I make sure I’m available for the first doctors visit. I’m hoping that I won’t miss any. She’s pleased with her, but has concerns that she’s underweight and wants me to feed her up, but she doesn’t understand that Haven’s always been this size, no matter what she ate, but I promise to keep feeding her well.

She confirms that she’s nine weeks pregnant and tells her the morning sickness will pass soon.

With a clean bill of health, we leave and go out for lunch to celebrate. She’s feeling good after losing her breakfast this morning. Now she’s starving and can’t wait to eat.

It takes another two months before she starts showing, and people start giving her second glances as her clothes tighten over her belly.

Christmas is around the corner and we’ve had some ‘discussions’ regarding where we’re having Christmas lunch. Traditionally it’s been at Mum and Dad’s but this year she wants to have it here with both lots of parents. I can see her point, but I don’t want her stressing herself over cooking for a crowd. Her brother and his girlfriend are coming down for the holiday break also, so that makes nine people for lunch. Her mother offered to have it at her house but Haven stood firm and wants our first Christmas to be spent in our new house. So it looks like I’m cooking.

As Christmas day dawns, Milly comes racing in at sunup and jumps on me to wake me. I hug her tightly as I roll her between Haven and I trying to get some more sleep. She can’t stop giggling as she tells us that Father Christmas has been and there are a gazillion presents out there for her to open.

Sleepily sliding out my side, I wander out in my boxers to start the coffee. Decaffeinated is not quite the same but I’m used to it now. Milly starts jumping up and down impatiently as we wait for Haven to appear. Luckily it doesn’t take long before she joins us in a sexy chemise with a satin wrap. The belt sits above her protruding bump and my eyes immediately go to it as I pull her in for a kiss.

“How’s our boy this morning?” I ask, rubbing my hand over the small bump.

“So far, behaving. Where’s my coffee?” she asks sleepily. I hand her a cup and she takes a deep sniff before tasting it. “Is it okay?” I ask, conscious of the fact that one day a mouthful can send her straight to the bathroom to throw up, and other days she can drink gallons of it with no effect.

“Yup.” She says, making her way to the lounge room with Milly. “Come on Mill, we’ll have a look and see what goodies you have eh?”

The delight in our daughter’s eyes as she opens present after present still awes me. The childhood amazement in Christmas is something we should never lose. Haven’s decorated the house and tree and I’ve put up lights on the house despite nobody seeing them but us. I don’t care because it was worth it to see the looks on the faces of my girls as I turned them on that first night and every night since. The holidays are a special family time and even though we’re grown up, Milly keeps the Christmas spirit alive for the both of us.

I know that Haven has been working hard in preparation for today. She’s baked biscuits and made salads and desserts despite my telling her that both mothers will bring enough food to feed a small town. I know them too well.

Milly finally opens the last of her presents and I gather up the wrapping paper that covers the floor as she tries to decide which toy to play with first. After putting all the paper in the bin I come back to give Haven her presents while Milly is preoccupied.

The first one is a diamond necklace I found in the local jewellery store and I knew instantly that she’d love it. She does, and rewards me with a long deep kiss of appreciation.

She hands me mine and I grin as I tear at the wrapping paper. It reveals a box containing a bright gold watch and my breath hitches at the amount of money this must have cost her. I look up with a surprised expression which she mistakes as dislike.

“We can change it if you don’t like it.” She assures me quickly.

“No. I love it.” I say quickly and she releases a long sigh of relief. “I was just thinking that it must have cost you a fortune.”

“It didn’t. Stop stressing.” She says with a laugh, leaning in for a quick kiss. “You worry too much.”

“Only about my girls.” I assure her with a grin. “It’s my job and I’m very good at it.”

Kissing me softly, she says quietly, “I know.”

I hand her the next present and she opens it carefully. It’s a framed picture of us on our wedding day. The frame I hand carved and painted for her. I watch as tears fill her eyes and she runs her fingers over the photo. It’s my favourite one of us standing under the tree looking at one another. Her love shone from her eyes as she touched my face, just before she leaned in for a kiss. I remember every detail of the day and it’s etched in my memory forever. I just wanted her to have a nice picture to hang on the wall. I’m happy that she likes it as much as I hoped she would.

She puts it aside and wipes tears from her eyes, thinking I haven’t noticed. Quickly getting up and finding another present under the tree she hands it to me and sits close beside me.

“Another one?” I ask as I tear into the paper again. “What could this be?”

I look at the paperwork inside the box with a frown. It takes a moment to register that it’s the papers for a new harvester. A harvester?? I look up at her with astonishment and then look back down at the machinery warranty. “You bought me a harvester? Seriously?”

With a nod and a wide grin, she says, “Yeah. I know that your old one is getting beyond it and this one is much more efficient and won’t keep breaking down all the time.” His expression turns into a worried one as I don’t speak. “Don’t you like it?” she whispers.

“Like it?” I say with dismay. “Babe I love it. I really do. It’s just what I need, but how? I mean, how did you do this without me knowing?”

“I didn’t. Father Christmas did.” She replies with a grin, leaning in to touch her soft lips to mine. I pull her closer and deepen the kiss till Milly reminds us she’s in the room as she asks Haven to help her dress her new Barbie in her clothes.

Lunch is a huge success despite my lack of culinary skills. We’d compromised on the menu, opting for cold meat and salad in deference to the 40 degree day outside. I’d cooked the roasts in the outside BBQ yesterday while she sat at the table and made the salads with the help of her mother and mine. They tried to do as much as they could so that she didn’t have to, and I appreciate their help immensely.

As everyone arrives for lunch, Milly gets inundated with more presents, and spends the next hour or so unwrapping them. Even Haven’s brother and his girlfriend have bought her a heap of gifts, which they didn’t need to. She has a toy shop in the lounge room and I wonder where we’re going to put them all.

“You okay Darling?” Mum asks as she wraps her arm around my waist while I stand at the kitchen bench.

“Yeah Ma. I’m good. Just trying to take in everything so I don’t forget our first Christmas together.”

“You adore her don’t you? It’s written all over your face.” She says to me on a long sigh. “You can’t take your eyes off her when she’s in the same room and when she’s not, you worry about where she is.”

I look down at my mother and give her a small smile. “After everything she’s been through Mum, I can’t help it. I need to keep her safe. I need to know that she’s safe. I still worry about this arsonist or stalker or whatever you want to call him. I have a feeling that he’s not done with us yet. If anything happened to her...or Milly...I’d never forgive myself.”

“You’re not going to lose her. You need to think positively. She’s five months pregnant with your baby and nothing’s happened for months. Maybe they finally got it out of their system after they burned down the house and shed.”

“You really think so?” I ask with a disbelieving frown.

“No.” She replies seriously, tightening her arms around me. “But I truly hope so. For all our sakes.”

“You and me both Mum.”

Christmas lunch is all that I’d hoped it would be. Family, laughs, lots of food and drink and Milly entertaining us all with how she heard Santa on the roof and saw one of the reindeer out of her window last night. I worship this child and I know that we’ve spoilt her today but it’s just once a year.

We have Christmas carols playing softly in the background as we devour our lunch and sit back in our chairs afterwards, our stomachs stretched with so much food. I’m grateful that we have everyone together for this day and I watch our Dads’ wander into the lounge room with Milly, on the pretence of looking at her presents again. We all know that they’re in there to lay back and have a nap after lunch, though none of us actually says it out loud.

I insist on cleaning up so that the females can relax and enjoy their afternoon. They sit out in the sunroom having a cool drink as I load the dishwasher and put away the leftovers for dinner.

I join them after sneaking a look in the lounge room and finding them all asleep. Milly is curled up against Dad as he snores softly along with Haven’s father.

“You okay?” I ask as I sit beside my wife and kiss her gently on the forehead.

“Yeah. I’m so full I think I’m about to burst, but your son thinks it’s playtime.”

My hand instantly flies to her abdomen covering it quickly, waiting for the familiar fluttering that I’m loving. It doesn’t take long before I feel it and I smile as I do every time.

Damn. That’s something you can never get enough of. I don’t care what you say. A pregnant wife, round with your baby, is something of beauty, and to be able to share those movements with her is the most amazing feeling ever.

We spend Christmas evening in the pool playing with Milly. Turns out that my brother-in-law’s girlfriend is Milly’s new best friend so we leave them to play in the pool as we sit in the sun loungers taking in the amazing sunset.

Milly crashes about eight PM and I carry her to bed along with one of her new dolls. Kissing her softly as I lay her in her bed, I look down on my sleeping child and hope that Haven wants a few more after this one. I adore Amelia, and the new baby, and I want to fill this big house with the laughter of children, if my wife’ll allow it.