"Mama! Eesa Bunny!"

Buffy awakened to the sound of her two year old son squealing excitedly while attempting to climb up on her bed. Beside her, Angel groaned as he groggily came awake as well.

"Is it morning already?"

Buffy smiled at her husband, "I'm afraid so."

"Eesa Bunny!" Jacob persisted, all keyed up about the presents his mommy had promised the nice bunny from the mall would bring.

"Okay, okay," Angel muttered, sitting up and reluctantly leaving the cozy warmth of the bed he shared with his wife, who parroted his actions.

"Jake, let's change your diaper first," Buffy said.

The little boy shook his head, "Eesa Bunny!"

"Don't you want to wear your big boy pants?"

As their son continued to fervently shake his head, Angel shrugged, "He seems determined. I told you not to go on and on about the Easter Bunny. We're never going to get to sleep in on Easter again."

Buffy rolled her eyes, "Okay, we'll go downstairs now. Just let me get the cameras."

As she got ready, Angel followed the toddler out of the room to the top of the staircase and watched as Jacob clutched the baby gate and babbled. He had to admit, as much as he hated getting up at half past seven on his day off... this was pretty cute.

"Are we all ready?" Buffy asked cheerfully as she came out of the bedroom, video camera rolling and photo camera in hand.

Angel picked up his son before unlatching the gate. Jacob squealed and kicked his legs happily while Buffy grinned and followed, still catching every moment on the video camera. Once they reached the foot of the stairs, Angel set his wriggling son down and the two parents followed him into the living room to see his eyes light up when he spotted the large basket on the fireplace.

Buffy continued filming while Angel sat down on the couch to watch as Jacob first pulled out the toy dump truck he had gotten him... and then a baby doll he had to assume Buffy had picked out.

"Honey, why did the Easter Bunny bring our *son* a doll?"

"Well, I would assume it's because the Easter Bunny figured he would enjoy playing with it," Buffy replied.

"Yes, but he is a boy and dolls are for girls."

"Maybe when you were Jacob's age, Sweetie, but these days we don't oppress our children with social stereotypes so the Easter Bunny brought him a doll, okay?" Buffy retorted, obviously not in the mood to argue.

Angel sighed and nodded, knowing he was fighting a losing battle. Hopefully Jacob would be so entranced by the dump truck that he would ignore the doll.

With her husband apparently satisfied, Buffy videotaped Jacob for a few more minutes before taking a few pictures with her other camera. Sitting down beside Angel, she smiled and snuggled against him.

"Isn't he adorable? You know, last Christmas, he really didn't get the whole Santa thing, but this year I think he'll be really fun."

"Oh God, Christmas. Another day I'll have to be dragged out of bed early to pretend to be surprised by the presents we put out the night before," Angel complained.

"Angel, it's after seven, be happy. When I was little, my parents had to make a rule that we couldn't get up before six because I would wake them up so early."

"Oh God."

"I know," she patted his knee, "So enjoy seven-thirty while you can!"

He yawned, "Do you think that since I saw Jacob get his gifts, I can go back to bed?"

Buffy shook her head. "It's almost eight already. I promised Mom we'd be at her house at ten."

"But that's two hours from now. I could sleep for another hour."

"Excuse me, but *I* have to shower and get ready and get Jake ready and it would be nice if you helped out," Buffy complained.

"I'm sorry, Baby, I wasn't thinking," he quickly apologized, putting his arm around his wife. Putting his other hand on her slightly swelled belly, Angel asked, "Do you think you'll tell them about the baby today?"

Buffy smiled and nodded, "It's been four months so we're safe now. Besides, I think my mom is starting to get suspicious. It's that time of year I usually start sporting my short shorts and tank tops and since I can't *fit* in those, she's going to start asking questions."

"She's going to be thrilled," Angel grinned.

"I hope so."

"I know so," he replied confidently.

"Do you think she'll be mad that we've known I was pregnant for over three months and haven't said a word?"

"No, she'll understand, don't worry," he assured her, giving her another kiss.

Buffy returned the kiss before pulling back and smiling, "We're supposed to have brunch at Mom's, but I know Jacob won't be able to go that long without eating *something*, how about you?"

"Maybe a little something," Angel nodded, "I'm going to go get the paper."

"Okay," Buffy nodded before heading into the kitchen.

Angel went to retrieve the paper from the driveway, keeping an eye on his son as he sat the baby doll on top of the dump truck. Well, at least he *was* playing with the truck.

"Honey?" Buffy said, interrupting Angel as he read about the latest news in the world of golf.

He looked up from the paper and smiled at his wife, "Yes?"

"I'm going to go hop in the shower. Keep an eye on Jake, okay?"

"Sure. Take your time," he replied.

"Thank you," Buffy smiled, leaning down to kiss him. She walked through the living room, stopping to place a kiss on the top of Jacob's head as he played with his new doll. "Is that your little baby, Jake?"

"Ya," the little boy nodded, smiling up at his mother.

"Aww, you're such a sweetheart," she grinned, "You be a good boy."

Angel frowned as his wife walked up the stairs and their son continued to cuddle the doll. He didn't care what Buffy said. He'd never played with dolls as a child and he had turned out all right. Okay, yes, when he was human the first time he had been a drunken lout, but look at him now. He was a family man, with a loving wife and an adorable son, another child on the way. Sexist as it may be dolls were for girls and trucks were for boys.

"Hey Jake," Angel said, getting up and kneeling on the living room floor, "Look at this truck. What a nice truck!"

Jacob watched his father push the truck back and forth and was successfully distracted from his doll, setting it to the side so he could move over to the truck. Pleased with his reaction, Angel continued to play with his son, as the doll lay forgotten on the floor.

That was how Buffy found them half an hour later when she came down after showering and getting dressed. Completely aware that she had turned into her mother, Buffy grabbed her camera and snapped a few photos.

Angel smiled up at his wife, wisely opting not to comment on the fact that Jacob had abandoned the doll for the much more masculine truck.

"Did you want to shower now or should I finish getting ready?"

"Go ahead and finish, we're good here," he told her, "Do you want me to dress Jake?"

Buffy shook her head and chuckled, "Whenever you try to dress him, it tends not to go well."

Recalling how exhausted he had gotten the last time he had tried to put clothes on his son after chasing the nude child around the entire upper level of their home until Buffy had caught him, Angel had to agree. "Alright then, finish getting ready. I'll shower when you dress Jake."

"Do you need to go potty?" Buffy asked her son as she pulled the diaper off of him. He'd only been wearing diapers at night for a while, since he was almost completely potty trained during the daytime. He still had an occasional accident, but she was very proud of her son.

"No Mama," he shook his head.

"Okay, how about we put your Bob the Builder big boy pants on?" she asked.

"Yeah!"

Buffy smiled and slid the underpants on him before dressing him in one of his nicer outfits. They weren't religious and thus, didn't go to church, but it was still Easter and a special occasion. As she fixed her son's hair, Buffy reflected on what was to come later that day. Despite Angel's reassurances, she was still a bit nervous about telling her mother and Giles she was pregnant again. It was silly, really. This time she wasn't eighteen and still in high school. She was married, had a two-year-old son, and considered herself to be an adult. But still… her mother hadn't even known they were *trying* for another baby. They'd never really discussed it after her miscarriage over a year earlier. What if she thought it was too soon?

"How are we doing in here?" Angel asked, fully dressed and looking completely handsome.

Not for the first time, Buffy found all her worries swept away as she was overwhelmed by how gorgeous her husband was. She smiled up at him, "All ready, I think."

"Great, then we should probably get going," he replied, returning the smile as he took her hand in his.

At that moment, Buffy knew she had nothing to fear. Even if her mother had the worst reaction imaginable, she would be okay because she had Angel. There was nothing he couldn't help her through.

"He didn't want his truck?" Angel asked, eyeing Jacob through the rearview mirror as the toddler clutched his new doll.

Buffy shrugged, digging around in her purse for her breath mints. "He grabbed the doll, why?"

"I was just curious. You know… maybe you just brought the doll and didn't give him a choice," he explained, trying to sound nonchalant.

"It really bothers you, doesn't it?" she asked, looking up at him with an amused smile.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I have always believed that dolls are for girls. It's one of the downsides of being raised in the 19th century."

His wife laughed, "Don't worry, Angel, it's completely normal for boys to play with dolls. I promise you, it's not going to make Jacob end up being weird in any way. You know, I played with Hot Wheels when I was little. You can ask my mom. And look at me now!"

"Yeah?" he asked, still unsure.

"Yeah!"

The conversation ended then, mostly because Angel pulled up in front of Buffy's former residence. Buffy felt a few butterflies in her stomach as they all piled out of Angel's SUV, but quickly reminded herself that everything would be fine.

"Oh, this is delicious," Buffy exclaimed as she took a bite of the pancakes her mother had made. "You still make the best pancakes, Mom."

Joyce smiled warmly at her daughter, "Thank you, Honey. I hardly get to make them anymore. Toby enjoys ripping them apart more than eating them and Rupert's usually not a big breakfast eater."

"What can I say? I appreciate a nice slice of toast," Giles commented with a slight smile.

"Oh, I almost forgot! Would you all like a Mimosa?"

"Why not? It's a special day," her husband nodded.

Angel also nodded, "That sounds nice."

Buffy shook her head; alcohol was a big no-no for someone in her condition. "None for me, thank you."

She and Angel shared a look as she wondered whether or not to take this opportunity to share their news with her mother.

The look didn't go unnoticed by Joyce, who raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Taking a deep breath, Buffy faced her mother and stepfather, "I'm pregnant."

Giles' eyes widened, "Pregnant? That's wonderful!"

Joyce grinned, rushing around to the other side of the table to embrace her daughter, "Oh, I'm so happy for you."

Buffy breathed a sigh of relief, returning the hug, before her mother quickly gave Angel a hug as well.

"This is wonderful news, even more cause for Mimosa's all around. Except Buffy can have plain orange juice," Joyce said, hurrying off to the kitchen to make the drinks.

"Congratulations," Giles offered genuinely.

"Thank you, we're really happy about this," Angel smiled, reaching under the table to clasp Buffy's hand in his much larger one.

Joyce was quickly back in the dining room, drinks in hand. She handed them out and held out her glass, "To Buffy and Angel and their growing family."

Everyone tapped their glasses against each other before taking a sip of their drinks. Buffy felt nearly as elated as she had the day she had taken that positive pregnancy test the previous December.

Taking her seat again, Joyce asked, "So how far along are you?"

"Four months," Buffy answered, explaining, "We figured it would be best if we waited until I was in my second trimester."

Realizing they had been a little gun shy after losing their last baby, Giles nodded, "That is supposed to be good luck."

"Yeah," Buffy nodded, rubbing her stomach, "We figured we needed all the good luck we could get."

There was an awkward moment at the table until Toby started calling for milk and Jacob announced he had to go potty, reminding the adults that they were parents of small children and effectively distracting all of them.

"Toby!" Joyce shrieked as Buffy laughed hysterically beside her, "Don't do that! Find your own eggs, don't steal Jacob's!"

Jacob looked at his mother and grandmother with a befuddled expression, sucking on his fingers while his nearly three-year-old uncle plucked eggs from his basket and put them in his own.

Joyce walked over to them and took some eggs out of Toby's basket and put them back in Jacob's. "No, Toby. You find the eggs that are *not* in Jacob's basket. Poor Jacob." Kissing her grandson on the top of his head, Joyce led her own son away.

Finally getting her laughter under control, Buffy grabbed Jacob's hand and began leading him through the yard, trying to find some of the eggs Joyce had hidden earlier that morning while Angel and Giles videotaped, both wondering what had happened to their lives. They loved their families more than anything, but this was all just a bit too domestic for their tastes.

At long last, all the eggs had been found and the hunt was over. They all headed back inside the house so the children could play and the adults could just relax.

Much to Angel's delight, Jacob and Toby engaged themselves with Toby's blocks and trucks while the two fathers sat down for a game of chess. Joyce and Buffy enjoyed some mother-daughter bonding over glasses of decaffeinated coffee at the kitchen table.

"Oh, I am so excited about this baby! I can't believe you managed to keep it a secret for so long," Joyce grinned at her daughter.

"It wasn't easy," Buffy admitted, "But after the miscarriage, Angel and I didn't want to jinx ourselves. This was actually a planned pregnancy, we just never told you we were trying for the same reason."

"I can understand that," Joyce nodded. "When did you decide to have another baby?"

"Last summer when we went on vacation. We ended up having to try for almost four months." Buffy smiled, "It's kind of funny… I had gotten a little upset when I didn't get pregnant right away. I mean, here we were using *no* birth control after I had gotten pregnant while *on* birth control twice… and nothing. So then I started reading about certain foods Angel and I should eat and positions and lots of stuff that I am now realizing is very embarrassing to tell your mother about."

Joyce grinned, "It's okay… I have figured out that you have a sex life, dear. But please, don't give me details."

"Don't worry!" Buffy laughed, "Anyway, I ended up driving poor Angel nuts so he had me go see Dr. Crawford. She assured me that I was fine and that the only thing that was probably stopping me from getting pregnant was my anxiety. So I calmed down, I'm young and have many childbearing years ahead of me. The next month my period was two weeks late so I took a test and it was positive."

"Oh, that's so wonderful, Sweetheart. I'm really excited about this."

"Good… I was worried you would think it's too soon."

"Absolutely not. I know that many times people get pregnant a lot sooner after miscarriages, there is nothing wrong with this," her mother replied. "Oh no! Poor Angel just took down the crib a few months ago… he's going to have to put it right back up!"

"I know," Buffy grinned. "We just decided Jake was old enough for the toddler bed when he turned two and that was right after we decided to take the baby-making easy… two weeks later, I found out I was pregnant. I'm going to decorate one of the extra rooms and have him set it up in there. To his credit, Angel hasn't complained once."

Joyce smiled happily, feeling so elated that her daughter's life was going so well. She had a darling son, was pregnant with her second child… and had a loving husband. She may have been disappointed when Buffy had quit school, knowing she was such a smart girl and could benefit from an education very much… but Buffy was happy, and that mattered much more than anything she could get from a degree.

"Have you seen Jacob's doll?" Buffy asked her husband later that night after she had put her son down.

"No," Angel lied, knowing full well that the blasted doll was buried at the bottom of Jacob's toy chest as he had put it there himself when Buffy had been busy giving their son his bath. Frowning guiltily, he asked, "Was he looking for it?"

Buffy shook her head, "No, I just haven't seen it since we got home from my mother's."

"You know Jacob, he has us finding his toys in the strangest places," Angel smiled as she sat on the couch beside him.

"That's true," Buffy agreed, yawning tiredly.

"You know, I'm finding that holidays are a lot more exhausting when you have a child."

She chuckled, "That's the truth. And just think, next year we'll have a three year old and a seven month old."

"Good God, help us!" he exclaimed dramatically.

Buffy laughed before giving him a loving kiss. "Let's go to bed."

"You know, I think that's the best idea I've heard all day," Angel smiled, allowing Buffy to tug him up from the couch.

They quickly locked up the house and shut off all the lights before heading up to the sanctuary of their bedroom. There was sure to be heartache and disappoint and times in their lives, but for now, in that moment... all was well in their world.

The End

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