**Thanks for being so wonderful!**

Melody hugged John tight as he opened the envelope. He took the picture out and there was a tiny arrow that said, "Look, I'm a boy!"

"Oh my God we're having a baby boy!" John said hugging her tightly.

Melody laughed, "Gee, are we sure the baby isn't biologically connected to your family?"

They both laughed. Melody looked at John, "So, tell me. Have you told your parents that we had talked about adopting a baby who may or may not be deaf?"

John tried to not look like a deer in the headlights. He had told his parents. And they were less than thrilled with the idea. It was one thing if the baby God chose for them to have had special needs, but for them to go out of their way to find one…they weren't so keen on it. "Yes I have. And even though they're skeptical, they'll love their grandchild no matter what." Then he looked at Melody, "What do you think your dad is going to say?"

She smirked, "Well, he said he thinks I'll be a great mom and I should quit worrying so much. He also said that we tend to rush into things and even though we should go for all our dreams together, we should take our time."

John playfully looked at his watch, "How's two and a half months sound?"

Melody smiled, "It better sound great!"

Together they snuggled on the couch and used the iPad to start looking at different nursery designs and what all they would need for their baby boy.

John looked at Melody, "So, would you ever consider bringing him on the road with me? I have that tour bus, we just have to add a few baby things to it."

She smiled, "Of course I would. And if I was to go on tour, I know he'd have to come with me, but would you come out and see us?"

John smiled back, "Yeah I would. And I think tomorrow we should go baby furniture shopping."

Melody smiled, "Great idea!"

That night as they went to bed, John laid there staring up at the ceiling. What was it like to have a deaf baby? Do you still talk to them? Do you sing to them? Turn up the radio so they can hear it? If they can't read captions, how do they watch cartoons? Will he be extra cranky? Or will he be pretty typical? Will he laugh? Giggle? Coo? Or will he be completely silent?

Finally John flipped on the light and shook Melody a bit to see if she was awake. When she turned to face him, she could see in his face that there was something bothering him.

"What's wrong?" She asked concerned.

"I have a million stupid things about our little boy running through my head and I need some guidance." John said slowly.

Melody nodded, "Ok, like what?"

"What's it like to have a deaf baby? Do you talk, sing, play music with them? Do you watch tv with them? Will he ever talk? You didn't go deaf till you were older…what happens when you're born deaf?"

Melody couldn't catch everything John was saying, but she caught enough to put the context clues together. She reached out and touched his arm, "Hon, they're not stupid. Those are very legitimate questions. And the only reason I know the answers is because I went to a deaf school for a few years and I work in one now. Babies who are born deaf or hard of hearing are just like any other baby. You still want to talk to them and sing to them and do musical things. Tv will grab them because of the colors and the pictures. Babies can be fitted with hearing aids as young as 4 weeks old. And they'll go to speech therapy and as he grows up, we'll be able to know how well hearing aids work for him."

"He could be wearing hearing aids as young as 4 weeks old?" John questioned.

Melody nodded, "The earlier the better. And as he grows up, we'll teach him how to sign and talk."

John leaned over and kissed her, "Thanks babe."

She smiled, "Anytime."

John turned the light back off and laid back down. Now the only thing on his mind was how his parents were going to react to the news.

THE NEXT MORNING

John woke up the next morning and closed the door to the bedroom quietly. Then he went downstairs and called his parents. He didn't want Melody to hear it if she didn't have to. He already knew it wasn't going to go well.

And…he was right. The phone was passed back and forth between the two of them with questions like, "What are you thinking? Why would you do such a thing? Are you serious about this? Have you thought about what it'll be like?"

John would try to argue back stating that Melody was hard of hearing and she blended in with the family just fine. And lots of hearing people had deaf babies and it was out of their hands. They were born that way.

The three of them went around and around. It finally took John yelling that if they didn't like it then they didn't have to meet him and hanging up before his parents snapped out of it and called John back to apologize for overreacting but it was some pretty shocking news. And yes they felt he wasn't fully thinking about what he was doing, but children are a gift no matter what and they would love him just like any other grandchild.

"If the baby has hearing aids, we won't have to try and learn sign language, will we?" His mom asked.

"It would be very nice and beneficial if you guys at least learned a little bit of sign language for him. But, I won't know for sure until he's born. If he's deaf, hearing aids aren't going to make any difference. But if he's hard of hearing, then he'll be able to hear a bit with them." John replied. "Like Melody before her surgery."

"That's it Johnny boy!" His dad exclaimed. "All you guys will need to do is get him an implant like Melody's and then he'll be fixed!"

John got a little angry, "He won't be born broken dad. You don't just drill a hole in his head, fill it with an implant and say he's fixed. If he's born deaf, he's born deaf. You just accept it and try to do what's best for him."

"Wouldn't an implant helping him hear be what's best for him?" His dad replied.

"Being deaf might just be what's best for him. We won't know until he's here. Not everyone is a candidate for the implant, and Melody and I haven't even discussed that as an option for him. Melody wasn't always deaf and that made a big impact for her deciding to have the implant done." John argued back.

"Alright son, he's going to be your son. You as the parent have to decide what's right for him and what isn't. No matter what anybody says. Remember, you're going to be his advocate in life. Whether it's his health, his schooling or his hearing." His dad said to him sincerely.

"Thanks Dad, I'll keep that in mind." John replied calming down. "I've gotta run, but I'll talk to you guys later. I love you guys."

John hung up shaking his head. But, he was excited for Melody to tell her dad and for them to have their first experience baby shopping.

**Sorry so short, but please read and review! Thanks!**