Seasons Of Love

Hop Hop Hop

While planning for their holiday, Winter found himself in absolute awe of his wife. This wasn't a new feeling, he found himself utterly mesmerized by her at least once a week. Just when he thought he had Autumn all figured out she would do something that blew him away yet again; like suggesting that they invite his parents along on their holiday.

Winter wasn't sure why this suggestion surprised him so much; Autumn had fit in with his family perfectly ever since she first met his parents. From the already tight-knit family only grew closer through frequent dinners together and game nights.

After Rose came along their bond only grew stronger as Winter's parents, Renee and George, doted on their first grandchild. They were always jumping at the chance to babysit or dropping by just to visit; Renee and Rose had become a permanent team on game night. George, still just a big kid himself, would always buy Rose whatever toy caught his eye in the shops and immediately bring it over to play with her. Sometimes they weren't the most appropriate for a two year old; but he would always spend hours sitting on the floor trying to teach her how to drive remote control cars or at the table, Rose sitting restlessly in his lap as "they" built model volcanoes.

And really the idea of inviting Renee and George was just as much for Autumn as it was for Rose. Growing up the Knight family would plan their trips very specifically, ensuring that they were all spending as little time together as possible. They had separate rooms and separate itineraries; as the kids got older they sometimes even had separate destinations. Now that she had the family she always dreamed of, one that actually cared enough about each other to want to spend time together, she was going to make the most of it. She wanted Rose to have memories with every member of her family that she could look back on fondly; especially Renee and George. They were her only grandparents after all.

As soon as he knew that Autumn was truly serious, Winter jumped at the change to invite his parents. His family was considerably less well off than Autumn's, as most people were, but they always managed to scrape together some sort of trip. And nearly every time they brought his Nan along. Some of his best memories with her were made running around museums or helping to pitch a tent. Of course he wanted the same for his daughter. It took less than an hour for Renee and George to agree to come. They couldn't join for the whole trip, but they were able to join for the end of the week.

Rose was so excited when she found out her grandparents would be joining them. First thing when she woke up she'd ask her parents "Day?" and last thing before bed she'd ask "morrow?" She just couldn't wait for them to arrive. The night that Autumn was finally able to tell her yes, Renee and George would be there tomorrow the girl fell asleep with the widest smile on her face. The next day she was up bright and early, dragging her parents out of bed so that they wouldn't miss a single second of their time together.

As soon as she was dressed she ran downstairs and planted herself in front of the door. Knowing their very stubborn daughter would not be leaving her spot until her grandparents walked through the door, Winter and Autumn decided to make the wait more fun. They quickly made Rose's favorite breakfast and joined her on the floor for a little indoor picnic. As she sat in her mama's lap, the little girl's eyes hardly ever left the door. The only time she dared look away was when she'd turn to Winter with her mouth open wide, ready to accept another piece of her waffle; but her head always snapped back quickly, worried that someone would sneak in during the couple of seconds she looked away. Between bites she continuously babbled on about everything she was going to do with her grandparents.

Rose's good mood was infectious. Winter and Autumn couldn't help but feel just as much anticipation for the other adults' arrival as their daughter did. The longer they waited though, the more worried Rose got that they hadn't shown up yet. Her voice got louder, more agitated as she kept repeating.