Anna raced around helping to put up the last of the streamers and decorations, all of which were baby themed but not gender specific. Miraculously, Melissa reflected, it hadn't been difficult to find them. She'd assumed everything would be pink or blue but this wasn't the case and the lower level of their house was now festooned with a grand assortment of baby adornments.
"We're overdoing it," Melissa thought aloud, even as Anna found a bag containing more balloons and immediately started tearing it open. Balloons flew everywhere and Anna and Melissa collapsed in fits of giggles.
"Look, Mommy! There's pink ones and blue ones!" Anna announced, and Melissa remembered why she'd set this particular bag aside earlier.
"No, Honey, not these ones," Melissa told her, gathering them all up and putting them back in the bag.
"Okay Mommy," Anna took the bag of balloons and ran upstairs to her room with them. Melissa wondered what that was all about but decided against questioning her. The party was due to start in an hour and Melissa was still waiting for two deliveries. And she was supposed to pick up one more item but had managed to convince Spencer to do this one errand. He'd left thirty minutes earlier and she expected him home momentarily.
Muttli had been especially well behaved with all the goings on of the day; sniffing at the intrusive large box and padding around behind Anna as she affixed streamers to walls. He learned after only one popping incident, not to touch the balloons and Melissa laughed as he carefully picked his way around any more of the offending spheres. Suddenly, the dog rushed to the large picture window at the front of the living room. His nose pushed aside the sheer curtain and his tail wagged madly but he wasn't barking. Melissa followed, and saw that her car was backing into the driveway just as the florist's delivery truck was arriving.
She rushed to the front door to hold it open as Spencer carried in an enormous cake box. Muttli sniffed the air but was more concerned with the stranger coming up to his house and Spencer proceeded to the dining room table unhindered by the dog. The floral deliveryman made four trips back and forth from his truck to the house, under the careful supervision of the canine. Melissa held the door open as he came in for the fourth time, setting the last of the floral arrangements on the floor in the hallway as she'd directed.
Melissa thanked him as they shook hands; he offered his congratulations and thanked her for the tip she'd pressed into his palm. Shutting the door behind him, Melissa turned and released a happy sigh, the flowers were all white and beautiful and they filled the entire house with a gentle lovely scent. Spencer returned from the dining room and enveloped her in a hug.
Anna came downstairs and stopped on the last one, watching her parents hug. Muttli toddled over to her and poked his nose into her knees. Anna sat down on the step and hugged the dog giggling when he pushed his nose into her hands.
"No food, Muttli, sorry!" she told him, then stood up and called out, "My Daddy!" before jumping off the last stair and launching herself at Spencer. He released Melissa from their hug and stooped to catch Anna as she descended upon him.
"Look at the house, Daddy! Isn't it beautiful?!"
He smiled and nodded agreement, setting her back down on her feet just as Muttli started barking and pushed between them, pawing at the door. Melissa called Muttli to follow her and she took him out into the backyard for a minute then directed him into his kennel. She gave him a dog biscuit and a few minutes of loving attention and then apologised to him,
"I'm sorry Muttli, but you are gonna hafta chill in here tonight. The house will be full of people and I don't want you getting into trouble."
He circled around in his kennel once, twice then dropped down and curled up to sleep.
Through the door's window, Reid could see the party rentals company truck in the driveway. He opened the door to admit the driver who was bringing in the dozen folding chairs and four small tray tables they'd rented for the night. Reid set everything up in the living room. The man went back out to his truck then returned with a large sheet of particleboard. He followed Reid into the dining room and leaned the sheet up against a wall.
"Can you move that stuff off the table for me, please, Sir?" the man asked.
Reid took the cake into the kitchen and set it on the table there then returned and removed the large gift boxes to the floor by the window in the back of the dining room. He helped the man take the particleboard sheet and laid it on top of the table, effectively doubling the size of the table. Melissa brought in the tablecloth she'd ordered and covered the particleboard with it. She thanked the man and walked him out and Spencer retrieved the cake. He took it out of the bakery box and set it down in the centre of the table. It was two-tiered and covered in white icing, decorated in a baby motif in muted yellow and pale green.
They took a break, stepped back and surveyed their handiwork and Spencer drew Melissa into a hug. "I hope this is okay, Melissa. JJ and Garcia decided to turn this Reveal Party into a full-blown baby shower. They've been plotting all week apparently and I happened to overhear something about diapers in the lunchroom yesterday. They asked if it would be okay. I wasn't supposed to tell you, but you know how good I am about keeping anything from you."