Jo couldn't wait to tell Doug the news. She called the office where he worked and left a message for him to call her back, and on her lunch break, she headed straight to WalMart to look around in the newborn department. She noticed that the styles had changed since Jamie had been a baby. Frilly dresses with rows of lace were no more; instead, the clothing seemed almost unisex except for color and decoration.

Mesmerized, Jo spent most of her lunch break shopping and finally bought a package of pink and purple onesies and a hot pink terry cloth sleeper. She went through the McDonald's drive-through and bought a hamburger on the way back to work.

She was busy filing when Doug called a couple of hours later. "I got the amniocentesis results this morning. I couldn't wait to tell you!" she exclaimed.

"Is everything all right?"

"Everything's fine! And Doug...we're having a girl!"

"Wow, honey, that's great!" Doug exclaimed. "I can't wait to tell the kids!"

"Me neither," said Jo. "I hope they're both happy about it. Wait till you see these cute little outfits I found at WalMart!"

Doug laughed. "I'll bet you had a blast shopping, didn't you?"

"Yeah. It was a lot of fun." Jo giggled. "Can't wait to do it again."

"I'm sure you can't. I'll see you later, sweetheart. Love you."

"Love you too. Bye."

Although she was tired, Jo finished her work day and returned home to find Jamie doing homework and Clay watching television. "Guess what!" she announced. "You're gonna have a baby sister in about five more months!"

"Hurray!" Jamie exclaimed. "I've always wanted a baby sister!"

Clay grimaced.

Doug arrived home a few minutes later and hugged and kissed his wife hello. "Did you already tell them?" he asked her.

"I'm sorry," said Jo. "I was just so excited that I forgot to wait for you."

"That's all right." Doug chuckled. "So what do you think, guys?"

"I think it's great!" said Jamie.

"It's all right, I guess," Clay said nonchalantly.

Jo was preparing for bed that night when Doug hugged her from behind and began to place kisses along the side of her neck. She turned her head so that his next kiss fell on her lips, and soon their kissing became passionate. Doug gently laid his wife on her back on the bed and began to remove her clothing.

"But what about the baby?" asked Jo.

"I promise I'll be very gentle." He took his time stroking and kissing her gently rounded belly, and when they were both ready, he entered her from behind. Afterwards, they lay cuddling and talking softly together.

"We need to come up with a name soon, you know," Doug said.

"What about Magdalena?" Jo suggested. "That was my grandmother's name. We could call her Maggie for short."

"Maggie." Doug made a face.

"Oh, yeah," Jo said softly. "I'm sorry. I forgot."

"My Mom's name was Elizabeth," Doug suggested.

"Too long and cumbersome, and kind of overused," Jo objected. "How about Bethany?"

"I like it!" Doug grinned. "But we need a middle name, too."

"How about Rose, after my Mom?"

"Bethany Rose Norman, that's perfect!"

"Clay seems less than thrilled," Jo remarked.

"Aw, he'll get over it," Doug replied.

That Saturday, the whole family went to the mall. Jo and Doug left Jamie at the earring store and Clay at the Xbox game store and went to look for new clothes for Jo at the maternity store, as she was beginning to outgrow all her regular ones. She found a nice slip and dress to wear to church, a couple of pairs of slacks, a couple of blouses, and a pair of shorts.

She was looking at bras when a saleslady approached her and asked if she was planning to nurse.

"Why...yes, I suppose I am," Jo told her. She'd planned to take six weeks off from work after the baby was born and thought she'd breastfeed for those six weeks.

"Then I think you'd like this one," the saleslady suggested, selecting a bra from the rack and showing it to Jo. "It's made to provide support during pregnancy, and then after the baby comes, the straps unfasten, like this." She demonstrated.

"How nice," Jo said, then saw the price tag and gulped.

"Aw, get it if you want it," said Doug, who'd witnessed the entire interaction.

"Thanks," said Jo.

From there they went to the bookstore, where Jo found a thick book on pregnancy that included illustrations. "See, this is what our baby looks like now," she said, showing one of the pictures to Doug.

After awhile, she began to worry about Jamie. "She's been on her own in the earring store for awhile now," she remarked. "We'd better go back and make sure she's all right."

They returned to the earring store to find that, to Jo's alarm, her daughter was nowhere to be found.