About two months later, both families lived in peace and had adjusted to their new additions. It was morning, and Stephanie was seated with Ben in his Ikea high chair and then walked over to a cabinet. Out of the cabinet, she took out a Gerber Banana Oatmeal container and sat down next to Ben at the kitchen table with the container and a tiny, green spoon. Nathen walked in and look at Stephanie and Ben with a confused look. "Hun," He said slowly. "Why are you feeding Ben baby food? He's... only 3 months and a few weeks old..." Stephanie made a crooked smile and chuckled softly.
"It's never too early to start early, right," She said. "Besides, he has to learn someday. And the internet says babies start eating baby food from 4-6 months." Nathen sat in a seat beside her and slightly tilted his head. "Yeah, but I thought 4-6 would be us starting at 5. Why before 4?" Stephanie shrugged, "He has to start someday." Nathen smiled and simply watched her as she picked up the spoon. "Alright, Ben," She said, opening the container and dipping the spoon inside. "Are you ready for a new taste? It's really good and fun to eat," She said in the most enthusiastic baby voice you could think of. Ben opened and closed his mouth, like a fish.
"Look!" She said enthusiastically. "It's an airplane, whoosh! Whoosh!" Ben was smiling and he opened his mouth. "That's right, there we go," Stephanie said as she landed the 'airplane' inside his mouth, holding her other hand under his chin to make sure the food didn't spill onto his clothes. "See," Stephanie said, smiling. "He did it on his very first try. And, I think he likes it." She gestured to Ben, who was chewing on the oatmeal with his gums. Nathen grinned. "Well, he is a smart boy." He said and ruffled Ben's curly dirty blonde hair, which was growing thick and long.
Nathen left for work, leaving Stephanie with Ben. She laid him down in his crib for bed and went to go get dressed. She put on a green sweater, denim jeans and just under knee high, brown boots, tying her hair in a low pony tail. Her hair had grown a little past her shoulders but she couldn't find the time to cut it. A short while after, when Ben woke up, she dressed him in a blue baby onesie, blue stretchy pants that appeared denim, a white hat and white sneakers, which weren't really sneakers but seemed that way. She also put on a green jacket, since green tended to be his favorite color.
Stephanie fastened Ben in his car seat, shut the door, and sat in her driver's seat. Ben was sucking on his pacifier and was wrapped in a blue blanket, since Stephanie knew he tended to get sleepy during car rides. "Are you excited, Ben?" She said in a baby voice as she drove out of their driveway. "You're going to get to see Auntie Mirabelle and your friend, Cerise. Right after we run some errands." She drove for about 15 minutes before they reached Kroger. After swinging her bag over her shoulder, she picked up Ben and headed for the grocery store. Stephanie set him inside a cart and began strolling around, picking up fruits, vegetables and things for dinner.
On that same morning, Mirabelle had been rocking Cerise in her arms, trying to calm her down. James had been at work since 4 AM, which was his normal shift until 9 PM. Mirabelle had dressed Cerise in a red, baby princess dress with short sleeves and tiny white flats. Cerise's reddish brown hair was wavy but too short to keep down so it had been put in two pigtails. Being only a month younger than Ben, Cerise definitely couldn't start on baby food so Mirabelle was feeding her warm milk. Later, after she finished eating, changing her diaper, and calming her down, she laid Cerise for a nap. While she was napping, Mirabelle went out to the living room and tidied it up, along with the baby room to prepare for Stephanie and Ben's arrival.
After picking up the groceries, Stephanie dropped them off at home and got back into the car. She drove in a matter of minutes, the usual time it takes to get to the Alston house. Once Mirabelle heard the knock on the door, she walked over to the door and let Stephanie and Ben inside. "So nice to see you two," Mirabelle said, hugging Stephanie. "I know, it's been hard to get together with these little troublemakers," Stephanie said as they both laughed. They all went into Cerise's baby room and Mirabelle took the baby out of the crib. The two mothers set the children by Cerise's toys and then sat down on the couch.
YOU ARE READING
Love Before Birth | Book One
Short Story{0.5 in the Love Before Birth Series] Two couples: the Reed's and the Alston's have known each other for the longest of time. They've stuck together through middle and high school- even marriage. Now they'll have to help through birth and, of course...
