Ellie had discovered the basket of toys and was particularly impressed by the My Little Pony figures that Eddie had bought purely because she herself had the same ones as a child. The six pastel colored horses were lined up on the floor being served their water from a tin teacup. A very intent little girl was lost in her imagination. Eddie joined her on the floor and pulled some of Jamie's law books off a nearby shelf, using them to build a little barn. When Jamie came home, he was barely acknowledged as the girls were lost in their work.
"So which of the ponies lives in Fort Constitutional Law?" He joked.
"Duh, the cute pink one of course." quipped Eddie.
"What should we do for dinner, ladies?" Jamie asked.
"We're going to make something for you. Jump in the shower and we might let you help. You smell like you live in a barn with the real ponies."
"Pony?" Ellie asked handing him the blue-grey one.
"Thanks princess, but you hold onto it for me. I'm going to get cleaned up. I'll be right out, lambchop." Jamie told Eddie kissing the top of her head.
"Here, Lammie" Ellie offered the toy to Eddie instead.
Jamie laughed at the new nickname for his wife on the way to the bathroom. He decided he was glad that Erin had offered to babysit her niece later that week so that he and Eddie could have a date night. He really wished his wife could join him in the shower. That was something he hadn't done with anyone else before her and he found it to be an incredible experience. He missed the impromptu post workout showers. He made a mental note to set an alarm for 30 minutes before hers so he could convince her to get warm and soapy together.
When he came back out, Eddie had pulled out the pizza stone they received as a wedding present and put it into the hot oven. The wooden peel it came with was dusted and waiting. Having more fun in the kitchen than he could ever remember (except for a few breakfasts cooked with a half naked Eddie) the three of them made pizzas. They shaped the dough, with the help of Ellie and her little rolling pin and then covered them with sauce, fresh cheese and enough toppings to make everyone happy. A few sprinkles of Parmesan from Ellie and her cheese shaker and the pie was slipped into the oven. A second pie was assembled and waiting for the first to bake. They had learned one thing about their new daughter, she loved to cook.
They served the pizza hot from the oven for themselves, sneaking Ellie's piece into the freezer for a couple minutes to cool. It was absolutely delicious. To their surprise, the baby ate all of the toppings in addition to some of the cheese and bread. Of course she only had a few bites of everything but she nearly finished a slice, so they were happy. Jamie had grabbed some strawberry sorbet on his way back from the gym to serve with the cookies Linda and Ellie had made. He distracted the baby from Eddie's departure into the other room with some good old fashioned strawberry bribery.
As much as they hated the schedule that kept them apart, he was relishing the time he spent one on one with his daughter. While Eddie took an after-dinner nap, before heading into work, Jamie and Ellie had dessert and then he got her ready for bed. Splashing in the water, which was scented with lavender bubble bath that Eddie had bought for her, was fast becoming one of Ellie's favorite pastimes. Another purchase Linda and Eddie had made, under the line item "bath toys" on CPS' list of recommended toddler toys, was a Little Mermaid bath castle. As soon as Jamie took it from the closet and used the suction cup to hang it up, Ellie was curious. She grabbed the little figures that came with it and watched as Jamie showed her how to pour water onto the slide and send the figures sliding into the tub. The cause and effect was fascinating to the little girl and she squealed with joy and surprise every time. Knowing Eddie would hate to miss something so cute, he made a quick video of her, up to her shoulders in bubbles and gleefully launching Ariel, her mermaid sisters and Flounder the fish into the bath water. Once the baby was warm and drowsy from the bath, Jamie dressed her in pajamas and a pull-up for bed. He then bundled the little girl into a her quilt and snuggled into the rocking chair with her to read. Two stories later and both Ellie and Jamie were fast asleep. He hadn't realized how the change in their lives, however wonderful, was exhausting to him. It was Eddie who gently took Ellie from her husband and put her into her crib a couple hours later.
When she heard her husband and new little daughter splashing around during her bath, using what Eddie was sure was an unsanctioned amount of bubbles, she smiled to herself. This was going to work out. She wasn't going to let anything in her own head sabotage that. As she drifted off to sleep, she dreamed about the stranger in the store talking to her own "Jamie" but in her version it was Jamie Reagan. Waking at 9:00, a few minutes later than she wanted, she shook off the uneasy feeling that remained. Looking for Jamie, she had found him sound asleep in the rocking chair with Ellie curled up against him.
Once the baby was in the crib, grabbing Jamie's hand and giving him a silent signal once he roused, she led him from the room.
"So, I was thinking about something.." Eddie began once they were seated together out in the living room.
"Oh really," Jamie mischievously grinned at her.
"Not that," she laughed, "Although that's not a bad idea. I was actually thinking about trying to carve out some time for just us everyday."
"What did you have in mind?" Jamie asked.
"Well, I was thinking about Ellie's daycare schedule on the days we're working, and I think I want to get all my sleep while you're working. I know it means a couple more hours of childcare for her on those days, but I want to enjoy the evenings with you both. I know we wanted to be sure she spent as little time as possible at a babysitter, but we need to be a family, not 2 people practically sharing custody."
"I think you make a great point, Eddie. If you sleep when you get home and get a full 6 or 7 hours, we can spend time with Ellie together in the evening. Plus, you and I can spend some time together after she goes to bed." Jamie gave her the wicked grin she didn't know he had until they began dating.
"So you're not mad at me?"
"Eddie, this parenting thing is a journey, a compromise and a discovery process. We will make plans, and then re-adjust them when we need to. I think you made a great point. It's not really that much more time or money to do it your way. Plus, your plan is better for ALL THREE of us. Ellie needs to be with both of us together - especially on days when we're working. And as much as I love our growing family, I NEED to spend time with just you too."
Kissing Jamie goodbye, she headed out to work her midnight shift with Rachel. When Eddie slipped out the door, a little before 10pm, she felt better about leaving than she had before.