The moon was very bright this evening, and I was up for a one am feeding. "Ms. Ella," I said. "You need to fall asleep." I began to yawn. She crooned and held her tiny fingers up and began to weave them through stray wisps of hair. "Here, I tell you what, we will go for a late night stroll," I whispered. Quietly, I unlocked the door and snuck out of the house...hoping Bobby wouldn't wake up and begin to panic.
The moon was so bright that we didn't need anything to guide us, I walked with Ella, down to Jimmy's paddock. "Hey pretty pony," I whispered softly. His head jerked and he pricked his ears. He nickered a soft reply and plodded over to the two of us. Ella crooned at him in awe, and held her hands out. "No, no," I drew them back. She sighed and cuddled herself close to my chest. I smiled and kissed her soft head. "goodnight Jimmy, I will see you tomorrow." I waved and we continued on our walk. Out of all the small houses, there was one light on, I knew exactly who the house belonged to, and my heart felt a small tug. Ella yawned and impatiently began to squirm, interuppting my thoughts. I smiled slightly and turned to follow the path home.
When I walked inside, Mrs. J. was quietly knitting in the living room, Ella's tiny snores made her look up. "Goodevening Emily dear," She smiled. "Uh, hi. What are you doing up so late?" I asked. She smiled, "I heard you leave and thought I might wait up for you, " She smiled again very kindly. "I used to walk Bobby, the same," she waved the memory by, "His father would wait up for me, the same as I am for you," She put her knitting back into the basket. "Is Bobby awake?" I asked worriedly. "No," She kissed baby Ella, and then my cheek and smiled. "You're a good wife and mother Emily, don't worry so much," and with that she disappeared down the hall. I quietly turned out the lamp and walked Ella back to her nursery, gingerly placing her back in her crib. Hoping that she would stir, she didn't. Then I walked back to our bedroom and climbed into bed. Bobby turned over, "is she sleeping?" he muttered. "uh huh," I quickly replied. He smiled and fell back into his deep sleep, only staying awake long enough for me to cuddle back into his strong arms.
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