Painting Challenge
A Sunday Morning
By Kris
Michelle awoke slowly, stretching and reaching out for Danny at the same time. He was gone, already up, she realized. It is a Sunday, she reminded herself, and he usually tried to get up first on the weekends. It was so sweet the way he made sure she got to sleep in like this, since she was usually up so much earlier than him during the week. She smiled to herself, thinking of the deliciously sweet love he had made to her last night. Sure, it didn't happen as often as it did at first, but it was no less beautiful than the first time. She would never have enough of him.
Michelle decided to pull herself from those thoughts and go looking, wondering what he was up to this morning. She decided to head to the kitchen first, and couldn't help but smile at what she saw. The scenes explained why it was so quiet when she awoke. Breakfast had obviously already been served, and the place was a mess. There were the little bowls and spoons, along with a box of Cheerios, and the Gerber Baby cereal, still sitting out on the table, along with a cup of coffee that had been barely touched. She knew that Danny would have been so attentive to his "angels", as he called them, that he wouldn't haven't have given that coffee a second thought after the first sip.
She also noticed a breakfast tray that was all made up for her, along with a single pale pink rose in a vase. Michelle brought her face down to the flower, thinking of the first time he had brought her breakast in bed, and the pleasurable morning that followed.
She started to head through the kitchen, and on to the playroom, when she heard their voices, and knew she had guessed right as to where they were. Michelle decided to sneak up on them, and see what they were doing, so she just barely peaked her head around the doorway. Her breathe caught in her throat at what she saw.
Standing at her easel, paintbrush in hand, was their oldest, Daniella. Danny was standing next to her, wearing only a pair of jeans, and holding Isabella. Their girls, she thought, so different, but each a precious gift. Daniella had the same coloring as her father, the same wild dark curls, while Isabella was a delicate little minature of herself, fine boned and pale haired.
"Daddy, do you really think Mommy is going to love it?" asked Daniella, as she dipped her brush in the red paint.
"Of course she will love it, Ella, she loves everything about you, everything you do." replied Danny. "And I love everything about you too - my Ella" he said as he leaned over and kissed her on the head, "and everything about you too, Bella, my angel.", as he kissed the sleeping baby on the top of her head.
Michelle couldn't stop herself from sniffling at the emotion in her throat, and the sound causes Danny to turn. "Michelle", he said in surprise. "Baby, I love you, but you have just ruined the surprise we had planned." Ella pipped up, "No, it's ok Daddy, Mommy's right on time." The little girl came over and took her mother's hand, leading her to the easel. "We were gonna bring you this with the tray, but you can see it now, since I just finished, and you aren't in bed anymore anyway!"
Michelle looked at the paper, and the tears started to really flow. There were red flowers along the bottom of the page and covering the rest of it, in big blue letters, were the word's "Happy Mother's Day, we love you, from Ella, Bella and Daddy". Michelle scooped Daniella up in her arms, and reached to hug Danny and little Bella. "Oh, I love you all so much! Thank you, thank you, this is just perfect. I could say I love you all day, and it would never be enough to show what I feel". "Michelle, I will never, ever get tired of hearing those 'I love you's'." Danny said, as he looked at his family with all the love in the world in his eyes, a looked that Michelle returned.
And they continued to live happily ever after