Parker

It’s extremely hard to not have answers for Parker.  We have always tried to be blunt and honest with him, even concerning sensitive subjects.  When I became pregnant and he asked the very basic “how are babies made” question, we provided him with a scientific and straightforward explanation. (Actually, I think he asked why women/humans don’t lay eggs, which led to the whole reproductive process talk).  We sat him down the day after we got home from the hospital to explain this to him.  We told him we had some very hard news to share with him and that we loved him.  It was then that he looked at me and seemed to notice the lack of stomach I had.  His face dropped and he whispered “is it about Coraline?”  I don’t know how we found the words to tell him, but we did.  We told him the same thing we had been telling ourselves – that her passing was not anyone’s fault, and she didn’t suffer, and that we were going to get through this together as a family.