Baby Talk

This is a recount of my conversation with Emily (my six year-old niece) today while we were out on the lawn, just sitting on a couple of lawn chairs:

"Header," (she doesn't quite have her "th" sound yet) "why do you wear a bading suit but you don't swim?"
"Because when it's this hot outside, I find it cooler to just wear my bathing suit".
"But then why don't you just come swim with me?"
"Well, because I just had surgery a few days ago, and the doctor said I can't swim right now".
"Is that when they took your baby out of your tummy?"

Emily was given an explanation about my baby dying before we got here. She was also told not to say much to me about it unless I talked to her about it "because Heather is sad right now".

"Yes, Em, that's when they took my baby out of my tummy".
"Where is it?"
"The baby? It's in Heaven."
"No, like the real one." (She's SO smart).
"The doctor has the baby."
"Why didn't you keep it?"
"I don't think I could keep the baby."
"Why?"
"Because the doctor needed the baby to do tests to find out why it died. That way we can help so that other people's babies won't die."
"Were you the only person who this happened to?"
"Oh no, this has happened to many, many people. It even happened to grandma."
"It never happened to my mommy."
"No, it never did."
"Did it happen to your mommy?"
"No, it didn't happen to my mommy either."

It's like therapy for me. I love it. It feels so good to talk about it like that. A few days earlier:

Me: "I'm so full. I think my stomach is still squished in there."
Emily: (quietly, with her hand on my arm) "Header, I know 'bout dat".