My house is a disaster. The dishwasher needs to be emptied. I have a bucket of cloth diapers soaking upstairs waiting to be washed. I have camera equipment all over the house that I’ve been too busy to clean up since the last wedding I shot. The furniture is covered in a layer of dusty ash from the woodstove we use to heat our house.

But the house smells like the tomatoes and basil simmering on the stove – the last of my summer preserves. The air is still and silent – except for the sound of cars rolling by on the street outside the window. If I listen for long enough, they almost start to sound like waves rolling in.

I am the only one awake.

My husband is sound asleep in the next room, our dog, Cash, snoring at his feet. My daughter is sleeping on my chest, snuggled up in the sling. I can smell her sweet milky breath as she breathes in and out.

In this moment – I have everything I have ever wanted. I am happy – and I am blessed.