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6:00 a.m.
“Pretty young thing, repeat after me…”
Sonny blindly reached over to his nightstand and hit the snooze button. Sleep was a precious commodity these days, especially since Marlene had started teething. Rafael had been on duty last night and had done his honest best to comfort their baby, but her wails still echoed through the apartment off and on throughout the night. He lifted his head and saw his husband passed out next to him, rough stubble peppering his face. His gaze then landed on their daughter, also sleeping quietly in her crib against the wall.
He quickly gathered his things and hit the shower. He was due at the station in a couple of hours, but he was hoping he’d be able to scoot out a little early, considering it was the weekend and Rafael was home. Their family time was precious right now and he wanted to be there as much as he could.
As he was getting dressed, he heard the telltale babbling of his waking daughter. “Good morning, beautiful!’ he crooned to her as he reached into the crib to pick her up. “You are so happy today, aren’t you?” The baby giggled and continued her babbling as he held her and proceeded to gather clothing and make his way to the changing table. “Daddy has to go to work this morning, but Papi will be here...he loves you! I bet you two are going to have a great time together, huh?” He snapped the new onesie up over her clean diaper. Picking her up, he grabbed the old onesie with his free hand and tossed it into the washer on his way to the kitchen.
One bottle and burping later, and Rafael joined them in the kitchen while Sonny continued to bounce Marlene on his thighs while she laughed. “Coffee’s ready, babe,” Sonny said and Rafael helped himself to a cup, then turned around.
“Thank you,” Rafi replied, then placed a sweet kiss on Sonny’s forehead before leaning into Marlene’s space. “And how are you this morning, princess?” He couldn’t help but smile as the baby waved her hands wildly and squealed. “That good, huh? Gonna be a great day.”
Sonny handed her over. “I’ve got to get going.” He got his things together and tossed the dirty burp cloth into the washer. “Hey Raf, you may want to start the wash this morning...there’s some funky stuff in there.”
“Fantastic,” Rafael replied drily. “I look forward to it.” Leaning over, he kissed Sonny quickly on the lips. “Go get ‘em, babe. Make me proud.”
Sonny snorted, then placed a kiss on his daughter’s head. “Have fun...be back as soon as I can.”
“Oh believe me, it’s a party.” Rafael made a face at Marlene, and laughed as she giggled. “Love you.”
*****
9:30 a.m.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Rafael soothed his daughter as she cried, and he wiped the drool off of her chin for what had to be the 839th time today. “Let’s get your teething ring.”
He was growing in his confidence in himself when it came to Marlene. It still ripped at his heart every time he heard her wail, but now he was able to breathe through it and help to comfort her. The first time she had cried, her first day home, he had rocked her back and forth with wide eyes and panic in his heart until Sonny had taken her and calmed her down. “See Rafi?” he had murmured as the baby quieted. “She just needs you to be calm too. She just needs to know you’re there.” He had kissed Rafael on the cheek gently, then said, “You’re gonna do fine. We all will.”
Rafael rubbed the teething ring over Marley’s gums and watched as her cries settled down. She began mouthing on the ring, and he settled them in the armchair. “See, honey?” he told her, “you’re just fine. I know it hurts, but I’m here. It’s gonna be okay.”
Marley’s eyes settled on her papi and he felt her little body hiccup slightly as it recovered from crying. “Just fine,” he repeated, rocking her, and then he began to sing softly to her. He grabbed the burp cloth next to the chair and dabbed his little girl’s face, wiping away tears and more drool. Then he made a mental note to toss the cloth in the wash and start the washing.
*****
12:00 p.m.
“So what’s it gonna be today, mija? Sweet potatoes or bananas?” He held up one in each hand and chuckled as he watched his daughter reaching and babbling from her high chair. Marley grabbed at the banana first. “Bananas...good choice, kiddo! Let’s have some bananas and cheerios.”
He and Sonny had read a million and one parenting books before they adopted Marlene. They had had extensive discussions about how they would raise a child and made decisions about everything from schedules to feeding to dressing and discipline, but despite all of that, he still found that he felt he was flying blind 95% of the time. He cut the banana up and placed it, along with a handful of cheerios, on Marley’s tray, then sat down to eat next to her.
They had agreed to feed Marlene as much regular food as possible, avoiding baby foods, and to eat what she ate, in hopes that she would develop an adventurous palate. Sonny had been very firm that they needed to let her feed herself as much as possible. This was easier when Sonny was home and able to clean up the inevitable mess. Rafael had tried to cooperate as much as he could, until the day Marley realized she could decorate the floor with spaghetti sauce. “That’s supposed to happen, babe!” Sonny had argued that it was all developmental, but Rafael still inwardly cringed every time Marley got “creative” with her food. When he was alone with Marley, they stuck to easy cleanup foods. “What your daddy doesn’t know won’t hurt him, baby,” he found himself telling his daughter frequently. She just giggled and ate more of what he gave her.
He cherished this time now. Marley loved feeding herself and was quite vocal throughout meals. He often would pretend that he knew what she was saying and would answer her. She was developing some very intense faces at times, as though she were trying to communicate something critical to him. He would use his serious face right back, until one of them began to laugh.
As they finished up, Rafael wiped her little hands and face clean before picking her up to change her. She continued her babbling at him, and he answered her. “Yes, it’s time for a change. You’ll feel so much better, won’t you? And then we’re going to take a nap...or YOU’RE going to take a nap and Papi’s going to start the washing. Trust me, you’re getting the better end of the deal here, princess.” He got her back into her onesie and then settled into the armchair. She was smiling at him and cooing, and he kissed her little nose before starting a soft lullabye. Slowly, he watched her eyes close and her tiny body relax.
His tiny daughter. Her beautiful dark brown hair was light and curly on her head, her skin was the color of a latte, and she fit perfectly into the crook of his arm. She was almost eight months now, and it was amazing to him how quickly that time had passed. Sometimes he was completely humbled by how much this tiny child trusted him--how she laughed when she saw him, reached out to him, cried when he left. How she loved it when he read or sang to her, and would snuggle even closer. How she had just started giving baby open-mouthed kisses to his cheek.
He had always known that Sonny would be a terrific dad. And Sonny had taken to it like a fish to water, anticipating Marlene’s needs almost before she had them. Rafael loved to watch his husband play with their baby girl--listening to both of them laugh joyfully, hearing the loving words Sonny said to her daily, watching the looks of love on both of their faces as they watched each other. He had hoped that one day he might have the same kind of relationship with her, that he would learn to respond more naturally. Ironically, he had. In the last eight months, Marlene had carved a place in his heart that would never be the same. He loved this child with a love that was completely different than any other love he had experienced. He knew, without a doubt, that he would die for her. He would do anything necessary to give her the world and to make sure she knew every single day how unconditionally loved she was.
He laid her in her crib gently, then took the video monitor with him as he went room to room looking for dirty laundry. Depositing all of the pieces he found, he set the machine to soak, then went to the kitchen to finish cleaning up from lunch.
*****
4:00 p.m.
“Look at you!” Rafael exclaimed as he gently pulled Marlene through the water. “You’re a natural at swimming! Olympics, here we come.”
They were at their weekly baby/parent water class. Sonny had signed them up a couple months ago, after Rafael had commented on how much Marley loved the water in the bathtub. “Come on, Rafi...I’ll take her sometimes and you can take her sometimes. She loves the water, like you said. It’ll be great!” And quite honestly, it had been. Marley was thrilled every time they got into the pool, and the other parents there were friendly and welcoming. Marlene also loved seeing other babies, and one of her favorite parts of water class was when she got to be near the other children.
Marley splashed happily as Rafael continued to pull her. Suddenly her normal squeal became much more high pitched and her little arms began to wave wildly. “Let me guess,” Rafael said, grinning at her, “You must see your daddy.” He turned around and saw Sonny in jeans and a tee shirt, smiling at his baby girl.
“Hi there, beautiful!” He waved back at her, grinning ear to ear. Turning his attention to Rafael, he said, “Hey babe...you guys getting out soon?”
“Yeah,” Rafael replied. “You wanna take her and get her changed?”
Sonny took his little girl and wrapped her in a towel before heading to the changing room. Rafael followed behind, smiling to himself as Marley patted Sonny’s head and repeatedly pressed her open mouth to his cheek, laughing all the while.
They were lucky, for sure.
*****
9:25 p.m.
They were on the couch, dozing against each other.
The TV was playing some movie they had chosen off of Netflix, although neither had lasted much longer than the first twenty minutes. Dinner, baths, bottles, baby orajel. Rocking, singing, cooing. And that was all before 7:30.
Sonny shifted, slowly opening his eyes and realizing Rafi was asleep against him. He gently ran a hand over his husband’s arm, stopping to entangle their fingers together. As exhausted as he was from chasing a perp today, he knew Rafael had the far more demanding job of caring for a teething baby all by himself.
When they married, Sonny knew he loved Rafael more than anyone he had ever known, and he had trouble imagining that love being even deeper, even more complex, even bigger. But it was. Watching Rafael care for their daughter intensified his feelings tremendously. Rafi had been nervous, anxious about his ability to parent a child. But as far as Sonny was concerned, their daughter was one of the luckiest kids in the world, because Rafi put every need of hers ahead of his own. Sonny could read the love on his husband’s face every time he held their baby. He wondered if his face was similar. He honestly couldn’t put the love he felt for Marlene into words. His mom had once told him that the love he would feel for his child would be unlike any other, and she had been right. And the love for his little family…
Rafael squeezed his hand and sleepily looked up at him, soft smile on his lips. “Hey,” he murmured, voice scratchy with sleep. “Wanna move this party to the bedroom?”
Sonny chuckled softly. “I think that’s a great idea. Head on back and I’ll lock up.”
Rafael stretched and watched Sonny stand. “Hey.” He grabbed the hem of Sonny’s shirt. “I love you, you know.”
Sonny turned toward him, then bent down and kissed him gently. “I love you too. Thank you for...for being you, baby.” He watched as Rafi stood and headed back toward the bedroom.
Sonny locked the front door, turned off the kitchen lights, and headed down the hallway. He paused at the washer, remembering there was a wet load in there, and quickly tossed them into the dryer and started it. Then he headed to the bedroom himself.
As he changed into his pajama pants and an old tee, he listened to Rafael brushing his teeth in the bathroom, then checked on the baby in her crib. Just an ordinary day, he thought, just like most any other day they have had in the last eight months.
And he thought, how very lucky he was. He wouldn’t change ordinary for the world.