I’d been waiting six long months to meet my first grandchild, but every time I offered help—even something as simple as a video call—my daughter-in-law gently shut me out. “I’m just not ready for visitors,” she’d say, while her own mother moved in and out of the baby’s nursery as if she owned the place.

My son, too, grew distant, ans
One evening, unable to bear it any longer, I baked a batch of cinnamon rolls, wrapped them warmly in a towel, and drove to their doorstep.

When my son cracked the door, fear flickered across his face. My daughter-in-law hovered behind him, arms folded and wary. I stepped inside before they could protest—and froze. In the dim living room, not one swaddled infant, but two identical babies

lay sleeping in a playpen.wering my calls with strained, “Give us more time, Mom,” before hanging up. My heart ached; six months felt like an eternity.