It was 2pm Sunday afternoon, Eddie was changing emmalyns whole outfit because she had an accident again. They wanted to leave to help with dinner and get her comfortable around more new people.
"Emmalyn let's try really hard not to have any more accidents today okay? You have to tell someone when you have to go potty so we don't go in our pants okay?" Eddie told her. Jaime was in the room too.
"Should we just put her in a pull up honey?" Jaime asked. Eddie stopped to think.
"I don't know. Maybe we just take some with us and an outfit or 2." She said.
"Okay we just won't let her sit on my dads chair haha" Jaime laughed. Jaime threw diapers and some clothes in the backpack that Eddie already had packed with things like silly cup, toddler utensils, bibs, wipes, a few toys and some snacks just in case.
The plan for dinner was homemade breaded chicken breasts, Mac and cheese, peas, a salad, rolls, and fresh fruit.
"Ready to go?" Eddie said. Emmalyn was excited, they've been talking about everyone all day so she was ready. She jumped up and down and grabbed eddies hand. She wore a cute jean overall dress with a white shirt under it, brown strap sandals and pig tails with red bows on each.
"Got everything. Off we go" Jaime said and they left. The whole car ride Emmalyn was asking all kinds of questions about things she saw out the window and people and buildings. Jaime and Eddie couldn't help but laugh at the crazy things she said.
They pulled up to the house and Eddie got Emmalyn out and carried her while Eddie got the bag. It wasn't a street to have a 3 year old loose on the ground unaware of her surroundings. Everyone else was already there. They could tell because they saw Danny and Erins vehicles.
They walked up and opened the front door. Emmalyn had her arms around jaimes neck while he carried her.
"Hey guess who's here" Jaime called out so they were ready. Eddie followed him to the kitchen where everyone was doing somthing with the meal. Danny and the boys were breading the chicken, Erin was doing the Mac and cheese, then pop was sitting at the bar snapping peas, Frank was at the table with Nikki cutting up fruit. Everyone stopped what they were doing and waited for Jaime and Eddie to come through the door with there new addition.
As soon as they reached the archway Jamie and Eddie smiled at everyone
"Everyone this is...Emmalyn" Jaime said, Emmalyn got shy and laid her head next to jaimes to head.
"Aw" Eddie put her hand on her and rubbed her back.
"Hi Emmalyn" everyone said softly not wanting to scare her. They walked into the kitchen more, Jaime turning to try and see her face.
"Hey, can you say hi." Jaime whispered to her. Everyone smiled waiting to see if she would. She picked up her head and looked around at everyone. She turned around and looked at eddie behind her.
"Mommy." She pointed at eddie and said. Everyone was like "aw"
"Oh you want me?" Eddie said and put her hands out, Jaime handed her off and took the backpack from Eddie. He sat it on a table that was against the wall near where they were standing.
"Look let's ask everyone what there name is" Eddie said walking over to the island.
"This is uncle Danny, and your cousins Sean and jack" Eddie said looking at her expression. The 3 of them did a cute little wave and said hi. She was a little unsure.
"Here's aunt Erin" she told her pointing to Erin.
"Hi Emmalyn, I love your hair bows" she told her. That made her smile which made Eddie smile. She turned around and pointed to pop and told her his name. She was shy. Then she went to the table where Nikki and frank were.
"Can you say Nikki?" She said pointing to her.
"Nikki." She said and pointed at her.
"Aww hi Emmalyn!" Nikki said back.
"And this guy Emmalyn, this is your grandpa. Can you say hi grandpa?" She whispered to her while she stared at frank who was smiling at her he did a little wave.
"Grandpa." She said and pointed at him.
"Good job!" Jaime said smiling. He was happy she was starting to be more herself. Eddie turned and put her down.
"So yeah there she is." Eddie said. Everyone was so happy and still I guess just in shock Jaime had a daughter, and she was here.
"Congratulations" Frank said.
"Yeah We're so excited for you guys she's adorable just like you said." Nikki said.
"Thanks it's been fun." Eddie said walking over to stand with Jaime and everyone watching Emmalyn walk into the living room to explore. It made them laugh. She headed torward the vase and candle sitting on the coffee table. Eddie started to call her but Jaime beat her to it.
"Hey Emmalyn..." he went after her.
"No no okay, those aren't to touch how bout we see what toys we brought to play with." Jaime said taking her hand and walking her back to the kitchen. Eddie opened the bag they brought.
"Eddie erins old doll house, and cabbage patch dolls and things of the sorts are upstairs in the spare bedroom if we wanna get that out" frank told her.
"Oh my word dad you kept all that!?" Erin said.
"Well yeah for reasons exactly like these, there the same ones Nikki played with here when she was little." Frank said.
"Aw I'll bring it down and play with her Eddie" Nikki said getting up from the table.
"She'd probably like that" Jaime said.
"Sean, jack go help Nikki carry that stuff down" Danny ordered. They washed there hands and went.
"Daddy play?" She asked him. Eddie jumped in to help frank cut up fruit.
"Yeah your cousins are gonna bring down toys to play with you okay?" Jaime said. The three kids came down the steps with stuff.
"Just set it in the living room Nikki" frank called out. Jaime took her over to Nikki and told her she would play with her. Jack and Sean were done so they went back to help Danny.
"So how's it been!?" Erin asked Eddie. She laughed.
"So different! She's been so sweet though! She is so spunky and outgoing. Like you guys remeber us saying how she was when she found us, this is the first time she got shy like that." Eddie said.
"Well that's okay. She should have a little stranger danger." Pop said.
"I know it's a good thing" she said. Jaime walked back to the kitchen and sat with pop to snap peas.
"She's content with Nikki" he said.
"How's she been sleeping?" Erin asked, Jamie and Eddie both started laughing, Eddie scrunched her face and bobbed her head back and forth not knowing if she should say good or bad. Everyone laughed.
"Oh boy" Danny said still smiling cause he knows how it is.
"Well. Ha. Um. She went down great" Jaime started to say turning to look at eddie and talking to her but also exchanging faces with everyone else. Eddie smiled and let him tell.
"And then it was like what? 1:30? She woke up crying, so we both go in there and she's standing in the middle of the room in the dark, wet." He said.
"Haha ohh no" Erin said intently listening.
"So eddie goes in and basically strips her down, wipes her down, puts a diaper on her which we should've thought of.-" everyone laughed and Eddie put her hands over her face embarrassed but laughing.
"I know. anyway gets her all changed and I was gonna make a new bed and eddies like no. We're just going to our bed. So that's what we did" Jaime finished and they all laughed.
"Sometimes it's just what you do. It might not be the right thing but it's just how it is" Danny said. They all agreed.
30 minutes went by and the food was all ready so now the girls were setting the table and the guys were cleaning up the dirty dishes they used to make the food. Nikki came in with Emmalyn in hand.
"Uncle Jaime she has to go potty" Nikki said. Jaime dropped everything and went to her. He did not want an accident.
"Okay good job telling somome Emmalyn! Let's go!" Jaime told her and they went off.
All the food got put on the table and everyone got to sitting down. They were just waiting on jaime and Emmalyn. Eddie put the booster seat on a chair in the middle of Jaime and Eddie.
They finally came out Jaime looked like he just got done wrestling an animal, his sleeves pushed up and all hot and bothered he had widened his eyes and looked at eddie as Emmalyn skipped to where Eddie was sitting. She raised her eyebrows in curiosity waiting for jaime to say what happened.
"Everything good?" Danny asked him also reading his face with Eddie. Jaime lifted up Emmalyn and put her in the chair.
"Yeah someone just doesn't realize they need help when they poop yet" Jaime said half out of breath. Everyone let out a laugh including Eddie. Jaime looked at everyone a little offended that they thought it was funny. He sat down after he buckled Emmalyn.
"Sorry honey." Eddie said smiling she leaned torward him and rubbed his back. He was a little sensitive at times but she loved that about him, he can't always be sergeant. Emmalyn started touching the place setting on the table.
"Ah ah. Don't touch not yet." Eddie stopped her.
"Anyone want to volunteer to pray?" Frank asked. Danny volunteered. He was hungry. Emmalyn did well she was quiet and watched everyone. When they were done they passed the food around and ate. They all talked about the cases they were working on like normal, pop told some stories as always. The food was all great. Emmalyn was doing okay with all the food she was being a little picky but they kept encouraging her and cutting it into smaller pieces.
"So do you miss the streets yet are you excited to go back?" Danny asked Eddie.
"I do miss it. I am excited to get back out there I just hope we can find a sitter that's flexible before I do go back." Eddie said.
"If not we already talked about doing night shift bi-weekly and switching off so one of us is always home. But we're both spending the day with her. I still think it would be nice to have someone we can call and just have available though" Jaime said. Everyone agreed.
"Yeah and we know it might be an adjustment but it'll work out-" Eddie stopped talking when she saw peas fly across the table at Danny. She whipped her head and looked at Emmalyn who was angry looking at Danny.
"What did I do?" Danny laughing and asked her. Her face stayed the same.
"Hey! Emmalyn why did you do that?" Eddie asked her sternly. Danny laughed it off and picked them up off the table and set them aside. She still didn't answer Eddie. Jaime and Eddie glanced at each-other over Emmalyn. They both realized everyone was judging there parenting now. As they could feel like eyes wandering around.
"Hey." Jaime said leaning in torwards Emmalyn's face to look at her. She didn't look at him instead she picked up her sippy cup and threw it but it didn't get very far it fell on the floor next to her. The lid popped off and the water went all over.
"Agh" Eddie said and took her napkin with her to the floor. Nikki got up to get more.
"Jaime she needs a timeout or somthing" Eddie said annoyed that she did this.
Jaime walked out of the room with Emmalyn who started throwing a tantrum. Yelling things like
"no no! I don't like peas! No! I want mommy no!" As off guard and shocked Eddie was by Emmalyn's behavior hearing her yell "mommy" made her heart hurt a little bit.
"Eddie it's just water it's okay" frank told her.
"I don't want it to turn your floor white" she explained. Nikki came in with paper towels and a kitchen towel to help.
In the foyer was Jaime with Emmalyn. He sat her on the step and she continued to cry. He bent down to her level.
"Hey. What's wrong? Why are you being naughty?" Jaime asked her. She rubbed her eyes and didn't answer. Jaime waited patiently for her. She looked at jaime
"I don't want peas" she said.
"Okay but you don't have to throw them, and your cup spilled" he said. She just listened.
"Now mommy has to clean up your mess and that's not nice is it?" He told her. She shook her head no. She realized she did something wrong and looked down shyly playing with her hands.
"Can we go say sorry to uncle Danny and mommy?...hey. Look at me" Jaime said, she looked right at him and shook her head yes.
Eddie finished cleaning up the mess and sat back down.
"Did she not take a long nap today?" Erin asked. Eddie turned pale and stared at her, her eyes turned glossy. Erin studying her face everyone waiting for Eddie to speak.
"Oh my god. Oh my god." She turned to face her plate. Jaime walked Emmalyn back to the table to sit her back down. Everyone asked what. She turned to Jaime.
"We forgot to put her down for a nap today!" Eddie stated. She couldn't believe it. Jaime laughed at it and everyone else kinda smiled.
"That's why." Eddie started to say. Meaning that's why she's a crank. She's tired.
"It's not a big deal eddie seriously don't beat yourself up about it. Usually around 3 or 4 is when kids can stop napping but of course it's your decision" Erin said. It didn't make Eddie feel better she felt like a failure. First the diaper thing and now this. What else did she forget. Being a women she thought this would all come natural to her but some things weren't.
"Well she clearly still needs one." Eddie tried to laugh about it infront of everyone but it made her a little depressed that she failed. Frank observed her and could read it on her face.
"Eddie why don't you come help me get the desserts" frank asked her getting up. Jaime glanced at Eddie reading her face also and then looked at frank and they nodded to each other. Jaime knew he wanted to talk to her privately. Eddie said "sure" and got up to follow him to the kitchen.
Frank stopped at the swinging door to let her past him and shut it. She turned around concerned at what was going on.
"Sit down Eddie" frank said but smiled to make her relax as she seemed a little scared. Before she could ask what was going frank started talking. He stood across from her leaning back against the sink while she sat at the bar stool.
"You know your doing an amazing thing right? You and Jaime took in this little girl because you followed your heart and did what you felt was right. This was not planned therefore you cannot get so hard on yourself when something does go wrong. Your both still flying by the seat of your pants with this one. I don't wanna see you beat yourself up about anything else ever again okay?" He said to her. She smiled and nodded in agreement. He walked around and stood next to her and put his hand on her back she looked up at the stoic man.
"Your doing great." He smiled and said, she stood up and hugged him which caught him off guard but he embraced it. They then got the desserts out and took them to the table.
The the rest of the evening was good Emmalyn had minimal tantrums. They left around 7 to get her to bed and a good nights sleep.