She sits on the glider, in the nursery, in her pajamas. She studies the sleeping baby in her arms. The little girl sleeps peacefully as Kathryn holds her. Kathryn traces her tiny lips. She kisses her cheeks. The baby is too deep in sleep to react. Her cheeks have started filling out, and her once scrawny frame now has the beginnings of fat rolls. Her briefly jaundiced tone has been replaced with pink. She is a healthy looking little girl with thick auburn hair. Keely's hand lays on her own chest, while the other lays at her side. She is perfectly relaxed as she snoozes.

Kathryn repositions the baby. She lifts her to her shoulder. Keely turns her head, but doesn't open her eyes. She places her hand on Kathryn's chest, as if feeling for her heart beat. Kathryn gently lifts her hand, and kisses the palm of it. She hears footsteps coming her direction. She looks up as the door opens. Her husband comes into view. He enters the room, leaving the door open.

"Are you coming to bed?"

"In a few minutes," she answers.

"Kathryn she's asleep," he reminds her.

She looks at the baby. "It occurs to me that she won't be this little for long."

"I know. Kathryn I'm sorry about earlier."

"We can talk about it later," she answers as she rises from the chair. She moves towards the crib. He shoots her a questioning look.

"What are you doing?"

"Putting her in bed," she answers.

"In here? Our room is all the way down the hallway. What if we don't hear her?"

"John we've got two baby monitors," she reminds him.

"I know, but you've never put her in her crib to sleep at night."

"She's a month old."

"She doesn't have to sleep in here. She can sleep in our room. I don't mind."

"How long are you going to let her sleep in there?" She questions.

"As long as she wants. She can stay until she's twelve, if she wants."

"You are being unreasonable."

"I just don't understand where this is coming from. Why do you want to put her in the crib all of a sudden? You can barely stand to be away from her for a couple of hours."

"It isn't going to hurt anyone if she sleeps in her own bed."

"I know, but..."

She cuts him off, "Do you know how ridiculous you sound right now? You sound every bit as attached as I am."

"Because I am."

Kathryn places the baby in her crib. She turns and looks at her husband who stares at her as if she's just put a baby kitten in the blender.

"Come on," she insists as she moves towards the door.

He nods, and heads out of the room in front of her. She flips out the light. She follows him down the hallway. She climbs in bed beside him, and turns on the baby monitor. The lamp on his bedside stand is on, he flips it off.

"You do realize that it's only ten o'clock," she points out.

"We go to bed at ten o'clock every night. Actually we're usually in bed by nine or nine thirty."

"John you don't have to go to bed just because I do."

"Kathryn we got up at four thirty this morning. I'm ready to go to bed."

"All I am saying is that you don't have to."

"Ok, but I'm going to sleep now," he warns her as he pulls the covers over him.

"Ok," she rolls onto her side, and situates herself under the covers. She lies facing the door. She lies there, with her eyes open, listening to the baby monitor for any kind of noise. On the other side of the bed he lies on his back, with his wide open. They lay in silence, and darkness for half an hour. Neither one of them moves, or closes their eyes. They just listen to the baby monitor. John sighs, and pushes back the covers. He climbs out of bed.

"Where are you going?" Kathryn questions.

"To get Keely."

"She's fine," she insists.

"Yeah, but we're not. We are both laying here like a couple of basket cases, because that monitor is not sensitive enough to pick up the sound of her breathing."

"John," she tries to argue, but he has already left the room.

He makes his way down the hall to the nursery. He doesn't turn the light on. He simply lifts the baby from the crib. It takes him less than two seconds to be satisfied that she is in fact breathing, but he takes her with him anyway. He returns to the master bedroom, and places her inside the basinet, less than three feet from Kathryn's side of the bed. Keely doesn't stir. He walks around the bed, and climbs back in.

"Are you satisfied now?" Kathryn wonders.

"I can hear her breathing, now."

"You are worse than I am."

"No, I'm just not as stubborn. I know you wanted to go get her too."

"Can we go to sleep now?"

"Now who's tired?"

She hits him with a pillow. He closes his eyes. Kathryn lies on her side staring at the basinet. She listens to the baby breathe in and out as she sleeps. The sound of her breathing is like a lullaby. Kathryn closes her eyes, and falls asleep in no time.

When she wakes up, hours later she realizes that there is light coming in through the curtain. She rubs her eyes, and looks at the clock. She jumps out of bed in a panic, certain that something is wrong. She goes over to the basinet, and finds that it's empty. She turns around, to wake her husband, and finds that he isn't in bed. She stomps off down the hallway. She heads straight to the nursery. She pushes the door open, and finds John sitting in the glider with the baby in his arms.

"What are you doing? It is six thirty."

"I know."

"I didn't hear her wake up earlier. She wakes up every morning at four thirty."

"I know. I got up to pee at about four twenty. I didn't want to wake you. I got her, and came in here."

Kathryn notices the bottle in the baby's mouth, "Where did you get that?"

"It was in the fridge," he reminds her, "there were two of them. You put them in there yesterday, remember? They didn't get used because you were home in time to feed her, yourself."

"Tell me that you didn't use the microwave," Kathryn begs.

"I assumed that we had the bottle warmer for a reason," he points out.

"Do you know how to use it? You didn't get the bottle too hot did you?"

"Kathryn I read the directions. I checked the bottle before I gave it to her."

"And you burped her?"

"Kathryn calm down. I burped her. She is fine."

"Are you sure? Did you change her diaper?"

"First thing," he reassures her.

"Can I have her?" Kathryn questions.

"No, she hasn't finished her bottle. I've got it."

"But..."

"Why don't you go take a shower, and you can have her when you're finished?"

"I can't."

"You can. I can handle it."

"That isn't what I meant. I am about to explode."