Chapter Three

By the way, here are Henry's stats, which I forgot to post before. :)

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Elaine began to show, but she looked as beautiful and elegant as ever to me. I could not be more excited to be a dad.

We still made sure to make time for each other despite being busy fishing and tending to our land. We especially listening and dancing to our gramophone.

Aside from always knowing I wanted to live off the land, I've always known I wanted to be a dad. I couldn't wait for my daughter to be born, and yes, I was convinced it was a girl!

"Hi there, princess. It's Daddy. I can't wait to meet you!" I would tell Elaine's growing stomach much to her amusement and annoyance.

I made changes to the garden. Since it's my dream to have the perfect garden, I routinely have to dispose of plants that just don't make the cut but I make up for it by planting their offspring which are higher quality seedlings.

One evening while I was reading about the best types of bait for different fish, Elaine began to groan and clutch at her stomach. The baby was coming! 

It was what I had been looking forward to for months but suddenly I wasn't sure I was ready for this. Would I be a good dad? Did we have enough money?

At the hospital we were greeted by a shock. Elaine's father was there...with his new girlfriend...who was also pregnant! We didn't have time for the drama that may have ensued thankfully, but I know Elaine was somewhat upset by the encounter.

 

Luckily Ruby was not there to have her baby at the same time, but we later learned she had a son which she named Rudy. So Elaine now has a half-brother who is 30 years her junior! Disgraceful! How could a man Norman's age go stepping out with someone young enough to be his daughter? He didn't even have the decency to marry her.

I told you it was a girl! We brought our daughter Betty home, and Elaine was simply glowing.

Elaine took to motherhood like a fish takes to water. She has always been very family-oriented, part of the reason why she is so upset by her father's philandering ways, but now that Betty's here she has something to keep her mind off things.

Here's a secret that's not really a secret. We're not so wealthy. Some might even call us poor. It's tough living off the land and not being a big-time farmer. Selling fruits and veggies isn't the most profitable venture in the world, especially when I'm not skilled enough yet to grow the best quality plants. So when stuff breaks, and stuff breaks often because we can't afford the best, it's up to me to find time to fix it.

Carrying my beautiful baby girl makes all the hard work worth it in the end. I can't wait to see what kind of person she will grow up to be one day. Maybe she'll love gardening and fishing like her ole dad. 

Elaine continues to improve her cooking every day. She even learned how to make ratatouille, some fancy French dish or something, which she says is her favorite meal.

I knew we didn't have much money. I knew we lived in a tiny two-bedroom house that's more of a cottage, but I've always wanted a big family. Elaine does too so before we knew it...

Elaine was feeling the familiar morning sickness all over again. This time our wishes were reversed; I wanted a firstborn son, and Elaine changed her mind and wanted another girl, probably because our Betty is so sweet.

Here is the proof. Our little Betty is a sweet, bright little girl.

The autumn after Betty was born we got a bit of a shock. Both of us had forgotten all about Halloween so we thought another burglar had come to steal our things! Luckily Elaine realized what was going on before I grabbed my old baseball bat.

We also made a new aquatic addition to our family. Meet Joan. I caught her in the river, but she was just too cute to turn into fertilizer so here she is! Now we only have to remember to feed her. I don't want to have to explain to Betty why the fishy is floating upside down one day.

 

When it rains, it pours, I swear! Just when I fixed one thing, another thing goes and breaks! And with another baby on the way, it was just getting to be too stressful. Was I doing the right thing by raising a family in this small home, with barely enough money to cover our bills? There was no taking it back now though...