Authors Note: Thank you so much for the kind review! (My first ever:)) It really made my day. To answer your question; yes, Conny is in her fifties. I wrote in my notes that she was born on the 12th of December in 1939, so she is 55/56. Anna was born on the 3rd of February 1970 and is 25.

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October 31st 1995

Anna was lying on the couch while holding a book she wasn't really reading. She was using her large belly as a table for a plate of cookies. The past few weeks she and Conny spend a lot of time getting everything in order for the baby. Anna really wanted a home birth, since it was a part of Dutch culture. Unfortunately, her doctor wasn't comfortable with assisting in a home birth, so Conny found a friend of her sister to assist. She worked in a hospital here in London, Anna thought she heard St Mungo's, but she wasn't sure. She very much liked Mary and she was happy she would be the one bringing her baby into the world. She liked that Mary was old fashioned and listened to the baby's heartbeat with a Pinard horn; a wooden horn that she would put on her belly and put her ear on the other end. Mary seemed to know a lot about medicinal herbs that would help her with the recovery after giving birth, which was really interesting to Anna, especially since she used to help her father out a lot in the vegetable garden he had. 'Perhaps I can have a small vegetable patch in the communal garden this spring', Anna thought. 'I can bring the baby and teach it about the different vegetables. We can share some vegetables with our neighbours.' She took a bite from a cookie and looked trough the apartment. She really loved it here. It was really cosy, while being spacious enough for two women and a baby. The living room was filled with a lot of bookcases, filled to the brim with books. Conny had even more books in her study, but since Conny kept classified documents in there Anna wasn't allowed in. Conny also had access from her study to her balcony, where she kept an owl. Anna loved the little darling and sometimes it even came inside to nibble on something from their breakfast. Even though the kitchen was very modern, Conny had filled it with china and knick-knacks that seemed very British to Anna. To her, it was the perfect mix of a modern apartment with the coziness of a cottage. Anna smiled. She was so happy she ended up here. Conny was a very good friend to her. She felt like the mother she always hoped to have. Ever since the return of the dangerous man in England however, Conny was more nervous and worked a lot. She also visited her family more. Anna had already met almost all of them when they came to visit here. Conny's parents had been wearing very strange looking clothes. Conny explained that they lived very rural and it was some type of traditional clothing. Anna was really curious about their lifestyle, but didn't ask further because she didn't want to pry. Lately, Conny's busy schedule had slowed down. She also looked more relaxed than the past few months. Conny explained that the dangerous man hadn't been up to much lately and that her family had calmed her down a bit. They were all still cautious, but not as panicked as before. So the past few weeks Conny seemed happier and lend a helping hand to Anna to make everything ready for the baby. The little one could arrive any moment. Anna felt ready. What would her baby look like. Would it be a boy or a girl? She had a feeling it would be a girl.. While fantasising about what her baby would look like, Anna dozed off on the couch.

When Anna woke up, the sunlight was nearly gone. She heard Conny preparing dinner in the kitchen. She stood up and walked to the kitchen island, but felt a pain in her stomach. 'Ah, you woke up!' Conny smiled as she stirred in a pot. 'Yes', said Anna 'but I think I want to rest a bit more in the bathtub, my stomach is a bit bothering me.' She touch Conny looked at her strange, but maybe she was mistaken. 'Of course darling, take as long as you need,' said Conny. 'Would you like me to call you when dinner is ready?' 'Sure,' said Anna, 'just knock on the bathroom door.' She felt her stomach growling again. Maybe she ate too many of those cookies.

Half an hour later, when she was more woken up and the cramps were more painful, she realised why Conny had looked at her funny. The warm water seemed to help her though. She heard a knock on the bathroom door. 'Everything ok?' Said Conny. 'I.. I think I'm in labour.' 'I know sweetheart, I already notified Mary. Do you need any help?' 'Yes, but I'm naked.' 'What did you think I was going to see when you invited me to be at your labour?' Conny chuckled. 'If you won't mind, I won't mind,' she continued. 'Ok, responded Anna, the door is open.' Conny helped Anna get out of the tub and helped her get dressed. They both prepared her bedroom for the birth with candles, covers for her bedding and laid everything out for the baby. Anna's cramps got worse quickly. After she put on some music on a cassette she made labelled 'labour'. She filled up the bathtub again. Right before she got in, Mary arrived. She listened with her horn to the baby's heartbeat and told her to relax in the tub. 'Call me when you have the feeling you need to poop,' she said. After that, she and Conny left the bathroom. Anna focused on the music she was listening to. Every time she had a contraction she hummed to channel her pain into sound. She began humming louder and more frequent. Conny entered the bathroom and started holding her hand. 'Conny.. I.. I think I need to use the toilet,' Anna said. 'I think the baby is already coming dear,' said Mary who stood in the doorway. 'Do you want me to check?' Yes, please,' said Anna. The pain was unbearable and she wanted everything to be over. Mary did some check-ups and then said: 'It's time to push already! You'll be holding your baby very soon.' 'I want to be on my bed,' Anna said. Conny and Mary helped her get out and quickly dried her of. After only three pushes her baby was born. 'Oooh,' said Mary, 'it's born with the amniotic sac intact!' Indeed it was, it lied there perfect in it's own little world. Anna heard Conny taking pictures, as they agreed. This was the most beautiful moment in her life. Mary popped the amniotic sac and Anna took her baby, who started crying. After a short while, it stopped and opened it's eyes. 'Hello little one,' said Anna 'I already love you so much.' 'Is it a boy or a girl?' Asked Conny. 'A girl,' said Mary and Anna at the same time.

A few hours later, everything was cleaned up and Anna lied in bed with clean pyjamas and fresh sheets. The baby was well fed and laid in her crib. Mary was about to leave and would come back tomorrow to help with the baby. Anna felt great. Mary gave her a lotion she needed to rub twice a day to help with healing. The cream took away the pain. She was tired, of course, but the birth happened so fast that it only now was her usual bedtime. If this was a prelude of how things were going to be everything would turn out great.

Things turned out great indeed. Of course, the baby cried and Anna needed to go out of bed several times every night. But every morning, Conny took over for an hour or two so Anna could sleep in and get herself ready for the day. In the afternoon, Conny often took the baby out for a little stroll so Anna could clean up a bit and do some washing. Conny helped out a lot around the home. There wasn't much to do for her at work anymore. She only worked for a couple of hours in the evening. Conny was the perfect Granny for the little Aletta. She named her daughter after the first female doctor and a feminist that lived in the 19th century.

Before she knew it, Christmas came around. Conny told her all about the British Christmas traditions that they didn't have in the Netherlands. She made sure she bought some nice presents for Conny and for Conny's parents as well. Unfortunately, the commune where Conny's parents lived wasn't welcoming to outsiders so unfortunately Anna couldn't come. Both Conny and her parents were very apologetic. Conny's parents understood that Conny was like a mother to her and they welcomed her with open arms as her granddaughter. So, they decided to spent Christmas Eve with Anna, Conny and Aletta in their apartment. They had a lovely dinner and opened some wonderful presents. Anna played some Christmas songs on violin, which they all loved. When it was time for Anna to go to bed, Conny left with her parents. 'Have a wonderful Christmas Anna,' Conny told her. She gave her a wink and kissed her on the cheek. Anna suspected Conny had arranged something; she looked so pleased with herself.

The next morning, when Anna was just about to make breakfast, she heard the doorbell ring. She walked through the hallway and picked up the phone from the intercom. 'SURPRISE!!' She heard on the other end. She couldn't believe whom she heard. It were her best friends, Jolanda and Bianca! 'I thought you were both somewhere in Thailand!' she shouted, filled with joy. 'Conny arranged for us to come over during Christmas.' Said Jolanda. 'And we couldn't pass this opportunity to catch up and meet the little Aletta.' Anna noticed that they all spoke English with each other instead of Dutch. She preferred it this way. By switching to English it felt that they all entered a new chapter in their lives. Jolanda and Bianca indeed entered a new chapter. They finally confessed what Anna had suspected for a while; they finally admitted their love for each other. Anna couldn't be more happy for them. Her two best friends together as a couple. Jolanda and Bianca had brought some lovely souvenirs for her and Aletta from all the countries that they visited. They had a lovely day with a lot of stories to tell, nice food to eat and plenty of cuddles and adoration for little Aletta.

It truly was the best Christmas Anna had ever had.