![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Every book, online article and forum he's read has a different opinion.
One month, says the book they keep beside their bed. Two months, says the mom repeating what her doctor has said in an online forum for new parents. Six weeks is best, according to an article he'd found. Twelve weeks is better, says another book, just to be absolutely certain.
For Joel, a man who places a lot of value on research and knowledge and learning, this is an absolute nightmare. All he wants is some definitive answer as to when it's safe to take Dane out of the house and nothing he's read so far seems to agree on it. If doctors can't even agree, he has no idea how he's supposed to reach any kind of decision regarding the matter and he's about one more conflicting piece of information away from deciding to just keep Dane inside for the rest of his life. At least until he's eighteen.
Then they can be absolutely certain he won't end up sick.
The only problem is that Joel is starting to go a little stir crazy and he's sure the same can be said for Spencer and Charlotte both. They're not used to having to be home all day without the store to work on and Charlotte isn't used to running a store full time. She's been an incredible help, but there are things she doesn't know how to do, things she's becoming increasingly frustrated with, and Joel knows they have to rescue her at some point, but he also doesn't want to leave Spencer and Dane.
Sleepless nights, being woken up by the baby when he cries, fussing and spit up and diapers, he's taken all that in stride. It's the uncertainty Joel doesn't know what to do with. He should be at home, he thinks, he shouldn't ask Spencer to take care of Dane just because Charlotte is having trouble with the store. But it's healthy to get out, too, he's sure of that. But he also doesn't want to be away from them for longer than a minute or two, which all results in mostly just feeling overwhelmed and confused as to what he's supposed to do.
It's a completely normal Thursday afternoon when Charlotte texts Joel a bunch of knife emojis and he makes a decision. Clipping Huxley's collar to his leash, he kisses Dane, then kisses Spencer and promises to be back as soon as he can. The baby isn't ready to come to work with them yet, he has to deal with that. He also has to deal with the idea of being away from his family for longer than ten minutes and he's going to do it if it kills him. Which it very well might.
He makes it ten minutes before he stops on the sidewalk and turns back toward home. Huxley looks up at him, clearly confused, then starts to follow before Joel abruptly turns back in the direction of the store. It's silly, he can leave them for an afternoon, he can.
But he stands on the sidewalk anyway, frozen and undecided, trying to figure out if he should go help his sister at the store or just head back home.
[Find Joel anywhere along his walk, acting weird and indecisive. XD]
One month, says the book they keep beside their bed. Two months, says the mom repeating what her doctor has said in an online forum for new parents. Six weeks is best, according to an article he'd found. Twelve weeks is better, says another book, just to be absolutely certain.
For Joel, a man who places a lot of value on research and knowledge and learning, this is an absolute nightmare. All he wants is some definitive answer as to when it's safe to take Dane out of the house and nothing he's read so far seems to agree on it. If doctors can't even agree, he has no idea how he's supposed to reach any kind of decision regarding the matter and he's about one more conflicting piece of information away from deciding to just keep Dane inside for the rest of his life. At least until he's eighteen.
Then they can be absolutely certain he won't end up sick.
The only problem is that Joel is starting to go a little stir crazy and he's sure the same can be said for Spencer and Charlotte both. They're not used to having to be home all day without the store to work on and Charlotte isn't used to running a store full time. She's been an incredible help, but there are things she doesn't know how to do, things she's becoming increasingly frustrated with, and Joel knows they have to rescue her at some point, but he also doesn't want to leave Spencer and Dane.
Sleepless nights, being woken up by the baby when he cries, fussing and spit up and diapers, he's taken all that in stride. It's the uncertainty Joel doesn't know what to do with. He should be at home, he thinks, he shouldn't ask Spencer to take care of Dane just because Charlotte is having trouble with the store. But it's healthy to get out, too, he's sure of that. But he also doesn't want to be away from them for longer than a minute or two, which all results in mostly just feeling overwhelmed and confused as to what he's supposed to do.
It's a completely normal Thursday afternoon when Charlotte texts Joel a bunch of knife emojis and he makes a decision. Clipping Huxley's collar to his leash, he kisses Dane, then kisses Spencer and promises to be back as soon as he can. The baby isn't ready to come to work with them yet, he has to deal with that. He also has to deal with the idea of being away from his family for longer than ten minutes and he's going to do it if it kills him. Which it very well might.
He makes it ten minutes before he stops on the sidewalk and turns back toward home. Huxley looks up at him, clearly confused, then starts to follow before Joel abruptly turns back in the direction of the store. It's silly, he can leave them for an afternoon, he can.
But he stands on the sidewalk anyway, frozen and undecided, trying to figure out if he should go help his sister at the store or just head back home.
[Find Joel anywhere along his walk, acting weird and indecisive. XD]
