the grief before my brain knew. Monday morning as I was spreading peach preserves on toast, I started tearing up. The jam reminded me of the orange marmalade my grandpa used to put on his toast and grandma’s homemade brown bread at their kitchen table in Niles, Illinois.