Disclaimer: I don't own anything from MASH, no matter how much I would love too, I don't so please don't sue me!
Summary: Follow Hawkeye and Margaret's life, together from the beginning!
A/N: Thanks for all the great reviews! Keep them coming! I hope you enjoy the this chapter!
After a few days, Margaret and Natalie were aloud to come home. For the first few days home Margaret and Hawkeye were thrilled to have a beautifully and healthy baby girl, but everything was also very new. It was a learning experience for the two of them but they were naturals. Natalie was very easy going from the beginning and her parents were grateful for that. Hawkeye took off as long as he could from work, which ended up being only a week, but it was better then nothing. It was quite obvious that Natalie had him wrapped around her little finger, and Margaret two. Margaret's parents and Hawkeye's dad stayed for two days after the two came home from the hospital, and Margaret was glad to see them go in a way. She wanted to spend time with her new family, alone, before Hawkeye had to head back to work. She thought it was selfish, but didn't care.
"Well Natalie, this is home." Margaret smiles. It was the first time her house was quiet in about five days, though she had spent three of those days in the hospital.
"Let me take her." Hawkeye says plucking the four day old child out of her arms. "Shall we take you on the tour? You haven't really had the official tour with your grandparents around. We'll start off in the foyer and move on..." He says.
This little girl was the greatest thing to ever happen to the Pierces. Margaret was nervous and on edge a lot for the first few days of having her home. She wanted everything to be perfect and with an infant that just wasn't possible. She did try to be as easygoing as possible, and Hawkeye tried to keep her sane. Natalie would wake up at about six in the morning, letting a cry out, instantly waking Margaret up. Hawkeye sometimes would wake up with her, but it was mainly at the 2am feedings.
"Good morning." She said smiling to the baby. "How are you today? I hope you slept well." She continues as she picks the baby up from the bassinet next to the bed. Natalie immediately stopped crying and cuddled against Margaret's shoulder as they head into the nursery, "What do you say we go change your dipper, feed you and then wake daddy up? I know he won't be too happy with me if I don't wake him... I mean you sleep so much, and he has to go back to work in a few days. He is going to miss you so much when he has to work all those hours." Margaret continues to talk to the baby as she changes her and feeds her. At around seven, they go back into Margaret's room. She lays Natalie on Hawkeye's chest, instantly waking him up.
"Good morning." He says smiling.
"Morning."
"And how are you Natalie? Are you doing well honey?" He asks, sitting up a bit to better hold the infant. "Did you sleep well? I bet you did."
"I figured you can get her dressed while I go take a shower."
"That's fine, but I'm in right after you."
"Fine." Margaret said smiling, stealing a kiss before she heads into the bathroom.
"Alright Nat... let's go see what you should wear today." He says, getting up and walking into the nursery, "We have all sorts of clothes for you to wear... would you like pink or purple or maybe blue? I think you have too many clothes for a baby... you aren't even two weeks old yet! Ok how about you pick. I have purple and pink, and the first one you touch, you can wear." He says smiling watching her blue eyes look at the clothes. Her left arm moved first, "Purple it is." He says laughing. "Now, let's see if I can get this on you quicker then yesterday. I'm sorry I'm not good at working with someone so small yet." He dresses her and says, "Two minutes... that's a new record... let's celebrate. I think that this calls for a round of coffee." He smiles as the two of them head downstairs to start breakfast for him and his wife. He puts Natalie down in the baby seat that was placed on the table, "What do you think Mommy will want? Should I make her some eggs and bacon? Or do you think she will want cereal? Eggs it is." He says, smiling at the infant. Natalie starts fussing a bit, "What's wrong peanut?" He asks, cracking a few eggs into a bowl. She still fusses and he goes over, "How about this, you can help me over here." He says picking up her seat and bringing it over to the counter so she can see what he is doing, "It's a good thing you are portable." He says laughing.
"What are you laughing about?" Margaret asked as she walked into the kitchen.
"Natalie's portable... and it's a good thing."
"Why was she crying?"
"I don't know... I brought her next to me and she's fine."
"Well then, what are you making?"
"Eggs. Is that ok with you?"
"Sound's great."
"How are you feeling now?"
"I'm still a bit sore, but she's worth it." Margaret said smiling at the baby who was watching her daddy cook.
"Do you want me to get you any more medicine for the pain?"
"No, I'm still alright with it. I have a few more pills that I am not planning on taking."
"Ok." He says smiling.
"Oh, I was talking to Peg last night."
"And?"
"She and I are going to go to the Mall this afternoon, which leaves you with Natalie... unless I decide to take her." She says biting her lip. She hated leaving the baby, even if it was for just a couple of minutes.
"She'll be fine with me." Hawkeye said smiling.
"I know... I just really don't like leaving her." Margaret said sighing as Hawkeye placed a plate of food in front of her, "Thank you."
"You're welcome." He says, grabbing his plate of food and Natalie all at once, taking them over to the table. "She'll be sleeping most of the time, and you won't miss a thing."
He assured her. "So what are you girls shopping for?"
"I need some new clothes... and Peg says she just wants to get out of the house."
"What is she doing with the kids?"
"BJ's parents are up, so they are going to watch the girls for a little while."
"I forgot about that..." He says smiling.
"So do you think you can handle having her for the afternoon?"
"Margaret..." Hawkeye said almost groaning, "I am her father..."
"I know..."
"We'll be fine, won't we Nattie?" He asked the infant.
"Ok..." Margaret said eating her eggs. "I probably wont be long..."
"Margaret, go out, have fun. You have been in this house for a week almost..."
"I just don't like leaving her..."
"She'll be fine.
"I know..." Margaret said.
"What time are you going out?"
"Eleven... we are going to get some lunch and then go shopping."
"That sounds good."
At five of eleven, Margaret leaves the house and heads over to the Hunnicut's.
"So, how is everything?" Peg asked as they walked through the shopping center.
"Great. How about you?"
"Fine. How do you like the role of motherhood so far Major?"
"I love it." Margaret replied smiling. "She is my life. I can't remember or even know how I lived without her.'
"I know how you feel. BJ and the girls are my life."
"I never thought I could love two people as much as I love Hawk and Natalie. I hated leaving her today, even though it is only for a few hours, and Hawkeye is with her."
"Yeah, I hate leaving Erin and Gillian too, but they need to be left alone with others at an earlier age... it helps them adjust to when we leave and prevents the separation anxiety or something."
"Yeah.'
"So, where would you like to eat?"
"Anywhere is fine with me." Margaret replied as the two went in search of a good place to eat.
Natalie and Hawkeye had a nice day at home. After she woke up from her morning nap, Hawkeye decided to take her for a long walk, talking to her the entire way.
"So, where should we go Natalie?" he asked the wide eyed baby. She was looking at everything. "You don't care where we go do you? Just so long as you are able to see everything." They walked around the block and saw a few neighbors also walking.
"Good morning Hawkeye."
"Good morning Leslie." Hawkeye said smiling, "Good morning Denise.'
"Oh! Margaret had the baby!" Denise says smiling, "What did you have?" she asked as they crossed the street to see her.
"A girl." Hawkeye says smiling.
"When did you have her?" Leslie asks.
"May eighteenth."
"She's beautiful, what's her name?"
"Natalie."
"Would you look at those eyes? They are definitely from her father." Denise says.
"Congratulations Hawk!"
"Thank you." He says smiling.
"Tell Margaret the same. See you later."
"I will. Bye." He says. "See Nat... everyone loves you!"
At one, Hawkeye gets Natalie's bottle ready and makes him some lunch. He feeds Natalie, then eats himself. Natalie gets fussy when he was cleaning up. "What's wrong Natalie?" He asks her looking back over his shoulder. When she starts to cry he goes over and picks her up, cuddling her. "What's the problem peanut? Are you tired? You and I had a very busy day." He says to her, heading over to the couch. 'How about we take a little nap? How does that sound/' He asks watching her slowly fall asleep before falling asleep himself.
Around three, Margaret comes back home. She walks into the family room and sees the two on the couch. She smiles, grabbing a blanket to cover the pair up before heading upstairs to her room to take a nap. She sleeps for about an hour before waking up to the sound of Hawkeye in the nursery talking to Natalie.
"Hi." She says smiling as she walks through the door of the nursery.
"Hi. How was shopping?" He asks as he changes his daughter.
"It was nice. I bought some clothes for me and a few for Nattie too."
"That's great."
"How was your day?"
"Good. We went for a walk and saw Leslie and Denise. They say congratulations." He says picking Natalie up and passing her to his wife, "You look like you missed her."
"I did." Margaret says, cuddling the infant. "Did you have a nice nap with daddy? It looked like you did."
Finally, the day came when Hawkeye had to get back to work. He loved being home with his girls and hated having to leave them. When Natalie woke up at six, Hawkeye got up with them and showered while Margaret fed the baby.
"I wish I didn't have to go in..." Hawkeye said, pulling on a shirt."
"Me neither, but you do." Margaret replied. "And you'll be home around six..."
"That's too long." He complains before picking Natalie up, "Now, don't you do anything cute when I'm gone deal?" He asked. Natalie reaches up and grabs his nose, causing him to smile, "Like that... no cute stuff."
"You better get going."
"Yeah, I'm going." He says, kissing his wife and daughter before handing her back over,
"Have a good day girls."
"You too." Margaret said smiling. "So, what do you say Nat, should we go clean up your daddy's mess?" She asked after she heard the front door closed. 'I think that's a good idea."
Hawkeye gets into the hospital and heads straight to his office. "Welcome back Dr. Pierce."
"Thank you Judy." He says, giving her a warm smile, "I see there is already a stack of charts ready for me."
"We didn't want you to feel like we forgot about you." BJ said smiling as he walks into his friend's office.
"Thanks Beej." He says sarcastically.
"How was your week off?"
"Not long enough."
"How do you like the role of a father?" Judy asked.
"I love it. Natalie is perfect. She is the most perfect child."
"I bet. How are your girls Dr. Hunnicut?"
"Great." BJ said smiling. "Well pal, it looks like it's you and me in surgery to start out."
"Sounds great... let's go!" Hawkeye says as the two friends walk into the OR to scrub up.
At around three, Hawkeye decides to call home and see how Margaret was fairing alone with the baby. She of course was fine and began counting down the hours he could be with his family.
He only got to spend a few hours with Natalie in the morning and night. He savored every moment with her. He would take her from Margaret when he came in, and wouldn't put her down until she was ready to go to sleep. Margaret loved watching the two interact. It reminded her of herself and her own father. Margaret absolutely adored her new family as did Hawkeye.
Margaret and Hawkeye decided to take a trip East to see Daniel for a week. They were going to be flying out with a two month old. Everyone thought they were crazy, but they were going anyway. They were taking off at eight, which would be about the time Natalie would go down for her morning nap. As soon as they settled into the plane, Natalie fell asleep in Margaret's arms. She slept for two hours before waking up. The plane ride was very long, but Natalie did rather well. She only cried a few times, but quickly stopped. They touched down in Portland at around three o'clock, and Natalie was wide awake, which her Grandfather was thrilled about. He smiled when he saw his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter step off the plane.
"Hi."
"Hi dad." Hawkeye says smiling, hugging his father.
"Hi." Margaret said, doing the same as Hawkeye.
"Well, Natalie, you are wide awake!"
"She has been for about an hour. Do you want to hold her dad?" Margaret asked.
"Sure! Let me take her!" He says smiling as he plucks the baby from her mother's arms.
"Well hi there Natalie... my gosh I can't believe how big you got in the past two months."
"She has gotten big... I can't believe she's two months already." Margaret said smiling as Hawkeye got their bags and they headed to the elder Pierce's car.
"I can't wait to show her off." Daniel says grinning. "Mary is dying to meet her."
"How is Mrs. Kensington?"
"She is doing well. She can't wait to see you three."
"Are you going back to the office?" Margaret asked.
"Not today. Tomorrow I am though." Daniel said. "Oh, there is the summer festival in town on Thursday, if you want to go."
"Sounds like fun." Hawkeye says smiling.
"What is it?" Margaret asks.
"It's just a festival with food and entertainment and fireworks. The entire town shows up for it." Hawkeye explains.
"Oh... ok... sounds good." Margaret says, a bit leery of the fireworks.
"We don't have to stay the entire time." Hawkeye smiles, knowing how she is with loud noises.
They went out for a nice dinner at around five, but by the time they got back to the house Natalie was getting cranky and wanted to sleep, but being in a different surrounding threw her off a bit. She was ok when someone would hold her, but if they put her down it was a different story. Margaret tried to put her in the crib which was in Hawkeye's old room, but every time she tried, Natalie would cry, so Margaret ended up holding her until she fell asleep, but it's not like she really minded. She talked to her until she was finally ready to be placed in the crib for what should be a two hour nap, which only turned out to be about a thirty minute one. The time difference really threw her off, even though they had tried to keep her up. She would be really tough tonight, and want to go to bed early because she hadn't taken her true afternoon nap. Margaret watched her daughter sleep for a few minutes and then headed down with the men.
"She down?"
"Yeah." Margaret says smiling at her husband, sitting next to him on the couch. "I don't know how we are going to keep her up an extra few hours tonight. She technically is going to miss her afternoon nap. I don't think she will sleep the whole two hours."
"I forgot... time change." Hawkeye said shaking his head.
"I really don't want to be woken up at three in the morning with her wide awake."
"You'll be able to keep her up." Daniel assured them. "She won't be happy about it, but you can. Let her sleep a bit longer this afternoon."
"Yeah... I guess I could." Margaret says sighing.
"She'll be fine by tomorrow. I remember when we traveled with Ben through the time zone changes. He was miserable before bed, but the next day was right on schedule. Hawkeye had a set of lungs on him..."
"He still does." Margaret said smiling.
"Oh and like you don't." Hawkeye replies, poking Margaret in the ribs.
"I never said I didn't." She grins.
"So, does my granddaughter wake you up through the nights any more?"
"No. She stopped that at around a month old. She sometimes wakes up, but as soon as you pick her up she stops." Margaret says smiling.
"What time does she wake you up?"
"Six." Hawkeye replies, "Which is perfect for me because she is my alarm clock. I like waking up to her better then that ringing thing."
"You know what I am amazed at?"
"What's that dad?"
"At Margaret."
"Me?!"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"You look absolutely wonderful." He says, causing his daughter-in-law to blush, "I mean it. It is hard to believe that you just had a baby... only two months ago."
"I still have a ways to go." Margaret says smiling a bit.
"You look absolutely wonderful!"
"She does." Hawkeye says smiling, "Not that she never looked great before."
"I take a lot of walks with Natalie... I hate being fat."
"You were never fat... you were round." Hawkeye says, grinning, trying to dodge Margaret's hand, poorly doing so and having it hit him square in the chest, "Ouch... "
"You deserved that son." Dan says laughing at his son.
"I know..." He replies, rubbing his chest.
Dan looked at the two and smiled. He has never seen Hawkeye so head over heals for a girl before, but Margaret was different. She was a special person, and kept Hawkeye on his toes every step of the way. Now, his son had his own child, and it was weird to even think of him being old enough to have a child. He knew Hawkeye had some trouble with kids before Natalie, but that was all in the past, and it's a good thing too because this little girl is definitely a daddy's girl. You could already tell it when he holds her.
After Natalie woke up, they all went out for an early dinner. Daniel was paying, and wanted to take them to show his granddaughter off to the town. They went to the local Lobster Shack, which was located in the middle of town. The restaurant was family own, and knew the Pierces very well. Natalie was in a very good mood when she woke up, even though she was still on California time, and it was a bit past her normal afternoon nap, being five o'clock in Maine.
"Well I don't believe it, Hawkeye it's great to see you." Martha says smiling as she hugs the boy. "When did you get in?"
"Around three. "Hawkeye says smiling. "How are you Mrs. Ross?"
"I've been great... and who is this lovely lady?"
"This is my wife, Margaret."
"Nice to meet you Margaret." She says shaking her hand.
"You too." Margaret smiles.
"Where's your father?"
"He'll be in shortly." Hawkeye says smiling.
"Ok, so shall I seat you three?"
"That would be great." Hawkeye says, following the woman to a booth.
"What would you two like to drink?"
"I'll take a martini please." Hawkeye says smiling.
"And for you Margaret?"
"Um... just a water please." She says smiling.
"You're no fun." Hawkeye replies, smiling.
"And your dad will take a martini too... I am assuming."
"You could assume right." Hawk says laughing.
"I'll bring them right out to you."
"What do you think your dads doing?"
"Probably showing Natalie the coast. He'll be in shortly. Do you miss her already?"
"No, I just wanted to know what was taking them so long... speak of the devil." Margaret said smiling.
"I had to show Natalie how beautiful Maine was at an early age. You don't respect how pretty the coast line is if we don't get to them young."
"I told you." Hawkeye says smiling. "So did she like it?"
"She smiled and cooed and drooled a bit, so I took that as for extreme amusement." Dan says laughing.
"Well that's good. We ordered you a drink... well Mrs. Ross did."
"Martini?"
"Yeah."
"Great." He says, sitting down with Natalie in his lap.
"Here you all go." Martha says, putting the drinks down in front of them. "Well..." She says looking at Dan, "Who is this cutie?"
"This is Natalie!" He says, proudly.
"She is absolutely beautiful! Is she a niece?"
"No! She's my granddaughter!" Daniel says laughing.
"You mean to tell me that you have a daughter Hawkeye?!"
"Yes."
"I never would have thought.... Congratulations!" She says to the two.
"Thank you." Margaret says smiling.
"My gosh, she is beautiful... she looks a lot like Hawkeye."
"Yes, she does... especially with his eyes." Margaret agrees. "She definitely has her fathers eyes..."
"But your skin." Hawkeye says... "And lips." He picks, getting a warning glance shot towards him.
"How old is she?"
"A little over two months. I had her May 18th." Margaret smiled.
"Well, she is absolutely beautiful."
"Thank you." Hawkeye says grinning as he takes his daughter from his father.
"So... do you know what you want for dinner?" She asks, still watching the baby. They all order and have a nice dinner. Natalie was good for them the entire time, mainly looking around at all the people who came by the table to see her daddy and Grandpop.
The ones who knew about the Pierces new daughter were excited to see the baby finally, and those who didn't were shocked to hear the news and trilled for the couple. It would be a lot of fun for the three of them to show Natalie off at the festival, which would be coming up in a short few days.
By the time dinner was over, Natalie was getting very cranky, and Margaret did everything in her power to keep her up till seven. She really didn't want her waking up early. Natalie started crying around six, because every time she would almost fall asleep, Margaret would jostle her lightly and keep her awake. She was getting very frustrated with her mother. Margaret handed her over to Hawkeye after a while and he kept her up till around seven when he finally gave up. "I'm going to put her to bed."
"It's not seven yet." Margaret said, looking at the clock.
"Yeah, but she is really getting tired. It's only a few minutes early." He says, heading upstairs with her. She was now full out screaming. "I know." Hawkeye says, as he puts her into her pajamas. "It's not fun having to stay up when you are already exhausted, but I am just trying to prepare you for med school." He says smiling. "Shh.... We're almost done. Just another button and... there, see? Now was that so bad?" He asks, picking her up. "This room use to be my room, but now your Grandpop has it all set for you. It uses to be blue when I was little, but now it's purple." He keeps talking to her as he sits down in the rocking chair, "There, is this better?" He asks as she cuddles against him, looking up at him, "Now you can go to sleep. It's almost seven, but where we live it's earlier, so you basically skipped your afternoon nap didn't you? Right now, you would be waking up from your nap... yes you would be... but now you're exhausted. I hate being tired too." He keeps talking to her as her eyelids slowly close. He smiles when he hears her breathing steady and lays her in the crib. He then stands and watches her for a little while before heading back downstairs with his wife and father.
"Did she go to sleep?"
"Yeah. Almost right away."
"So, Margaret, do your parents know that you are out on the East Coast?"
"Of course... they are planning on coming up for the couple of days Hawkeye and I head to Philadelphia to introduce Natalie to Father Mulcahy."
"Excellent."
"Yeah." Hawkeye says sarcastically, getting a glare from Margaret that he has seen all too frequently.
"Are you looking forward to seeing your parents?"
"Yes I am. I miss having them around." Margaret admits. "Especially my sister."
At around ten, Margaret heads up to bed. She was exhausted and knew that she would be woken up early, so she said good night to the two men and headed upstairs. Hawkeye and Daniel had a chance to talk, just the two of them, for the first time in a while.
"So, how is it being a father Hawk?"
"Great... I love it. The only thing I wish I could do is have more time at home with them."
"The life of a surgeon." Dan says smiling. "Have you and Margaret had a chance to get out alone in the past two months?"
"No..."
"Not at all?" Dan says almost shocked.
"Not at all. Between me working and the baby it just never seems to work out. We don't even have time to..."
"Stop right there Benjamin..." Dan says smiling at his son, holding up his hand to him. He knew what was coming out of his mouth next and wanted to hear nothing of it. "I don't want or need to hear about that."
"I feel bad... but we just don't have time to do anything. Margaret won't leave Natalie alone with anyone other then me or occasionally Peg... and that is a very RARE occasion."
"Well, how about I take Natalie for the night and you two go out to dinner or something. How does that sound?"
"I'd have to check with her."
"Natalie? I'm sure she won't mind." He teases.
"I'll ask her tomorrow."
"Don't ask... just make reservations for somewhere and take her. I'm sure that she will agree to have a nice dinner out with her husband, without the baby."
"Yeah, I guess she wouldn't have a problem leaving her with you..."
"You should take her somewhere nice..."
"I was thinking of the same place we went the night I proposed."
"She'll like that."
"I think so. I guess I'll plan for a late dinner, around eight... that will give us enough time to get ready, get Natalie to bed and then drive out."
"Now you're thinking."
"You sure you don't mind watching Nat?"
"Nah... she'll be sleeping anyway."
"Ok." Hawkeye says, looking at his watch. "Midnight..." He says yawning.
"Yeah... I better turn in."
"As should I. Good night Dad."
"Are you going to stop into the office tomorrow?"
"Yeah, I think Mrs. Kensington will have my skin if I don't."
"Yeah... good night Hawk."
"Night." He says as he makes a stop at the bathroom and then to check on Natalie before joining his wife. He left the door, open a crack and climbed into bed, wrapping his arms around her.
"What time is it?" She mumbles as she turns and leans into his chest.
"Midnight."
"Oh."
"Do you want to go out tomorrow night?"
"Where?"
"To dinner; Just the two of us."
"That sounds nice... your dad will watch Natalie for us?"
"Yeah, that is if you want him too."
"Sure, that's fine. I really want a chance to go out. We haven't had much time just the two of us..."
"We haven't had any time alone, just the two of us." Hawkeye says smiling, kissing the top of her head.
"So tomorrow night?"
"Is ours." He says, pulling her tightly against him.
"Good." She says yawning. She kisses his chest before closing her eyes. "I love you."
"I love you too." He says as they both fall asleep.
It was a very cool night, comfortable sleeping weather as long as you kept the window open, or in case of the guestroom, the balcony door. At around six, Natalie let out a cry. Margaret groaned, and peeled herself out of Hawkeye's grip. She walked past Dan's room, seeing that he was already up, and headed in to grab Natalie.
"Good morning pretty girl." She says smiling, picking her daughter up. "How are you today?" Natalie instantly stops crying and smiles at her mom. "There's that smile." She continues talking as she changes the baby, before heading downstairs to make her up a bottle. "I hear Grandpop, maybe he made coffee." Margaret says to the baby as they advance down the stairs into the kitchen, "Morning."
"Morning honey." Dan says smiling. "Hi princess! Did you sleep well last night?"
"She let me sleep longer this morning, even if it was only fifteen minutes."
"That's good. Would you like a cup of coffee?"
"I would love one." She says, as she starts to boil the water for the bottle. "I hear your son is taking me out tonight."
"I heard the same."
"You sure you don't mind watching Natalie?"
"Of course not... I tried to get Hawkeye to get out of here earlier because I wanted to spend some time with her while she was awake."
"We could arrange that." Margaret said shrugging.
"Hawkeye didn't know if you would go for that."
"Normally no, but I think I can make an acceptation, that is if you don't mind."
"No... what do you say Natalie, do you mind staying with your old Grandpop for a few hours tonight?" He asks, getting a smile in response from the baby, "I think we're good Mommy."
"Alright." Margaret says smiling. "Here, do you want to hold her while I get her bottle?"
"Sure."
"When do you open the office?"
"I'm going in at seven thirty, so my first patient won't be until eight fifteen."
"That sounds like a good time... eight fifteen... how in the hell did you ever get Hawkeye to work for you when you opened that early?"
"Easy... I didn't have him in till nine." Dan says laughing.
"That's more his time." Margaret said, testing the bottle on her wrist before handing it to Daniel. "Do you mind? I am going to go up and get a shower really fast."
"Of course not. Natalie and I will be fine. Take your time."
"Thanks Dad." She says smiling as she heads upstairs.
"Your mommy is something Natalie." Dan says smiling at his granddaughter as he fed her.
Margaret quickly got her shower and got dressed before coming back downstairs. She heard her father-in-law talking to her daughter and smiled when she came into the room.
"Sounds like you two are having a good time."
"I was telling Natalie how much of a pain her daddy is."
"That he is." She says smiling.
The two talk until Dan has to head to work. Margaret decides to take Natalie out for a little walk before Hawkeye wakes up, so she heads upstairs and nudges him a bit, "Hey."
"What?"
"I'm taking Natalie for a walk... we'll be back in a little while."
"Fine..." He says, rolling over and falling right back to sleep. Margaret shakes her head and smiles before heading outside with the baby. She placed Natalie in the stroller as they headed out onto Cliffside Road and walked around the town a bit. Margaret has always liked to take walks and she could already tell Natalie enjoyed it. They walked around the small town till about nine thirty when they headed back to the Pierce residence to wake up Hawkeye, who was already awake and making breakfast. "Hi."
"Hi..." Margaret said smiling, picking up Natalie, "It smells great."
"You hungry?"
"Starved." She says smiling at him.
"Well hey there Princess! How are you?" He asks the infant in his wife's arms. "Did you have a nice walk?"
"Yes. I like walking around out here. Oh, your father wants us to stop by his office today."
"I know." Hawk says, placing a plate of food in front of his wife before getting his own plate and sitting down next to the girls. "I figured we'd go after I cleaned up from breakfast."
"I'll do that."
"That sounds even better!" Hawkeye says smiling. "I made reservations for tonight."
"What time?"
"Seven. We'd have to leave here around six thirty... If you want to leave later so you can get Nat in bed we can do that."
"No, that's time is fine. You're dad can handle her."
"Ok, good."
"Where are we going?"
"The same place we went when I asked you to marry me."
"Oh excellent." She says, taking a bite of her food. "I really like it there."
"So do I."
"Do you want to stop over and see the Gillis's?"
"Yeah... we probably should. My dad's told them about Natalie and they are anxious to meet her."
"I bet..." Margaret said smiling.
They finished up breakfast, then Hawkeye took Natalie from Margaret and went into the other room, while she cleaned up the mess her husband made. The rest of the morning into the afternoon they spend visiting people, and showing Natalie off. Of course everyone thought the child was absolutely beautiful and were thrilled for the two parents. Around five, Margaret decided to start getting dressed so she left Natalie with the Pierce men and headed upstairs. She was more excited then she would admit at being able to go out with just her husband tonight. It seemed so long since she was able to dress up and have a nice dinner. She took her time with getting her shower and getting ready for the night, and relieved Hawkeye at around six so he could do the same. By six thirty they are ready to leave.
"If you need us call the restaurant."
"She'll be fine Margaret." Dan says smiling.
"I know... but still... call the restaurant."
"I will. Have a good time you two."
"We will." Hawkeye says, kissing his daughter. "Be good princess."
"Thanks dad." Margaret says smiling, and kissing her daughter before they head out.
They enjoy a nice quiet and relaxing dinner, savoring the time they have together. They eat and dance before returning back home around ten. The house is dark by that time.
"Are you ready to go in yet?" Hawkeye asks Margaret as he takes her hand.
"No... are you?"
"No." He says smiling, "Lets go take a walk."
"That sounds good."
They head down the path towards the beach, hand in hand. It was a beautiful warm night on the shores of Maine. There was a soft breeze blowing across the ocean. They walk on the sand in silence for a few minutes before Margaret says, "Hold on..." She stops and takes off her shoes.
"Margaret...." Hawkeye says smiling, "You know how you in bare feet drives me absolutely wild."
"Down Pierce." She says playfully as they start walking some more. "It really is beautiful out here."
"Yeah, I miss it." He admits.
"So do I."
"This was the only place I lived... well besides for Korea and San Francisco."
"You were spoiled by its beauty. Do you ever think of moving back here?"
"Yeah, occasionally. I really am not ready to move yet. I love San Francisco and the hospital and of course being so close to BJ... but I miss my father and my friends out here."
"Do you think we will move back?"
"That's up to if I get a decent job offer, and if you want too."
"You know I'll follow you where ever you go."
"Yeah, but you have moved your entire life... I really don't want to move you again."
"One more time won't kill me." She says.
"We'll see..." He says, walking with her towards the ocean. They sit down right where high tide ended, knowing they won't get wet. Margaret sits herself right in-between his legs, leaning back on him. He closes his arms around her and they watch the stars.
"Everything is so much clearer up here." She says smiling.
"You can't get much further away from everything then this." He says, kissing the side of her head. "So... how is this for our first date after the kid?"
"Not too bad." She says smiling.
"That's all?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, what could I do to make it better?"
"I can think of one thing... that can not take place here." She says, looking at her watch in the moons light.
"Well, it's eleven thirty." He says grinning... "What do you say about us heading back to the house?"
"I think that would be a plan... but it's your father's house."
"That's ok... he's sound asleep. As long as you promise to not make too much noise we'll be fine." He says grinning.
"Same goes to you buster." She says rolling her eyes as they stand up, heading back to the house. Margaret heads into the bathroom and Hawkeye goes out to the balcony, sitting down on the lounge chair. "What are you doing out here?" He hears his wife ask.
"Nothing." He says smiling.
"Well are you going to come inside?"
"I don't think so... why don't you come out here."
"Hawk..."
"Come on Hotlips." He says grinning. "Learn to live a little."
She smiles and heads outside sitting in-between his legs. He immediately attacks her neck and before they knew it, passion overtook them. They stayed outside for the night, covered by a blanket sleeping in one another's arms. They woke up by the sun at around five am, and went inside to wait for Natalie to wake up. Neither one spoke right away as they lay in bed together. It was the first time in a long time that they had been together and they were thrilled to have a moment's of peace before Natalie decided to wake up.
They fell asleep for about an hour before they heard the familiar cry.
On Friday, they headed down to Philadelphia to meet up with Margaret's parents and the Padre. They would only be staying till Sunday when they would be heading back up to Maine one two more nights before heading back to California on Wednesday Morning. They got down to their hotel by one o'clock, and Natalie was miserable. She was exhausted and ready for her nap. Margaret was doing her best to stop her from crying as they entered the hotel, but ended up failing. She was screaming by the time Hawkeye got the key.
"You take her." Margaret huffed as she handed the child over to him. "What floor are we on?"
"The fifth. Right down the hall from your folks."
"Are they here?"
"Yes." He says, placing Natalie up against his shoulder, rubbing her back, "Nat, you're really beginning to hurt my ears there kiddo."
They head on to the elevator, "Where too Ma'am?"
"The fifth floor." Margaret says politely. Natalie was beginning to quiet down as they stepped off of the elevator. Margaret smiled and thanked the man as they headed down to their room.
"Alright, let's get her down for a nap before your pa...." Hawkeye begins but is cut off by the sound of his mother-in-law calling to them from three doors down.
"You three are finally here! You're a bit late." Kate says smiling as she kisses her daughter and son-in-law. "How are you?"
"Fine mom, how are you?" Margaret asks smiling.
"Great."
"Where's daddy?"
"He'll be out in a few seconds. I thought I heard you two so I peeked out."
"Perfect timing." Hawkeye said, a bit sarcastic.
"Now, let me see my granddaughter." She says looking at her sleepy face. "She looks tired."
"She is." Margaret says.
"Let me take her."
"We just got her to stop crying..." Hawkeye begins.
"Oh nonsense. She'll be fine." Kate says grabbing her off Hawkeye's shoulder, cuddling her, "She has gotten a lot bigger since we saw her last."
"They tend to do that." Hawk replies as he opens there door and the Houlihan women enter. Natalie gets fussy again as she is jostled by her grandmother, "How about I put her down, and you two catch up?"
"Ok." Margaret says smiling at him as he takes Natalie.
"Come on Nat..." He says, as she instantly stops crying. "I know how you feel."
He walks out onto the porch that has the door off of the master bedroom, which is connected to the smaller bedroom that they will have Natalie in. He sits down on the lounge chair with her and rubs her back, "This is going to be a long two days Natalie..." He says, sighing. He was not looking forward to seeing the Colonel and would put it off till the last possible second. "You are going to have to save me ok?" He asked, watching her look up at him, "Keep me sane." He tells her as she closes her eyes, "Or sleep... either one is good." He stays out on the porch for a while longer looking out at the river.
About fifteen minutes later, he brings her back in and lays her in the crib. He sighed and headed back into the living room of the hotel. He saw the Colonel sitting next to his wife and forced on a smile. "Is she sleeping?" Margaret asked.
"Yes." He says, "How are you Colonel?"
"Fine, you?"
"Fine." Hawkeye replied... and that was the last thing he said. He sat down on the chair across from Margaret and kept quiet until Natalie woke up again. All they talked about was the Army and the past, two things Hawkeye was not fond of. He kept on getting glances from Margaret, but he dodged almost every one of them. He liked Kate, but today, even she was in on the army conversation. At three thirty, Natalie woke up, and Hawkeye was up and out of the chair very quickly. He walked into the baby's room and picked her up. "Am I glad to see you awake." He says smiling.
Margaret came in and closed the door, "What is with you?"
"What do you mean?" He asked innocently.
"You are being so rude to my parents Pierce!" She said in a loud whisper.
"Me? How am I being rude? What would you like me to do huh? Talk about what I think of the army?"
"That's not all we are talking about! Damn it Pierce!"
"You're right... you are also talking about other things that I know nothing about... and that is the interesting things! Margaret... I never have or never will care about the army!
The only good thing that came out of that was you and our friends... that is it. I never wanted to be there in the first place. I'm not you. It was the worst experience in my life... and I will never make army my life again!"
"It is your life because I am army, and I am your wife!" She says, taking Natalie from him. "What happens if Natalie decides to go into the army or if we have more kids one of them? Are you going to completely shut off all communication because they decided to chose army life?"
"Margaret..."
"I'm serious! You are involved in the army, if not physically then emotionally. You were there; you were a Captain in the army! I was a Major, and if I didn't have kids I would have been promoted...."
"Margaret... I love you... not the army! And I know how much the army means to you which is the reason that I am keeping my mouth closed on the situation!"
"You are coming off to my father as..."
"I don't care what I come off to your father as... he doesn't like me and I personally don't like him either. You know this. What he thinks does NOT matter to me! Why can't you understand this?"
"But it matters to me! You should want what matters to me Hawkeye! I mean..." She says, almost yelling, "You and I are supposes to be a team now! I respect your feelings, why can't you respect mine?! Hawkeye... you know how much my father means to me! Why can't you try to get along?"
"We do.. I have, but it is hard when every time I am around him he brings up the army!"
"He's regular army! Damn it Pierce!" She says, changing Natalie. "He's my father!"
"And I have not done anything wrong!"
"You are acting completely...." She says, not knowing what to say next, "You know what? I'm done, I'm going back out there and seeing my parents... you can come out and actually act civil towards them or..."
"I'll be out in a little while." He says, walking into the master bedroom and onto the porch. He sat down on one of the chairs, muttering to himself. If he had gone into that room he would have probably walked out of the hotel. How dare her come in and tell him how he should act around her parents. He did absolutely nothing wrong! All he did was sit there and keep his mouth shut, something which took all his emotional power to stop. He knew that for the next two days, it would be hell. The only good time he will have is when they see Father Mulcahy tomorrow afternoon for lunch. It wouldn't be so bad seeing the Colonel if it wasn't for the constant army talk! He sighed and figured he best go inside. Margaret was pissed off at him enough for one day. He walked back into the living room and felt Margaret's icy stare on him as soon as he was in her eyesight. Natalie was sitting with her grandfather smiling at him.
"She has a smile like her mother." The Colonel says.
"And eye's like her father." Kate replies.
"She's a perfect combination of us." Margaret said, looking at Hawkeye.
"Yeah, but hopefully she wont have our tempers." He smiled at her.
"She will..." Kate says smiling, "The first one always has the mouth."
"Hey!" Margaret said smiling.
"I sometimes don't know how you do it Hawkeye..." Kate says smiling.
"Trust me; I sometimes don't know how she does it." He says smiling at Margaret.
The rest of their trip in Philadelphia went very well. They got over their little tiff soon after it occurred and that made for a nicer time. Father Mulcahy absolutely adored the infant and was thrilled to have the chance to meet them. Margaret's parents would be coming out once again for Thanksgiving, but for Christmas they would be going to Annie's. The Pierces were invited but declined. Margaret really wanted Natalie's first Christmas to be at there house. Daniel would be flying out till two days after New Years to spend the holidays with his family. On Sunday they went back up to Maine and on Tuesday they left. The flight went great. Natalie slept for some of the ride as they flew across country. Margaret was a little nervous about how Natalie would take to the adjusting time zones again. She did rather well when they were in Maine, but now, she would want to sleep at four instead of her normal bed time of seven. Somehow Margaret managed to keep her up till almost her bedtime. At nine Margaret and Hawkeye headed up to bed, and the next morning he was off to work, leaving Margaret and Natalie to their own.
The rest of the summer seemed to fly by and November was upon them. Natalie was six months now. Hawkeye was only working tonight until five, which Margaret was excited about. He had been working late all of October, and rarely home for more then four hours at a time. He and BJ were the only two surgeons on call for that month because the others were out on vacation. When Natalie woke up from her afternoon nap she was extremely clingy to Margaret. She would cry every time she was out of her arms. Margaret couldn't understand why she was so fussy. She figured it was her teeth. She has been teething for about three weeks, so naturally that was what she figured it was. Natalie was normally such a happy baby, but today was different. Margaret put her down in her playpen for a few minutes, and she played with her toys, watching her mom carefully so that she didn't leave her. The phone rang and Margaret went to answer it in the Kitchen, "Hello?"
"Hi Margaret."
"Hi Peg, how are you?"
"Fine, how are you?"
"I'm doing well also."
"I was just talking to BJ and he said that Hawkeye and he have the day off tomorrow so I was wondering if you wanted to drop Natalie off here with Ashley and come out to dinner with us. We haven't really gotten to have an 'adult' dinner in a while."
"That actually may be a nice idea." Margaret says smiling. "What time would you say?"
"I told Ashley to get here around six thirty."
"That sounds like a plan. Where do you want to go?"
"Some where nice." Peg says smiling on the other line.
"Well how about..." Margaret starts, just as Natalie starts to cry, "Shit... Peg, can you hold on for a second?"
"Sure." She says smiling. "She doesn't sound too happy."
"No she's not." Margaret says as she places the phone on the table and walks into the family room, "Hey, hey, hey there little girl." She calls to her daughter. "What's wrong princess huh?" She asks as she picks her up out of the crib. "Shh, it's ok, I'm here. Why are you so cranky?" Natalie immediately stops crying and lays her head on Margaret's shoulder, Margaret heads back into the kitchen and picks up the phone, "Sorry about that Peggy."
"Is she ok?"
"She's been absolutely miserable since she woke up from her nap."
"Why?"
"I think her teeth are bothering her, but I can't tell."
"Maybe she's coming down with something."
"God I hope not. She has been healthy for the most part."
"Gillian has too, except for that flu that hit her three weeks ago."
"Yeah... but I guess we'll see." She says, as Natalie clings to her shirt.
"So shall we plan for tomorrow?"
"Sure. I'll call you if Natalie ends up having some bug."
"Ok. I'll talk to you tomorrow then."
"Right Peg. Bye."
"Bye." Peg says, and the two women hang up.
Natalie starts to fuss again, "Alright Natalie, alright. It's ok." She says rubbing the baby's back. She sits down in the living room on the couch and lies down with Natalie on her chest. "It's ok pretty girl. Daddy should be home soon. Then Mommy will make us dinner. How does that sound?"
Around five, Hawkeye comes in. Margaret is in the kitchen trying to feed Natalie which is proving to be difficult. "Hi honey." He says, kissing her.
"Hi. You're a bit late."
"I know. BJ and I had an emergency case come in, so we had to take it." He says, looking down at Natalie, "Hi Princess." He says as he kisses her head.
Natalie sees him and starts to fuss.
"No honey, eat a little kiddo, please? For mommy?" Margaret begged the six month old.
Natalie kept pushing the spoon away from her mouth which was clenched shut. Her hands were a mess, full of mashed bananas.
"She's not eating?" Hawkeye says, looking at her.
"No... she ate a little bit, but other then that, nothing. She has been cranky since she woke up from her afternoon nap, and now she really isn't eating."
"Don't force her. She probably isn't feeling too well." Hawkeye says, as he looks down at her. Natalie looks at her dad and starts to cry, reaching for him. Margaret wipes her face and hands off quickly and Hawkeye picks her up. She cuddles down against the crook of his neck and sucks her thumb. "What's wrong baby girl? Do you not feel well?" He asks her as he kisses her forehead, "You don't feel too warm." He says, rubbing her back. "So what's for dinner?"
"Spaghetti. Oh and tomorrow we are going to go out with Peg and BJ... providing Natalie is ok."
"Great." He says smiling. They had their first dinner together in over three weeks, and enjoyed every minute of it. Margaret really like the fact that Natalie was content with her father holding her, so she could have a break. Her cousin said when her son was born the only one he wanted for two years was her. He wouldn't even go to his father if he was sick or upset, and thankfully Natalie was the opposite. Throughout the night, Natalie was getting a little stuffy, and had a bit of a cough. Hawkeye knew that she was coming down with something. She fell asleep around nine, which was odd for her. She was up fussing for about an hour before. Margaret finally got her down and went to join her husband on the couch.
"How is she?"
"I don't know... she is really stuffy..."
"She'll probably have something by tomorrow morning... hopefully after six o'clock."
"Damn..." Margaret said sighing.
"She'll be ok."
"I know... I just wish I could do something to help her."
"She'll be ok." Hawkeye says, kissing her on the cheek.
At around midnight the two went up to bed, Hawkeye checked on Natalie and shook his head. She was really congested. He kissed her cheek and went to join Margaret who was already in bed. They slept soundly until five that morning when they were woken up by Natalie crying.
"I'll get her." Margaret said yawning, throwing the blankets back as she headed out of their room and into the baby's room, "Ok Natalie, I'm coming." She says, turning on the lamp before quickly walking to the crib to pick her up. "Shh... you're ok." She says, lifting her out of the crib, "Damn." Margaret said when she felt how warm she was, "You don't feel too well do you Natalie." She sat down in the rocking chair with the baby who continued to cry. After about ten minutes Hawkeye comes in to see what he can do for his daughter.
"Is she ok?"
"She feels really warm." Margaret said, as Hawkeye put his hand on her forehead.
"I'll go find the thermometer." He says, walking out of the room before quickly returning and taking her temperature. "102." He says, before taking her out of Margaret's arms,
"Let me check her out and then I'll get her some medicine."
"Ok." Margaret said sighing. She watches him look her over, and saw how much Natalie hated it. All she wanted was someone to hold her, and her daddy was poking and prodding her. She fought him the entire time as he checked her over. Finally Hawkeye says, "It's typical of what I have been seeing in the hospital lately, so I'll get her some medicine and she'll be alright in a few days."
"Ok." Margaret said as Hawkeye picked Natalie up. Hearing her cry made Margaret's stomach drop. She hated not being able to do anything to make her little girl feel better. What made this even worse was it was her first time being sick. Hawkeye handed Natalie to Margaret and said, "I'm going to go get dressed and head to the hospital. I'll pick up something for her and be right home."
"Ok." Margaret said, cuddling Natalie. Hawkeye kissed both girls and quickly got dressed so he could get to the hospital and back even quicker. "I'm sorry you don't feel well Nat..." She says to the crying baby. Natalie clung to her like she was a second limb. She griped Margaret's shirt with her fists to ensure she was not going anywhere, even though Margaret wasn't even thinking about putting her down. She got up and went out of the baby's room back into hers and lied on the bed with her on her chest. She could tell Natalie was still tired, and she was exhausted too, so she figured she'd try and get her to sleep. "Ok Natalie, how about you and I get some more sleep? Its five thirty, and I know you couldn't have possibly slept well last night, so what do you say kiddo?" She asked, rubbing her back, "Just close your eyes... you're fine. I promise I won't leave you." After about fifteen minutes Natalie finally fell back to sleep. Margaret laid her next to her on the bed and fell asleep.
Hawkeye came home at around six thirty and saw the two sleeping. He figured the medication can wait till they woke up again, and he joined his two girls for a few more hours of sleep. At eight thirty Margaret woke up and looked at the time. She then propped pillows up next to Natalie and went into the shower. She took her time and then got dressed and headed downstairs. Natalie let her daddy sleep till a bit after nine before waking up and letting out a cry to tell him that she is up. Hawkeye smiled at his daughter, "Well, good morning." He says picking her up, "Did you sleep well? I don't think you did, but it's still always nice to ask." He asks, smiling at her. "How about we try some medicine kiddo? Let's try some ok? I know you'll hate it." He reaches over to the nightstand and grabs the medicine with the medicine dropper. He fills it up with the red liquid and tries to get Natalie to take it, "Oh come on Natalie... it's not too bad." He says, as she fights with him. "It will make you feel better..." He says. He fights with her for another minute or two till she finally gave in and took it. "There... now you won't have to take it for another four hours." He tells her as she lays her head against his shoulder. "Should we go find mommy? I think that is a good idea. She probably is sitting downstairs wondering how you are feeling." He continues to talk to her as they descend down the stairs.
Margaret was sitting in the living room drinking a cup of coffee watching the news she heard them coming down the stairs and smiled, "Good morning. It's about time you guys got up."
"You know how I am when I have beautiful women in bed with me." He says grinning.
"Funny..." She says, "Give me my baby." She says, reaching for Natalie. "Did you get the medicine?"
"Yeah."
"Did she take it?"
"I worked my magic and got her to take it."
"Good." Margaret says, standing up, "Are you hungry Nat? Let's see if you'll eat a little for me today." She brings her into the kitchen and sits her in the highchair. "Ok... shall we try some bananas? You like these." She tells her daughter. Natalie eats a little bit for Margaret. "Good girl. Hawkeye... can you call BJ or Peg and say we can't go tonight?"
"Yeah, sure." He says, and picks up the phone. While he talks to his friend, Margaret cleans up the baby. Today she was even clingier then yesterday. She did not want anyone to put her down or leave her side for more then a second. She also ended up with a deep cough. Margaret did her best to comfort the baby, but still wished she could do more then what she was. It wasn't ill two days later when Natalie was finally feeling like herself, hr fever broke that night, and she awoke in a rather good mood. Margaret could finally relax. Hawkeye came home around six that day, and smiled when he heard his daughter laughing.
"She sounds like she is feeling better." He says, kissing his wife.
"Yeah, she is." Margaret said smiling.
"You look a bit better too Princess and you don't have a fever anymore." He tells her, placing a kiss on her forehead. "Well mommy, I think that you and I survived the first of many illnesses."
"Yeah... We did pretty good." She says smiling. There was nothing hat could prepare her for when her own child was sick, not even when they were in Korea nor all the training in medicine there was in the world. Margaret felt horrible that she couldn't make her feel better quicker. She was glad that was over, and hoped it didn't happen for a while longer.
December came quick and Christmas was upon them. Hawkeye was thrilled to have Natalie this Christmas. It seemed to make the season more magical. Even though she was too little to understand everything that was going on, Hawkeye included her in everything. Hawkeye had off from work from the 23rd-28th, which was exactly what he needed. He wanted to spend every moment with his family that he possibly could. Christmas, Natalie woke up at the same time as always, 6:00 and let out a cry. Hawkeye got up with her, and she instantly smiled as she stood up in her crib, reaching out for him.
"Good morning Princess. How are you?" He smiled as she talked to him in her own baby gibberish. He talked to her and changed her. After they did that, they went back into the master bedroom and Hawkeye sat Natalie next to her mom. She smiled and laid her head against her mom, smiling.
"Good morning." Margaret says, "Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas." Hawkeye says, kissing her.
"Are you happy to have daddy home?" She asked Natalie as the baby crawled over to her father. He immediately picks her up and she starts to laugh. "I guess you are." She says, yawning.
"Dadadadada." Natalie starts saying as she leans against Hawkeye's chest.
"Did you hear that?!" Margaret says smiling.
"She can talk! Natalie you can talk!"
"I can't believe it!" Margaret says, still smiling.
"This has to be the best Christmas gift I have ever gotten." Hawkeye says smiling. "I can't believe she said dada! How about mama, can you say that yet?"
"Dadada." She says smiling again.
"We'll have to work on mama." Margaret says
"Wait till I tell my father."
"He's probably already up. I can smell the coffee."
"Shall we head down?"
"Yeah." Margaret says sitting up, grabbing her bathrobe and they all head downstairs.
"Merry Christmas dad."
"Merry Christmas Hawk, Margaret, Natalie." He says, kissing the girls.
"Guess what Natalie did today?" Hawk says.
"What's that Hawk?"
"She spoke."
"She did?! What did she say?!"
"Dada." He says beaming.
"That's great Hawk!" Dan says smiling. "You know, once they start... they don't shut up."
"That's fine with me." Hawkeye says laughing.
"You'll be sorry Hawkeye... Remember, I raised you... and you started talking at eighteen months, in full sentences..."
"And he hasn't shut up yet." Margaret said smiling.
"You my dear, are thinking like a Pierce now." Dan says smiling, "What has Hawk done to you?"
"You don't want to know." Hawkeye says smiling. "What do you think Natalie... do you want to open your presents? I think Santa left you something..."
Natalie looked at the perfectly wrapped presents and had no idea what to do to them, until Margaret took her out of her fathers arms and sat her in front of the tree and unwrapped a few packages. Natalie got the hang of it a little and loved ripping the paper. She smiled up at her mom as she scratched at the paper. "Mamamama." She begins to say, causing Margaret to smile brightly.
"Two words in one day... I'll be damned." Hawkeye says watching his daughter bypass the toys and play with the boxes and papers, "You know, we could have saved a lot of money if we had just bought her pap..."
"Don't even say it." Margaret said smiling. "Natalie... look here...." Margaret shows her a toy that she instantly falls in love with. "See... she likes the toys... you just have to get her attention."
"Dadadadada..."
"What?" He says to her, she just smiles, "I know... you are really cute."
"Hawk... she has you wrapped around her finger." He says, smiling.
"Is that so bad?"
Dan looks at his son and smiles, "No. That is right where you should be." He watched his son and daughter-in-law with their daughter and just smiled. He gave his son the nickname, and though he didn't call him it all the time, he was beginning to only use that name because it was all Margaret knew him as, and his other close friends. He watched his granddaughter laugh. She thought her parents were the best, and even her grandfather. He was glad that Hawkeye found happiness, and that he finally has a girl in the family.
That night they ate at the Hunnicut's house. Erin once again was thrilled to show her aunt and uncle everything she and Gillian got from Santa. Natalie and Gillian became great friends and loved being around each other. They were a lot like their fathers; once they were together it was hard to break them apart. When they went home Natalie and Gill cried a bit, but Natalie quickly forgot about missing her 'cousin' when they left. After they got home, Margaret put Natalie in her crib, thinking she would go right to sleep, but she had other ideas, "Mamama." Natalie says, pulling herself up and holding her hands out.
"What is it little girl?" She says smiling, picking her up. "Are you not ready to go to sleep yet? How about we sit and read a book... how does that sound?" She asks, picking one of the new books that she had gotten for Christmas. Margaret began to read to her and Natalie stared at the pictures with wide eyes. Neither one of the girls saw Hawkeye standing in the doorway, watching them interact in the beginning. When Margaret finished the book, Natalie smiled and said, "DADADA!"
"Hi Princess. Did you like that book?" He asked, smiling.
"I think she did." Margaret said smiling, kissing her head. "Sounds like she is going to really use our names isn't she?"
"I hope so... I kind of like it." Hawkeye says smiling. He walks over and kisses his daughter, and she gives him one more smile and leans against Margaret. She slowly fell asleep and Margaret put her into the crib. She watched her sleep for a while, and felt Hawkeye's hands lace around her waste. "She's really growing up isn't she?"
"Kids tend to do that." Hawkeye smiles.
"I just can't believe how big she's gotten already..."
"She'll keep on getting bigger."
"I don't think I like that.... She isn't going to be our little girl forever."
"She will always be our little girl.... She'll just be a bit bigger... but that won't be for a while..."
"It will be sooner then we think..."
"Well then, I guess we'll have to take each day and savor it." Hawkeye smiles. "She's still a baby Margaret."
"I know... but she's almost one."
"Do you want another one?"
"Not just yet... but I'm thinking in the not so distant future... maybe when she is sixteen months or so we can start trying."
"That sounds like a plan." He says, kissing her cheek.
"I can't believe she's talking... at seven and a half months."
"Well you and I both don't shut up, so it was bound to be passed down." Hawk laughed.
"I can't even remember what it was like without her."
"Me neither. Come on; let's let her sleep and head back down with my dad. I think there is some eggnog still."
"Sounds good." Margaret says, taking his hand and closes her bedroom door, walking back downstairs. "Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas." Hawkeye says, kissing her.
That Christmas they felt like a family. There little girl was getting older and they couldn't even imagine life without her. The New Year was upon them and it would bring change for everyone. Margaret and Hawkeye have never been happier.
TBC...
I'm just trying out something different. I always wanted to read a story that followed the way through Hawkeye and Margaret's life together so I figured I'd have a go at writing one. R&R Please, but be kind! There are PLEANTY MORE CHAPTERS TO GO! Forgive the small mistakes... its' 3:02 in the morning...
Thanks for all the great reviews! Please keep them up! Please R&R!
Thanks
STARY