belonged all along. Home.
Without allowing myself another moment to dwell on the what ifs and what could’ve beens, I got up off of the bed and set out on the mission at hand. I needed to get everything packed and moved out of here.
“Hey, Pops,” I yelled as I walked out of the bedroom.
“In the living room, son,” he replied.
I reached the small living room and set out to tell my father the plans that I had. I wasn’t going to sit around and hope that she was coming home, but I wasn’t about to down her in my head either. What’s done is done, and quite frankly in a few days I’d likely see her leaving as a favor more than anything else.
“We’re coming home, Pops. How soon can you get a couple of trucks up here and some trailers?” I asked, the urgency apparent in my tone.
“I could get them up here by tomorrow. We don’t need them until the weekend.”
“Good. Can you take Grace home with you tonight and have Mom watch her tomorrow? I’ve got tons of packing to do. I want out of here as soon as possible. We only have a couple of months left on our lease anyways. I don’t want to stay here another minute longer than I have to.”
“I’ll call and let your mother know the plans. She won’t mind watching our precious granddaughter. What about Kenzie?” he asked.
“I’ll explain all of that later. Right now I need to get a move on and find boxes. I won’t be getting much sleep tonight, that’s for sure.”
Before he could respond, my little pumpkin called out from her crib. I loved hearing her sleepy voice when she just woke up. It was music to my ears.
“And the little pumpkin wants to grace us with her presence,” I joked as we both walked in the direction of her room.
It was me and her against the world right now. Everything could be figured out later. All I knew right now was that I’d never let my little girl not feel loved or wanted. We’d get through this somehow and she’d never know the difference because I wouldn’t allow her to. All my little Grace needed was her daddy, and she’d always have him.
“There’s my little pumpkin,” I praised as I walked into her room. She was rubbing her eyes and peering up at me through the bars.
I picked her up, and she cuddled into my neck the way she always did when she first woke up. There was one of two ways you’d find her. In a happy mood or in a bad one. If she woke up calling out for me, it meant a good mood. If she woke up crying someone was going to have hell to pay because she’d be in a bad mood for the rest of the night. I ran my hands up and down her back, holding her as close to me as I could allow. My heart broke for our new reality, but I couldn’t allow her to see it. I’d have to push my emotions back and hold them in for when I was alone. Then and only then would I take out my frustrations and anger.
She pulled her head back slightly and looked around the room. Please don’t ask for your mommy? I silently prayed. As she took in her surroundings, she finally noticed my dad standing behind me.
“Pop Pop,” she beamed as she clapped her hands and leaned toward him.
He took her from me and bounced her up and down, her laughter instantly causing me to laugh as well. The sound of her laugh was always contagious. It didn’t matter what kind of day I had, as long as I could hear that sound everything instantly became better.
“You want to go see Grams, baby?” he asked Grace.
She looked back over to me as if questioning if it was okay. I nodded my head letting her know she could go and that’s when the demanding diva broke loose.
“Go, Pop Pop. Go,” she demanded as she pointed to the door. She loved my mom something fierce. We’d video chat at least three times a week, and it was mostly because Grace would point to the computer and say their names. She was too smart for her own good sometimes.
“Yes we can go, pumpkin,” he stated with a laugh. He knew all too well how demanding that little diva
Without allowing myself another moment to dwell on the what ifs and what could’ve beens, I got up off of the bed and set out on the mission at hand. I needed to get everything packed and moved out of here.
“Hey, Pops,” I yelled as I walked out of the bedroom.
“In the living room, son,” he replied.
I reached the small living room and set out to tell my father the plans that I had. I wasn’t going to sit around and hope that she was coming home, but I wasn’t about to down her in my head either. What’s done is done, and quite frankly in a few days I’d likely see her leaving as a favor more than anything else.
“We’re coming home, Pops. How soon can you get a couple of trucks up here and some trailers?” I asked, the urgency apparent in my tone.
“I could get them up here by tomorrow. We don’t need them until the weekend.”
“Good. Can you take Grace home with you tonight and have Mom watch her tomorrow? I’ve got tons of packing to do. I want out of here as soon as possible. We only have a couple of months left on our lease anyways. I don’t want to stay here another minute longer than I have to.”
“I’ll call and let your mother know the plans. She won’t mind watching our precious granddaughter. What about Kenzie?” he asked.
“I’ll explain all of that later. Right now I need to get a move on and find boxes. I won’t be getting much sleep tonight, that’s for sure.”
Before he could respond, my little pumpkin called out from her crib. I loved hearing her sleepy voice when she just woke up. It was music to my ears.
“And the little pumpkin wants to grace us with her presence,” I joked as we both walked in the direction of her room.
It was me and her against the world right now. Everything could be figured out later. All I knew right now was that I’d never let my little girl not feel loved or wanted. We’d get through this somehow and she’d never know the difference because I wouldn’t allow her to. All my little Grace needed was her daddy, and she’d always have him.
“There’s my little pumpkin,” I praised as I walked into her room. She was rubbing her eyes and peering up at me through the bars.
I picked her up, and she cuddled into my neck the way she always did when she first woke up. There was one of two ways you’d find her. In a happy mood or in a bad one. If she woke up calling out for me, it meant a good mood. If she woke up crying someone was going to have hell to pay because she’d be in a bad mood for the rest of the night. I ran my hands up and down her back, holding her as close to me as I could allow. My heart broke for our new reality, but I couldn’t allow her to see it. I’d have to push my emotions back and hold them in for when I was alone. Then and only then would I take out my frustrations and anger.
She pulled her head back slightly and looked around the room. Please don’t ask for your mommy? I silently prayed. As she took in her surroundings, she finally noticed my dad standing behind me.
“Pop Pop,” she beamed as she clapped her hands and leaned toward him.
He took her from me and bounced her up and down, her laughter instantly causing me to laugh as well. The sound of her laugh was always contagious. It didn’t matter what kind of day I had, as long as I could hear that sound everything instantly became better.
“You want to go see Grams, baby?” he asked Grace.
She looked back over to me as if questioning if it was okay. I nodded my head letting her know she could go and that’s when the demanding diva broke loose.
“Go, Pop Pop. Go,” she demanded as she pointed to the door. She loved my mom something fierce. We’d video chat at least three times a week, and it was mostly because Grace would point to the computer and say their names. She was too smart for her own good sometimes.
“Yes we can go, pumpkin,” he stated with a laugh. He knew all too well how demanding that little diva
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