Pt 2 of them (continued ver)

Chapter 246

A Late Morning with Quiet Carter

It was an unusually quiet morning in the house. The entire family had overslept after a late night, and Carter was the first one to wake up. Instead of crying or fussing, the little guy sat in his crib, nibbling on his blanket while curiously inspecting his toys.

At one point, Carter pulled himself to a standing position, holding onto the crib rails for balance. He started bouncing slightly, giggling at the creaking noise the crib made. Then, as if testing his limits, he sat back down and began fiddling with his dinosaur teether and stuffed bear, occasionally tossing them to the side and then reaching for them again.

Malia was the first to wake up. As she walked past Carter's room, she heard his soft babbling. Peeking in, she saw him standing in his crib, bouncing slightly and laughing at the way his blanket flopped with each movement.

"Good morning, my little early bird," Malia said with a yawn, walking in to scoop him up. Carter's face lit up when he saw her, his little hands reaching out eagerly.

"Were you keeping yourself entertained, huh?" she asked, smiling as she kissed his forehead.

Colby, hearing Malia's voice, woke up and joined them. "Looks like someone's been having a solo party," he chuckled, running a hand through his messy hair.

Carter, now in Colby's arms, pointed toward his crib, babbling as if explaining everything he'd done.

The rest of the family slowly began to wake up. Caitlyn and Colleen wandered in with their blankets, still sleepy, while Liam ran in, complaining he was hungry. Malia laughed, "Alright, let's get breakfast started."

Colby set Carter down in his playpen while they all got ready, but Carter was clearly still in his energetic mode, bouncing on the soft mat and throwing toys around. "Looks like we're in for a busy day," Colby joked as Carter giggled at his own antics.