Chapter 3.9 | Rules for this challenge | Chapter 3.11

Generation Three: Red

Appearance: Red hair, scandalous clothing style
Traits: Romantic, Hot-headed, Art Lover
Aspiration: Serial Romantic
Occupation: Art Critic
House Goal: 30,000 worth

A Chris for Christmas

We quickly settled into a new daily routine, this little family of mine. Charlie excelled at both school and scouts, and seemed to be the most at home when making friends and being as active as possible. I wondered what that would mean for her future.

Kado helped out around the house as much (or more?) than he ever had, which gave me the freedom to work on my art more. I quickly started to understand the value of having a real partner in life, and Kado went from being just a valuable helper to being completely irreplaceable.

The nights started getting shorter and colder, and my bank account slowly recovered from all the money that I had spent on the house upgrade. My belly grew day by day, and Kado and I grew closer to each other as we wondered what changes the new baby would bring.

I spent more time at home than at work, but the promotions just kept coming. I was discovering a real talent with words, and my boss seemed to consider me as indispensable, which was certainly gratifying to know. Kado, on the other hand, had stopped commuting to the city as well, and we shared the computer as much as possible. I started wondering whether I should just buy a second computer, but Kado assured me that was un-necessary.

He was becoming incredibly handy to have around the house, too, with all his practice on the woodworking table and his DIY books. I no longer had to call for plumbers when disaster struck – like the kitchen sink spewing nasty water all over my lovely hardwood floors. Handyman Kado was instantly on the job, and – to my astonishment, it was fixed in mere moments. He really HAD been practicing.

As the nights got colder, my belly continued to grow, and the little life within me became more and more active. So much so, that it kept me up during those cold winter nights… and the question of a second computer became basically moot because I was doing most of my column writing overnight while he slept.

Kado, on the other hand, seemed to truly blossom under this new arrangement. He always had breakfast ready for Charlie and I every morning, and he spent a lot of his time reading up on pregnancy and parenting books, and doling out tips to me as if I hadn’t already had one baby. I smiled at him indulgently, and inside, I loved watching his obvious glee as he prepared for the new baby as much as he could.

On yet another stormy winter night, I was busy writing another column for work and trying to ignore the pain in my back, I started noticing the pain intensifying, and mentioned to Kado that I didn’t think it would be too terribly long now.

Kado, of course, panicked. He ran downstairs to alert Charlie that we might need to head to the hospital, so she wouldn’t worry if she woke to find us gone. But the pains went away. By the next day (Christmas Eve, no less), it was obvious the baby wasn’t quite ready yet.

Charlie was drawing pictures of rainbows and sunshine to hang on the baby’s walls near the bassinet (I suppose she was worried the baby would think the dreary monsoon weather was to last forever!) when I again noticed the pains start. This time, I didn’t alert Kado quite as early… and by the time he noticed, it was late into the night. I tried to reassure him that there was no reason to go to the hospital, my mom had birthed most of her kids at home, and things usually went smoothly for mermaids, but he wasn’t convinced. He paced restlessly all night, and as the sun started coming up, my predictions proved correct.

We had a new little baby boy. Being that it was Christmas, we dubbed him Christian with very little difficulty, and Kado tucked me into bed for a much-needed nap as he cuddled the new infant and fed him his first bottle.

I must have needed the sleep more than I thought, because it was a beautiful sunny Sulani afternoon by the time I woke up to find that Kado had, somehow, acquired a lovely Christmas tree and had Charlie helping him decorate it. I took care of little Chris again, and headed out to help them decorate.

I wasn’t in any way interested in doing a major family dinner for the day, so I made a breakfast feast for dinnertime, and we all gratefully dug in. It was delicious, and in my mind, I couldn’t help but remember when I was still eating granola from a cooler in this very room. Times certainly had changed since then. *I* had changed, too. All I truly wanted in life was my soulmate, Kado, and to keep my little family safe and happy.

After dinner, Kado led us all out to the Christmas tree, and I had to wonder when he had had the time to do all this Christmas shopping, because there were an abundance of gaily wrapped presents under the tree. For the first time since my childhood, I felt the real wonder of Christmas as we all opened present after present to discover thoughtfully picked out gifts.

Charlie’s energy was boundless, and she loved all the gifts Kado had picked out for her. Before too long, the presents were all opened, and she ran off to her room to play with her new toys. Kado, somewhat sheepishly, called his other kids to wish them a Merry Christmas and find out whether they had liked the gifts he had sent to them. Apparently (since I wouldn’t let him help with bills or household expenses) – he had splurged on making this holiday magical for everyone – which was certainly appreciated, as I had been too busy with being pregnant and trying to keep up with work to remember that Christmas was happening.

I hadn’t COMPLETELY forgotten, though, and after Charlie went to bed, I slyly mentioned to Kado that he should check under the tree again. I had managed to find a small, but special, gift and to hide it under the tree while he wasn’t looking.

There were tears in his eyes as I presented him with his very own seashell to call any other mermaids nearby in case of trouble, and he hugged me tightly. Kissing my forehead, he led me to bed, and tucked me in, assuring he would take the night shift with little Chris so I could finally get some real rest without him using my insides for soccer practice.

I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face, listening to Kado singing soft lullabies to our precious little baby.

Chapter 3.9 | Rules for this challenge | Chapter 3.11