A/N: This is a sequel to my last chapter titled "The Birth". I don't own any of the characters except my own.

Frustrated

It had been a couple weeks since Baby Maggie had been born and until now, Hank was home to help Olivia with both Noah and the baby. Hank had gone back to work, leaving Olivia completely alone with two children under the age of two. Hank knew she could handle it on her own but she wasn't so sure. Noah was crabby because Maggie was crying a lot when he wanted to sleep and Maggie didn't want to sleep at all, so Olivia wasn't getting much sleep when Hank was gone. She put the kids into the SUV and drove to the District. She got them out of their seats and went in.

"Olivia, you look like hell."

"Thanks, Trudy. Tell me something I don't already know."

Olivia dragged herself and both kids up the stairs to Intelligence. Everyone was in the Squad Room.

"Uh oh!"

"If anyone says one word to me, you can look for a job in another Unit and that includes you, Henry Voight. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

Olivia left the kids with everyone, went into the office, locked the door and adjusted the blinds. She got a blanket, got on the sofa and covered herself with the blanket. She ended up pulling the blanket all the way over her head and started crying. Hank unlocked the door and went in. He sat on the sofa and rubbed her feet but she kicked him.

"I can't do this."

"May I speak?"

"Yes."

"It's going to take some time for you to get into a routine with her that's all."

"She won't go to sleep. I didn't know this was going to be this hard. Noah is crabby because he can't take his nap and I can't take one either. I'm afraid to go to sleep when I'm by myself because something might happen."

"Come here."

Olivia moved, so Hank could put his arms around her.

"You are going to have to do this. I stayed home for 2 weeks like I promised I would but it's going to get better."

"What if it doesn't? She hates me."

"She doesn't hate you. Why would she hate you?"

"She only sleeps when you're around."

"Can I help it she loves me?"

"Don't flatter yourself. She doesn't love me. There's something wrong with me. I suck as a mother."

"No, you don't."

"I suck as a wife too."

"Why would you say that? I love you more than life itself. Noah loves you and so does Maggie. You just need to take time to bond with Maggie on your own. When Camille had Justin, it took her a while to bond with him because of what happened with our daughter. She was devastated and she just refused to have anything to do with him. I allowed myself to mourn but I didn't neglect him. He needed one of us. This is not quite the same thing. Our daughter was born perfect. I get you're frustrated."

"How can she be perfect if she has me for a mother?"

"Olivia, don't say that. You may not think you're perfect but I do and therefore our daughter is perfect because she's just like you."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"That she's just like me."

"There's nothing wrong with her being like you. If she was more like me, then we'd have a problem."

"You always know the right thing to say, don't you?"

"Sure."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Hank kissed Olivia and then Erin brought Maggie in.

"Why don't I take Noah for the rest of the day and you can spend some time alone with our daughter?"

"Ok. Thanks."

"Anything for you. You know that."

Noah came in.

"Dada go bye-bye?"

"You and me are going to hang out this afternoon, so Mommy can spend some time alone with Maggie."

"Baby go bye-bye?"

"No, she's not going anywhere. You'll get used to her but it will take some time."

Noah looked at Hank and then Hank picked him up.

Hank kissed both Olivia and the baby and Noah kissed Olivia.

"Kiss your sister too."

"Why?"

"Noah!"

Noah kissed Maggie's head and then he and Hank left. Olivia took Maggie home and got her to go down for a nap when they got there. She watched her sleep for a little while before getting into bed and falling asleep herself. By the time Hank and Noah got home, Olivia was fixing dinner and had Maggie in her carrier nearby.

"How are my girls?"

"We had a good day."

"Good. I'm glad to hear it."

"We both had a nap when we got home and then after lunch, we did the laundry. I'm sorry for the way I was acting earlier. Taking care of two little ones is a lot harder than I thought it would be."

"Hey, I get it. Noah knows that Maggie needs your time and attention as well."

"I did a lot of thinking today. I don't think I'm going to go back to work."

"I'll support you no matter what you decide. We're in this together. Are you sure this is what you want?"

"I am. I need to deal with my kids. I can't depend on Cindy to take care of them while I'm at work all day. I've been thinking about this for a while but I wasn't sure if it was what I really wanted. I need to make time for both of our children."

"I'm surprised but I'm not."

"I should have discussed it with you first though."

"I'm fine with it. I know it gets to be an issue if any of the Herrmann kids are sick. You did give up Lucy to move here to be with me."

"I thought about getting another nanny but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I should be the one to be with them all the time. I think that was part of my problem. I don't want to miss the major milestones in their lives, especially now."

"I understand completely."

"Will we be ok if I 'retire'?"

"Oh yeah. We'll be fine. I just want you and our family to be happy."

"Thank you for being so understanding."

"No problem. I love you and you know I will always support you no matter what. You and these two are my top priority."

Olivia kissed Hank and then they finished fixing dinner. After dinner, they got the kids ready for bed, Olivia fed Maggie before putting her to bed and Hank put Noah to bed. After the kids were in bed, the two of them got ready for bed, got into bed and watched TV before going to sleep.

The next day, Olivia went to the District to leave the kids with Hank when she went to put her paperwork in for her retirement. Olivia knew she was going to have challenges of being the mother of two young children but she felt things could only get better between her and her daughter the more time they spent together. She had promised Noah that once Maggie was down for her nap, she would spend some alone time with him. She also knew it would take him some time to adjust to his baby sister. It was just something they both needed time to deal with.0

Reviews and suggestions are appreciated.