Serendipity Strikes

50

Emmaline

As we got ready to turn the page on 2025 and move on to 2026, I felt optimistic. The end of the year had been full of ups and downs, but a new year meant a fresh start.

The high points of December included our tree trimming party, a wonderful first Christmas in the house, and Shawn's song hitting number 1 on the charts. Those things made us very happy, but with the good there was some bad.

December was always hard on me because of the anniversary of Mike's death, and it didn't help that I got my period right after that. When I woke up to a heavy period and stained sheets, I completely lost it and ended up sobbing in Shawn's arms for half an hour. I knew it wasn't just about not being pregnant; I'd been trying to not let my sadness about Mike show too much for my family's sake and it had built up.

I was doing my best to stay positive about not conceiving, and thankfully, my husband helped me with that. Going into this, I'd thought he'd be the impatient one, so it was surprising that I was taking it harder than he was. Each time I got my period, he said we just needed to keep trying, and of course he'd tease about how he didn't mind having an excuse to have nonstop sex. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case in December.

We all came down with horrible colds the week before Christmas. Jax caught it first, and we later learned that it had run rampant in his preschool class. I tried to convince myself that this was building up his immune system, but part of me hated that he was constantly exposed to germs. The rational side of me knew I couldn't keep him safe in a little bubble and that this was part of life. Shawn and I soon had the same nasty virus since our son slept in our bed the entire time he was sick. Jax needed frequent soothing when he woke up in the middle of the night feeling miserable, and having him close by was easier. We spent days coughing, sneezing, and sniffling as we holed up in our house. My parents had to delay their Christmas visit by several days, and we missed out on a couple holiday events we'd been looking forward to.

I'd been ovulating around Christmas, but between getting over being sick, doing all the holiday preparations, and having my family staying with us, we only got one stab at baby-making.

It was Christmas night and we were both exhausted since Jax had woken up before dawn to see what Santa brought him. Shawn had gone up to our room ahead of me because I wanted to get some things ready for the breakfast casserole I was making the following morning. I expected him to be sound asleep when I finally got to our room, but instead I found him in the bathroom drawing a bath in our large soaking tub.

"I thought a hot bath might help unclog our sinuses and relax us," he explained as he tested the water.

A part of me just wanted to fall into bed, but the smell of the eucalyptus and peppermint bath bomb he'd added to the water was very tempting. I watched as he stripped naked and climbed into the tub. If I'd had any reservations about a late night bath, they all evaporated when I gazed upon what was waiting for me. I shed my clothes and got in so that I was sitting in front of him. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me back so that I was leaning against his chest.

"Just relax, Em," he whispered in my ear.

To help me release some tension, he used his large strong hands to massage my shoulders and neck.

"How's that feel?" he asked.

"Sooooo good," I drawled as I felt myself slowly turn to jelly from his skillful touch.