Generation 1: Chapter 4

Now that Emilie was a toddler, Jeannine spent a lot of time doting on her. Even more than she did when her daughter was an infant.

Jeannine marveled at every new thing that Emilie did, and she loved making her laugh. It wasn't the full-bellied chuckle of her father or the lighter chortle that Jeannine herself made. It was more of a lilting giggle, and Jeannine felt that she could listen to that sound all day.

In between their tickle sessions, Jeannine taught Emilie the things she would need to know, like walking. Emilie took to it quickly, happy to have another mode of transport instead of just crawling or relying on her mother to take her everywhere.

She also loved to play on the blocks. Jeannine had bought a xylophone as well, but Emilie didn't touch that, and Jeannine enjoyed playing with her daughter no matter what they played with.

Emilie was also taught to potty, and that was another thing she quickly got the hang of. Jeannine figured it was mostly because her little girl was embarrassed and didn't want Mommy in the bathroom with her.

Soon, however, Jeannine needed to be in the bathroom, though not in the way that Emilie did. Jeannine hadn't been sick since the beginning of her pregnancy with Emilie and she started to worry that maybe the one time with Calvin in the shower had left her pregnant again.

Although, once she thought about it . . .

it wasn't really just one time.

Soon enough, Jeannine's suspicions were confirmed, and she discovered she was pregnant. She had mixed feelings about this baby. Emilie was the best thing that had ever happened in Jeannine's life. But she didn't know if she wanted the added pressure of another baby. She didn't know if she could do it.

Of course, life didn't stop just because Jeannine was pregnant. She still needed to teach Emilie her skills.

Emilie did not take immediately to talking like she had to walking and the potty. She would pout and cross her toddler arms and not say a word. Jeannine tried time and time again to find words that Emilie would repeat back to her.

"Come on, sweetheart, say 'Mommy'."

"How about 'water'."

"'Love', Emilie. Say 'love'."

"How about 'food'? You like food, Emilie."

"Food!" Emilie repeated. "Food, food, food!"

Jeannine sighed as Emilie continued. Why hadn't she thought of that earlier?

"Eat! Eat!"

Just like the last time she was pregnant, Jeannine went to the library to read up about pregnancy. Sure, she'd already gone through this, but she wanted to make sure that everything was fine. This baby was kicking far more than Emilie had, and at weirder times. With Emilie, it had been regular almost. The new baby just seemed to want to kick and punch whenever.

While Jeannine read, Emilie took the oppourtunity to play with the block table. Jeannine was sure that they had one exactly like it at home, which Emilie had never touched. This one, however, the toddler would not get away from.

Finally, Jeannine was able to pull Emilie away from the block table at the library and get her home and into her crib. She kissed her baby goodnight just like she did every night. She loved Emilie and wanted her daughter to know that.

Once Emilie was asleep, Jeannine went about her nightly routine. Emilie mostly slept through the night now, and Jeannine was able to sleep a full eight hours most nights. Of course, once the new baby came, it would be back to 2 AM feedings and staying up till eleven because the baby just wouldn't sleep.

Just as Jeannine stepped out of the shower, the first contractions hit her. The pain was just as bad as with Emilie, but this time she knew what to expect and she was able to keep her screams in. She didn't want to wake Emilie.

Over the last few months, the problem of what to do when the baby came had occurred to Jeannine. She couldn't leave - she couldn't just leave Emilie at home. And she couldn't bring Emilie with her - it wasn't like she could watch her at the hospital. And she couldn't hire a babysitter - they didn't have enough money. But every time the question came up, Jeannine had just ignored it, waiting for another time. And now it was too late. What was she going to do? The baby was coming.

                                                                                                                         

Aaaaaaaand that's the end of the chapter!

I hope you liked it. Jeannine has to have three kids, so here comes #2.

I know I haven't really mentioned money as an issue for Jeannine, and that's because it's really not. After buying the house and selling the time machine that spawned in the front yard, she had >$1000. After building the room for Emilie, that dropped to ~$300. Which isn't bad, but it's still low enough that I didn't at that time want to just throw money at a babysitter.

Btw, here's a picture I wasn't able to include but liked:

Look at Emilie in the corner. It's like she knows that she's gonna have to share her room soon, and she doesn't like it.