Chapter 8: Morning Routine
Stabler Residence – Monday, August 29th – 5:00am
Olivia walked across the hallway from the bedroom towards the nursery after hearing Kaitlyn on the baby monitor. She yawned and rubbed her face so she could wake up. Elliot had already left for work at 4 due to a case, so it was left to Olivia to get Kaitlyn ready. Today was the first day that Rosa Sandoval would be keeping her and Olivia planned to bring her to the station house for Ms. Sandoval to pick her up there.
She walked into the room and peered down at Kaitlyn, who was fascinated by the fish aquarium in the crib. The baby then rolled over and pointed her bottom up at Olivia, making her giggle.
"Come here, little peanut," Olivia patted her diaper covered bottom and lifted her out of the crib. She walked towards the bathroom and lay Kaitlyn down on the blanket while she turned on the water to fill the tub. She got the baby undressed from her shirt and diaper and began to bathe and wash her.
A little while later, after getting the baby cleaned up, it was feeding time. Olivia went back to the nursery. Nursing was becoming one of Olivia's favorite routines with the baby since she had Kaitlyn close and could bond with her. After all, she would be weaning her in two more months so Olivia savored these moments. After Kaitlyn was fed and burped Olivia got her dressed in a pink Polo dress with a matching headband and a pair of sandals. After she was settled in the swing, Olivia managed to get herself ready and eat a bowl of cereal. She grabbed her badge, clipping it to her belt, and placing her gun in the holster. Then, she started packing up the diaper bag with extra diapers, clothes, toys, and bottles. It was time to go to work. Olivia left the box of cereal out for the older kids when they woke up.
"Here we go, Miss Kaitlyn," Olivia bent over and lifted the baby out of her swing. She grabbed the bags with her free hand and headed out the door towards the car. These days, Olivia was getting used to multi-tasking.
SVU Squad Room – 8:30am
Olivia walked out of the elevator carrying Kaitlyn in her car seat and walked in the swinging doors. She set the bags and the carrier on her desk, pulling the handle down and lifting the baby out. She walked over to the coffee pot for a cup of decaffeinated coffee with the baby settled on her hip.
"Good morning, Olivia," called out Faith. She beamed when she saw Kaitlyn, "Hey there sweetie."
"Hey Faith," replied Olivia.
The two women chatted as they sipped their coffee and marveled over Kaitlyn. Olivia had mentioned that she planned to bring her here so everyone could see how big she had gotten. Meanwhile, Cragen, Munch, and Fin walked in and saw the two women. Munch, being the type who loved children, made a few funny faces at the baby, who just stared at him as if he was crazy.
Olivia saw Munch entertaining her daughter and grinned, "Are we going to be shy?" she asked Kaitlyn, planting a kiss on her cheek.
"There's too many of us for her to see," said Faith.
Olivia nodded, "Probably so, because trust me, she is not usually like this. At home, she is usually very loud."
In the meantime, they all talked at Olivia's desk and entertained the baby. She was beginning to warm up to everyone, especially Munch and Fin, who were both making her smile and giggle, when Rosa walked into the squad room.
"Hi Rosa," greeted Olivia. She turned to the group, "Guys, this is Sandoval's mother, Rosa. This is John Munch, Fin Tutuola, Capt. Don Cragen, and Faith McDowell." They all smiled and nodded at her.
"It's nice to meet you all," said Rosa.
Olivia turned to Rosa, "I have everything packed in here for you that you'll need," She gestured at the diaper bag. "There are extra clothes, diapers, baby food, bottles, pacifier, her favorite toys, and blanket. The pediatrician's number is also in there just in case…"
Rosa patted her arm and reassured the new mother. "Don't worry, honey. She will do just fine. My daughter and I will take good care of this sweet angel."
Olivia sighed and appreciated Rosa's reassurance. She put Kaitlyn in the carrier and strapped her in. She smoothed her tiny strands of hair and kissed her on the forehead. "I'll see you later, baby girl. You be good to Rosa and Elena." She handed Rosa the car seat. "Thank you again."
The rest of the group said good-bye to Ms. Sandoval as Olivia watched them leave. She knew that Rosa would be a good nanny to her baby, but this was the first time she had let her go with someone else besides anyone in the family. After they left, Olivia breathed a sigh of relief and walked back to her desk and got back to business on paperwork.
"Do you have the file on the Martinez case?" she asked Faith, who was sitting across from her.
Faith nodded, "I have it here." She handed Olivia the file folder.
The two women continued to make small talk as they worked on completing paperwork. Munch and Fin was making their way to court and Cragen went back to his office. It was back to business as usual.
TBC
