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“Hey, we’re good. Come on in.” Meg waved her sister into the room, but it was Mack’s youngest daughter Winnie who scurried through the door and came racing over to me.
“Can I see him?” she asked eagerly, unzipping her winter jacket and dropping it on the floor.
“Sure.” I sat down in the rocking chair near the window so she could get a better look.
“Go wash your hands, Win,” Frannie directed before she went over to give Meg a hug. “I hope it’s okay I brought Winnie,” she said quietly. “I was just going to come alone, but she begged me to bring her. She says she has a present for Fletcher.”
Meg laughed. “It’s fine. It’s Christmas! There should be family around. Mom and Dad just left, and Noah’s mom was here this morning too.”
“How’s he doing?” Frannie glanced at the baby as she shrugged out of her coat.
“Good,” I said. “He eats, sleeps, cries, and poops, and the doctor said that’s all he needs to master right now.”
Frannie laughed as she scooped up Winnie’s coat from the floor and set it on a chair with hers. “I’ll wash my hands too, then I want to hold him.”
Winnie came hustling back into the room, eager to see her new cousin. “Hi, baby Fletcher,” she cooed. “I have something for you.”
“That’s so thoughtful of you, Win,” Meg said. “What is it?”
“It’s a letter I wrote.” Winnie pulled a folded sheet of notebook paper from her pocket. “My teacher said that we had to write a letter to someone describing something that happened over winter vacation. So after I opened my presents, I wrote to Fletcher to tell him about the night he was born.”
“What a good idea,” I said. “Want to read it aloud?”
“Yes.” Winnie looked glad I asked. She cleared her throat and then she began.
“Dear Fletcher,
Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, the lights were off. That is because it snowed so much we lost power. I was eating M&Ms when it happened. First, your mom who is my Aunt Meg said you were coming. Next, we all said to wait for the ambulance—” Winnie paused and looked up at us. “That’s a hard word, ambulance. I had to ask for help.”
“It is a hard word,” I agreed.
She looked at the page again. “Next, we all said to wait for the ambulance, but you did not want to wait. Aunt Meg went up the stairs. And then bam! You were born very fast. Uncle Noah had to be the doctor. He is your dad. Finally, Santa came and brought presents. But you were the best gift. Love, your cousin Winifred MacAllister.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet, Win,” Meg said, dabbing her eyes.
“There’s more,” said Winnie. She looked down again. “P.S. This is the best family in the whole world and Cloverleigh Farms is like a place under a magic spell, but a good spell not an evil spell, except for when the lights went out. But Millie said maybe you just wanted a dramatic entrance.” She looked up, shuffling her feet. “That’s the end.”
“I love it!” Meg opened her arms and Winnie flew into them for a hug. “Everything you said is true—Cloverleigh Farms is magical, Fletcher definitely wanted a dramatic entrance, and this family is absolutely the best in the whole world.”
“When I grow up, I want to stay right here,” Winnie announced, looking from Meg to Frannie to me. “Just like you guys did. So I need to fall in love with someone who lives close by.”
“Don’t you think you should finish second grade first?” asked Frannie wryly.
Winnie shrugged. “I guess. But thereisa cute boy in the grade ahead of me. I’d marry him. But I’m not having any babies.”
“Why not?” Meg asked.
“Because I heard the way you screamed to get him out.” Shuddering, she shook her head. “Also, I know what you have to do to get one. I willnever,” she said seriously.
“What do you mean?” Meg glanced at Frannie.
“My sister Felicity told me about it! I thought she was making it up, but turns out, she wasn’t. I’m not letting any boy get near me with histhing.” She wriggled like she had cooties and made a disgusted face. “Gross!”
The adults in the room laughed. “That’s probably the best plan for now,” said Meg. “But maybe when you’re grown, you’ll change your mind.”
I stood up so Winnie could sit down in the rocker. “Want to hold him?”
“Yes,” she said, shoving the letter back in her pocket and scrambling onto the chair.
