Unfortunately our cuddle time didn't last too long because Brooklyn became hungry so Ashton went to feed him while Ann and I started on lunch.

"Car, can I go try out my new board?" Ender asked.

"Yeah. But wear your helmet please." I said.

"I'll go with him." Ashton patted my shoulder and the two of them went outside.

Ann and I worked on the chicken bake we were making when Brooklyn started to cry.

I hurried to wash my hands and went over to him.

"Oh, someone needs to be changed." I curled up my nose and hurried to change the poor thing. I took out the trash and then washed my hands again.

I checked on Brooklyn in his crib and then went back to helping Ann.

Ashton and Ender came back in before lunch so they could wash up and take a seat at the bar. I set Brooklyn's car seat on a chair in the kitchen next to us so he could be in the middle of the action while we ate.

In the books I had read it said one of the ways to play with your newborn and keep him entertained was to place him where the most action was in the house and encourage people to have little conversations with him.

After lunch I rocked Brooklyn in my arms until he fell asleep and then put him in his crib so he could nap.

"Babe, tell me if it's okay if I post this." Ashton said and I joined him in the living room.

He showed me a little collage he had made of all of the photos we had taken last night in front of the tree.

"Post it." I smiled.

We had only posted one picture since Brooklyn had been born of his tiny little hand wrapped around Ashton's finger that said "Christmas came a few days early this year." to announce that he had arrived, but that was it.

We spent the rest of our day hanging out with each other. I had a tea party with Gracie, leaning Brooklyn up against my stomach so he could be involved like Gracie wanted, and she had a great time playing tea party with him.

It was another night of midnight and 3:00 am wake up calls from Brooklyn and then that next day we were taking him to the doctors for his five day check up.

We carried him into the doctors in his car seat with a blanket over the top so any photographers wouldn't get photos of him since they were all over the island.

We waited in the waiting room for a while until we were called back.

A different doctor came to look at Brooklyn, weighing him, listening to his lungs and heart, and checking his little reflexes.

"He is one healthy little baby." The paediatrician Dr. Kudrow said, tickling Brooklyn's bare tummy.

"Good." I smiled.

"So do you two have any concerns?" She asked us.

"No concerns really, I just want to make sure we are doing everything we can to keep him healthy." Ashton said.

"Well you are both doing a great job so far, but if you do have any questions feel free to call the office." She smiled.

"Thank you so much." I shook her hand before we left.

We had taken Ashton's jeep but had the top up so Brooklyn wouldn't get blown away, and made a stop at the store to pick up some diapers and other things we needed.

Thankfully he napped the almost the entire time Ashton and I walked around the store, Ashton carrying him around while I pushed the cart.

"Is someone awake?" I heard Ashton say behind me as I put a box of formula into the cart.

I turned around around to see Brooklyn reaching up a tiny arm to Ashton's face, softly hitting his cheek.

"Hey Brooklyn. Hi buddy." Ashton cooed, moving in to press a few kisses to his face.

"Aw, is my baby boy up from his nap?" I walked over and smiled at Brooklyn, giving him a kiss of my own.

"What are you talking about, I've been awake since 6:00 am." Ashton smirked and I rolled my eyes, lightly smacking his arm.

"You're my big baby boy, he's my little baby boy." I said and Ashton laughed, leaning in for a kiss.

"Okay, I'm going to need to feed him soon so let's hurry up and get home." I went back to the cart and finished our shopping trip, checking out at the counter and going outside only to be met with a few photographers.

Ashton flipped the baby blanket he had on his arm over Brooklyn while I hurried to push the cart to the jeep.

"No pictures please." I said but of course they didn't listen. Ashton quickly got Brooklyn into his car seat and I jumped into the back with him while Ashton loaded groceries into the car while the paps were asking him questions that he ignored.

Ashton hurried to get in the front seat while I stayed in the back with the baby and drove away from the curb, leaving the grocery store behind us.

We hadn't released a photo of Brooklyn's face yet. In the photos we posted of the kids and us last night, Brooklyn was so small and far away that you couldn't really see much except for a pink thing wrapped in a blanket. We had kept the good photos of him to ourselves and we waiting to share an actual photo of him with the fans in a little bit.

We also hadn't announced his name yet so we would announce that at the same time.

We got about halfway home before Brooklyn started to cry.

"You okay back there?" Ashton asked as I pulled a bottle from the diaper bag.

"Yeah." I said. "Can you pull over so I can feed him?"

Ashton pulled over to the side of the road and I took Brooklyn from his car seat and into my arms so I could feed him, Ash turning around from the front seat watching Brooklyn suck on the bottle.

"Good boy." I said as he finished eating and I put him back in his car seat.

Ashton got back on the road and got us home quickly.

That night we gave Brooklyn his first proper bath instead of just using wipes and a cloth to clean his skin.

Ashton and I stood side by side at the sink, Ash holding him while I washed him off and then quickly got him dried off and into a nappy.

We wrapped him up in a blanket to keep him warm taking him to the sofa to cuddle him before we put him to bed.

I laid on the sofa, placing him right next to me and draping my arm over him.

"Tired?" Ashton chuckled as he walked in from our bedroom, fresh out of the shower.

"Mhmm." I nodded.

"Let's get you to bed then." Ashton said and swept up Brooklyn, taking him over to his crib.

I followed along, watching Ashton rock him in his arms until Brooklyn's eyes closed. Gently he set him in the crib and we both kissed him before heading upstairs to tuck in Gracie and Ender.

Ann said goodnight and left, leaving me and Ashton to finally get to bed.

I took a shower and then joined him in bed, curling up to him like I've always done.

"Do you remember when I first told you I was pregnant and I said that we weren't ready to be parents?" I asked him as I nestled into his side.

"Yes. Why?" He turned his head towards me.

"Well I was wrong. I think Brooklyn was just what we needed." I smiled at him.

"Oh really?" He asked, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Mhmm." I nodded. "I feel like we've become closer as a family, and our life with each other has officially begun, even though we're not married."

"About marriage, have you thought anymore about that?"

"I have...I know we said a long engagement would be best for us so we could move on from what happened after that whole situation and get on with our lives, but now that Brooklyn is here...I don't see the point in waiting anymore. I want to start my life with you."

Ashton laid there for a moment, a smile on his lips before leaning over to connect his lips passionately to mine. Happily I accepted, placing my hand on his cheek.

"I've wanted to marry you since the day I met you." Ashton said between kisses and an elated smile came to my face.

"Then let's do it." I kissed him back.

"Whatever you say love, that's what we'll do."

After we had finally stopped kissing each other, we got back into our sleeping positions, getting the few hours asleep we could before Brooklyn woke up crying.

And indeed he did like always at midnight, me getting up to change and feed him, rocking him in the chair until he fell back asleep.

This happened again at 3:00 am, Brooklyn's crying coming through the monitor. I made to get up when Ashton's gruff voice stopped me.

"Go back to sleep, I got him." He said and I nodded, curling myself back into the blankets.

I was awake now and listened as Ashton changed and fed him, then began to sing to him to get him to go to sleep again.

I heard Ashton come back in the bedroom and then get back in bed, me gravitating to his warmth.

"Thank you." I mumbled before I slipped back into unconsciousness.

The next day Ann left to go back home. I must've hugged her a million times, thanking her for being so helpful and sweet to us.

This meant that Ashton and I were really on our own with the kids, and this is what life would really be like.

We had finally posted a picture of Brooklyn, saying 'Brooklyn James Irwin born on December 22, 2015. Mommy and Daddy are so in love with you.'

And we were. We were so truly in love with our son.

Ashton's PoV:

My body had adjusted its natural alarm clock, so now I was automatically waking up at midnight, 3:00 A.M, and then 6:00 A.M.

So at 3:00 I was awake, waiting for Brooklyn to wake up and start crying. Carter was asleep next to me, but that wasn't surprising. She could sleep through a hurricane.

Then I heard the little cry of our son.

I got up to go calm him down before Carter could wake up. I refused to be one of those fathers who didn't help. This was my child and I was going to change as many diapers as he needed changed.

I opened the bedroom door and stepped out into the living room, turning left to walk into the nursery but pausing when I found my five year old standing beside her baby brothers crib.

"Shh. Don't cry Brooklyn." She touched his tummy as she reached through the crib.

I noticed she had a pillow, blanket and one of her stuffed animals on the floor of his room, beside the crib. She wanted to spend the night with him. She must've done this after the last time I woke up to check on him.

Brooklyn settled down and I noticed Gracie smile before laying back down on her makeshift bed.

I waited a few minutes, watching them before going to Brooklyn's crib where he was awake.

"Come here, Brook." I whispered as I picked him up. He only had a wet diaper so I went to change him, stepping over Gracie, and then rocked him back to sleep.

I set him in his crib and then went to the hall closet to get another blanket to cover Gracie up.

I kissed her forehead after tucking in the blanket around her and her eyes fluttered open.

"Are you having a sleepover with Brooklyn?" I asked her.

She sleepily nodded her head, her thumb in her mouth.

"You're a good big sister." I smiled. "Sweet dreams, Gray."

She closed her eyes before turning over in the blanket.

The sight was so cute that I took a picture of it to show Carter in the morning.

I made my way back to the bedroom where Carter had rolled over to the middle of the bed. I had to roll her back to her side so I could get in but she ended up on top of me, her head resting on my chest.

As I stared up at the ceiling fan I realised that this was my life now. I was a man who owned a home, had three kids, and also was engaged (hopefully married soon).

Seeing my son be born was the most beautiful thing; the whole experience was special. Of course my heart had broken when Carter cried out for her mom, but she was a trooper and she made it through.

And now she was able to hold, kiss, and cuddle our little baby.

Motherhood had never looked so good on her.

She turned her head to the side and then one of her hands slid up my arm, holding onto my bicep.

I chuckled when she let out a single snore. She was so cute.

Sometime between my admiring of her features and thinking about the joys of parenthood I fell asleep.

Of course I was up at six and left the bedroom to find Gracie still asleep next to her brothers crib.

I went upstairs to get Bear from Enders room and then took him and Sprinkles outside for a walk.

Back inside Brooklyn was just waking up so I went to get him and then carried him to the kitchen where I warmed up a bottle and began to feed him.

As I went to sit in the rocking chair Gracie woke up, rolling over to see me feeding Brooklyn.

"Morning, Gray." I smiled and she stood up to come watch.

"He's hungry." She commented as she watched him drink from the bottle.

"I know. Babies eat a lot."

She nodded in agreement.

"Did I eat that much when I was a baby?"

"You did." I laughed.

The bedroom door opened and I looked to see a tired Carter walk out.

"Morning, sweetheart." I smiled at her.

"Hi." She smiled as she walked over to us, her arms over her stomach to block out the cold. "What's with all the blankets on the floor."

"Gracie had a sleepover with Brooklyn." I said.

"Were you spending the night with your baby brother?" Carter lifted up Gracie, nuzzling her cheek with her nose to make Gracie giggle.

I showed Carter the picture I took last night before she went to wake up Ender.

"I never even heard Brooklyn cry last night." Carter commented as she poured herself some coffee.

"I had him covered." I shrugged.

"We could take turns you know." She chuckled.

"You need the sleep."

"So do you, Ashton."

I just gave her a smile before helping cook breakfast.

"Hey so tonight is the party for all of the businesses on the marina, and I know we had to cancel all of the tours because of the pregnancy, but I was thinking we could still go?" She asked after we had eaten.

"Sure." I smiled. "Wasn't it before christmas last year?"

"Yeah, but Mr. Riley had a pacemaker put in so they postponed."

"Okay. Well let's go."

That night, after baking a casserole to take over with us and dressing Gracie in my favourite dress of hers, the navy blue one with the white bow, and then forcing Ender into something other than a tee shirt and cargo shorts, we bundled up Brooklyn and headed over to the Rileys house.

Carter was like the towns superstar, just like she had been last year as every person in the room hugged her.

She introduced me again as her fiancé this time, and then Gracie and Brooklyn who weren't with us last year (but I wished they had been).

Gracie was being bashful because there were a lot of people and while Carter and Mrs. Riley were in the kitchen making space for more food, Gracie came up to me and tugged on my jeans.

"Yes, Gray?" I looked down at her, Brooklyn shifting in my arms.

"Um, I remember this house." She said.

"You do?"

"Mhmm. I baby when I here."

She was little and making up memories for herself, but that was okay, she made those memories because they helped her bridge the gap between her first family and the one she had now. This was how she coped.

"Ash! Can you help me reach that bowl up there?" Carter called me from the other room.

I went to the kitchen and passed Brooklyn off to Carter so I could get a salad bowl from the top shelf of the cabinet.

"You know, I'm starting to think you only want me because of my height." I smirked as I set the bowl on the counter.

"Oh hush." She lightly smacked my arm, Mrs. Riley laughing at us.

I kissed her lips before going to the living room with the kids, keeping them occupied.

"Daddy, I want to hold Brooklyn." Gracie whined as she stood in front of me.

"You're not old enough to hold him by yourself, I have to help you, okay?"

She nodded and I had her sit down next to me so I could put Brooklyn in her arms.

"You have to support his head. That's very important."

She nodded as I adjusted her arm the right way.

Brooklyn looked up at his sister, Gracie smiling at him.

"Hi, Brooklyn." She smiled. "Daddy he has the same colour eyes you do."

"I know. He's pretty cute isn't he."

She nodded.

I took Brooklyn when it was time for everyone to eat, and we set him in his car seat while we ate, Carter rocking it back and forth to get him to fall asleep.

Before we left for the night we had our picture taken as a family, Gracie on my waist and Brooklyn in Carters arms as Ender stood in front of us.

That night once we had put the kids to bed and gone to bed ourselves, I decided to post the photo.

'A year ago Carter invited me to the annual party for all of the businesses on the marina just two days after we met. That night it was just me, her and Ender, and I met all of the wonderful people of this town who I can now call friends. And here we are a year later, engaged, with Ender who's now our son, our gorgeous 5 year old daughter, and our newborn baby boy. Life can't get much better than this, but I know it will.'

--

So much has changed since they met. They've been through so much in just a year, what else do you think lies ahead?

More to come!

Much love xx-m