Romantic Camelot Cove

Christy, for whom the pregnancy had come quite unexpectedly, was surprised and somewhat alarmed that it resulted in the birth of twin girls. She hadn’t been well throughout her pregnancy and had relied heavily on Lancelot’s support, which had always been in ample supply. Now, with two little ones to look after, there was a deep sense of depression and anxiety. She had never known she wanted children until she had conceived her girls and though she already loved them with all of her being, she also felt threatened by them — they took so much time to look after and she had been weakened by her pregnancy.

Of course Lancelot stood beside her unfailingly, helping her through the most difficult times and supporting her when she felt she could do nothing but cry. For the first few months it was him who did most taking care of the girls, and Christy felt herself guilt-ridden over the fact that she couldn’t do more for them and often didn’t want to do more for them. For awhile it seemed as though her life had ended with the birth of her children.

Her own mother had died in childbirth, leaving her single father to look after Christy and her two older sisters. It had always seemed unfair to her that she’d been denied a mother of her own and she had lived with a long-time fear of pregnancy and childbirth because of her mother’s own untimely end. Though she’d never known her mother she had heard enough about her to miss her all the same, and part of her feared that she herself might one day leave her children early.

She shared none of her fears with Lancelot, who she knew would only try to reassure her. She didn’t want to burden him with her worries. He already did so much for the girls! For nearly a year she lived with her worries and concerns and the constant feelings of depression that plagued her. She spoke to Dr. Portland of her concerns for herself and her children, and he worked hard to reassure her and encourage her to talk about things with her partner, but she just couldn’t bring herself to mention her concerns to Lancelot. She simply didn’t want to burden him.

Dr. Portland had diagnosed post partum depression and it wasn’t until the twins were nearly a year old that it finally began to ease. More and more often now she would take them in her arms and just hold them for no reason, looking into their beautiful dark blue eyes and finally beginning to experience the joys of motherhood. Lancelot noticed the change in his partner and was happy for it. He was certain that somewhere within her she wanted children just as desperately as he did, and it brought a glow to his heart to finally see her interacting with their twins more and more.

Truly, he missed the Christy he had known before the girls had been born, but he tried to put that aside and focus on her needs and those of their infant daughters. It hurt his heart to know that in the early months Christy had very little bond with their girls and he tried to encourage her now as often as possible to build that unbreakable bond between mother and child. He knew that it was important — he had such a close relationship with his own family!

Though he’d already purchased an engagement ring, he didn’t feel that the time was right to give it to the woman he loved. She was stressed beyond understanding and he feared her rejection above most everything else in his life. He wanted to wait until the perfect moment, when she was happy and realized that she was happy in their relationship. They never talked about engagement and marriage any more and their relationship had fallen into a routine that made it seem often as though they had already been married for several years. It wasn’t a bad feeling. In fact, it gave them both a sort of glow inside to know that they were so deeply in love and in tune with one another that they could feel as though they’d known one another their entire lives.

Finally that special day arrived, and it seemed as though Christy was actually in a good mood and eager to see her girls pass their first birthday. She woke up early that morning and began working on a birthday cake for each twin, made entirely from scratch based on a recipe her father said had once belonged to her mother and had been of her mother’s design. She hummed and sang to herself as she worked and Lancelot glowed to know that his partner was feeling better about things and was in a good mood for their daughters’ birthday!

Finally party time rolled around at six o’clock that evening, and both parents worked to get the girls dressed and ready for their birthday. It was nearly seven before they had managed to get them clean and fresh for the celebration, but it was clear that both parents and even the girls in their own way were excited about the transition.

Lancelot allowed Christy to carry each twin to their cake, as she had put the most effort into the planning process. First she brought Penelope to hers and bent over and blew out the candles for her, grinning as she looked into the face of her beautiful red-headed oldest. She kissed Penelope on the cheek and smiled as she crawled away to play with some of the new toys that had been purchased just for this special occasion.

Then it was Amelia’s turn. When both infants had aged into beautiful red-haired toddlers, mother and father carried them to their cribs to lay them down for the night before retiring themselves to their own bed. Things were happy in the Du Lac household and Lancelot knew that the time was coming when he would be ready to pop the big question to Christy. He just had to find exactly the right moment!