5 June 1895

Today we went to a market in Hogsmeade, although the real adventure began when I decided not to use the pram this time – just you in the sling, pressed close against my chest like when you were a newborn. You’re getting heavier, squirmier, but I don’t mind. One day you’ll be too big for me to hold.

We picked up some blackberry and raspberry jam to eat on some biscuits tonight before we headed home. In the yard were some buttercup blooms that had finally opened up. They looked like gold scattered like spells on the grass.

I set you down and you went still for a moment, and then in a burst, you were off: crawling on all fours with the sheer determination of getting to them. You crushed every other flower you reached for, but I let you try anyway. I tucked one behind your ear when you weren’t looking.

You met a toad, too. Enormous thing. Neither of you knew what to make of the other. He blinked. You blinked back. Then you squealed with such delight that he leapt away. I had to pick you up so you wouldn’t try to follow him into the bushes.

It was an ordinary day, I suppose, but I hope one day you’ll read this and know much magic is in the ordinary.

Love,
Your Mama

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

20 June 1895

To my dearest Emery,

It’s been a couple days since we went, but I brought you to your very first Croquet Tournament, just shy of your first birthday. You wore your pale yellow dress that your grandmother said I wore as a baby, and who knows, maybe one day your own daughter might wear it, too. Your little hands curled around my sleeve as you watched people swing mallets like it was the most serious thing in the world.

There were a lot of people there so you clung to my hip at first, uncertain. But once I found a spot beneath the trees (a little further away from the game because I didn’t want you to get hurt, and there were less people around us), and laid out our blanket, you grew bold. You spent an hour toddling in careful little half-steps across the grass, squealing at dogs and trying to follow a boy flying a paper butterfly. You fell once, face-first into a patch of clover, but you looked so surprised that you forgot to cry.

It was a beautiful day. I love watching you explore and grow.

Love always,
Your mother

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

Late June, 1895

Summer is settling in, and you’re growing like a little wildflower—bright, stubborn, and full of life. Today you giggled at a butterfly and tried to catch the breeze with your hands. Your daddy looks at you with such fondness that it makes my heart swell with happiness. I love watching you discover the world, one tiny wonder at a time.

It's hard to believe in just a few short days, you will be one.

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

1 July 1895

Happy first birthday, my darling. I love you more than I could ever say.

We're going to celebrate you tonight, and then I'll tell you all about it.

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

I'm so sorry, Emery. I'm so sorry.

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The following 1 user Likes Zinnia Gallagher's post:1 user Likes Zinnia Gallagher's post
   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

Zinnia very carefully cut out the article and pasted it onto a page, although charmed it to ensure that it would be skipped over when flipping through the journal. It wasn't like she didn't want Emery to know how her father died, but she also felt that was a better discussion for when she was older and would understand better. For now, at least the article was there, when Zin was ready to talk about it.

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

12 August 1895

You’re too little to understand why Mama cries sometimes, but I want you to know it’s because I miss your daddy. He loved you so much. He held you like you were the most precious thing in the world, because you are. Your dad loved you like sunlight, every day, even the cloudy ones.

You still smile like him, bright and warm.

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

13 August 1895

The world feels different without your daddy, but you are still here, warm in my arms, and that’s how I keep breathing. Thistle and Calla are here to stay with us for a while. They love you as much as I do.

I promise, I promise we'll be okay.

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   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3

We’ll keep living, you and me. We’ll find joy in the little things. And every time we do, we’ll be loving him too.

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The following 1 user Likes Zinnia Gallagher's post:1 user Likes Zinnia Gallagher's post
   Millie Potts

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Bee made this beauty<3