Page 207 of His Sunshine Baby

“Hmm… Who could it be? Two small paws… The smell of wild berries… Is it a baby bear?”

I hear the cutest baby giggling.

“No! Guess again!”

“Really? Let’s see… Tiny fingers and small nails… Is it a baby monkey?”

“Hehe, you’re wrong! Try again!”

“Oh! I know that little laugh. Is it my baby star?”

“Yes!

She laughs and I grab her, sitting her on my lap to tickle her. She tries to evade me, but she is way too tiny to escape me! My daughter is the most adorable thing in the world, ofcourse. When I finally stop torturing her, she is still laughing, pushing her honey-blonde hair back. She looks up at me, with her father’s sky-blue eyes.

“Mommy, I’m hungry. What are you making?”

“Your favorite Bolognese pasta, with Auntie Nora’s secret ingredient,” I answer while styling her hair into two little ponytails.

She turns her head toward the stove, but then, I see her frown.

“Carrots? But I hate carrots!”

“Baby, you need to eat your vegetables. And It’s just going to be tiny bits.”

She frowns, but she is eyeing the carrots with suspicion, thinking it over.

“You will make them super tiny?” she asks me.

“Super, super tiny, I promise. So tiny you won’t see them.”

“Okay, then.”

She is still pouting a bit. Moon Goddess, she is so cute I want to eat her all up instead of the pasta! I kiss her chubby cheek, making her chuckle again, and she immediately wraps her tiny arms around my neck to kiss me back.

“What did you do this morning, my little star?”

“I draw bunnies! Wait here, Mommy, I will show you!”

And off she goes again, jumping off my knees to run and grab her drawing from wherever she left it. She probably played in the garden too, seeing how the bottom of her denim jumper is all dirty. When she comes back, she proudly shows me her drawing and starts explaining the names she gave to each of her colored bunnies.

“Stella, baby, you remember how to say bunny with your hands?”

“Yes!”

She brings two fingers from each hand up her head, mimicking a bunny’s ears. I clap and do it too.

“That’s right, baby!”

“Mommy, I’m better than you at talking with my hands!” she says, acting all proud. “Look, I can do a lot of animals too!”

We start having a little contest, but indeed, she is even better than I am at sign language now. When she gets tired of it, she runs off again to grab her coloring pencils. Dad told me that I was a little energy pill when I was young too, so I guess she gets that from me, but Estelle is a well-disciplined kid. She very rarely throws tantrums, and she doesn’t really argue when I ask her to do something, even if she dislikes it.

The only thing I’m worried about is her insecurity issues. Sometimes, she asks for hugs all of a sudden and asks if I will leave her. I have no idea where she gets that from. Is it because she doesn’t have a father? She asks about him sometimes. She has a photo of Nathaniel, one she loved from my phone, so I had it printed for her to keep. I didn’t want to lie to her and tell her she doesn’t have a dad.

“Mommy! Is it ready? I’m really, really hungry now!”

“Yes, yes. Go wash your hands and we can eat!”

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