For a beat, silence. Then chaos erupted.
“I knew it all along!” Maddie exclaimed, casting a triumphant look at her siblings.
“A baby?” Hailey bounced on her toes, eyes wide with delight. “When? Can we name it after a butterfly? Like Monarch or Swallowtail?”
“Baby?” Ethan echoed, face scrunched in confusion. “Where baby? Me baby!”
Sunny knelt to his level, taking his small hands in hers. “The baby is growing in my tummy, like you did before you were born. It’s very tiny right now, but in a few months, you’ll have a little brother or sister.”
“I big brother?” Ethan asked, eyes widening as he grasped the concept.
“That’s right,” Liam confirmed, squatting beside them. “You’ll be a wonderful big brother.”
“When will it come out?” Hailey demanded, already planning. “Can it sleep in my room? I could give up some of my toys!”
“The baby will come in winter,” Sunny explained. “Around Christmas time. And thank you, sweetheart, but the baby will sleep in our room at first.”
“Are you feeling sick?” Maddie asked practically. “Mom’s baby book says pregnantladies get morning sickness.”
“A little,” Sunny admitted. “But it’s worth it.”
“Can I feel it?” Hailey asked, already reaching for Sunny’s stomach.
“There’s nothing to feel yet,” Sunny laughed. “But in a few months, you’ll be able to feel the baby kick.”
Ethan, not to be left out, pressed his ear against Sunny’s midsection. “I hear baby,” he announced solemnly.
“You do?” Liam asked, amused.
Ethan nodded gravely. “Baby say hi.”
A lump formed in Sunny’s throat as she met Liam’s eyes over their son’s dark curls. The simple, beautiful acceptance of children — no complications, no fears, just pure joy in new life.
“Group hug!” Hailey demanded, throwing her arms wide.
They gathered together, a tangle of limbs and laughter, Ethan squished in the middle complaining, “Squishes baby!”
In that moment, surrounded by the family she’d once only dreamed of having, Sunny felt a wave of gratitude so powerful it nearly took her breath away. From lonely foster child to this — a husband who looked at her like she hung the moon, children who loved her as their own, a home filled with laughter, and now a new life growing beneath her heart.
“I think we should celebrate with ice cream,” Liam announced.
The suggestion was met with cheers from all three children.
“Two scoops!” Hailey negotiated.
“We’ll see,” Sunny laughed, marveling at how quickly momentous news could segue into ordinary family negotiations.
As Liam herded the excited children inside to raid the freezer, Sunny lingered a moment on the porch, savoring the quiet. She touched her stomach lightly, sending silent promises to the tiny life within.
You are already so loved. You belong to a family that knows how precious second chances are. You will always know your worth.
A sense of peace settled over her as twilight deepened into evening.
Later that evening, with ice cream bowls emptied and sticky faces washed, the family gathered on the porch steps. The moon had risen, casting silver light across the garden Sunny had coaxed into bloom over the years. The children were quieter now, the initial excitement of the baby announcement settling into thoughtful contemplation.
Ethan yawned widely, nestled against Liam’s chest. Maddie sat with perfect posture despite the lateness of the hour, while Hailey leaned dreamily against Sunny’s side, twirling a strand of her blonde hair.
“I wonder if the baby will like butterflies,” Hailey mused, her voice soft in the nighttime stillness.
