108. Up All Night

Disclaimer: I don't own TV shows.

So sorry for the delay. I was on vacation, and forgot to post before I left. Oops. Anyway, enjoy!

One week had passed, and the Shepherd household was officially taken over by a new baby. Lilly-palooza, as Derek had to aptly dubbed it. Blankets, socks, onesies, and stacks of diapers piled high on nearly every surface. It was exhausting, but they wouldn't trade a minute of it.

Meredith rubbed her eyes and yawned, cradling Lilly in one arm as she dumped some Cheerios into a bowl. The thunder outside clapped loudly and she jumped at the sound it made. "Sorry about that, Lilly," she laughed when the baby looked up at her in curiosity. She poured some milk on top of the cereal, grabbed a spoon from the drawer, and hopped up onto a stool.

"I'm getting good at this whole one-handed thing," she told Lilly before shoveling a bite into her mouth. Over the past few days, eating had become nothing more than a way to fuel her body. She never thought breastfeeding would take so much energy, and Derek sometimes had to remind her to eat. Lilly trumped eating and sleeping, but they didn't mind. Lilly was more important and fun than either of those things, anyway.

When Meredith heard Charlie barking by the front door, she smiled. "Daddy's home," she said. "And just in time, because I could really use a shower."

Derek walked through the door and into the kitchen, grocery bags in each of his hands. "Hey," he greeted, leaning in to kiss Lilly's forehead before kissing Meredith.

She smiled. "Hey," she murmured against his lips. "Still raining, huh?"

"Hmm, what gave it away?" Derek asked, running his hand through his wet hair. "So, what did she do while I was gone? Did I miss anything cute?"

"Well, she ate. And then she pooped. And she decided to be squirmy, so there was poop everywhere, including on me," she laughed, running her finger over the baby's cheek. "So she had a bath, and now I'm eating cereal for dinner."

"Sounds like you had a busy hour," Derek chuckled, taking the groceries from the bags and setting them on the counter. "Oh, I got those new wipes, the ones in the green pack. They're for sensitive skin."

"I got rid of the other ones this afternoon. They were making her butt all red. You got the sensitive skin from me. Sorry, sweetpea," Meredith said to Lilly.

"These should help," Derek said as he pulled the wipes from the bag.

Meredith took another spoonful of cereal into her mouth. "What else did you get?"

"Granola bars, apple juice, mini carrots, chicken. Lots of foods that'll help you keep up your energy," Derek replied, opening the fridge.

"Thank you," Meredith said with a smile, though she would have preferred cookies and frozen pizza. But he was sweet enough to buy the food, and therefore eventually cook it, so she decided not to protest.

"So I was thinking that we could have some grown-up time after Lilly falls asleep tonight," Derek suggested.

Meredith bit her lip and laughed. "Uh huh. Does this involve nudity?"

Derek grinned. "It could. If you wanted it to."

"I had a baby seven days ago. You sure you want to see me naked?" Meredith asked playfully. "And I have to warn you... I kind of smell like a hamper and baby poop."

"You look beautiful. And you don't smell," Derek assured her. "But if you don't want to, we can keep it PG."

"Maybe PG-13. You look kind of sexy right now," Meredith shrugged.

Derek turned around and looked at her strangely. "I'm loading the dishwasher..."

"Still," Meredith upheld. She slid her empty cereal bowl across the counter and shifted Lilly to her other arm. "But I need to shower first, because I'm really not sure if this spot on my shirt is spit-up or toothpaste."

A loud clap of thunder sounded outside again, and Lilly's eyes went wide. Her lower lip quivered and she let out a cry, her little face scrunching with wrinkles. Meredith hugged Lilly to her chest. "Don't be scared, Lilly. It's just thunder," she soothed.

"Lilly, you're a Seattle baby. You're supposed to love clouds and thunder and rain," he joked.

"Well, she did pick a sunny day to be born on," Meredith pointed out.

"Come here, Lillybug. How about you and I email some pictures of you to your grandma and aunts while Mommy takes a shower?" Derek said, kissing Lilly's cheek after Meredith passed her to him. She looked up at him with her trusting blue eyes that matched his, then curled into him, her tiny thumb finding its way to her mouth.

"Thank you," she said, hopping off the stool. "Once she starts sleeping longer, you and I are going to start having grown-up time in the shower like we used to."

Derek grinned. "Can I get that in writing?"

She laughed. "Yeah, in between diaper changes, I'll write up a contract."

...

Lilly was fed, burped, changed, and sleepy, four factors needed for bedtime. She yawned as Meredith laid her in her swing in their bedroom where she liked to fall asleep sometimes before they carried her over to their bed, the side to side rocking lulling her to sleep. "Goodnight, peanut. We love you," she said softly, kissing the baby's forehead.

Charlie stretched out under Lilly's swing and rolled onto his side, keeping a protective watch on her like he always did. If she cried, he stopped whatever he was doing to come find her, and make sure she was okay. He was like her furry, brown big brother, a role he fell into as soon as he was introduced to her. "Good boy, Charlie," Meredith praised, scratching him under his chin.

"Are we having our grown-up time in here?" Derek asked.

"Well, I don't want to leave her in here by herself. Besides, she's asleep. And it's not like we're going to have sex... which means we should probably put a pin in the nudity portion of grown-up time, at least for tonight, until we get more creative," Meredith rambled on, only stopping because Derek started kissing her.

Meredith let out a moan but quickly stifled it, not wanting to wake Lilly who was only across the room. She nudged him back onto the bed and let herself fall with him. "I even shaved my legs for you," she said.

"Hmm," Derek hummed, an amused smile on his face as he kissed her again.

"I would let you feel me up, but my boobs are all swollen," Meredith said, letting him wrap his arms around her so he could shuffle them back toward the pillows.

Derek's fingers trailed down her back through her tee shirt and she arched into him. Her torso pressed against his, something she hadn't been able to do since she was five months pregnant. "You still look beautiful. Motherhood agrees with you."

"Thank you," Meredith said, combing her fingers through his hair and resting her hand by his temple. "It's a shame I'm off sex for five more weeks. All of these freaking hormones make me want to mount you all day."

"Yeah?"

"Mmhmm," she replied before kissing him again. After some quick mental math, she pulled her lips away. "Crap."

"What?"

"Our anniversary is July 12th. We won't even get to have sex. The six week mark isn't until the 17th," she said.

"Just gives us something to look forward to on the 17th," Derek pointed out, always finding the silver lining, much to her annoyance. "Two years this year."

"Two years married. But we met five years ago this July. Another reason we should be having sex," Meredith giggled, quickly glancing over at Lilly to make sure she was still fast asleep.

Derek smirked. "What happened to "the waiting is fun?" I remember you telling me that in the bathtub once upon a time," he reminded her playfully.

"I wasn't hopped up on baby hormones back then," Meredith defended. She bit her lip, a small smile on her face. "Even if we can't have sex, I'll let you feel me up. And maybe we could do... other things."

He raised his eyebrows. "Other things?"

"You have needs," Meredith shrugged, snaking her hand up the back of his shirt.

"So do you."

"Then you'll just owe me lots of sexual favors," she decided.

Derek kissed her as she rolled on top of him. "Okay, then," he said.

Another bout of thunder rumbled, and Lilly's eyes opened, disturbed once again by the loud, annoying sound outside. She let out a cry, clearly not happy with being woken up. Charlie quickly rose to his feet, glancing between Lilly and his parents on the bed, signaling that Lilly needed them.

"I got her, buddy," Derek told him, hopping off the bed and walking over to her swing. He unbuckled her and scooped her up. "You're really not a fan of this annoying thunder, huh?" he said, patting her diapered bottom soothingly with his hand.

"No, she's not," Meredith agreed, laughing when Charlie jumped up onto the bed after Derek sat down on it again. He spun in circles a few times, then plopped down by their feet, resting his chin on Meredith's leg. "Is it supposed to rain like this all night?" she asked, leaning forward to pet the dog.

"The heavy storm is supposed to pass soon. Then we're just getting rain until morning. Almost done with the thunder, Lillybug," Derek promised her, letting Lilly lie on his chest.

"She should be used to loud noises by now. I worked tons of extra shifts in the ER when I was pregnant with her to make up maternity leave hours. All of that hustle and bustle. I thought that stuff would be like a lullaby to you," Meredith joked, wiping away a small tear on Lilly's cheek with her finger. "That's Seattle for you, Lilly. All of the rain is annoying at first, but you get used to it, I promise."

"How about you sleep with us?" Derek said. "Mommy and I can save grown-up time for the shower."

Meredith elbowed him in the side. "Derek."

"What? That kind of grown-up time is why Lilly exists," Derek pointed out. He wrapped his other arm around Meredith and hugged her to him.

She smiled against his shoulder and kissed him there. "She's already a week old. Pretty soon, she'll be in kindergarten. Then we'll blink again, and she'll be in college. Then married. And you and I will be holding our grandkids."

"She can't even hold her head up by herself yet. We have some time," he chuckled softly. Lilly looked up at him, wide-eyed and alert, like she expected him to do something to entertain her. "You're not gonna fall back to sleep, are you?"

More thunder clapped on cue, and Lilly's crying started up again. Her little arms flailed and she balled her hands into tiny fists as her face turned red. "Shh, it's okay. Daddy's got you," Derek said, rubbing small circles over her back after he propped her over his shoulder.

Meredith knew all babies cried, but every time she heard the noise coming from her daughter, her stomach twisted and she found herself fighting back tears of her own. She put her hand next to Derek's on Lilly's back. "I know. I don't like the stupid thunder either, Lilly."

Lilly met Meredith's eyes as she rested her head on Derek's shoulder, and her crying instantly dwindled, loud wails dissolving into a small, fussy, hiccup-y noise. Meredith kissed her dark, fuzzy head. "I like it when he holds me too, Lilly. He makes you feel so safe, doesn't he?"

"You're always safe, Lilly," Derek promised her.

"And if you don't fall back to sleep, you're going to be cranky all day tomorrow, and if you're cranky, Mommy will be cranky, which means Daddy will be cranky," Meredith said, glancing at Derek.

Derek laughed. "That's because you let out all of that cranky energy on me."

"Exactly."

"She's tired. She'll fall back to sleep. We just need to help her along," Derek said. "How about the pacifier? We haven't even used that yet."

"Okay," Meredith said, trying to stifle a yawn. "All of the pacifiers are in the nursery. I'll be right back."

"Okay."

Meredith shuffled out of bed, out of the room, and into the hall, returning a minute later holding a pink pacifier shaped like a strawberry. "Got one."

"That's a fancy one," Derek said.

Meredith smiled. "Lexie got it for us, I think. The whole pack is fruit themed," she said, rejoining him in bed.

Derek settled Lilly into the crook of his arm. "Wanna try this, Lilly? It's kinda like Mommy's boob." Meredith smirked at him and he shrugged. "What? She has to suck on both. Same concept."

"Here you go, Lilly," Meredith encouraged, holding the pacifier lightly against Lilly's lips.

Lilly tentatively accepted it, taking it into her mouth. She sucked on it curiously for a few seconds, then spit it out. Derek laughed. "Pacifiers aren't your thing? I think I'd prefer boob, too."

"I don't think she's hungry. She just ate under an hour ago," Meredith said, feeling along her chest. "Maybe she's just... not tired anymore." She yawned. "Damn thunder."

"Think we should try putting her back in the swing? She likes the motion," Derek said.

Meredith nodded. "Yeah, we could try."

Derek got up out of bed with Lilly and gently set her in the swing. But before he could even turn it on, she started crying again, her gummy, little wail enough to break Meredith's heart in two. Derek quickly picked her up again. "Okay, no swing," he said, bouncing on his heels.

Meredith held her arms out, smiling when Derek handed Lilly to her. "Come here, peanut," she said softly, kissing her forehead. She laid the baby on her chest, Lilly's face cushioned by her breasts. "How about you lay here, that way you can listen to my heartbeat?"

Derek rejoined them both in bed, turning off the lamp on his nightstand before reaching over Meredith and Lilly to get the nightlight off of hers. He set it on the nightstand next to him, then turned it on so that only a minimal flood of light spread out over the room. He kissed Meredith's temple and wrapped his arm around her. "Where'd you get that idea?"

Meredith shrugged. "She's been living inside me for nine months. Maybe that sound will soothe her," she said.

Lilly scrunched Meredith's shirt in her tiny fingers and yawned. "Mommy's a genius," Derek chuckled, draping the blanket his mom got her over her back. "She's closing her eyes."

"Once she starts sucking her thumb, we should be good," Meredith laughed. She kissed the top of Lilly's head and breathed her in. "I wish she could keep this little baby smell."

Derek leaned over and kissed the top of Lilly's head, too. "Hmm, I know."

Meredith smiled at Derek. "We really made a person. A tiny, perfect person," she said, watching as Lilly's back rose and fell as she breathed in and out. "June five years ago, I was getting ready to move out here from Boston. I didn't even want to come back to Seattle. But if I hadn't, I would never have met you. And Lilly wouldn't be here. Funny how life looks out for you, isn't it?" she laughed softly, wiping away the tears under her eyes with her free hand.

"Yeah," Derek whispered. Lilly scrunched her nose the same way Meredith did when she slept, and he smiled. "Yeah, it really is."

"I'm a weepy, hormonal mess," she sighed amusedly. "I used to be hardcore. Now I'm softcore."

Derek narrowed his eyes at her and smirked. "Did we just start talking about porn?"

"Shut up," Meredith said. She rested her head on his shoulder and yawned. "Think she'll stay asleep for a while?"

"Probably a few hours, until she needs to eat. You know, as long as Mother Nature keeps the outside world quiet," Derek said.

Meredith rubbed Lilly's back gently with her fingers. "You're safe, Lillybug. I love you," she said, turning her head to Derek. "And I love you."

"Love you both," Derek said, kissing the crown of Lilly's head, then kissing Meredith.

"We'll continue grown-up time during her nap time tomorrow," Meredith said as she closed her eyes.

Derek flicked off the nightlight and laughed through his yawn. "Sounds good."

...

Meredith felt Lilly pressing her lips against her chest and she opened her eyes, smiling tiredly down at her baby. "Hi, pumpkin," she whispered. She looked over at the clock as she rubbed her eyes. "Three hours. Not bad," she said, shuffling back against the pillows to rest her back against the headboard.

Derek woke up when he felt her move. "Hey. She's up?" he assumed, rolling over and sitting up.

"She was doing the rooting thing. She's hungry," Meredith said, adjusting her shirt. She held the baby to her breast and Lilly yawned before latching on. "There we go."

Derek slid the nursing pillow on Meredith's lap, under Lilly's bottom and Meredith smiled. "Thank you."

"No more thunder, huh?" Derek chuckled.

"Guess not. If there was, Lilly slept right through it, which is good. I want her to get on some sort of sleep schedule," Meredith said as they both yawned at the same time. "You can go back to sleep. There's no reason both of us need to be up."

"I don't mind," he said. "I know you'd stay up with me."

"You mean if you were the one with the boobs?" Meredith giggled. "It would nice to tag-team the breastfeeding once in a while. And, you know, if you could push the next baby out, that would be pretty nice, too."

"Then who would get you pregnant?" Derek smirked. "Clearly, I'm very good at that."

Meredith smiled. "Hmm, good point." Lilly opened her eyes and looked up at her. "Yes, we're talking about you," she laughed.

"Still not tired, Lilly?" Derek asked the baby, rubbing the bottom of her socked foot with his finger.

"She had no bedtime in my womb. It takes some adjustment, I guess," Meredith joked. She brushed her fingers through Lilly's hair. "I hope she gets curls in her hair like you have."

"Your hair is wavy. I've always been a fan of wavy..."

"Curls are more fun."

Derek grinned at her. "They are, huh?"

"The curls are one of the reasons I let you woo me the night we met," Meredith said.

"There was no wooing," Derek countered. "We were just drunk and easy."

Meredith scoffed. "I was not that easy."

"You had your hand on my thigh by tequila shot number four," Derek laughed. "I'm surprised we didn't have sex in the back of the cab on the way to your house."

"Yes, you're a real victim," she said playfully. Lilly made suckling sounds with her mouth and Meredith looked down at the baby, who was still peacefully nursing, but awake. "Sorry, Lilly. This probably isn't typical Mommy-and-Daddy conversation for most babies."

"Some parents tell bedtime stories. We debate over which one of us got the other to sleep with them," Derek shrugged. "Different strokes, right Lilly?"

"I think she likes when we talk. She's known our voices for nine months," Meredith said. "Do you just want us to talk all night?" she asked Lilly.

"Maybe we could record ourselves talking on tape. Play it on a loop for her," Derek teased.

"We should," Meredith agreed. "Oh, how about you tell her a story?"

"What story?" he asked.

"I don't know. Anything. One of those Disney ones with the princesses and ponies and glitter," Meredith said.

Derek laughed. "I don't recall any glitter."

"Whatever. You know what I mean. Cinderella or something," she said. "I've never seen it, so you have to tell it."

"You've never seen Cinderella?" Derek asked, his eyebrows raised.

"I know the story, but no, I've never actually watched it. I was raised on surgery tapes, not the magic of Disney," she giggled.

"Seriously?"

"Have you forgotten who my mother was? Yes, seriously."

"Well, we'll have to change that," Derek said. "Good thing we have a little girl so the two of you can experience all of those girly things together. Right, Lillybug?"

Meredith smiled. "What if the next one is a boy?"

"That's what my parents probably said," Derek chuckled. "Two girls, me, two more girls. When it came to Spiderman or Snow White, who do you think got outvoted every single time?"

"Aww," Meredith teased. "Well, what about Mark?"

"Mark helped, but we were still beat. Four girls to two boys," Derek said. "Right now it's two to two if you count Charlie. The next kid determines majority... unless it's twins. One of each would make it tied."

Meredith rolled her eyes. "Haha," she said dryly. "Then I'd have one on each boob. Plus, we'd be outnumbered by kids."

"Oh. Right," Derek remembered. "Yeah, that could be dangerous."

"One is enough for now," Meredith said, looking down at Lilly and smiling when the baby pulled away from her breast and smacked her little lips together. "All done?" she asked.

"Burping time," Derek said, gently swapping Lilly from Meredith's arm to his. He set Lilly on his lap and started patting her back. She immediately let out a small burp that ended in a hiccup. And then another, and another. "Uh oh. Have the hiccups, Lilly?"

"She probably just has some extra air in her stomach," Meredith said, fixing her shirt. "I know, Lilly. Those things are annoying."

Every time she hiccuped, her eyes went wide as though she was surprising herself when one snuck up on her. "I know I shouldn't laugh because hiccups suck, but her face is adorable when she does it," Derek chuckled.

Lilly hiccuped again, her blue eyes looking startled each time, and Meredith couldn't help but laugh, too. "Remember when she had the hiccups when I was pregnant with her?"

"That was awesome," Derek said. "Your whole belly would jump."

"Only we can't give her peanut butter to make them go away," Meredith said, kissing the top of Lilly's head. "Try bouncing her as you burp her. Maybe that'll force some of the air out quicker."

Derek started to bounce his thigh with every pat on the back. "Try to burp again, princess," he encouraged.

A bout of thunder clapped outside, the sound loud enough that Lilly stopped mid-hiccup in surprise. She started to cry, and Meredith sighed. "You have got to be kidding me."

"Guess the storm isn't over yet," Derek said, cradling Lilly close to him as she settled. "Just a loud noise, Lilly. A loud, annoying, very inconvenient noise."

"It's okay, peanut," Meredith yawned. She looked over at the clock. "It's almost one. She really should sleep."

"How do we do that?"

"You could talk to her about boring stuff, like the myelination of the prefrontal cortex. That always puts me to sleep," Meredith teased as she yawned again. "See? Even saying it makes me tired."

Derek looked over at her, amused. "You're a neurosurgical resident. If I'm boring, you're boring, too," he said.

"I never said you were boring, just the material," Meredith said. She ran a hand through her hair and laughed. "Seriously, Derek. We need to make her sleepy."

"How about a bath? Her umbilical cord is healed up, so we could use the little tub. And we have that bedtime stuff. I know my sisters used that for their kids to help them sleep," Derek suggested. He smiled at Lilly. "Hey, the hiccups are gone."

"I guess the thunder scared them out of her," Meredith said, reaching for Lilly. "Maybe a bath will make you sleepy. Sound good, Lilly?"

"Nursery or our bathroom?" Derek asked.

"Bathroom, I guess. It's her first real bath. It could get messy," Meredith said. "Can you get the tub? I'll get everything else."

Derek nodded. "Yeah. Be right back," he said as he shuffled out of bed.

Meredith got up, too, Lilly cradled in her arm. The baby looked up at her curiously, her thumb in her mouth. "You are so cute," Meredith cooed at her as she walked into the bathroom. She took a towel and washcloth from the shelf and set it by the sink. "Okay, where is your bedtime bath?" she asked.

"Got it," Derek said as he walked into the bathroom holding the pink baby tub.

"Good," Meredith said. She rummaged through the cabinet and pulled out the purple bottle. "Okay, let's see how this goes, Lillybug." She stood up and handed the soap to Derek. "The water should be warm enough that she won't be cold, but cool enough that she won't be hot," Meredith said, recalling what she'd read in the baby book.

"In other words... lukewarm," Derek teased, putting the tub on the counter next to the sink.

Meredith glanced at him and made a face. "Shut up." With her free hand, she started unsnapping Lilly's pajamas, eventually working her way down to Lilly's leg before she pulled them off. She went to take off Lilly's diaper, but stopped. "Wait, don't start filling."

"What? Why?" Derek asked, turning off the faucet.

"Poop."

Derek laughed. "You really like to keep us entertained at all hours of the night, huh?" he asked Lilly.

"Thank you for doing it before the bath," Meredith said as they walked out of the bathroom and back into their bedroom. She gently laid Lilly down on their bed.

Derek got the changing pad and some wipes, then he cleaned Lilly up, completely unfazed by the dirty diaper. "Alright, all done," he said, stepping aside so Meredith could pick her up. "I'll go throw this out. I'll be back in a second."

"Okay," Meredith said, holding Lilly close to her so she would stay warm until they put her in the tub. "That's why I love him, Lilly. How many other men change diapers, unasked, with a smile on their face?"

"Talking about me?" Derek said after rejoining the two of them in the bathroom.

Meredith bit her lip and smiled. "Maybe."

Derek turned on the hot and cold faucets and waited for the water to get fairly warm before testing it with his hand. "This okay?" he asked.

Meredith put her hand under the stream of water. Not too hot; not too cold. She nodded. "Yeah, that's good."

"Okay," Derek said. He filled up the little, pink tub and set it on the counter. After he squirt some of the bedtime bath soap in the water, he mixed it in with his hand. "This smells like your conditioner."

"Now both of us will smell like lavender." Meredith kissed Lilly's forehead, then gently laid her in the tub. The water barely went past her belly, and she kicked her legs curiously. "You don't know what this is, do you?"

Derek laughed. "This is called bath time. Isn't it fun?" he asked, cupping his hand under the water and pouring some onto Lilly's stomach. She looked at the two of them contentedly, unfazed and relaxed.

"I'm surprised she actually seems to like it," Meredith said with a smile, wetting Lilly's arms with some water.

Derek cleaned her tiny toes with the wash cloth, and Lilly wriggled her feet. "Are you ticklish, princess?"

"I think she is," Meredith giggled, watching as Lilly yawned, then put her right thumb in her mouth, a telltale sign of sleepiness. She nudged Derek with her arm. "Look."

"It hasn't even been five minutes," Derek whispered. "If she falls asleep in here, how are we going to take her out without waking her up?"

"Um... very carefully," Meredith replied.

"At least we know baths make her tired."

"Lavender, chamomile, and oatmeal... powerful stuff," Meredith said.

"Maybe it reminds her of your womb. Warm and wet and squishy," Derek said.

Meredith laughed through her yawn. "Eww."

"What? I'm serious," he said.

"She looks so peaceful," Meredith said, leaning into him. "Must be nice being a baby. Getting to fall asleep in the bathtub, always having a clean diaper, twenty-four-seven access to my boobs."

"Remember the days when I had twenty-four-seven access to your boobs? That was fun," Derek grinned.

"You've had twenty-four-seven access to my boobs practically every day for the past nine months," Meredith reminded him. "Aren't you glad I was one of those horny, pregnant women, and not one of those bitchy ones you hear about?"

"Yes, very," Derek chuckled, reaching for the bath towel. "Even when you gave birth, you were nice to me."

"And you'll get my boobs back when my celibacy is up five weeks from now," she promised. Meredith gently scooped Lilly out of the tub, careful not to jostle her and risk waking her up. She handed her off to Derek, who wrapped the towel around her, then held the baby close to him to keep her warm. "I'll clean up and be right in," she whispered.

"Okay," Derek said, looking down and smiling at his sleeping daughter, whose thumb was still in her mouth. Thumb-sucking was normally a good sign at bedtime, so he could only hope that she would stay asleep. He put her down on the bed and patted her dry. "Where's your lotion?" he asked, scanning the room before spotting it in the bassinet.

"I got it," Meredith said, walking into the room. She walked around the other side of the bed and handed it to him. After crawling back into bed, she yawned. "Oh. Powder," she remembered, twisting around to take it from her nightstand.

"Thank you," Derek said as he lifted Lilly's legs up and slid the diaper under her tiny bottom. He sprinkled some powder on her, then fastened the sides of the diaper together. "There we go."

Meredith smiled, watching as he maneuvered her legs back into her pink footie pajamas. When it came time to weave her arms through, Derek looked at her. "How do I do this without taking her thumb out of her mouth?"

"Crap," she whispered. "Uh... okay, let me swap it out with my finger for a second. Then once you get her arm through, we'll switch it back to her thumb."

"I feel like Indiana Jones. One wrong move and boom... trouble," he chuckled, managing to put her left arm through the sleeve.

"We can do it," Meredith said. With baited breath, she replaced Lilly's thumb with her pinky finger, allowing Derek to slip her arm through the pajamas. The baby's eyelids fluttered, but before she had the chance to notice and wake up, Meredith tucked Lilly's thumb back into her mouth.

Lilly started sucking peacefully again, and they both sighed in relief. "Nice work," Derek complimented as he snapped the pajamas up the middle.

Meredith smiled. "You, too," she said softly, gingerly placing the baby in her usual place between them.

Derek laid down on his side, Charlie still resting at their feet, and he closed his eyes. "Still wanna have grown-up time?"

She laughed as she turned off the night light. "Goodnight, Derek," she said. The room was finally dark and silent, and Meredith was almost afraid to move and disturb the peacefulness. "Derek?"

"Hmm?"

"If there's any more freaking thunder tonight, we're moving," she teased.

Derek smiled into his pillow. "Agreed."