spring break, and sustenance

The boys are on break this week.  We didn't plan much, but have enjoyed the indoor pool and a trip to the movie theater, the playground down the hill from our house and cooking meals together.

At lunch today, Tolliver asked to make pizza "with naan, and you can hide some vegetables under the cheese, I don't mind.  Actually, can I help?"
And Tucker sauteed, under Andy's supervision, some mushrooms and peppers to mix with scrambled eggs.

Most of what happens in our kitchen is daily and mundane, wiping counters and pouring milk and saying grace. Other things are seasonal and special, slicing summer peaches and licking battered beaters and simmering chili in the fall. We are together in the kitchen every single day, creating and nourishing and sometimes even dancing. And all of it feels like a powerful force for connection, floured counters and pots of soup, dish-filled sinks and rising dough.

With the boys home the past few days, I've made an especially strong effort to worry less about what I should be doing and focus on what I am doing. Today it was doling out vitamins and observing knife-sharpening lessons and solidifying kitchen rituals that seem to be a foundation in our family.