2 month anni (:

On the 4th of September, I woke up a little early.  Hallie had been pretty good yesterday, which was amazing.  Alexis was FINALLY starting to slowwwwly warm up to us, although she'd just told us, upon asking, that she wanted to think for a few days about being adopted by us.  Things were looking up! (: 
I woke up on my side.  I smiled and turned my head to look at Flynn...what I saw was his feet. 
His...feet?  Okay...
I sat up quickly and saw I must've thrashed around in my sleep last night enough to have flipped myself to the other end of the bench. 
I looked at Flynn's sleeping face, and a weird feeling washed over me.  I felt like I needed to be close to him, for whatever reason.  Velcro Rapunzel, maybe, as he'd call it?  I dunno.  But regardless, I laid down on my side behind Flynn and carefully set an arm around him, breathing in the smell of his shirt.  I did this for a few minutes, but then he woke up.  I felt his hand on my arm, and then he turned to give me a smile. 
"Well, good morning, darling." He gave me a smile.  "What's up with you?" 
I shrugged and sat up, shoving the hair from my face so I could look at him.  I drew my knees to my chest and shrugged again, a little embarrassed to explain that I felt, basically, clingy today.
"I-I dunno.  It's stupid...but I feel...needy today, I guess.  I feel like I need to be close to you or something, I don't know.  It's dumb...Just - never mind." 
His face slowly created another smile as he sat up too.  "That's fine.  I get that way sometimes, too.  And it's not that hard to fix!" 
I quirked a brow, until he leaned forward and pulled me close into a warm, loving hug that made my spine feel tingly. 
I put my arms around him too, and unfurled my legs until I could lean a little closer into him.  We just sat there for a few moments, and I enjoyed his strong embrace.  But all good things must come to an end, and he slowly pulled away, bumping his forehead with mine and laying down on his back.  I flopped down on my side beside him, and he pulled me super snug and tight into his side.  I put one of my hands on his chest and propped my chin on his chest as well, staring into his brown eyes. 
My hubby, bless his heart, tolerated my oddness.  He gave me a smile and then he pulled me close into a kiss that made my head spin. 
When that was over, I gave him a wide-eyed look, to which he rubbed his thumb on my cheek. 
"I-ah....w-well..." I mumbled, trying to regroup my thoughts.  "Love you."  I finally spit out. 
He gave a quiet laugh.  "Love you too, honey." 
I grinned and shut my eyes, leaving my head on his chest.  Until a thought occured to me.
Hallie was silent. 
Hallie.  Was silent. 
I quickly pulled away from his arms and propped myself up on my elbow to look at him.  "Did you get up any with Hallie last night?" 
He shook his head.  "I slept like a rock.  Did you?"
"No..."
He got a mildly concerned expression on his face, and my feelings inside matched it.
I sat up, turned to face the other direction, and flung myself onto my side, leaning out to look at the babies, who always slept near the bench anymore. 
I leaned really far, and my arm was shaking, so I could likely faceplant hard any second, but I still made sure Hallie was sleeping safe and sound. 
She was.  Her tiny little chest rose and fell rhythmically.  She had just slept through the night, which was a surprise anymore. 
Then, I felt an arm snake out around my waist. 
"Hey, you're gonna smack your face off that dresser pretty soon here...you keep bobbing around."  He pulled me into his front, and held me close.  "Hallie's okay?" 
"She must have just slept the night..she seems fine.  I don't want to wake her up to check on her." 
"Okay."  His shoulders must've drooped an inch in relief, because I felt his arm grow heavier all of a sudden.  He planted a kiss on my cheek and I snuggled a bit closer, curling up into a ball. 
I was allowing my eyes to drift back shut when I heard tiny footsteps. 
Alexis appeared just outside of the bench. 
I jumped all over and quickly pulled away from Flynn, my face blazing red.  I don't know why I was embarrassed, but I was. 
"Hey, honey...why're you up so early?" 
"I wanted to talk."  She looked down, but then she tipped her chin up and stared at me.
"Okay," I resituated myself to sit up against the bench leg, and she came over.  I pulled her onto my lap and gave her a kiss on the forehead.  "What's your topic?"
"I...I want to stay with you guys.  Last night, I decided that you guys were the best family I've ever had, and you've stuck it out with me the longest.  And I like you." 
I smiled at her, feeling as if the weight of the world had gone off of my shoulders...about that topic, anyway.  "Oh, honey...I'm so glad you feel that way.  You know we both love you very much, right?  We'll let Tangled Fan know as soon as we can!" 
"Okay."  Her lips hinted at a small smile,  which I had honestly seen hardly anything close come from her. 
She rested her head up against me and I cuddled her close, turning to give Flynn an astonished smile.  He grinned, and he looked like he wanted to join in and create a group hug, but didn't; knowing she'd not take too kindly to that situation. 

But then she did something even more surprising.  "I love you...Momma."
First time she'd said that.  First time she'd called me her mother.  I was soaring. 
"Love you too, baby girl."  I gave her another extra-tight cuddle, but then she wormed away from me. 
Had I overdone it? 
Nope.  The girl was full of surprises. 
She took a deep breath and walked the few steps over to Flynn, standing to say it.  "And I love you, Dad." 
His face lit into the most adorable, surprised, and loving smile known to mankind.  He said he loved her too, and then, I think almost by accident, he pulled her into a bear hug. 
When he reluctantly let her go, I watched her face.  Flynn did the same thing. 
She looked up at him and gave him a smile. 
An honest to goodness smile. 
"I'm going back to bed."  she said, givng her eyes a rub. 
"Okay, sweetie." 
When she'd left, Flynn slowly turned towards me, wide-eyed.  I matched his expression and grabbed his hand. 
"I think the wall she's built around herself is finally falling, brick by small bri-"
He grabbed me into an excited hug before I could even finish my sentence.  When he released me, I laughed. 
"Excited just a  bit?" 
"I'm just so....so glad she's finally beginning to realize we won't hurt her...that poor child."
"I know...I'm really happy too.  I've been waiting so long for this to happen-"
"Two weeks.."
"Two and a half." 
"Fine, two and a half."
"But anyway...two and a half weeks for her to warm up just the slightest bit...and now it's happening!"  I squeaked at the last one, and he grinned. 
"Yup," he stared lovingly at me and I squirmed.
"I suppose we should get up..."
"Rapunzel.  Alexis just went back to bed because it was too early for even THEM!  Lay back and chill for awhile.  Enjoy that peace and quiet." 
I chuckled, nodding, and flopped backwards. 
He laid down as well, turned on his side to look at me, so I turned to face him. 
"You ready for a day out?" 
It took a second to register that today was our 2-month anniversary.  I will admit that.  xD  When it clicked in my mind, I nodded with a grin.  "Happy 2-month anni, honey."
He gave me a big smile, stroking my hair.  "Happy anniversary to you too, my precious girl."
My stomach fluttered in an explosion of butterflies, and I impulsively grabbed him into a kiss.  He reached over and pulled me close to him, and the kiss intensified before I finally pulled away.  When I did, he gave me a peck on the nose and a smile, but he didn't loosen his arm around me.
"So, you like being called 'my precious girl'?"  He joked, and I giggled quietly.   
I wormed away from him and rolled onto my back, staring up at the underside of the bench.  I randomly thought about how badly I wished I could dress up a bit for him for our anniversary outings - or even simply change my dress! 
"Hey," he said quietly, reaching to push the hair from my face.  "What's the matter?  All of a sudden, you just..."
"Oh, it's nothing."  I knew he'd give me the same old lecture if I told him. 
"Honey, in my experience, when you say something's nothing, it's usually something.  I won't laugh or anything, you know that." 
"I just wish I could dress up a bit for you once in awhile...I mean, you're always making up these great outings, a-and what have I done to thank you or return the favor?  Nothing.  And it's just...ugh.  See, I told you it was stupid."  I didn't meet his eyes during all of this until I was done. 
"Baby, I don't care what you look like.  You should know that by now.  You don't have to dress up or anything.  And you have returned the favor, time and time again.  First of all, you've stuck with me for the past two months, and sure we kind of got off on a rocky, hundred-mile-an-hour ride from being engaged to married with four foster kids in less than a week.  You've loved me when I don't deserve it - such as on Monday - and you're just there; and you've got a heart of gold.  That, precious girl, is what counts."  His eyebrows furrowed as he studied my face.  I was almost in tears over that one. 
"I-I...." my voice cracked, and I wasn't sure what to say anyway.  My lips blubbed uselessly as I tried to make words come out.  Until he leaned over and gave me a sweet, passionate kiss.  I closed my eyes and enjoyed every second until he slowly pulled away and smiled at me.  I was more than just slightly dazzled, and I stared silently at him until I could think up something to say. 
"O-oh, gosh...now I've really forgotten what I wanted to say," I joked, and he chuckled. 
"Good.  Just don't forget what I told you," he gave me that grin of his, and my heart fluttered.  But then that grin turned into his mischievous grin. 
And then he reached to tickle my side.  
With a slightly louder-than-expected gasp, I elbowed him until he removed his tickling fingers. 
"You're a brat," I laughed quietly, turning to my side away from him as if I was mad at him. 
"Oh, but you wouldn't love me any other way, would you?" 
"Hmph."  I tried to sound mad, but it failed....bigly.  He laughed through his nose and pulled me close to him, kissing my hair and wrapping his arm around my waist.
And then I heard Hallie whimper.
Flynn, who had been pulling me a tad closer, froze.  I held my breath.
And then she was quiet again.
I loosed my breath and shot a fist in the air.  "Yes!"  I exclaimed quietly, and then Flynn flat-out laughed. "Shh!"  I exclaimed, sitting to clap a hand over his mouth.
 Merida ducked her head under the bench.  "What is all the laughin' about?!  Or do I even want to know?" 
I turned to look at her, still keeping my hand pressed over his mouth.  If I left him speak now, I'd regret it.  "I, um..well, see, I was listening for Hallie to cry, because I heard her whimper, and when she quieted down again, I shot my fist in the air and was like, 'YES!'..and he found that highly amusing for whatever reason.  We didn't wake you, did we?" 
"Naw, I was up anyhow.  I was just wonderin' what all the laughin' was over."  She quirked a brow when Flynn tried to speak through my hand. 
I left him mumble for a few seconds, but then I felt my hand get wet.  He licked my hand.  He legit licked the palm of my hand. 
"Oh my gosh, you are sick!  I can't-ugh!"  I squealed, yanking my hand off of his mouth and shoving his chest hard enough to knock him backwards, before I wiped my hand off on his shirt.  "I can't believe you." 
Merida was chortling, giving me a gleeful grin.  Flynn was laughing. 
"I can't believe the both of you!"  I grumped, trying to sound disgusted - I didn't have to try too hard - and wiped my hand a couple more times and shook my head. 
"What I was trying to...say...whilst I was so r-rudely...restrained...is that I was wondering if you, Merida...Merida!  If you would watch the kids while we have a day out.  It's our two-month anniversary."  He said between gales of laughter and attempts to get Merida to pay attention. 
Merida allowed her chuckles to subside before she answered.  "Sure...I can watch 'em."
"Not sure I want to go with you today, you sick creature," I grumbled, looking at my hand. 
"Oh, come on..." he laughed, sitting up and grabbing me into a one-armed hug before I could move away from him. 
"That was pretty disgusting there, pal...but it was hilarious."  Merida said, still grinning.
"Says you, she who does not have a wet hand," I laughed. 
She left, and Flynn turned to me. 
"Sorry."  He told me, but I could see that dirty little grin he had on his face.
"No way are you sorry, I see the smirk on your fa-"
He broke me off.  "Okay...it was pretty funny.  Now...since she's up, do you want to just get up and get moving?"
"Sure," I said, pulling away from his arm and crawling out from under the bench. 
I rummaged around, found the ribbons and flowers that Tangled Fan had used in my hair once, got my brush, and got to work.  I might not have any other dresses to wear, but I have a lot of hair, and I could dress that hair up like it was in the movie, when Rapunzel gets to see the kingdom.  Annnd so I did! 
When I was done, Flynn was waiting for me. 
He gave me a huge grin, we said goodbye to the girls, and then we were off. 

When we had made our way to the floor, Flynn stepped away from me. 
"Give me a twirl," he smiled and gestured. 
"Why?"  I furrowed my brows. 
"Because," he chuckled, and I rolled my eyes, but I did give a twirl. 
That failed hugely. 
Remember how I always say I'm not graceful?   Un-graceful people should NOT EVER twirl.  Ever. 
I twirled, and I twisted my back the wrong way.  But then, on top of that, I got one leg tangled around the other.  I stumbled into Flynn, who was standing right by me, and then he staggered backwards. I kept going, and I tried to catch myself, but I couldn't.  Tangled Fan's floor was actually clean of clutter, so there was nothing I could grab onto.  Except for Flynn, and he was stumbling as bad as I was by now!
So finally, I went down right on top of Flynn with an oof and a thump. 
I caught myself before I smacked my head off of his, luckily. 
He gave me a surprised and slightly stunned expression, and I probably matched it. 
"A-are you alright?"  I finally managed. 
He chuckled, staring at me. "Yep...you?" 
"Well, yeah...I mean, I landed on something slightly softer than the hard floor...and you didn't," I laughed. 
"Remind me to not ask you to twirl.  Ever.  But what I wanted to say is that you are gorgeous, and I love your hair that way."  He gave me a warm smile, and cupped my cheek in his hand.
"Oh...well, um...thanks," I realized I was still on top of him, and I sat abruptly. 
He sat up too, and I realized I was still across his legs.  I scrambled awkwardly in an attempt to get up, but he took my hand in his - with such gentleness that I was surprised; he wasn't just keeping ahold of me so I couldn't go - and I stopped to look at him a few seconds before I slowly stood, squeezing his hand and not letting go of it.  He stood as well, and then swept me up close to him and into a tender kiss. 
When he pulled away, he bumped his forehead with mine and I stared up at his brown eyes, which were giving me a loving gaze.  I grinned as the butterflies started up, and kissed his cheek.  He tried to conceal the pleased grin, but it came anyway, and he pulled me a bit closer for a hug.  When we pulled apart, he took my hand in his again and gave me a sweet smile. 
"So...what're we planning on doing?"
"Well...you know how awhile back, when Jase rode Maximus, how you wanted to as well?  It slipped my mind until the other day...so why don't we go ride?" 
I gasped.  He was actually going to do this?  Awesome!  "Really?" 
He chuckled, nodding.  I squeaked with excitement and grabbed him into a quick, excited hug, before I left him lead me to where Maximus was at. 
"Let me ride him first, so he won't buck you off or anything," Flynn told me when I raced over to him excitedly. 
"Oh, he's fine...he was as sweet as pie with Jase," I told him.  "That was just a one-time thing, I think." 
"I just-" 
Maximus nuzzled my hand with his plastic nose, and I giggled.  "He'll be fine, Flynn...if I fall, you can say 'I told you so'." 
Flynn gave me an uncomfortable glance, but he finally sighed and nodded.  "Alright...but just don't get hurt, okay hon?" 
"Okay," I laughed, and Flynn gave me a boost up into the saddle. 

When I was situated, he let go of the reins reluctantly and rested a hand on my leg.  "You sure?"
"Positive," I grinned as I clucked Maximus on. 
He was perfect.  I walked, trotted, and cantered him.  He was acting absolutely perfect, until we went near the guinea pig cage on the floor. 
The guinea pigs in the cage both ran over to the cage side and started squeaking.  Max shied before loosing a round of violent bucks.  I gasped and clung to his mane, wrapping my legs around his barrel.
Mistake. 
He squealed, pinning his ears, and crowhopped in disapproval.  I glanced up just in time to see him almost ram into a bin, and he swerved.  I wasn't ready for it, and I flew off, landing right on my back. 
It knocked the breath out of me and I couldn't even get myself to move.
Flynn was at my side in a moment.  "Are you alright?"  He frantically studied my face. 
Well, it's kind of hard to speak when the breath's been knocked right out of you.  Finally, I managed to squeak.  "Y-yeah, I'm alright.  Just"-I coughed, and cleared my throat before continuing -"Just a bit stunned, and need to catch my breath." 
"I knew I should've gone on him first, or led you, or something...oh gosh,  I just need to listen to my gut instinct...you end up getting-"
"Flynn.  It's fine.  I'm fine" - we'll not mention my aching back quite yet - "Don't beat yourself up about it.  If anything, it's the guinea pigs' faults," I joked. 
"I know, but-"
I stuck my hand out.  "Help me up, please?" 
"Oh.  Sure."  He helped me up, and I gave him a smile. 
"Thanks.  See?  I'm walking, talking, breathing...I am fine."
"What about your back?  You landed hard on it." 
Crumbs.  I couldn't lie..."It does hurt, I'll be honest.  But I'm fine." 
"Let's go back-"
"Flynn, I am-"
He started to pick me up. 
"FLYNN!"  I yelped.  "Put.  Me.  Down.  Now!  And no, we're NOT going back home.  I'm fine.  If I feel like I need a break, I'll let you know.  Okay?  Quit obsessing, please." 
He stared down at me, and got a calculating expression on his face. 
Finally, he nodded and set me down. 
"Fine...but you're positive?" 
"I am positive, dear." 
"Okay."  He trailed his hand down my arm tenderly, and then he grasped my hand, pulling it up to kiss it. 
"I don't think you should ride him, though..." I joked.  "Sorry."
"Oh, I wasn't planning on riding anyhow.  I just wanted to before you, to try and work the sillies out of him.  I still don't trust that creature," he said, staring at me. 
"What?"  I asked, referring to his stare. 
He didn't answer me, he just simply took a stride towards me and pulled me close. 
I could hear his heart pounding, he was holding me so close. 
"W-wh..." I trailed off, and he tightened his arms around me. 
Well...either he'd answer me, or I'd eventually stop breathing from his tight grip.  Whichever came first?  I wasn't sure.

His heartbeat eventually slowed, and only then did he allow me to pull away.  He put his hands on my shoulders and swallowed.  "It just scared me, is all."
"Everything scares you," I chuckled, but I could see in his face that he had indeed been terrified. 
"Everything that includes you or the girls," he corrected. 
I nodded, silently scolding myself for chuckling at his obvious concern.  "Sorry."  I gave him a small, sheepish smile and glanced around, trying to think of something to get his mind off of me falling. 
"Why don't we sit up on the window?"  I suggested, nodding towards the window. 
He wet his lips and nodded, letting go of me.  I took his hand and led the way to the window, thankful for a distraction. 
We hopped up onto the windowsill and I sat down in the one corner, trying to very discreetly rub at my back. 
He saw me, though. 
He quirked a brow, but he sat and didn't say anything. 
Phew. 
Dodged a bullet on that one. 

We sat and watched the outdoors for a good long while.  We just sat in silence and enjoyed one another's presence, which was nice. 
After a good while, though, Flynn got restless.  He stood, and asked how my back was. 
It was pretty sore, but I was fine.  I told him so, and he didn't look very relieved. 
We left the windowsill, and walked around for awhile, just about general whatever, until Tangled Fan came hurrying in.  Great -I could ask her about Alexis! 
"Tangled Fan!  Wait up a sec," I exclaimed, waving my arms so she would see us. 
She stopped abruptly, and bent to look at us.  "Yes?" 
I glanced at Flynn and he gave me a  confused look, but then it clicked.  He gave me a smile and a nod before grasping my hand. 
"Can we adopt Alexis?  I think we're ready." 
She smiled and nodded.  "Awesome!  For sure...I'll just make a note to not toss her up into a box or anything." 
"That'd probabbbly be best," I laughed, even though I was mildly horrified. 
She left, and I turned to Flynn. 
"Well...we just added another to our family."  He gave me a crooked grin and I couldn't help the tingle that went up my spine. 
"I'm just so glad she's warming up to us!"  I continued walking, and he hurried to catch up with me. 
"I almost passed out when she as much as LOOKED at me this morning." 
"I know..I could see it in your face," I grinned as I remembered his expression. 

We walked for awhile, but once darkness crept up on us, we headed back. 
Everything and everyone was quiet, but they were up. 
"Merida!  How were the girls?" I walked over to her and asked.
"They were all good...weren't ye?"  She asked, and Jase and Alexis nodded.  We watched Jase hurry over to Flynn, and I reached to pick Alexis up.  "And Hallie was just a pleasant little girl, like she used to be." 
"Awesome," I exclaimed. 
The two babies were already sleeping, so I didn't bother Hallie. 
"And how did y'two enjoy yer day out?"  She gave me a smirk. 
"It was great, thanks so much for watching the kiddos for us!  I fell off of Maximus, but other than that, it went well.  We also ran into Tangled Fan, and Alexis...you're officially adopted now." 
She gave me a big grin and hug, and then squirmed to get down.  I let her go, and Merida gave me a quick, one-armed hug. 
"So how bad did yer hubby flip when ye fell?" 
"He managed to keep it to a minimum, after I told him to stop obsessing." 
She laughed and rolled her eyes. 
"Hey...you up for a girl's day out tomorrow?"  Merida asked. 
"Well..I dunno.  Flynn, what-"
"Go for it.  I can handle all the kids," he told me.

We sat up and talked for awhile, planning, but then we all went to bed. 
By the time we got to bed, my back was aching like nobody's business.  I sprawled out on my back, trying to stretch it out.  Flynn flopped down beside me and watched me as I writhed around in odd attempts to relieve the soreness. 
"Your back still hurt, baby?"  I glanced up at his concerned expression. 
I considered doing a quick little white lie, but I didn't.  "Yeah, it hurts." 
"Should I-"
Should he go get Tangled Fan? What was his first thought?  Mine was NO.  And so I said so. 
"I was going to ask if you wanted me to rub your back." 
"Oh.  No, it's-" I broke off as he did so anyway.  "Well..that does make it feel pretty good." 
He chuckled to himself and continued for a few minutes, until I suppose his hands got tired.  When he was done, I turned to my side and pulled him into a quick kiss. 
"Thanks,"
"Anytime..I'll do anything to please my girl," he joked, giving me a wink. 
I rolled my eyes and then they crossed as he gave me a peck on the nose.  I grinned and then flopped onto my back, trying to find a comfortable spot.
"Thanks for letting me go with Merida on a girl's day out tomorrow," I told him. 
"Excited?" 
"Kind of..." I smiled. 
"Just stay safe." 
Gosh...well, I do suppose one of the last times we'd gone on a girl's day out, I'd ended up hurting my arm, so he did have a point.  "I will," I laughed, and then he leaned over so we could share a sweet goodnight kiss.  When he started to pull away, I leaned into him and kissed him back, and when I pulled away, he gave me a big smile.  He told me good night and I returned it, and then I was out. 

Adoption Questions

Hey everyone...hope you all enjoy your Labor Day! 
Hallie is still crying plenty, and we've both been getting up a lot through the night with her.  I think we're both starting to get pretty worn down from it, but what else could we do?  We can't let her lay there and cry.  Anyway..on top of all of this, Alexis STILL has not warmed up to anyone yet. 
So Monday was interesting, once more.  All day, I'd considered whether I should ask Tangled Fan about adopting Alexis, or if Alexis even liked it here!  I wished I knew.  So finally, I pulled Merida aside and asked her what her opinion was. 
"What do you think we should do about Alexis?  I mean, I love that poor little girl, but at the same time, she's...I dunno.  She doesn't seem to like it here.  I want to officially adopt her soon, so nothing happens like the last time we fostered...but I don't want to make her live somewhere she doesn't want to live at.  Who knows, maybe she'd prefer to live in a box up in the attic, which is where she'd be at." 
"I think that ye should maybe try talkin' to her, and see if she'll open up to ye a bit and let'cha know what she wants.  Then ya have to deal with yer husband over there...not sure who'd be easier to ask." 
"Flynn." I laughed.  "Alexis is just so horribly shy.  But thanks...that is a good idea.  I suppose I should go talk with her?" 
"Good luck..." Merida glanced towards Hallie, who had started to cry, and then looked back over to me.  "Someday, we'll go on a girl's day out.  Someday soon, I hope!" 
"I hope that someday soon, miss Hallie will be back to her old self!  But yes, that sounds like an excellent plan." 
I gave her a smile and made my way towards Alexis. 

"Hey, sweetie.  Mind if I talk to you about something?"
"No," she glanced up at me. 
I sat down beside her and pulled her up into my lap so I could give her a cuddle.  "This is an important question, and I want to let you know that we love you very much.  Ah...I wanted to let Tangled Fan know that we'd make the adoption official, but I wanted to ask you first.  Do you like it here?  I want what's best for you, naturally, but I don't want you to...to feel uncomfortable living with us, if you don't like it here." 
She thought for a few minutes before turning her head up to me.  "It doesn't matter.  I've gone  back to live in the box in the attic before, and I've lived under piles of junk in Tangled Fan's closet before, too.  So I can do that as well as I can live here." 
Oookay...
"So it...doesn't even matter to you?"  I asked. 
She shrugged and shook her head silently. 
"Okay.  Well, I'll talk with Daddy.  Thank you for your input." 
She gave me a silent nod and I let her scoot off of my lap to resume whatever she'd been doing. 
I went over to Jase and asked her what she thought. 
"I'd love to have her as a sis, Momma.  We might have our spats and stuff, but I like her.  Sorry about the other day..." she gave me an adorably embarrassed smile. 
"That's fine.  Thank you!  I'm gonna go talk with Daddy now." 
"Okay," she gave me another smile and I left. 

Flynn was sitting on the wicker chair when I came over to him. 
"Hey, hon," I stood behind the wicker chair so I could lean over it and give him a kiss on the cheek.  "Want to go for a walk?" 
"Not right now, exactly.." was his reply. 
"Well...could we at least go somewhere else to talk?  We don't have to walk in order to talk." 
If anything, that dumb joke would make him chuckle, right? 
Wrong. 
"Not right now, okay...can't it wait for later?"  I could hear the edge in his voice sharpening as we spoke.  I knew he was probably tired out, but so was I, and I didn't act short with anyone.  Had I? 
"It's important." 
"We'll talk tomorrow or some time when I can actually-" Hallie started to cry more, and he raised his voice.  "-hear myself think." 
"But it's-"
"No, okay?  Can't you catch a hint?" 
I sucked in a deep breath in surprise at his snippy comment, and then I felt the sting of tears pricking my eyes.   But before I went all in the defensive about it, I made an attempt to be nice to him. 
"Do you want to go take a nap?  You sound like you need a nap.  Big time.  I can watch Halli-"
"No.  I am fine.  Just l-"
Just leave me alone?  Was that what he'd been about to say, before he broke off? 
He stood, and I tried to stop him and ask him what the matter was, but he just brushed past me to go get Hallie. 
I stared at him for  a few seconds, but then the tears started to get the better of me.  I fled off of the dresser, and off of Tangled Fan's bed.  I couldn't let Alexis see me cry.  I couldn't let anyone see me cry.

Once I was on the floor, I ran to the side of the dresser that was closest to the door to the room. 
I leaned up against the dresser and finally loosed a sob.  Within minutes, my whole body was shaking from tears.  Tears, and anger.  That had been completely uncalled for.  Why had he been so snippy at me?  I mean, really!  I never get that bad when I'm tired.  Do I?  I try not to, anyway...
I covered my face with my hands and sobbed for I don't know how long...until I heard rapid footsteps coming my way.
I went silent, and waited for the footsteps to get closer. They did. Fear took over my whole body, and I spread my fingers apart so I could peer out of them.
Flynn. 
With a gasp, he ran towards me. I dropped my hands from my face and grumbled, "Oh. It's you."
His face was filled with remorse and worry, but I wouldn't let him get to me. I turned my head away and refused to look at him.

"Oh, honey..I am so, so sorry. I didn't...I shouldn't have said any of that...It's no excuse that I'm tired. I should've never treated you that way, and I am so sorry, baby. Once Hallie had quieted down and I'd gotten her to take a nap, I realized what I'd said and that you weren't up on the dresser anymore. And that's when I started searching for you. I am so, so, so sorry...I love you so much and I never should have acted that way and I'm sorry." His voice was choked up, and he put his hands on my shoulders. From the corner of my eye, I could see his face was tear streaked.
"I never act that way when I am tired." I finally met his eyes to give him a stare, and I said it with as much cold precision as I could muster.
His forehead wrinkled, and he put a tender hand on my cheek. I turned quickly away from it, and his hand froze in midair for a few seconds before he let it drop.  He took in a ragged breath.
"I know, honey...I truly am so sorry, and I feel horrible about it." his brown eyes searched my face, but I looked down. He tried to pull me close into a hug, but I stayed stiff as a board and unrelenting.
He cleared his throat, and took my chin in his hand. I took in a deep, shuddery breath and I finally met his eyes. They were so full of sorrow and remorse that I fought for my own composure.
"W-will you forgive me? I'm so-"
"I know. You've told me...what, three, four times already?" I allowed my lips to twitch in a quick, small smile.
He took his other hand to brush the hair from my face and then cupped my face in both of his hands.
"And I'd say it again. I'm sorry. And I love you so, so much." he held my eyes in a gaze that I couldn't pull away from. After a few minutes of silence, he suddenly released his gaze and my face.
"Um...anyway..you wanted to talk?"
I shrugged, sliding down the side of the dresser to sit, pulling my knees up to my chin and wrapping my arms around my legs.
He sat down beside me and watched me until I finally spilled it.
I told him everything about my conversation with Alexis, and about why I wanted to get a move on with the adoption. "But I'm just...afraid we'll adopt her and she won't be happy here, or..I dunno." I finally finished, burying my head in my knees.
He was silent for so long that I glanced up to make sure he was still there. "I think...I think we should talk with Alexis and try to see what she really wants, and then we can talk to Tangled Fan from there on out. I'm fine with adopting her, and I'd like to add her to our family, but I feel the same way as you do. And I'm sorry I didn't find this important enough to talk about."
"You didn't know what I was going to talk about. But yeah, we could talk with Alexis. Although I'd doubt if she'd even open up and say anything...but we might be surprised." I said, my upset-ness finally washing away. 

I sniffled and rubbed at my nose, deciding I shouldn't need to cry anymore, and he stared at me.
"Mind if I-" he pantomined putting an arm around me, and I silently nodded.
He did so, and then kissed my hair. I squeezed my eyes shut and released a shuddery sigh. I rested my head on his shoulder and he laid his head on top of mine. "I'm sorry, baby...so, so sorry." He whispered, and I mumbled that I knew.
We just sat there for a while, and I didn't know about him, but I was enjoying the peace and quiet.
Eventually, though, I opened my eyes and gave another tired, reluctant sigh. He lifted his head and looked at me, smoothing my hair gently from my face before he trailed his hand down my face to my chin, pulling it up so I would look him in the eye.
"Forgive me?"
"Yes, Flynn; I forgave you awhile ago. If I hadn't, we wouldn't be sitting here and talking." I told him.
"True," he chuckled quietly. "Shall we go back up to face the music?"
"Face the screaming, you mean. It's...getting dark?"
"Yeah. You'd been gone for probably a good couple of hours until I finally found you."
"I really was?" I gave him a wide-eyed stare and jumped up. "Oh, gosh...!"
I offered a hand to him, and he accepted it, trying to suppress a broad smile, and even after he'd used it to stand, he didn't let go of it.
We hurried back to the dresser, but everyone else was already in bed.
"Guess we won't be talking with Alexis tonight..." I groaned.
"Tomorrow's another day..I just hope Hallie sleeps through the night."
"Isn't that for sure." I replied. He released my hand and went to bed, but I went to brush my hair out first.
When I finally did crawl under the bench, I sprawled my legs out. It was humid tonight...last burst of hot weather before fall, I suppose.
When Flynn chuckled to himself, I looked down and realized one of my legs was tossed across his. Horrified, I jerked it off and rolled over onto my side, propping myself up and looking at him. "Sorry!"
"That's fine,"  His eyes trailed down all my hair. "Too warm?"
"Yep," I said.
He nodded and studied my face for a few moments before he reached over to pull me into a warm, gentle kiss, keeping my chin in his hand. My heart skipped along quickly to the tenderness of it, and when he pulled away, I gave him a smile, realizing my hands were shaky.
Good grief...My hands. Were shaky. And I've only been married to this guy...what, two months this Thursday?! Gosh.
"What happened about being so tired and everything?" I asked, scrambling for something to distract myself.
"You happened," he gave me his classic grin. Well, that'd be an excellent help for the shaking hands.
I rolled my eyes and when he started to lean close again, I turned away. "You just kissed me, what? Five seconds ago?"
"Well...we haven't kissed all day long..." He gave me his best puppy-dog face, and I gave his chest a playful shove.
"If you hadn't have been so snippy, I would've given you a few."
His face changed from playful and teasing to remorse in seconds. "Yeah, I know..I'm s-"
I put a finger to his lips. "If you say that one more time..."
"Sorry," he muttered through my finger, and then gave my finger a kiss. I withdrew it from his face and rolled my eyes, shaking my head at him. "But really...one more kiss never killed anybody..."
I laughed. "You truly are pathetic, you know?"
"Yes, I know."
I quirked a brow, thinking about how to tease back. Finally, I just suddenly leaned forward and thrust myself at him in a kiss. He breathed in sharply and toppled onto his back, but I stuck with him, giving him a slightly overdramatic kiss. He draped an arm around me and held me close, and when I pulled away, I dove in to give him a second, quick little peck before I pulled back to see his expression. I could see in the darkness how red his cheeks were, but he gave me a gleeful smile, rubbing my back a few seconds before I pulled away to sit back up, chuckling at his loss for words.
"Surprised much?"
"Oh, but it's a good surprised." His smile had yet to fade as he scooted back upright.
"It would be awkward if getting a kiss from your spouse wasn't a good surprise." I laughed quietly. "All anger has washed away, I see. See, kissing is good for you."
"Says you," I rolled my eyes, flopping down onto my back and crossing my arms up over my head.
"Yup. Says me." He leaned over and gave me another large smile before he bent to give me a sweet, passionate kiss. If my hands were shaky before..! I sat up, and he pulled away long enough to sit up himself before continuing.  I hesitantly reached to wrap one of my arms around him, and he pulled me close with one arm, and the other hand he put on the back of my head. My heart was speeding like a freight train by the time he finally parted his lips reluctantly from mine, bumping his forehead up against mine. He pulled his head up to look at me, but he didn't move his arms an inch, and I just stared up at his eyes. I wasn't sure what to make out of a kiss that was that passionate and yet so...I dunno. 
"What?" He finally asked, chuckling at me.
"Huh?" I asked, snapping out of my thoughts. "Oh. Uhhmmm..." I made a few helpless jerks with my mouth, trying to make words come out,and a grin spread across his face.
"Surprised much?" He said, straightfaced, before resuming his grin.
"Oh, but it's a good surprised." I laughed through my nose. "No, really."
Flynn leaned close to me again and whispered. "I love you, my precious wife. I never knew how much you mean to me now until I couldn't find you earlier today."
Aha. So that's why he was so lovey-dovey tonight. He'd thought he'd lost me. But nonetheless, I returned an I love you and then I pulled away from his arms to lay down.
He did as well, finding and holding my hand loosely before he gave a satisfied exhale and was asleep. And as for me? I was out cold in a few minutes. 

Flynn here...Screamfest Thursday, for lack of a better title..

I was up with Hallie twice through Wednesday night. 
Both times, she went to sleep fairly soon.

I was awakened to the sound of Hallie crying loudly bright and early at seven in the morning. 
Crawling past Rapunzel, who was still sleeping, I went out to get her. 
By the time I'd picked Hallie up, Allie was starting to whimper as well. 
Weelll...if I didn't pick Allie up, too, she would start screaming too.  So I picked her up in my other arm and bounced the both of them for a few minutes.  Thankfully enough, Merida woke up at the sound of Allie's crying, and she came over. 
"I'll take my little stinker from ye.  Ye look like ye have yer hands plenty full enough with yer own."  She said, holding her hands out at Allie.  She scooped her up out of my arms and went to settle her down. 
In the meantime, Hallie was crying even louder yet. 
She didn't quiet down, either.  She woke up Jase and Alexis around quarter till nine. 
Hoping to get a good impression on Alexis this morning, I made my way over to them both and told them good morning. 
"Morning, girls...this silence is wonderful, isn't it?"  I said slightly sarcastically, gesturing towards Hallie. 
"Morning, Daddy!  Yeah..why's she crying so much?"  Jase asked me, looking up at me with wide eyes. 
"I have no-o-o-o clue at all, dear.  I wish I knew, but I don't...How are you this morning, Alexis?"
The little redhead glanced up towards me, and then hunched her shoulders up and stared at the ground.  I saw her mouth move, but Hallie was crying just loud enough that I didn't hear her...and I didn't want to press her, so I just left her be. 
I resumed my attempts to quiet Hallie, and Allie was crying again now too.
After a while, I thought I heard Jase yell something loudly, but I didn't know if she was just playing with Alexis or not, since I couldn't hear over Hallie and Allie combined, so I didn't butt in.   
Pretty soon, I saw Rapunzel emerging from under the bench.  I was going to make my way over to her, but before I could catch her eye, she darted off to break off whatever Jase and Alexis were doing.  They must've been fighting over something, but over what? 

When she'd broken up the fight, I strode over to my wife, noticing her pale face and I saw - didn't hear, but saw - her shoulders droop and her chest heave in a sigh. 
"What's the matter, hon?" I asked, worried. 
"Nothing..." she trailed off and glanced down at Hallie, refusing to meet my eyes.  "Want me to take Miss Screams-A-Lot?" 
Nothing?  Yeah..I'd heard that before...
"I can handle miss Hallie.  What I'd like to know is why you look so..." Zombie-like?  Sick? Crummy-feeling?...How did one tell their spouse they looked sick or whatever? "...like...I dunno."
Wrong move. 
"Like a zombie?  Thanks.  I'm fine."  She grumbled, crossing her arms and refusing to look me in the eye. 
She was definitely not telling me the truth about how she felt, but it was no use picking a fight or anything.  "I'm not sure I believe that, but I'll let it slide.  What were those two fighting about?"
"Alexis apparently called you names, because she's afraid of you... And Jase flipped on her.  I broke it up." 
"I see," I said, giving her a quizzical glance.  I hoped she'd spill the beans and let me know what had her irked, but she didn't.  So I just left to continue tending to Hallie.

Allie cried off and on all day long.  Hallie cried for the better part of the day, and she only stopped to take one single nap. 
When she was taking a nap, I walked over to my wife, who was looking worse by the hour. 
"Are you sure you're alright?"  She was sitting on the wicker chair that Blondie had abandoned for awhile, and so I leaned over it from behind. 
She tipped her head up to look at me.  "Yeah, I'm sure."
"Need to talk?" 
Shrug. 
"Alright..." I said, glancing one more time at her bloodshot eyes.  Wait..bloodshot.  Didn't people get bloodshot eyes if they had bad headaches, migraines (yuck, I don't want to talk about THAT), or from lack of sleep or whatever?  I hoped she didn't have a headache. 
"Do you-"
"I'm fine, hon."  She gave me a small smile and rested her head on the hand I'd put on her shoulder.
"Okay...well, if you wanna talk or anything, let me know."  I gave her shoulder a squeeze and then turned towards Alexis, who was sitting with Jase. 
Jase had been...well...nasty all day long, after her little spat with Alexis.
"How are you two girls doing?"  I asked.
"Fine."  Jase shot a glance towards Alexis, and Alexis shrank back. 
"Do you two want to go for a walk or something to get out of here for a bit?  I'm sure Momma-"
"No, I'm fine."  Alexis mumbled. 
"Yeah.  I guess I'll stay, too."  Jase told me as well. 
"Okay, if you're sure."  I gave them both a small smile, but Alexis refused to even look at me. 
That's basically how the whole day went. 
By the time ten PM rolled around, Rapunzel looked ten times worse than she had this morning, Jase was grumped, Alexis was still unrelenting on her shyness towards me, Hallie was still crying, Allie had finally calmed down...and I think just about everyone was ready to snap at the smallest thing.
Right before Rapunzel started to crawl into bed behind me, Hallie started wailing. 
"Get some sleep...I'll be back if I can get her to go to sleep.." she mumbled sleepily, and she was gone before I could offer to get her. 
I listened to her quiet chatter with Hallie for awhile, but I eventually fell asleep.

Next time I woke up, it was Too-Early-In-The-Morning-O-Clock, and my wife was crying.  To herself, but I could still hear her.  I felt for her beside me, but she wasn't there, so I sat up and looked around.  When I saw her, she was balled up near my feet, her shoulders heaving. 
I scooted down beside her and asked her what was wrong. 
"Hmm?"  she glanced up at me in alarm.  "N-nothing." 
Nothing, yet her voice cracked. 
"There's obviously something.  C'mere," I told her, reaching to hug her. 
"I'm telling you, it's-"
I broke her off by pulling her close to me, but she pushed me away. 
Oookay. 
"You're going to tell me one way or another, girl."  I stared at her for a few minutes, and she wouldn't look at me. 
I flopped onto my back, still staring at her, and she scooted towards my head so she could try to stare me down. 
She lost.  "You're not gonna back down, are you..." she said, sounding tired, deflated, and upset. 
I silently offered for her to lay down beside me, and she continued to look at me as she took in a ragged breath.  My heart squeezed with sympathy for her, because whatever it was had obviously gotten her pretty upset. 
She curled herself up into a ball at my side, and I wrapped my arms around her and held her heaving shoulders until she regained composure. 
"I-I'm...sorry I shoved you.  And you're right.  I'm tired, run down, I wish I knew what was the matter with Hallie, aand..and poor Alexis is so scared of Ray coming back that she had a nightmare tonight about him.  And I wish she wasn't so scared...and I have a massive headache and I can't go to sleep because of it..." she paused, glancing up to meet my eyes.  "You have really gorgeous brown eyes, you know.  Oh, gosh; did I really say that?  I'm so dumb..I'm just - just too tired to even really THINK straight!"  she half sobbed, half gulped out. 
Well...that last part there was pretty random.  Okay, REALLY random and off the wall to be precise, but the rest was understandable. 
And she'd seriously gone all day long with a headache, with the babies screaming and all the other tension going on today?  She was obviously stronger than I was if she'd kept her cool all day long with a headache.  I just felt bad that she hadn't told me, but at the same time, I wasn't surprised that she hadn't. 
"I'm sorry, hon.  I wish I knew what was up with Hallie, too.  But don't worry...Alexis will come around.  But why didn't you tell me you had a headache?  That's crummy."
Her shoulders pulled up into a shrug.  "I didn't think I needed to.  I mean, you wouldn't have been able to do anything about it, anyway.  That, and I felt kind of dumb being so grouched about it, when that's not even CLOSE to what you dealt with, with the migraines."
"Yeah, but it's not dumb.  Headaches stink as well."  I told her.  I wanted to give her a kiss, but I didn't want to aggrivate her, so I didn't. 
She stretched her legs out and wormed a bit closer into my side, and so I tightened my arms around her.  She put her head on my chest, and my heart pounded for a few minutes.  I fumbled for something else to say, and I finally offered to get up with Hallie through the night. 
"No...I can-" she mumbled, her voice slightly muffled. 
"You can go to sleep and get rested up.  Your headache will go away if you get a good night's rest."  I told her, hoping she'd think about that and accept it willingly. 
"But you'll-"  she started. 
You'll get a migraine. 
Well, these things happened sometimes. 
But you, my dear, need to get rest. 
I'm supposed to be cured of migraines, anyway. 

I didn't say any of these things, I just broke her off and said, "Be just fine.  I was fine today, and I will be fine tomorrow."
She sighed in defeat.  "Okay...well, thanks, honey." 
"Sure, hon."  I paused, deciding to risk teasing her.  "Oh, and for the record?  You've got the most captivating green eyes."  So it wasn't really teasing..it WAS true, but hidden in a tease.  If that makes sense. 
"Knock it off."  she grumbled, huffing. 
"Oh, I'm just teasing, hon.  Actually,..." Woops.  I hadn't thought THIS through.  "I-it's true, and I'm...not really TEASING, but - you know." 
"Y-y-y-y-y-yeah-h."  she drew the word out, and I could hear her getting irritated with me. 
"Okay, I'll let you get to sleep now.  Night," I paused to plant a kiss in her hair and then I pulled her just a bit closer and sighed as I realized how tired I was.  She gave me a one-armed hug and I wondered if she could hear my heart pound, since her head was still on my chest. 
"I love you, my dear girl...  I hope tomorrow's a better day," I told her, but she didn't answer, and her chest rose in deep, even breaths, so I figured she'd finally gone to sleep.  I removed one of my arms from around her and carefully reached to pull the handkerchief over her, hoping to goodness I didn't move around enough to wake her up again.   [Yeah.  Try to hold someone at your side, with their head on your chest and an arm around you.  And reach something juuuuust an arm's length away, without moving a centimeter.  Or waking anyone up.  Not the easiest thing in the world!]  And then I went to sleep.

Flynn here...Alexis

Hey everyone....wow, I haven't posted here in forever.  Sorry, guys! 

As you may know by my wife's recent posts, Tangled Fan asked us if we'd adopt another girl, named Alexis...who is around Jase's age.  You may also know that Hallie has been crying and screaming lately.  A. LOT.  I wish my wife would allow me to get up with her once in awhile - it wouldn't kill me.  Even if I do end up with migraines, and Tangled Fan had said I was cured anyway.  But no...she about ran herself into the ground this week, staying up with her.  I'd offered several times to get up with her, but she wouldn't let me.  Regardless..
Tuesday night, she was really fussy...again. 
We went to bed at seven, because we knew it would be an early start tomorrow morning, but Hallie started crying an hour later. 
"I'll-"
"No, hon.  You get some sleep, and I'll quiet her down."
"But you need-"
"Huh-uh."  She shook her head and then left to get Hallie.
I did go back to sleep for awhile, but around one in the morning, I woke up and reached to pull my wife close to me...but my arm hit the top of the dresser, instead of her side.  I peeled my eyes open and felt around, but she wasn't in 'bed'. 
I stumbled out from under the bench and then stopped, blinking.  When I could halfways see in the darkness, I saw her.  She was laying on her side, curled in a ball with Hallie up against her.  Both were sleeping so soundly, I considered just leaving them there.  But when I saw how close to the edge of the dresser they were, I figured I'd best move them. 
I picked Hallie up and took her to sleep with Jase and Allie, praying she'd stay asleep the rest of  the night.  When I made sure she was going to stay asleep, I turned back to my wife.  I carefully scooped her up, hoping to not wake her up, either.
I set her on her back and pulled the handkerchief blanket up over her, looking down at her sleeping face.  I risked touching my lips to her forehead, and then laid down on my back, sighing and shutting my eyes. 
For a second, anyhow. 
Suddenly, I felt my shirt collar being pulled, and then my wife grabbed me into a kiss.  So much for being asleep.  My eyes flew open in surprise, but then I shut them again and enjoyed the kiss until she pulled away. 
"Did I wake you?"  I whispered when she pulled away.  She situated herself on her belly, propping herself up on her elbows. 
She shrugged, so while I waited for an answer, I pulled the handkerchief back up and then spread my arm out to invite her to curl up beside me. 
She quickly accepted, and my heart squeezed when she put her small hand on my chest and rested her head beside it.  And then she gave me a smile to boot. 
Trying to find something to say, I asked her if she was ready to meet Alexis. 
"I guess - anxious, but ready."  she told me, and I gave her shoulders a squeeze before telling her that she needed to get to sleep, adding that hopefully, Hallie would sleep the rest of the night. 
"That's for sure."  she told me, giving a little sigh and snuggling in a bit closer.  "Love you." 
A broad smile crossed my face when she said that, and my heart squeezed before I told her I loved her as well.  I reached to kiss her hair and within a few minutes, I was back in Sleep-Land. 

The next morning came a bit too soon.  My wife was still asleep, so I watched her blissful face for a couple minutes before I figured she needed to wake up 
"Wa-a-a-a-ake up, darling.  Rapunzel...wake up.  Rapunzel...hon.  Rapunzel...Rapunnnnzelll...dear, wake up....We need to get moving...wake up, Rapunzel....Rapunzel.  Ra-"
"I'm up, I'm up already!"  she fairly grumbled, peeling her eyes open. 
Okay...so maybe I overdid my annoying act a bit much.  "Good morning to you, too, my little sunshine."  I told her sarcastically, and she laughed. 
"Sorry."  she finally lifted her head off of my chest to look at me.  I grinned at her drowsy expression, and a smile teased her lips.  "What time's it?" 
"Tangled Fan will be back in..." I trailed off as I thought about the time.  "Probably a half an hour."
"Half an hour?!"  she moaned and let her head drop dramatically onto my chest.  "Can't we just stay here...and go back to sleep...while Hallie's actually not screaming?"
 Boy, didn't THAT sound like a good idea.  I chuckled, though.  "Tempting as it sounds, we need to get moving." 
She sighed, and started to push herself up and sit.   I impulsively snaked my hand out, grabbed her arm, and when she turned to give me a confused look, I took her chin in my other hand and pulled her close to kiss her. 
When I parted my lips from hers, she gave me a dazzled smile, so I gave her a grin back. 
Her face started growing red, and she looked down before leaving to brush her hair out. 

So I stayed under the bench with my eyes shut, thinking about my wife.
Suddenly, though, I heard her say, "Watch this."  to someone..so I figured I'd just keep my eyes shut.  If she was going to try sneaking up on me, she'd get a good surprise - how could I pass that up?!! 
I felt her finger trail lightly across my cheek, and I resisted twitching. 
Then, I heard her draw in a breath, inches away from my face. 
Perfect opportunity. 
My eyes flashed open, I grabbed her arms, and I yelled "Boo!" at the same time.  Who says men can't multitask?  They can multitask when it comes to teasing, anyway. 
She screamed, doing a weird yanking away/slapping at my hands dance, and then smacked her head off of the bench. 
That was classic. 
I started laughing, and sat up.  I could hear Merida laughing her head off as well. 
She rubbed at her head and looked in my direction.  I couldn't keep from laughing.  I pressed my lips together, but that didn't help.  My wife wandered over towards me, and I figured I'd give her a quick kiss to show I didn't exactlyyyy mean to laugh at her expense.  She came in close to me, and I was just about to kiss her, when she planted a hand on my chest and shoved me down onto my back. 
"Hey, no fair!"  I laughed.  She giggled at me and shook her head. 
Merida finally stopped laughing, and Rapunzel stuck around.  She held a hand out to me, grinning, and I cautiously took her hand, expecting her to either be nice and help me up, or pick at me and do something un-helpful.  She decided to be helpful. 

A little while later, we were standing in front of a certain little girl by the name of Alexis. 
She had curly red hair and greenish-blue eyes, and her appearance reminded me loosely of Merida. 
She was shy, and terrified of me. 
She was also formerly adopted by Ray and HB.
After some quiet discussion, we decided we'd try fostering her.  I was a bit unsure that she'd ever learn to trust me - I mean, she'd totally flip if I'd as much as look at her cross-eyed.  But I wouldn't give up on a chance to show her I wasn't going to hurt her, either. 

So that's how we ended up about an hour later, back on our dresser and trying to get acquainted with Alexis. 
We found out that Jase and Alexis had been adopted at the same time by HB and Ray.  We also found out (sorry about the off-the-wall random moment) found out Merida is REALLY as bad a singer as she said she was! 
The majority of the day went pretty well. 
Jase, on several occassions, tried to get Alexis, or "Lexi", to warm up to me - all of which failed.  The shy little girl kept close on my wife's lap, beside Hallie. 
Speaking of Hallie, she was very good all day long.  She only really cried once or so.  Anyway...
The day went by pretty quickly.  All too soon, we were heading to bed ourselves, after we put the babies to bed. 
We gave Jase hugs, kisses, and exchanged I love yous with her, and then I watched as my wife reached to pull Alexis into a hug.  She gave her a kiss on her cheek, but Alexis remained blank-faced and unaffected by Rapunzel's tenderness. 
I reached to give Alexis a hug and kiss goodnight, but she grabbed onto Rapunzel's neck so tightly I thought she'd choke her.  She buried her face in Rapunzel's shoulder. 
"Good night, Alexis.  Love you,"
Her little head jerked up from my wife's shoulder, and she gave me a silent, wide-eyed stare until Rapunzel set her down and Jase hauled her over to where they'd sleep. 

When we went to bed, Rapunzel promptly flopped down on her back and heaved a huge sigh.  I laid down beside her and she turned her head to look at me.  "Was this a good idea?"
For a few seconds, I wondered what in the world she was talking about.  But then I remembered - gee, how could I forget?  "She just needs time.  She's just scared, shy, and no wonder; if Ray had her.  I'll get her to warm up to me, I'm sure." 
"You're right.  And that's true as well..you're good at getting people to warm up to you!" 
She flopped onto her belly and gave me a smile, propping herself up on her elbows. 
"She just needs time...it IS a lot different from when we started fostering Jase, though.  Anyway...we should probably get some rest."
She nodded, and I met her eyes for a moment before I reached to kiss her. 
And then Hallie started to cry. 
We froze, and then she pulled away with a sheepish glance towards me.  "Night, honey...I'll be back whenever I can be back."  With a sigh, she left. 
I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't, so I just listened for her to come back to 'bed'. 
Pretty soon - I was surprised that she'd gotten her quieted down so quickly - she came back in, curled up nearby, and she must've thought I was asleep. 
I turned onto my side and whispered in her ear, asking if Hallie had gone to sleep. 
She rolled onto her belly and propped herself up.  "Yup...for now.  The big girls are asleep, too."  (Jase & Alexis). 
"That's good..." I told her, studying her pretty face. 
"I didn't wake-"
"No, you didn't."  I told her. "C'mere."  I held a hand out to her, and she quirked a brow and gave me a 'what in the world' look, but she took it.  I reached up and pulled her into a kiss.  When I started to pull away, she gave me a sweet kiss back.  It ended all too soon and so I brushed the hair from her face, giving her a grin even though I'm sure she couldn't see. 
I told her good night, and that I would get up with Hallie through the night, so she could get some rest. 
"Thanks, hon...but I can get up with her.  No big"- she paused to muffle a yawn-"no big deal."
  Really?  "Tangled Fan said I was supposedly cured of migraines....why not put it to the test?  Then you don't have to obsess about me getting eight hours of sleep, and I can be a Daddy to Hallie and if either of the other girls gets up through the night.  And you don't have to run yourself down.  It's a win-win-win!"
She laughed through her nose and sat up, looking at me. 
"I'd prefer not to put it to the test, though.  I don't want to risk you-"
At that, I sat up and pulled her into a kiss to break off her sentence. 
She shook her head.  "I don't want to risk you getting-"
I broke her off again, with a mischievous grin.  "Do I have to do it again?" 
"Oh, shush up!"  she said, unable to hide the silly grin on her face and the fact that she was holding back a laugh.  "I'm...being serious here."
I leaned close to whisper in her ear.  "Then why do you have that goofy grin on your face, if you're being Miss Serious?" 
She almost burst out laughing, but caught herself and just snorted. 
"Oh, why do I even bother...!" she groaned at me as she let herself fall facefirst onto the dresser. 
I laughed through my nose at her and rubbed her back for a few seconds before I flopped down as well. 
"Night, hon.  Love you so much."  At least, that's what I thought she said.  It was kind of hard to hear her when her face was pressed into the dresser top. 
But regardless.  "Love you too, dear girl."  I mumbled before I went to sleep. 

Meeting Alexis

Hey everyone...sorry I haven't posted in awhile.  Hallie's STILL been fussy off and on, but we've been managing...barely ;)  The good part is that I can listen to my hubby sing quietly to her.  I'm serious, she'll quiet down if you sing to her!  It's weird, but hey...get to hear my hubby's awesome voice a lot!  (: Anyway...
Last night, Hallie was particularly fussy.  We had set a time that we would go to meet the girl, Alexis, and it just happened to be early tomorrow morning.  Of course. 
We all went to bed around 7, and Hallie was sleeping peacefully.   We covered up the kids with a small doll blanket Tangled Fan had given us, and then Flynn and I used one of the two handkerchiefs Tangled Fan had given us as well...the nights were beginning to cool off.
I was optimistic and excited for a good night's sleep.  For about an hour. 
When she started wailing, I got up with her, telling Flynn to get plenty of sleep. 
I got her up and wandered around for awhile, quieted her down, and then laid her back down.  The second she left my arms, she started huffing and her face crumpled. 
I scooped her back up and she quieted. 
"Sweetie pie...you need to go to sleep, baby."  I whispered to her and she grinned.  "I dunno why you think you need to be with Momma or Daddy every second, but that's okay too.  Will you sleep for me if I take you back to snooze with me and Daddy?" 
She started to whimper again.  Well, there's the answer to THAT question. 
"Okay, okay.  We won't go to bed with Daddy."  I whispered, humming quietly to her for a few seconds.  She stopped, and after awhile, her eyes closed.  I tried to lay her back down...but nope. 
So I sat with her and held her until I don't know when. 

Sometime through the night, I woke up to feel two arms gently scooping me up.  I couldn't even open my eyes, I was so tired.  I didn't hear Hallie, but I could tell she wasn't in my arms anymore.  So by process of elimination, Flynn had likely woken up, realized I was still out here, found me asleep, taken Hallie and lain her down with Allie and Jase...and so now he was taking me back to bed.  I started to open my mouth in protest, but instead, I just buried my head in the crook of his neck. 
I felt myself being lowered onto my back and then the handkerchief being carefully spread across me.  His lips touched my forehead in a careful kiss, and then  I heard him flop down beside me, loosing a tired sigh, and I randomly thought about how lucky I was to be married to him.  So in one deft movement, I rolled over and pulled him into a kiss.  When I pulled away, I managed to peel my eyes open again - but just barely.  I could hardly see through the darkness, anyway. 
"Did I wake you?"  he whispered. 
I shrugged, propping myself up on my elbows.  His eyes flicked down and he reached to pull the handkerchief back up, and then he spread his arm away from him. 
I accepted the silent offer and rolled over to face him, cuddling up as close as I could get.  I rested my head and my hand on his chest and rolled my eyes up towards him, giving him a smile. 
"Ya ready to go meet Alexis later?"  he whispered, apparently not ready to go back to sleep.
Well...I was really nervous, but at the same time, I felt ready.  "I guess...anxious, but ready."  I finally said, and he put his arm around my shoulders and hugged me tight. 
"You should get to sleep, sweetie, and so should I...we'll see what the morning brings and hopefully, Hallie will sleep through the night."
"That's for sure...love you."
I could hear his smile when he answered me.  "Love you too." 
He plopped a kiss in my hair and I was out like a light. 

This morning, I woke up hearing my name being repeated an annoying amount of times. 
"Waaaake up, darling...Rapunzel...wake up...Rapunzel....hon....Rapunzel..."  and so on and so forth. 
"I'm up, I'm up, already..." I grumbled, working at peeling my eyes open. 
"Good morning to you, too, my little sunshine."  Flynn said sarcastically, and despite myself, I laughed. 
"Sorry."  I chuckled and lifted my head to look at him.  He gave me that grin, and my heart squeezed.  "What time's it?" 
"Tangled Fan will be back in...probably a half an hour." 
"Half an hour?"  I moaned and let my head flop back down dramatically onto his chest.  "Can't we just stay here..and go back to sleep....while Hallie's actually not screaming?" 
He chuckled.  "Tempting as it sounds, we need to get moving." 
I sighed reluctantly.  I felt like a zombie or something...I mean, I'd been getting about six hours of sleep per night, interrupted periodically by Hallie. Flynn could always get up with her, too, but I didn't want him getting migraines.  Anyway...I'm rambling.  "I suppose you're right." 
I started to sit up, but he suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me close to give me a gentle kiss.  When he pulled away, I gave him a grin, my heart fluttering. 
He matched it and then I looked down, my face slightly warm.  "I need to go braid my hair, I suppose...don't want to scare the poor girl." 
"You won't," he laughed. 

After I'd brushed and braided my hair, I went back to peek under the bench.  Everyone else was up, but Flynn wasn't out there.  I bent to look in on him. 
Was he seriously sleeping?!  Looked like it to me. 
So of course, how could I pass this opportunity up? 
I started to creep in, but Merida stopped me. 
"What are ye doin'?"  she whispered.
"Watch this."  I nodded towards him, and a sneaky grin lit up her face. 
She stood back, and I crept towards him.  I carefully trailed my finger down his cheek in an attempt to simulate something crawling across it, but when that didn't work, I leaned down to say 'boo'. 
Just as my lips were forming the word, I quickly found out he was NOT sleeping. 
He yelled 'boo' and grabbed my arms at the same time.  I screamed and yanked away in surprise, smacking my head off of the bench. 
Laughing, he sat up.  I heard Merida cackling in the background, and I glanced around to look at her.  She was bent over, and her face was about as red as her hair, from laughing.  I absently rubbed at my throbbing head,  then glanced over at my husband. He tried to press his lips together and stop laughing, but he took one look at me and started to shake all over, until he finally gave into the laughter.
I rolled my eyes and went over to him.  He must've thought he could kiss me after doing that, but I had a little surprise up my sleeve.  When he reached up to pull me into a kiss, I leaned in towards him as if to accept the kiss..but then I gave him a shove on the chest, pushing him back down. 
"Hey, no fair!"  he said, laughing, and I finally started to giggle.  By now, Merida had tears streaking her cheeks. 
I was nice and stuck around to help him up.  When he was up and we were out from under the bench, he kissed my forehead.  "You alright?"
"Never better."  I chuckled.  "It only hurt for a couple minutes." 
He snorted, trying to suppress more laughter. 

After that, Tangled Fan came in and after we said bye to Jase and Hallie, we were off.  Before we left, though, she presented us with a nice little blanket for the babies...great!  Anyway, that was a lil off topic.. :D  Anyway. 

When we got to where we were going, she plopped us down near Alexis, and then stood back and waited.


I glanced at Flynn, swallowing hard.  Alexis glanced at us with a scared expression on her face. 
"She's shy," Tangled Fan told us.
I nodded silently and then walked slowly towards her, not sure of what to do or say.
"Hey, Alexis..." I finally managed, crouching down by her. 
This was so different from when we met Jase.  Jase had practically thrown herself at us, babbling a hundred miles per hour. 
"Hi."  she glanced at me, eyebrows furrowed. 
"Did Tangled Fan tell you we were going to come see you?"
She nodded.  "I-I'm glad to meet you." 

I gave her a smile and scooped her up, standing.  "Do you want to tell us something about yourself?" 
"I'm six.  I need a new home, I've been tossed around a lot.  The last couple that had me were really mean.  And I want a little sister." 
"That's good...we have two little girls already - one's right around your age, so you can play together," I told her, and a spark of interest finally glimmered in her eyes. 
Until Flynn made a move to scoop her up out of my arms.  She gasped and clung frantically to my neck, and started breathing heavily. 
"It's alright...he's really nice.  Why are you so scared of him, sweetie?"  I asked her. 
She stared warily at Flynn until he backed off a few steps.  "The last couple that had me was really mean and the guy was especially." 
I thought furiously.  Had she been with Ray and HB before?  "Ray and HB?"  I asked her. 
She nodded. 
"Oh, I'm so sorry.  You don't ever have to worry about him being mean to you."
She squirmed to be put down, and I walked over to Flynn. 
He pulled me close to his side and whispered in my ear. "Well...are we gonna foster her?"
I reached up onto my tiptoes and whispered back. "I dunno..she's just so scared. But I'm sure if we show her we're not like Ray and HB - yeah. They had her for awhile too. Anyway, I'm sure she'll come around."
"Okay. Then let's do it," he said, giving me a quick peck on the cheek before turning me to face Tangled Fan.

After about a half an hour, we were back home with Alexis.
She clung to me like nobody's business. I had to work her arms from around my neck before I could set her down on top of the dresser.
I introduced her to everyone, and she promptly went over to Jase.
"Jase?" she asked, peering at her.
Jase's face brightened, and she grabbed her into a hug. "Lexi!"
"You know Alexis, Jase?" I asked, smiling at their big grins.
"Yeah! We were both.." Jase's smile vanished. "We were both with HB and Ray at the same time."
"Ooh," I nodded understandingly.
Jase parted from Alexis and bounced over to Flynn, who had just sat down. She plopped herself down on his lap and gave him a cute little grin that even made ME smile!
"C'mon, Lexi! Daddy's awesome. He won't hurt you."
"That's okay...I'll stay with her," she said, backing up against my legs. I scooped up Hallie and put a hand behind Alexis' head.
"It's alright, honey. He won't hurt you, you know that, right?"
She shrugged, and I just left it at that. I couldn't really blame her for being so flighty, though, if she'd been with Ray and HB.
"How was miss Hallie today?" I turned towards Merida and sat down, pulling Alexis onto my lap as well.
"She was pretty good...she cried a little bit but when she heard my gosh-awful raspy singing voice, she decided she'd quiet down just so she wouldn't have to hear me anymore!" she laughed.
"Oh, I'm sure it's not that bad." I chuckled.
So she decided to give us a quick little serenade.
I was wrong.
"O-oh," I said, wide-eyed.
"Wow." Flynn said, and I glanced over. He wore the same expression as I probably did.
"Told ya!" She laughed and scooped up Allie.

We spent the day getting acquainted with Alexis, and the day flew by.
In the blink of an eye, we were getting the babies ready for bed.
When the babies were sleeping soundly and covered all up, we turned towards the 'big girls'. Jase gave both of us enthusiastic hugs and kisses goodnight, and exchanging I love yous, but Alexis hung back. Finally, I pulled her into a hug and kissed her cheek, telling her good night. She just stayed like a board - stiff.
Flynn went to give her a hug, and she grabbed onto my neck and buried her face into my shoulder.
So he just told her. "Good night, Alexis...love you."
She glanced up towards him, wide-eyed. Had she ever heard someone tell her they loved her? Surely...
I set her down, and Jase took her by the hand and fairly dragged her over to their new designated 'bed'.
I checked one last time that Hallie was asleep, and then we headed to bed ourselves.
"Was this a good idea?" I whispered when we got to bed, turning my head to look at him.
"She just needs time. She's just scared, shy, and no wonder, if Ray had her. I'll get her to warm up to me, I'm sure."
"You're right. And that's true as well...you're good at getting people to warm up to you!" I gave him a smile and rolled over onto my belly so I wouldn't get a crick in my neck. I propped myself up on my elbows and looked down at his face, slightly mesmerized by his deep brown eyes.
"She just needs time..it is a lot different from when we started fostering Jase, though. Anyway...we should probably get some rest."
I nodded, and he finally met my eyes before reaching to slowly pull my chin down towards him. Our lips just started to meet for a sweet, goodnight kiss...when...you guessed it. Hallie decided she wasn't sleepy anymore!
We both froze, and I looked sideways as I listened. When she didn't quiet down after a few seconds, I pulled away with an apologetic glance towards him.
"Night, honey. I'll be back whenever I can be back." I sighed and left to see what was up with Hallie. As was the new normal.

I scooped her up and wandered around a bit. Hallie quieted down pretty quickly, but I held her to make sure she fell asleep and stayed asleep. I checked to make sure Jase and Alexis were still sleeping soundly, and they were. Then I just hummed until she seemed like she was going to sleep for awhile.
I laid her carefully down under their new blanket and kept a hand on her arm until I knew she was still asleep. Then, I quietly crept back to bed, for however long that would be!
I curled up on my side, away from Flynn, and was just allowing my eyes to go shut when he turned and whispered in my ear. "She asleep?"
I rolled onto my stomach and propped myself up. "Yup...for now. The 'big girls' are asleep, too."
"That's good..." he said, and I could feel him studying my face in the darkness.
I hoped I hadn't woken him up. "I didn't wake-"
"No, you didn't. C'mere." He held a hand up, and I quirked a brow.
What on earth? I took it, though, and he set it back down beside him. That was all fine and everything, but that was going to be uncomfortable as-
Then, he pulled me into a kiss that was somehow gentle and passionate at the same time. How did he even do that? My heart pounded, and I shut my eyes, enjoying every last second of it before I returned it. When I pulled away, I once more propped myself up to look at him. He let go of my hand and reached to brush the hair from my face. I could see his sweet grin through the darkness, and my heart squeezed. I wanted to kiss him again, but I didn't want to seem weird. I'd already kissed him once just a few seconds ago, anyway. So I just bit my lip and gave him a smile back.
"Good night, my sweet, dear girl. Get recharged - I know the past week or so has been pretty rough and sleepless for you, so I'll get up with Hallie tonight."
How could I not just melt at THAT - an endearment AND a wonderfully awesome offer... that I knew I'd have to turn down anyway because of his migraines??
"Thanks, hon, but I can get up with her. No big-" I broke off to yawn, covering my mouth. "No big deal."
"Tangled Fan said I was supposedly cured of migraines. Why not put it to the test? Then you don't have to obsess about me getting eight hours of sleep, and I can be a Daddy to Hallie and if either of the other girls gets up through the night. And you don't have to run yourself down. It's a win-win..win!"
I laughed through my nose, sitting up to look at him as I pulled the handkerchief up to cover my legs. "I'd prefer not to put it to the test, though. I don't want to risk you-"
He broke me off by sitting up abruptly and pulling me into another kiss.
When he pulled away, I shook my head. "I don't want to risk you getting-"
"Do I have to do it again?" he gave me a mischievous grin.
"Oh, shush up." I told him. "I'm...being serious here." I had to conceal a laugh, though.
"Then why do you have that goofy grin on your face, if you're being Miss Serious?" he leaned close to whisper that in my ear, and I snorted, catching my laugh just in time.
"Oh, why do I even bother..." I groaned, flopping and doing a faceplant.
He laughed through his nose, and I felt him rub his hand on my back for a few seconds before he must've laid down as well.
"Night, hon. Love you so much."
If he answered, I didn't notice, because I was out like a light.

 

Expanding The Fam. ...?

Hallie was pretty good through the night.   I'd only had to get up with her about twice. 
But then she woke up bright and early at 7:30 when Tangled Fan's alarm went off. 
I woke up with a jolt as she squealed and started to cry, and I started to sit up, finding that peeling my eyes open was a challenge. 
Then I felt a tender hand on my shoulder, and Flynn whispered in my ear, "I'll get her.  Go back to sleep." 
"I ever tell you how amazingly awesome you are?"  I mumbled, my eyes going back shut, and he chuckled. 
I yawned, and tried to go back to sleep.  I don't know how Flynn could be up and aware of his surroundings...but then again, he'd been asleep when I had had to get up through the night with her.  I just couldn't function on less than six hours of sleep!
I also knew that Hallie was my responsibility as well as Flynn's, so it would only be fair that I got up too.  No use laying around if you can't actually sleep...unfortunately. 
I opened my eyes and sat up to see Flynn coming back under the bench, Hallie in tow. 
"Go back to sleep," he told me again. 
"Can't...but how much sleep did you get last night?"
"I'm fine.  You look like a zombie right now, to be frank.  Catch some more z's while you can," he told me, bouncing Hallie up and down. 

So I did. 

I woke back up around 9, refreshed. 
When I came out from under the bench, I was greeted by another round of loud screams.  Oh, goody.  I'll tell you one thing - that little child has quite the set of lungs on her. 
And Tangled Fan was talking to Flynn.  Wait...what? 
I yawned and walked over to stand beside Flynn, taking Hallie from him.  "What?" 

"Oh, good - you're up." Tangled Fan said. "I was just telling Flynn about this...so the other day, when I was cleaning my closet out, I found a little girl doll that could be adopted. She's around Jase's age, and it wouldn't be until I found some clothes for her to wear - she's nude right now for some reason. Would you mayyybe be interested in meeting her sometime?"
Well, what an awesome time to ask someone if they want another kid - when the baby they have right now has been screaming her head off almost constantly for hours on end.
But then again...Jase for sure would like a buddy to play with, I'm sure. And really, the older kids weren't as much work as the babies were. But on the other hand, having just the two girls was pretty nice.
"Will you send her to eBay if we don't?"
"Nooo, definitely not. You see, her hand was slightly chewed by one of the dogs, years back, and so she can't really be sold on eBay. It'd probably be Goodwill."
I gasped. "That poor little doll!" I gave Flynn a horrified look, and he matched it with just about the same expression.
"So...do you need time to think about it?" Tangled Fan asked.
"I suppose..." Flynn gave me another sidelong glance.
"Okay. I'll let you know again when I have some clothes for her." And with that, she was gone again.

Flynn turned to me. "Morning."
"Morning," I laughed. I reached up to give him a kiss on the cheek, and he grinned at me, putting a gentle hand on my side.
"How're we holding up?"
"Well, I'm not a bawling mess, am I?" I asked. "I'm fine. I just would like to know what's got her so upset!" I glanced down at Hallie, who was whimpering, but had quieted a little bit.
He nodded. "If you want to go elsewhere for awhile, I can handle her."
"It's fine," I told him, adding a thankful smile. "But what's got my interest is that girl. What do we do?"
He glanced down at Hallie and back up at me. "I think we should wait until we can actually hear ourselves thinking..."
"True," I laughed. "Hallie, goodness gracious, little girl! What's gotten into you?" I bounced her around in my arms a few minutes. "How long has she been awake?"
"Since 7:30. She probably needs to go back to sleep, because she was woken up by the alarm this morning." Flynn said.
"Yeah...you're probably right." I sighed. Finally, I started humming quietly to her.
After awhile, she calmed down and actually gave me a little grin.
I glanced towards Flynn, who was sitting and talking with Jase - I suspect about the girl - and he glanced up and gave me a raised-eyebrow, 'you mean you actually got her to quiet down' stare.  I laughed and looked back down at Hallie. 
"Now that's my sweet little girl!"  I told her.  She seemed to have settled down, so I set her down near Allie. 
As soon as I turned around, Flynn swept me up. 

He pulled me into a kiss, and I jumped with surprise, but then I put my one hand up on his shoulder, kissing him back. 

When we pulled apart, he gave me a grin. 
"What was that for?"  I asked. 
"For being you," he said simply, straight-faced. 
Deciding to tease, I said, "Ahh.  You're just glad I was able to get miss Hallie to quiet down!" 
He chuckled and gave me a quick hug before letting me go. 

 

Then, I decided to get Jase and talk to her about that girl. 

I took her into my lap and she gave me  a dimple-y smile.  I took her hands loosely in mine and smiled back at her. 
"Baby girl...what would you say if we ended up adopting another girl?" 
"She's the one Daddy was talking about?"
"Yeah," I agreed. 
"She's around my age?"
"Supposedly."
"Is she nice?"
"I don't know.  We haven't seen her yet, but when we do, we'll take you with us." 
"Okay.  Well...I wouldn't mind.  When can we go see her?"
"I have no idea," I said.  "We have to-"
"You're going to adopt her, right?  I'd love to have a playmate." 
"I have no idea," I repeated, laughing.  Turning to Flynn, I added, "I think we have a definite yes from her."
"Yes, PLEEEASE."  Jase corrected me. 
We ALL laughed at that one. 

"Yes...please.  We have a definite yes, 'please' from her."  I told him. 

Then I went over to Rayne and Blondie.  As I was going to ask them what their opinion was, Hallie started back up.  Again. 

Instead of talking about the girl, I said, "What is going on with that child?!" 
Rayne shrugged, and I sighed.  "I just hope she calms down soon."
I started towards Hallie to scoop her up, but Flynn was already on it. 

"I think I'll take her for a walk, hon.  If nothing else, it'll give the rest of you some peace and quiet!" 

"I can take her," I offered. 
"Naw..I can take her, too."  he grinned at me.
Thank goodness.  That award-winning grin on top of that offer?  Did he get any better?!  I gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek, and he gave me a peck on the nose.  "See you later, dear girl."
"See ya," I smiled at him and watched them leave. 

So then, all of us girls gathered together.  I picked up Allie and held her for awhile (Merida's legs
were bothering her) and held Jase on my lap as well. 

We chatted about the girl.  Basically, the answer from everyone was that if Flynn and I both felt we could handle three, then to go for it.
The thing was that I wasn't sure we SHOULD.  I mean, I would be okay with it, and I KNEW Jase would be, and Flynn probably would be fine about it too.   But would we realize we'd stretched ourselves too thin, when it was too late to undo it?  I just didn't want that to happen.  And-
What was that sound?
"What is that?"  I whispered. 

 

We all turned to look towards the bed. 
I listened harder. 
"Now she's here, shining in the starlight..now she's here, suddenly, I know...if she's here..."
"Is that...my husband?  Singing?" 
Merida nodded slowly, and we all gave one another awed glances.  I put a hand over my chest and turned back to stare towards Flynn and Hallie. 
"Yer hubby can sing," Merida finally managed to whisper. 
"Uh-huh..." I mumbled, a smile slowly creeping up on my lips.  I had no clue he could sing that well!  Oh my goodness...his voice was so smooth and perfect.  I was wonderstruck! 
Then I realized that he had stopped...and he was heading our way. 
"Guys!"  I hissed.  "He's-"

Too late.

"She's out cold," Flynn came up onto the dresser. 
I gave him a smile, hoping to goodness that the others weren't staring at him.  Finally, I found my words.  Unfortunately, the wrong ones slipped out.  "No wonder she calmed down!"
"Why?"  he gave me a quizzical look.  "And why's everyone staring at me and Hallie?"
Well, crumbs. 
"Umm...Well, w-we heard...ah...here, lemme take Hallie and lay her down."  I jumped up and offered to take her. 
"No, I can get her."  he inched past Merida, and everyone's eyes stayed glued to him. 
Awkward. 
He laid her down on the floor beside Allie, who was sleeping as well, and then turned towards us. 
"Would someone please spit it out?" 
"You...we, um...we heard you s-singing to her, a-and...you're.."
"You heard me?"  his face turned red.  Gosh, mine was probably red, too.  Mine and just about everyone else's. 
"You're flawless!"  I spat out, finally. 
"Oh." he gave me a wide-eyed expression.  "I'm not the best-"
"Oh, yes you are!"  Rayne piped up.  I overlapped her with basically the same thing. 
He laughed and came over to me.  Squeezing my shoulder with his hand, he asked how our little while of peace had gone. 
"Excellent, dear.  Thank you so much.  Have I told you how awesome you are?"
"Only once already this morning," he laughed. 

We all went to bed around nine.  Hallie had calmed down substancially, and at nine o clock, she finally decided to sleep.  I really hoped she'd sleep through the night! 
When we got to bed, Flynn flopped down on his side and I did, too; facing him. 
"So..." Flynn started, brushing the hair from my face.  I got a tingle up my spine when he left his hand on my cheek.  "It seems that if you hum or sing to her, she quiets down.  I'm not sure why, but hey - at least something works!"
I grinned.  "Honey, she'd for sure go to sleep for you.  Your voice is soo soothing and deep, and...just wow.  You're a really good singer." 
He rolled his eyes.  "I am not." 
"Are too!"  I gave him a push.  He chuckled quietly and then suddenly pulled me close to kiss me. 
When he pulled away, he rested a hand on my waist.  "So...what are your thoughts on that girl?"
I rested my hand on the hand that was on my waist and sighed.  "I have no idea.  I mean...the older kids are a lot easier to care for, and it's not like we'd be adopting another baby.  But can we wing it?  What do you think?"
"I don't know, either.  Basically, I think the same as what you just said." 
He reached over and plopped a kiss on my forehead.  "Maybe we could try fostering her for a bit." 
"Well, I never thought about that.  I suppose we could try it.  If you're okay with it and everything, too." 
He yawned, and then mumbled a 'c'mere'.  At first, I was confused, but then I got what he meant.  I rolled over onto my other side and he pulled me close to him before he whispered in my ear.  "Sounds like an excellent plan, dear girl.  But don't feel pressured about anything, and you let me know if you need to talk about anything, okay?  That's what I'm here for." 
"Uh-huh..." I trailed off as I snuggled closer to him and went to sleep.

My sleep definitely wasn't peaceful, though. 
I woke up at Nobody-Should-Ever-Be-Awake-At-This-Time o' clock and realized my head was...beside Flynn's feet?  I looked up, blinking, and through the darkness, I made out a hand that was being held out towards me. 
I took it, and Flynn pulled me upright towards him. 
"Why was I...down there..." I mumbled drowsily, yawning and flopping onto my belly and doing a faceplant. 
"You've been tossing and turning all night long.  Need to talk?"  he sounded wide-awake. 
"Sorry.  An..and I dunno.  I'm just really sleepy.  Been thinking about that girl, is all." 
"Uh-huh."  he said.
"Well...." I sighed and propped myself up on my elbows, looking towards him (for all the good it did, since I could hardly see ANYTHING.)  "I'm just worried that we'll get ourselves knee deep in something we can't crawl out of." 
"We don't have to even foster her.  We can just tell Tangled Fan no." 
"No...I mean, I WANT to, but I'm just..scared of messing up, I guess."  I sighed again and squeezed my eyes shut, blinking the 'I need to go to sleep' sting out of them. 
"I can get that...I mean, I'm a little nervous as well.  But we'll see.  I mean, if we're fostering, it's kind of like a test drive.  Y'know?" 
"Yeah," I said, more awake now.  "So, do we tell Tangled Fan tomorrow that we'll foster her?" 
"I suppose...I'm okay with fostering if you're okay.  I don't want to push you into anything."
"Okay.  We'll tell her if we get the chance to, tomorrow.  For now, we both need to get to sleep again." 
"Yup...night.  Thanks for the midnight pep-talk," I joked quietly, rolling over onto my side and sprawling my arm out across his middle. 
"Anytime, dearest..." 
My heart squeezed, and then I was out.