The Midwife's Little Miracle by Fiona McArthur Page B

you’ll be having a Christmas in July baby. Your best present will arrive some time in our winter, which will be helpful when you are big and heavy for the cooler weather.’
    Emma looked up and a faint glimmer of a smile lit her pale face. ‘That’s the first positive thing anyone has said about my baby.’
    Poor Emma. ‘That will change. Babies make everyone smile.’
    Actually, Emma would be fine. She was smart, would have family support by the end, and was protective of her baby. ‘Everyone else is still in shock, honey. Now that this baby is a reality they’ll come around. That’s what families and good friends do.’
    Emma pursed her lips thoughtfully and nodded then settled more comfortably back into the lounge.
    Montana sat back in her own chair. ‘OK. So let’s talk about where your baby is up to now.’
    Emma met Montana’s eyes. ‘It’s hard to think of it as a baby. I haven’t even got a belly, especially as I threw up so much that I’ve lost weight.’
    Montana nodded. ‘For some people that’s normal. That should settle now. It’s the surge of hormones of early pregnancy and other hormones come more into play now. Just make sure you have something in your stomach before your feet hit the floor if it still bothers you.’
    ‘Like toast. Yuk.’ Emma screwed up her face.
    ‘Even a dry biscuit is often enough. But see if you can get someone to bring it to you.’ Montana had a sudden vision of Andy bringing the mother of his baby toast in the mornings. If his wife was pregnant, Andy would certainly be the man to do that. She looked at Emma and hoped she had someone to do it for her.
    ‘How about water crackers?’ Emma grinned and it changed her whole face. She was in the swing of it now. ‘How about a pretzel?’ They both laughed and Montana sighed with relief as the young woman within began to show herself more consistently.
    ‘Nothing wrong with a couple of pretzels—just don’t overdo it on the salt. It’s better for you than losing your breakfast every day.’
    Emma stopped chewing her nails. ‘Cool. I’ll try it and let you know.’
    ‘Just remember when you’re eating properly you need to start thinking about making sure you have all the nutrients and vitamins your baby needs because she’s greedy to grow and will take all the goodness for herself and leave you nothing if you don’t eat enough of what she needs.’
    Emma’s eyes widened. ‘Like a worm?’
    Montana smiled. ‘Sort of. Right now she’s a tiny baby the size of a big banana, about two to three hundred grams. In two weeks she’ll put on another one hundred and fifty grams—that’s near a pound in the old measurements. She’ll grow from around six and half inches long to about eight inches at twenty-three weeks. That’s the size of a small doll.’
    ‘Wow.’
    Montana nodded. ‘It’s pretty impressive. Everything is made in miniature and over the next twenty weeks will double in size, which means she…’ Montana paused and smiled. ‘Notice I call your baby a girl only because mine was.’
    Emma nodded with a shy smile of her own and Montana went on. ‘Her brain is growing really fast. Mothers need to know that what they eat, drink, smoke or expose themselves to—for example, I wouldn’t use pesticides or strong cleaning agents—affects the way their baby’s brain grows.’
    ‘I want her to have a brain,’ Emma said dryly.‘That’s pretty important to keep in mind, as far as I’m concerned.’
    Montana agreed. ‘That’s what I meant about responsibility. Even a mother’s emotions can impact on a baby so if Mum is always sad then the baby thinks it’s normal to be feeling sad a lot of the time. That’s why I tried not to be too sad when I was pregnant.’
    Emma looked up with ready sympathy. ‘Why were you sad?’
    ‘I’m a widow. My husband died last year when I was first pregnant and now I have a nearly two-month-old daughter called Dawn. So I am bringing up my daughter without a