Neal and Sara move into their new home all the while waiting impatiently for Hope's first word. This is part of the 'Milestones' series. For those of you presently reading 'A bump in the road', I thought you might enjoy a quick, fluffy story to break up the angst from that emotionally draining story (I know I needed it!)
Baby talk
11 months
It was early March and spring still seemed months away. The last week had brought another snowstorm and New Yorkers were getting anxious for it all to end. It was also moving day for the Caffreys. It had taken over 9 months, 3 realtors and 38 houses to find the perfect home for Neal, Sara and Hope.
Ever since their wedding, eight months ago, Neal and Sara had been relentless in their search for a new home and there were times when they actually believed they would never succeed.
They had visited homes in all 5 boroughs before deciding on a beautiful three bedroom house in White Plains. Neal wanted a functional kitchen and as the cook in the family, Sara couldn't begrudge him that; and Sara wanted to be within walking distance of transportation into Manhattan since she had returned to work at Sterling Bosch a couple of months before.
So, here they were, at June's, surrounded by boxes and stacks of furniture and assorted items as they tried to manoeuvre to get breakfast ready – nothing complicated, just toast and juice...
'Dadadadada' said Hope, from her high chair, getting impatient
'Neal, will you put some juice in her sippy cup, please' said Sara as she finished packing in Hope's room at the back of the apartment
'Yeah, just a minute' called out Neal as he finished taping a box containing some of his art books
'Gksileislllllliii' shrieked Hope
'Alright, alright, baby girl, take it easy' said Neal as he walked over and pulled up a chair to sit eye to eye with his daughter
'What do you want Hope? Juice? Say 'juice' he said, coaxing her
'Ja' she responded
'Juice' he repeated
Hope just looked at her dad and began whining. She had been making lots of interesting noises over the past few weeks and Neal and Sara were looking forward to her official first word. They had been diligent about doing all the right things to stimulate their daughter's language - reading books, pointing to things and naming them, having her repeat sounds, encouraging her, repeating what she was saying – but Hope had yet to utter her first proper word. Neal read a lot of child development books and he knew that the first word 'with intent' was the word a baby would speak spontaneously, knowing full well what it meant. He was home most days with Hope and had been working hard to get her to say that first word and he was working overtime to surprise Sara with the word 'Mama'. She would repeat it all day, at Neal's request and he would clap his hands in appreciation and when Sara came home, he would give her all the cues but to no avail.
'Sara!' Neal called out 'I'm leaving to pick up the moving van!'
'Be right there' yelled Sara, seemingly frazzled
'Mommy's coming' Neal whispered to Hope 'Say 'mama, mama'
Hope looked at her dad as if he were crazy and took another sip of juice
'C'mon Hope, you say it all the time: mama, mama, mama's coming'
'Gioopskilkk' said Hope, reaching for the piece of toast on the table
'Oh forget it!' said Neal, impatiently, as he handed her the piece of bread
'What's going on?' said Sara, coming into the room
'Nothing, she's just being difficult' said Neal, standing
'Mozzie and Peter should be here any minute' said Neal as he reached the door 'They can start by bringing down those boxes' he said pointing to the bedroom area
'Alright, go' said Sara, stepping over some boxes to reach the kitchen table and sit with Hope
'Hello angel. Don't mind us; it's just a crazy day'
'Bay' said Hope
'That's right. Now that Daddy's gone, let's keep working on our surprise for him. Poppa, poppa'
'Poppa, poppa' she repeated
'Good girl! When Daddy comes back, you say hello poppa' she repeated
The door swung open, well partly open because there was a box in the way and Peter walked in, dressed in his best moving clothes – jeans and a t-shirt under his winter coat.
'Hi!' he said as he entered 'Hello, darling' he cooed as he came up to Hope who began gurgling like mad, kicking her legs and putting her arms out to be picked up by her godfather. Sara moaned and did a mental eye roll. Hope could do no wrong in Peter's eyes and he spoiled her something terrible.
'I brought you something special for moving day' he said bringing his hand out from behind his back to reveal a stuffed toy – a pink elephant
Hope's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree as she looked at the gift and started giggling and clapping her hands. Peter always knew how to make her happy – just give her anything she wants, basically, thought Sara as she looked on.
'El's really sorry she couldn't take Hope off your hands' said Peter looking at Sara. 'She had completely forgotten your moving date when she agreed to cater this luncheon'
'That's okay. Hope and I are going to head over to the new place and get everything organized and the cable guy and the furniture store are coming by later this morning' said Sara, as she took Hope out of her high chair and sat her in the middle of the floor among the boxes.
'Oh, Peter. That surprise for Neal – it's over in the corner there. Do you think you can get it over without him seeing?' she asked pointing to the back room
'Why don't I take it down to your car right now before Neal gets back' he suggested moving around the maze to get to it
Mozzie arrived on cue.
'Moving when there is snow on the ground should be illegal' he said in his usual Mozzie-way
'Look guys, I'm leaving and I'm taking Hope so I suggest you start taking stuff downstairs. Neal will be back with the truck any time now' said Sara as she began to collect the essentials – Hope's diaper bag, a few toys and books to keep her occupied and her oversize purse
Peter followed her down and placed the item in the back of her car; then he strapped Hope into her car seat and tickled her as she squealed and reached for her new toy that had fallen on the seat next to her.
'Don't forget your elephant' he said handing the stuffed toy to her
Sara finished packing everything into their new car and started to drive away just as she heard someone honking - it was Neal arriving with the moving truck. He waved as she drove away.
'There's poppa' said Sara 'Say hi poppa'. Hope just sat there staring at her new toy paying her no mind
Once at the new house, there was an ongoing parade of deliveries and workmen. Furniture was delivered (by two different trucks) and placed in the various rooms in the house, cable was installed (even before the new television was delivered), the phone company came by and even a neighbor showed up to welcome Sara and her family to the neighborhood. By lunch, Hope was exhausted and whiny and Sara put her down on the new couch to nap while she began to put away the dishes they had brought over the day before.
Back on Riverside Drive, there was a constant buzz of activity as the men walked up and down the stairs with their arms full.
'Ouch' yelled Mozzie as he rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairs carrying a particularly heavy box.
'What now, Moz?' asked Neal. I was the fourth time Mozzie had 'hurt' himself in the past hour – after all, he was a very delicate creature as he liked to point out.
'I caught my baby finger' he whined as he continued out the door to the van
Luckily, Neal didn't have much stuff when he moved into June's place five years before, just some personal items – books, art supplies, and other things he and Sara had bought since she began living there a year before. The furniture was mostly June's except for all of Hope's belongings which was quite a bit of stuff.
When they finished packing everything up, Neal took one last look around the apartment and he suddenly became nostalgic as he began to remember all the good times he'd had there. This had been the only home he'd known in his adult life (if you didn't count Sing Sing) and all his happy memories were in these walls. He walked to the back of the apartment into Hope's room. It had been added a little over a year ago by June who wanted Hope to have her own space. Neal had spent months working on a mural to decorate her room and he stood looking at it wistfully recalling the excitement he and Sara had felt waiting for her arrival and the first night they placed her in her crib. He heard a noise coming from the hallway and he looked up to see June standing there with a bottle of something in her hands.
'June' he said, as he felt the emotion rise
'Neal, I thought you might be in here. This mural is a work of art' she said, walking up to him and putting a hand on his shoulder
'It was a labor of love, that's for sure' he answered
'Well, I can promise you it will remain intact as long as I'm alive and you can come back and see it any time you want.' Neal noticed she was wiping a tear. He put his arms around her and hugged her tight.
'June, you were the first one to take a chance on me, to trust me, to let me into your home and I will be eternally grateful for that' he said, smiling down on her 'I have no idea where I would have landed if it had not been for you'
'Oh, nonsense, you would have landed on both feet, I know it' she responded
'Maybe... but it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun as it's been' said Neal with a final hug
Back on Meadowbrook Street in White Plains, the house was slowly starting to look like a home. As their familiar items began arriving, Sara placed them in the appropriate rooms making the house feel more familiar.
The three guys brought in all the items from Riverside Drive and began to place them in their respective rooms. It was now almost dinner time and everyone was tired and hungry. Sara called the local pizza place and ordered a few pies for everyone and they all assembled in the living room to enjoy their first meal in their new home. By seven o'clock, Hope was exhausted from all the excitement and she had begun to whine. Sara picked her up and asked Neal if he would come into her new bedroom – she had a surprise for him.
Neal frowned as he looked at Sara and followed her and Hope up the stairs. He walked into the baby's room and there on the wall was a beautifully framed photograph of the mural he had painted at June's.
'You didn't think I would ever let her forget that mural, did you?' said Sara as she put Hope down in her crib
'You're kidding' said Neal, visibly touched by the gesture
They stood holding each other, admiring the print, exhausted but happy to be in their new home. Suddenly from behind, they could hear Hope who was standing in her crib calling for them
'Mama, poppa, ef-fant!'
They looked at each other, puzzled
'Ef-fant!' she shrieked, pointing to her new stuffed toy lying on the chair nearby
And so Neal and Sara learned that they could never force Hope to do anything; she would decide for herself in her own good time!
La fin