Falling Asleep by the Fire

I grew up in a house with a wood stove.  It was used as the primary source of heating, so I watched many winter fires burn through its windows.  I always liked it when my parents opened the doors on the stove and put on the grate covering so the burning fire was more visible.  I love everything about a wood fire-- the sound of wood crackling and hissing, the look of glowing embers and flames dancing through and around wood logs, the faint smell of smoke, and the burning heat that scorches your face when you lean in close to blow on the embers to rekindle the flame.

One of my favorite things about our little house is that it has a fireplace.  We've already used it a good number of times this winter.  We don't use it as a primary source of heat; rather as a form of entertainment and to give off a warm cozy (and romantic) glow.  Lillian and Sydney frequently ask if we can have a fire and they love to help get it started.  Bobby salvaged some big logs from the dump after Hurricane Sandy swept through in October.  He spent a couple of afternoons chopping the wood (he called it therapy) and now we have a decent sized stack on our front porch.  Lillian and Sydney even swung the ax a few times to split some logs!

Tonight Bobby made a fire.  Sydney helped him start it while Lillian and I sat on the couch together reading some poems from "Where the Sidewalk Ends."  Liam tried to help start the fire, too, but Mommy wouldn't let him get too close. ;)  Then we had ice cream and watched Dirty Jobs together while the fire glowed next to us.  Sydney was too tired to go upstairs and brush her teeth, so she fell asleep on the couch.  When Lillian was ready for bed she wanted to snuggle with Daddy, so the two of them went back downstairs and crashed on the couch with Sydney.  After I got Liam to sleep I found all three of them sleeping soundly next to the fire.  (There's still a little bit of fire left as I sit on the floor next to it, typing this out).

When Bobby woke up about an hour later he carried the girls upstairs to their beds.  As I watched him, I wondered how many times my mom or dad carried me up the stairs to my bed after I fell asleep by the fire.

From this point on in my life, I don't think I can live in a house without a fireplace.

This was in November when Bobby was on vacation and we had a "sleep over" by the fire.  The girls loved it!

- Chopping Firewood with Daddy in October -