A huge thank you to all of you who are still with me even with my slow updating. Your patience is amazing.

And thank you anhanninen for prereading and MelissaMargaret for making this pretty.

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or these characters.

Esme POV

It was rare for the house to be quiet in the middle of the day, but thanks to Kate, it was happening today. She offered to take the kids for the day so Carlisle and I could decorate for Emmett's birthday party. But instead of doing that, we were sitting in the family room floor, me in Carlisle's lap and Pumpkin attached to my breast, as we lost ourselves in one of my scrapbooks.

We'd had a purpose in getting this book out, but now we had all but forgotten. It was too easy to enjoy every memory in this special book – Emmett's special book.

"This is one of my favorites," Carlisle said as he pointed to a picture. "He was so little but still so...Em."

I nodded with a grin. "I know. You should have seen it. I turned my back for one second, and then there he was."

In the picture, Emmett was only nine months old, but he was standing for the first time with the help of the couch. His cheeky grin was the same one he flashed us regularly - the one that meant he was up to no good.

"I wish I could have, sweetheart," he said softly, kissing my temple. "I probably would have had a heart attack. If Pumpkin does something like that unsupervised, I probably will."

Pumpkin kicked his legs and patted my chest, as if he knew his daddy was talking about him. I chuckled and brought his hand up to kiss his palm, and he unlatched long enough to smile at me before going back to his meal.

As sad as I was that Carlisle missed so much of Emmett's early life, I knew he wouldn't miss anything with Edward. And even though he did miss eighteen months, these moments of reminiscing filled him in on all the important things. Sometimes I felt as f I had missed some of the enjoyment as well because I was living with so much fear about the future. Now, though, we were all making new memories together which was the most important thing.

Flipping through the pages, we laughed and smiled with every memory. Emmett had always been so happy as a baby, toddler, and now preschooler. Reliving all of his milestones through pictures was a bit bittersweet. Our first baby would be five years old tomorrow. Time had flown by so fast.

Reaching the last page of the book, I remembered our original purpose. Carlisle handed me the stack of pictures we printed last night, and I shuffled through them to find the one I was looking for. A few minutes later, the newest picture of Em was in place. He had definitely hammed it up for the picture that I took while we were out trick-or-treating, and Carlisle and I both chuckled as we looked at the picture again.

Another Halloween had passed for us, and it was just as much fun as the previous ones. The kids all had strong opinions about costumes, but thanks to the current Toy Story obsession in our home, choosing hadn't been too difficult. Emmett made a perfect Buzz Lightyear, and Jasper, as Woody, had to be the cutest cowboy I'd ever seen. While Rosalie's original idea was to dress as Rapunzel, the boys managed to convince her to be Jessie to go with their theme. She reluctantly agreed, but by the time Carmen had finished sewing the costume – complete with red tutu, sequined cowgirl boots, and matching hair bows – Rosalie was sold.

Corin, Riley, and Jane dressed as characters from The Incredibles, and our little Disney Pixar family was the hit of the neighborhood. The kids were disappointed that we didn't dress Edward as an alien, but his pumpkin costume was perfect. He slept through most of the festivities anyway but was very much awake when we were dividing up candy. We had to be hyper vigilant to keep him from putting the colorfully wrapped pieces in his mouth although he wasn't easily deterred. I finally gave him a teething cookie to chew on, making him a happy baby.

We had made sure to take many pictures with all the kids together and separate, and this particular one of Emmett obviously saying "to infinity and beyond" was the perfect one to add to his scrapbook.

"Now what do we do?" Carlisle asked as I shut the book. "Streamers are up, balloons inflated, table cleared off…where do you want me, wife?"

I turned my head to give him a kiss. "You, husband, can either change a diaper and outfit or arrange food."

"Diaper," he said immediately, making me chuckle.

"All right then. Give me just a second." Pumpkin was basically finished with his meal and was having too much fun squirming in my lap, so getting him to unlatch and sitting him up wasn't a problem. Carlisle made faces at him and made him giggle as I adjusted my clothes and then stood and passed him over.

As Carlisle took care of getting Pumpkin ready for the evening party, I headed to the kitchen. Eleazar was grilling our dinner at their house and bringing it over when the party was scheduled to start, so I only had to set out the buns, chips, fruit, and drinks. I checked the cake as well and was satisfied that it was in the same condition as when I picked it up from the bakery.

All of the reminiscing had taken up a larger part of the afternoon than I had expected. Thankfully, the decorating was one of the first things we took care of, so with the food covered but in place on the table, everything was basically finished. The only thing left to do was add balloons to our mailbox and make sure Emmett's scrapbook was proudly displayed in the family room. Everyone who loved Emmett deserved the opportunity to reminisce as we had been doing. It made celebrating that much better.

After finishing the last of the preparations, I went upstairs to begin readying myself. Carlisle had Pumpkin dressed in the striped cardigan and pants I had picked out for him and was holding him as he bounced on the bed. Carlisle was also wearing a cardigan and jeans and looked good enough to eat. It was a tempting idea but since we were on a tight schedule, it had to wait.

After showering quickly, I dressed in jeans and a lightweight sweater, keeping up with the family trend. The other three kids had their own versions of this outfit on today, and while I knew I'd be teased by Garrett, I still loved matching for pictures. And knowing the women in our family, there would be a lot of pictures.

Leaving the bathroom, I grabbed Carlisle's hand and pulled him to the door with me. "They'll be here soon and we still have to get the presents out of your study. No lazy time allowed."

"Lazy?" he scoffed. "That wasn't being lazy. I was helping Edward with his leg exercises. Right, Pumpkin?"

Pumpkin blew some spit bubbles in response and squealed. I shook my head, but couldn't stop my smile.

"Oh, no. Don't use him as an excuse. He has an exersaucer and a jumperoo for that, you know."

"That's not as fun as our bed, though. Don't deny Pumpkin his fun." As we reached the bottom of the stairs, his arm caught me around the waist, and he pulled me back against him. "I promise not to be lazy tonight, sweetheart," he whispered into my ear. "We can have fun on our bed too."

I closed my eyes and melted against him, taking a few seconds to enjoy this. Being able to decorate in peace wasn't the only good thing about the kids being out of the house for a while. It wasn't often that we could be suggestive during the day, but I loved it.

Pumpkin ended our moment by squealing in my other ear, but Carlisle and I both laughed it off as I took my baby into my arms. It wasn't anywhere near the first and definitely wouldn't be the last interruption of husband and wife time.

Carlisle helped me check everything in the dining room and family room one last time, and we finished just in time for the rest of the family to arrive. Emmett came barreling into the room first, right into my legs.

"Mommy, mommy, it's my party time!" He looked up at me, smiling brightly as he jumped up and down.

"It sure is, monkey," I said as I picked him up. "We have everything all ready so we just have to wait on everyone to get here."

He bounced in my arms and hugged me tightly. "I'm so excited, Mommy! Is Pumpkin excited for my party too?"

I laughed and set him back on the ground. "I don't know, but you can go ask him."

Emmett nodded as he skipped over to where Pumpkin was playing in his activity station. As soon as he saw his big brother, he clapped his hands and smiled, and as Emmett talked to him he gurgled and squealed in response.

When I turned my attention back to everyone else, I wasn't surprised to see that Carlisle was surrounded by the rest of the kids as they all tried to tell him about their fun day. They attacked me next, and then decided to inform Pumpkin as well. He smiled and babbled at them, loving the attention as much as they loved talking to him.

Grabbing the baby monitor, I left Corin in charge and headed to the kitchen with Carlisle. Corin was always asking for opportunities to be in charge, and although we couldn't exactly trust an eight year old to baby sit, I trusted her to make sure no one got into too much trouble while we were one room apart.

The kitchen was full and busy with Carmen barking out orders. Not wanting to interrupt the flow, Carlisle and I just stood in the doorway and waited for her to notice us. Really, there wasn't much to be done since we had mostly finished the set up, but Carmen made sure nothing was missed.

"Esme, Carlisle, come see," she said once she noticed us. "I hope you don't mind, but I moved the food in here instead of leaving it in the dining room. That way, we can just fix plates and go sit down and not have to worry about as many things to knock over."

I shook my head with a smile. "I definitely don't mind. That's a great idea. So what else do we need to do?"

She looked around, mentally checking things off before finally smiling. "I think we're finished. You and Carlisle can double check, if you want."

Carlisle released my hand he had been holding and walked closer to the counter. Looking up and down the line of food, he gave his aunt a thumbs up. "This looks good to me. Let's eat."

"I'm with him," Garrett said with a nod. "Riding in the car with this was torture."

Kate laughed and slapped his stomach. "Oh, you big baby. You do realize there are other guests coming?"

"Sorry, Gar. She's right," I chuckled. "Peter and Charlotte – "

"Are here!"

We all turned to the door, surprised and happy to see Peter, Charlotte, and Sarah Beth walk into the room.

"Sorry we're running a little late," Charlotte said. "This little one decided to spill juice down the front of her dress right before we got in the car."

Peter put his squirming daughter down, and she ran straight to me. I swung her into my arms and tickled her belly.

"Did you do that, Bethie? Did you spell your juice?"

"Jous, Eh-ma," she squealed, clapping her hands. "Jous mmm mmm. Car car car."

I normally only caught half of her words, but I knew what that meant and passed her to Carlisle.

"So when do we eat?" Peter asked, patting his stomach. "I'm about starved."

"When the rest of the guests arrived," I said once again. These men just didn't seem to understand.

Garrett commiserated with Peter, and soon Eleazar and Carlisle joined in. I knew we'd need to eat before the kids joined in. I wasn't sure what would be worse – a group of whiny, hungry kids or a group of whiny, hungry adults. I did know that both together would not be fun.

Thankfully, Maggie and Ben arrived a few minutes later. After quickly greeting everyone, Maggie pulled me to the side.

"It's ready in the driveway," she whispered with a wink. "Ben put a big green bow on it too."

"Perfect!" I exclaimed. "I hope he likes it."

"He'll love it," she assured me.

I had a feeling she was right. Maggie and Ben had helped us hide Emmett's big present this year. We were afraid that it would be discovered at our house or Carmen and Eleazar's, so they had volunteered to keep it safe and undetected. I couldn't wait for Em to see it.

With everyone accounted for, we rounded the kids up around the dining room table. It was a tight fit with all of us at one table, but we liked having everyone included. And as the birthday boy, Emmett was able to sit at the end of the table. His wide smile was priceless.

Since the men were so starving, we let them go ahead and fix their plates while we took care of the kids. It didn't give them much of an advantage because no one ate until after Eleazar blessed the food, but I wasn't about to correct them.

Dinner – once we all finally had a chance to sit down and eat – was delicious, and the conversation was lively and never seemed to end. Miraculously, there were no major spills, no tantrums, and no complaints.

When we had all had our fill, the men offered to clean up while Kate and I played games with the kids. Charlotte and Maggie took the easy way out and volunteered to watch Sarah and Edward. They were completely entertained just by making faces at each other, and with them occupied, Kate and had no interruptions as we went through the more serious games.

The kids were all at an age where the mostly understood the concept of musical chairs, so we started with that. Jane surprised us all by winning the first round, but Corin won the next. The best part for me was watching the kids together and seeing how happy they were for whoever won. No one was upset, and we easily moved on to the next game. Pin the tail on the donkey was a bit more challenging. Riley was the best of the bunch, but not by much. More tails ended up all over the wall than on the donkey.

We played a few more games which gave everyone a chance to win, but by the time the men joined us in the family room, Emmett was ready to move on.

"Is it present time now?" he asked me. "Please, Mommy? Look at all of them!"

He did have a rather large pile, and when I looked over at Carlisle, he shrugged.

"Go for it," he said, taking Pumpkin from Charlotte and sitting down on the couch. "I think we're all ready."

I turned back to Emmett and nodded. "Okay, monkey. It's present time."

"Yes!" he cheered and ran over to his little chair that was set up in front of the presents. "Who's gonna give them to me?"

"I'll do it!" Corin said, raising her hand. Riley volunteered too, which left me available to take pictures.

Before I took my place in the floor with the camera, I checked to make sure Rosalie and Jasper were okay. They'd been fine last year, but I still worried about whether or not they understood why Emmett was getting presents and they weren't. But with Rosalie sitting with Eleazar and Jasper with Maggie, my worry lessened. If all else failed, Eleazar and Maggie could easily distract them.

A distraction wasn't needed though. Corin and Riley handed Emmett the first few presents, but then everyone wanted to help. Emmett discovered that tearing open paper with his siblings and cousins was just as fun as doing it by himself, and throwing the paper into the air was even more fun. Carmen recorded the whole thing, including the adults' laughter. Only our kids would have more fun with paper than with toys.

Eventually all of the presents were unwrapped, thank you hugs were given, and toys and games were admired. The last presents to unwrap had been ones from Carmen and Eleazar, and I was waiting for Emmett to ask about them. He didn't let me down.

"Mommy," Emmett said as he climbed into my lap. "What is this for?" He held up his new helmet, knee pads, and wrist guards. "I like Buzz Lightyear, but I dunno what I do with this."

"Hmm…maybe it goes with another present?"

He looked around, shaking his head. "But I don't gots no more presents."

Carlisle came up behind me and kneeled down. "Are you sure, buddy? Maybe we should look for another present."

Emmett huffed, obviously getting frustrated. I felt bad for teasing him for so long, but this was entertaining for us. "Daddy, my presents were in a big pile and now there's no more. You being silly."

Carlisle shrugged. "Well, if you're sure. Or, maybe we should go look outside in the driveway."

Emmett frowned, obviously not too sure of this plan, but took Carlisle's hand and let him lead him to the door. I took Carlisle other hand, excited to see Emmett's reaction.

The moment Emmett saw his last present, he released Carlisle's hand and took off. Carlisle and I laughed as we watched him jump around and even hug his brand new bicycle.

The bicycle was green with black accents, including a little bag on the handlebars with Buzz Lightyear on the front. It was big enough so he could ride it for years to come, even if the Toy Story love diminished. I couldn't help but tear up seeing him with his first big boy bike. This would be a year of firsts for us, the bike being one of the smallest, but still special.

I turned and wrapped my arms around Carlisle waist, leaning my head against his chest. He hugged me tightly and kissed my head.

"We did good," he whispered, and I nodded. I didn't think we could have done better.

Once Emmett got over the shock of his new bike, we helped him put on his new helmet so he could ride around the drive way. The drizzling rain didn't stop him, but after a few minutes, we had to lure him away with the promise of more riding tomorrow and a big piece of cake.

The rest of the party continued without any issues. We sat around the table again as we sang to Emmett, and he blew out his candles. As promised, he received the biggest piece of cake which made him smile even brighter. We all ate our fill and continued celebrating and reminiscing with the help of the Emmett scrapbook until close to bed time.

Saying goodbye to everyone took a while, but when it was back to just us, I was ready to crash. I did just that as I nursed Pumpkin, leaning back in the recliner. Carlisle was taking care of the last of the clean-up, and the boys were playing with some of Emmett's new toys, but Rosalie seemed to be on the same page as me.

Climbing up beside me, she yawned and snuggled close. "Mommy, I'm tired."

I kissed her head and ran my fingers through her hair. "I'm tired too, baby girl. We'll go to bed soon. Did you have fun at the party?"

She nodded. "Uh huh. It was fun. I get a party later, right?"

"Yes, ma'am. You and Jasper will have a party on your birthday. And you know what? Aunt Chelsea and Uncle Alec get to come to your party."

Chelsea hated to miss any of the kids' birthdays, but this year was too busy for them to make it to Emmett's. They'd talked to him on skype this morning, and I convinced them not to feel too bad. They were here for his birthday last year, and since they would be coming in March, it would even the score. As much as we loved having all of our family together, it just wasn't realistically possible.

"Mommy, that party will be so fun! And Mommy, Aunt Sea needs a baby too. Can I tell her that?"

I laughed and gave her another kiss. "You can tell her if you want, baby." I had told her the same, just not as plainly. I wanted another niece or nephew. "Is one baby not enough for you?" I teased.

"Yeah. I love Pumpkin." She reached over and patted Pumpkin's back through the blanket I had over us. "But Pumpkin needs a friend that's a baby like hims is."

"Well you'll be his friend, won't you?"

She looked up at me, wrinkling her nose in glee. "A'course, Mommy. He's my brother and I's a helper girl with him. That makes friends."

I loved listening to her logic, but even more, I loved her total acceptance of her baby brother. He wasn't the girl she'd originally wanted, but she loved him just the same. That meant the world to me.

Before I could completely dose off, Carlisle and I took the kids upstairs and changed them into their pajamas. Rosalie was asleep before we could even get her in bed, so the bedtime book was read with only Emmett and Jasper to listen. When we finished, Jasper had to go potty. Carlisle went to help him, carrying Pumpkin along with him, so I took the quiet minute to curl up next to Emmett.

"Goodnight, Monkey," I said as I gave him a kiss. "Did you have a fun day today?"

He threw his arms around my neck and nodded. "Mommy, that party was so cool! And so was the cake and presents and all the stuff. And I gets a Buzz backpack from Aunt Kate and Uncle Garrett. For school, right? I get to go to school?"

It killed me a little on the inside, but I nodded. "That's right, Em. You get to go to school after Christmas and you can take your new backpack if you'd like. You're such a big boy now."

"Mommy, I'm five now." He scooted back a little to show me his hand with fingers spread. "See? This much is a whole hand and that means I'm old. Old kids go to school."

"But you'll always be my baby." I kissed his forehead, ignoring his slight frown. He might not like being considered a baby, but that's what he'd always be to me. My first baby boy.

After Jasper finished in the bathroom, we tucked them both in, stole some kisses, and turned out the light before heading to our room. If there was anything else left to clean, it could wait until tomorrow because the only thing I was going to do was lie in bed with my husband.

I changed into my pajamas while Carlisle had his nightly talk with Pumpkin, but I managed to catch the end of it as I came out of the bathroom.

Carlisle had him on the bed beside him, and as he talked, Pumpkin looked up at his face with rapt attention.

"You'll have a birthday party in a few months," Carlisle promised. "It'll be so much fun, and we'll even let you eat cake. Sorry you didn't get any tonight, but that just wasn't allowed. Peter was in the room, you know, and Daddy didn't want to get in any trouble at work tomorrow. You wouldn't want that, would you?" Pumpkin babbled and response, reaching up to grab Carlisle's nose. "Yeah I figured you wouldn't. My son wouldn't do that to me. Well, I think it's bedtime now…at least until your tummy needs to be filled again. Goodnight, buddy. I love you so much."

I turned around and went back into the bathroom, grabbing a tissue to wipe my misty eyes. The sight never failed to make me cry. I'd always known that Carlisle would be the best dad, but seeing him in action surpassed all expectations.

Once I composed myself, I headed back to the bedroom. Carlisle already had the lights turned out and Pumpkin was playing in his crib. As much as we wanted Edward to be in his own room after moving out of the bassinet, we had caved and moved the crib in our room. It made everything so much easier while still somewhat separating the space.

I stretched out in bed as Carlisle took his turn in the bathroom, and when he joined me, I snuggled as close to him as I could get. He wrapped his arm around me, holding me close as he let out a sigh.

"We survived another one," he mumbled.

"We did. And I didn't cry."

He chuckled. "No, you didn't. I thought you might with the backpack. He's excited about school."

"I know," I sighed. "So I'm not worried about us making the right decision. It's just hard, you know?"

"I know, sweetheart." He kissed my head and shifted down so he could kiss my lips. "It makes me sad too, but I think he'll love it. And I was thinking…I bet this will be the last party for Emmett with just family. Can you imagine having more kids to chase around?"

"Hey, you're supposed to be making me feel better about Emmett growing up. Not making me want to pull my hair out."

"Don't pull this out." He brought his hand up, running it through my hair. "It's beautiful." After completing the circuit a few times, his hand moved to my neck, massaging all the tension away.

Not thinking, I closed my eyes and moaned because it felt so good. But as soon as the sound escaped my mouth, I knew neither of us was thinking of sleep any longer.

Slowly opening my eyes, I was met with his excited gray ones. Sleepiness was nowhere to be found in his gaze – only want.

"Can I make good on my promise?" he whispered huskily, barely giving me time to nod before his lips were on mine.

He had promised not to be lazy, but everything about our movements remained slow. He took his time removing my gown and panties, and I did the same with his t-shirt and boxers. Our lips never parted for longer than necessary, and our hands were always on skin.

Our time together was always what we needed – whether it was fast, slow, carefree, or serious. I loved it all, but this mix of everything was my favorite.

Carlisle turned us slightly, just enough so he could slip inside of me, and I gripped his shoulders as we found the perfect way to move.

When his lips did release mine, I kissed my way across his jaw and up to his ear. "Harder," I whispered, nibbling softly on the skin right at the corner of his jaw.

He answered with a groan and turned us even more so he could do as I asked. One of his hands soon began to roam, finding the perfect spot to make everything so much better. I never wanted this to end, the feeling of completeness only brought on by joining with Carlisle in this way. The way he showed how much he adored me, loved me. I could only hope that I showed him the same.

I knew he was getting close, as was I, so I trailed my hands up to his hair to scratch his scalp. I wrapped my legs around his waist at the same time, pushing myself as close to him as I could get.

"Yes," he groaned, speeding up again. "Yes, Esme."

Only a few seconds later, I fell off the edge and he quickly followed. We lay together in silence as we came down from our highs. Closing my eyes, I just hugged him, and he rolled us over so I could lie on top of him as he hugged me back.

"I love you, Carlisle," I whispered, placing a kiss above his heart. "Thank you."

"Thank you," he murmured. "I love you so much, Esme. You're amazing."

I hummed and smiled, too blissed to argue that he was the amazing one.

We eventually rolled out of bed to clean up and for me to nurse Pumpkin for the last time of the night. I was thoroughly exhausted when we finally curled up in bed for sleep, but I knew it was only the beginning. The winter was always the busiest time of the year for us, and this one would be no different.

…

A few days later, we were completely recovered from the party and ready to tour preschools with Carmen on Carlisle's day off while Eleazar watched the kids.

After we had decided to enroll Emmett in a school, we went directly to Carmen because we knew she'd know the best ones. As it turned out, many of her coworkers had retired around the same time as her and went on to teach preschool part time. We trusted the list she made us and had our choices narrowed down to two. Now we just had to decide which one was the best fit for Emmett and maybe even Rosalie and Jasper down the road.

"I think you'll like this one," Carmen said as we walked toward the doors of the school. "My friend Cynthia is the principal, I guess you could say. We taught next door to each other for years. Her daughter Angela would be Emmett's teacher."

"The playground looks fun," Carlisle said, nodding to the side.

I looked over and nodded. It did look like fun. There were plenty of little activity tables, slides, swings, and safe things to climb on. Emmett would love that.

This preschool was actually part of a church, and that was one of the reasons it was at the top of our list. Carlisle and I liked the idea that along with learning all the usual things, Bible stories would also be told and there would be the same emphasis on the morals and values we were teaching our kids at home.

Inside the school, Carmen led us to Cynthia Webber's office, and the principal greeted us all warmly.

"Welcome, welcome," she said as she shook her hands and gave Carmen a hug. "Come on in and have a seat."

We did as she requested and sat down in the seats in front of her desk. Pumpkin shifted in his sling, grunting softly in his sleep. I rubbed his back and kissed his head, thankful that we had such a good baby who managed to always sleep through important meetings.

Cynthia sat at her desk and smiled. "So, I understand you're looking for a preschool. Do you have any questions before I give my little spill and take you on a tour?"

Carlisle and I did have questions that we'd spent time preparing, and he started with the first one.

"How big would the class be?"

"Somewhere around eight to twelve children," she answered. "Possibly even up to fourteen but then there would be an aide in the classroom. We don't want the classes to be too large, but at the same time, we don't like to turn anyone away."

Carlisle looked over at me and we shared a nod. That was the answer we'd been looking for. We wanted Emmett to have chances to socialize and make friends, but at the same time, we wanted to make sure the teacher wasn't stretched too thin.

"What about the hours?" I asked. "We don't want anything too strenuous for his first school experience."

Cynthia nodded. "I completely understand. There are two options for that age. Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Tuesday and Thursday. We go from eight-thirty until eleven-thirty. Breakfast and lunch aren't offered, but we do have a snack time. There's no nap time either. Sorry about that."

We all chuckled, but she had answered yet another question in the perfect way. Three hours, three days a week would be enough for Emmett and the fact that breakfast, lunch, and a nap wasn't offered wasn't a big deal. We could do all of that at home.

As we continued asking questions and Cynthia continued answering them, there wasn't a single thing that gave us pause. It all seemed so perfect – almost too perfect – but I didn't want to doubt it. Maybe it simply was the perfect place for us to send Emmett.

When our questions were all answered and Cynthia had no other information to give us, we left her office to take a short tour. The preschool area had four classrooms for their different age groups. There was also an infant and toddler area which went from six weeks old to three. The preschool took over from there with the potty trained three year olds on up to the five years olds who were getting ready for kindergarten. That was the class Emmett would be in, and Cynthia quietly led us in to stand at the back while the class continued on with their usual routine.

Watching Cynthia's daughter Angela teach her group of students was amazing. She was always patient, keeping her tone of voice sort and cheerful while still maintaining control over the ten five-year olds.

And even more impressively, the kids were reading. As Angela held up flashcards of words, the class read them off perfectly. They were excited about it as well which made it even better. I wanted Emmett to have this kind of learning environment. When they started singing and dancing to a song about the alphabet, I was positive. This was perfect for Emmett.

We observed for a while longer until it got closer to the end of the morning. Cynthia then took us around to finish the tour of the school area, and when we were finished, she and Carmen went off to talk so Carlisle and I could have some time alone to discuss what we saw.

"I love it here," Carlisle said as soon as we were alone.

I nodded in agreement. "Me too. And I think Emmett would love it. Angela seems really sweet and like a great teacher. I almost don't want to visit the other school."

"So we won't." He shrugged. "Why go visit somewhere else if we're happy here? It's everything we were looking for."

"Well, it would save us some time today."

"And we could secure his spot."

"And I'm sure we can trust Carmen's judgment. Ours too."

Carlisle smiled and carefully wrapped his arms around me and the baby. "Are we doing this?"

I smiled back and nodded slowly. "I think so. It feels…right."

"Then let's go tell Cynthia that our minds are made up." He kissed me quickly and stepped back, taking my hand as we walked back to find our host.

We found them in Cynthia's office, and they seemed surprised to see us back so quickly.

"We've actually already made our minds up," I said with a smile. "We're very interested in enrolling Emmett for January."

"Excellent!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands. "I'm so happy you've chosen to place him here."

"We're happy too," Carlisle said as he squeezed my hands. "We loved what we saw today, and we think Emmett will too."

Carmen hugged us both and then we all sat down again to beginning filling out some of the paperwork. It wasn't too complicated, and we finished in no time. I felt like a weight had been lifted from us now that we knew where Emmett would be going for school, and I couldn't wait to tell him.

Right before we were about to say our goodbyes, there was a knock on the door which was only halfway closed. We turned around, finding Angela poking her head in the door.

"Hi," she said with a wave. "Sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but I saw you observing and though I'd come introduce myself."

"We were just about finished," Cynthia said as she waved her daughter in. "This is Carlisle and Esme Cullen. Their son will be joining your class in January."

"Oh, how fun!" Angela walked forward, and we stood to shake her hand. "It's so nice to meet you. I'm Angela Cheney."

"Nice to meet you too," I replied, shaking her hand. "We loved what we saw today with your class. Is that the same group you'll have in January?"

After shaking Carlisle's hand and greeting Carmen, who she'd previously met, she sat down and turned toward us. "I'll have most of them, yes. That is one of the five year old classes that will change to kindergarten prep or K-5 in January. Honestly, the way I teach is the same as the regular five-year-old class so it's different in name only."

"Do you always teach the five year olds?" Carlisle asked.

"No, not always. We usually rotate every year or so. I'm set to teach four year olds next fall."

Carlisle and I shared a smile. If Emmett enjoyed his time with Angela, it would make the option of sending Rosalie and Jasper in the fall very appealing.

"The fives are my favorite group," Angela added. "They always soak everything up, and it's so much fun to see them learn something new every day. May I ask what your son's name is?"

"His name is Emmett," I answered, "and he's very excited about going to school."

Carlisle chuckled. "I'd say more than excited, if there's a word for that. He's been asking for a while now."

"I love that! I'm sure he'll enjoy being here with us. So do you just have Emmett and this little one?" she asked, gesturing to Pumpkin.

I shook my head, chuckling softly. "Oh, no. We also have three-year-old twins, a boy and a girl."

Angela's eyes widened almost comically. "Wow. Four children? And all five and under? This little one is not even half-way baked and I can't even imagine. But I do love kids so I'm sure it's worth it." She rubbed her stomach, and my smile grew.

Carlisle, Carmen, and I congratulated her. "So when's your due date?" I asked.

"Mid July. It's timed just right so that I won't have to miss any school. I could easily stay home, but I love my job. And since there's day care right here, it's not like I'll be able to miss the baby."

"It sounds like you have the perfect set-up," Carlisle said approvingly.

Angela nodded. "I definitely do. And it doesn't hurt that my mom is in charge."

We all laughed as Cynthia shook her head.

"Angie would be here without any help from me," she protested. "She's a great teacher, and I'm sure you'll be happy with your choice."

We spent a few more minutes visiting until it was almost time for Pumpkin to eat. After thanking Cynthia and Angela, we walked back to the car, smiling the whole time.

"I was hoping you'd pick this one," Carmen confessed as we walked. "The other school has its merits as well, but Cynthia has always been a great friend and I knew she wouldn't let us down."

"She definitely didn't," Carlisle agreed. "This is a big relief."

"Bigger than I thought it would be," I said. "I feel great about sending Emmett here, and Rosalie and Jasper too."

"Sometimes things just fall into place," Carmen pondered, giving us a knowing look.

She was right. Everything in our lives seemed to just always fall into place at the perfect time – as if we needed more reasons to trust God's plan for us.

I knew I would still be a little sad about Emmett growing up, but with these school plans in place, I was excited. We couldn't stop him from growing, but we could make sure he had the best opportunities. And I was confident this school would give him the best.

A/N: So I'm still a bit fail, but I did a little better this time! Still no promises, but I'm hoping to have the next chapter posted in less than a month. That's my goal anyway.

Thanks again to those are you who are still with me, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Reviewers will receive teasers. =)