Easter Bunnies

Chapter 2

Mellie spotted the green tinfoil wrapping of an Easter egg hiding nestled among some dandelions, sparkling in the warm sunlight, and she toddled over at once to snatch it up before Hazel or Jackie could get to it. She dropped it into her little wicker basket and felt a burst of pride so strong that she simply had to do a happy little dance to let out some of her feelings. Her diaper crinkled between her legs, and she could feel her bunny ears wobbling on her head as she hopped happily from foot to foot. She didn’t like her stupid nappy, but she loved her fluffy bunny ears, and she loved the rest of her outfit too. Her pretty dress was yellow and white, and it had a big bow on the back. Daddy said it made her look very pretty.

She heard laughter behind her, and she looked around to see Daddy chuckling at her. He was sitting on the decking with Hazel and Jackie’s Daddies, and they were sipping some grown-up drink out of glasses. She’d already had her orange juice from a nice, safe sippy-cup. Because she was a big girl, Daddy had said. She didn’t need to be bottle-fed like Jackie. She wasn’t as big as Hazel (who didn’t even need a diaper!) but she wasn’t a silly baby either. She grinned back at her Daddy and waved.

Hazel toddled over to her. “How many eggs haf you got, Mewwie?” she demanded.

Mellie looked into her basket. She didn’t know. Numbers were so hard, but she didn’t want to look silly in front of a big girl like Hazel. “Fwee…” she said, uncertainly.

Hazel giggled. “Nu-uh! You gots way more than fwee!” She peered into Mellie’s basket, her face scrunched up with the effort of thinking. “You gots… seven!” She looked back at Mellie and put her hands on her bare hips, smiling smugly. “You can’t count! You just a baby wike Jackie!”

“No!” Mellie whined, stamping her foot. “I a big girl!”

“Nu-uh!” Hazel said again, shaking her head. “You need nappies! You just a baby!”

Mellie felt tears welling up in her eyes. “I don’t!” She hiked up her dress and reached for the tapes of her disposable diaper, intending to rip the stupid, babyish thing off and throw it into the bushes.

“Don’t touch your nappy, Mellie!” Daddy’s stern voice rang out across the garden, and Mellie whipped her hand away from the tapes at once with a whimper. “You need it, baby girl! Taking it off is a big no-no!”

Hazel smirked with satisfaction and ran off to find some more eggs, bare bottom jiggling, but she stopped after just a few paces and clutched a hand to her princess parts. “Daddy!” she cried, looking over at the grown-ups with sudden desperation. She started dancing just like Mellie had been, hopping from one foot to the other. “I need my potty, Daddy! Gotta pee-pee now!”

“Okay, darling!” her Daddy replied. “Come here quickly! I’ve got your potty!”

“You too, Jackie!” Jackie’s Daddy said. “Time for a diaper check!”

“And you Mellie!” Mellie’s own Daddy called, his voice much gentler this time. He spread his arms wide. “Come to Dada, sweetheart! I want to see how many eggs you’ve found!”

Mellie’s bad feelings at being scolded vanished at once, and a big smile tugged at her lips. She ran as fast as she could over to the decking, following behind Hazel potty-dancing her way towards her Daddy. Jackie brought up the rear, toddling along like she’d barely learned to walk. Her nappy was hanging very low between her legs. She was such a silly baby, Mellie thought, throwing a superior look over her shoulder at the girl. Her nappy wasn’t anywhere near that droopy – though as she waddled over to her Daddy, she felt a sudden wetness spreading around her no-no spot. With a blush, she realised she was wetting herself. She wished she could hold it and use the potty like a big girl, but she couldn’t control when she went pee-pee. Daddy had told her so, and Daddy was always right. Warm wee-wee flooded her diaper as she toddled towards the decking, and the thirsty padding between her legs soaked it all up. She could feel her Pampers getting heavier and bulkier, pushing her thighs apart and making her waddle even more pronounced.

“Hurry, Daddy!” Hazel pleaded, squirming in desperation as her Daddy placed a white training potty down on the decking in front of her. He took her by the hands and guided her bottom down onto the plastic seat, and Hazel let out a loud sigh of relief. A moment later, the tinkling sound of pee hitting the bottom of her potty reached their ears, just as Mellie reached the decking and fell into her Daddy’s arms.

“What a big girl!” Hazel’s Daddy crooned, stroking Hazel’s bare back and bending down to kiss the top of her head. “Look at you going pee-pee in the potty, just like a grown-up!”

Hazel beamed up at him, and Mellie watched jealously. Her full lips formed a pout, and her grumpiness only worsened when she felt Daddy pulling back the waistband of her nappy to check her bottom. “No messies yet,” he declared, letting her diaper snap back into place. He slipped his hand down the front of her pants next. “Uh-oh…” he cooed, taking a seat in a garden chair and pulling her into his lap. “I think somebody’s done a big pee-pee, hasn’t she?” He bounced her on his knee and made her soggy diaper squish beneath her. “Does Daddy’s little girl have an icky wet nappy?”

“Daddddyyyy…” Mellie whined, wrinkling her nose and blushing.

“I’m sorry, baby girl,” he said, kissing her on the nose. “I didn’t mean to make you upset. I know how sensitive you are about your baby pants, but you’re just too little for the potty at the moment. Maybe Daddy will potty train you in a few years’ time, hmm? Would you like that, princess?”

“Weally?!” Mellie looked into his face excitedly. She didn’t know how long a year was, but she desperately wanted to get out of diapers.

Daddy chuckled and bounced her on his knee again. “Sure, baby. It might take a while, but maybe one day you’ll be able to wear big girl pull-ups, or even go bare botty like Hazel!”

“Yay!” Mellie wiggled happily in his lap. “Fank you, Daddy!”

All of the grown-ups started laughing then. Hazel giggled too, and even Jackie let out a happy gurgle. Mellie joined in, but she didn’t really get what was funny.

“I’m not sure my little lady is ever getting out of nappies,” said Jackie’s Daddy as he lifted his baby girl’s legs into the air by the ankles, exposing her messy bottom. Near the beginning of the egg hunt, Jackie had squatted down in the middle of the garden and pooped her pants, but since she didn’t fuss much over a dirty diaper, there’d been no need to change her straight away. “Are you, stinky-bum?” her Daddy cooed while he worked at her bottom with baby wipes. “I think you’re going to spend the rest of your life in messy nappies!”

“Methee nappeeth!” Jackie echoed, lifting her legs all the way back over her head and trying to cram her toes into her mouth.

“You’re a bit soggy,” Mellie’s Daddy told her, hugging her tightly, “but I don’t think you need a change just yet.” He patted her crotch. “That nappy can hold a lot more.”

Once Hazel had finished on her potty, and Jackie was done getting her nappy changed, the three girls had their egg baskets inspected. Mellie had seven, Hazel had ten, and Jackie had four.

“There are still a few more out there,” said Jackie’s Daddy. “Shall we take advantage of the good weather and let them keep playing for now?”

“Good idea,” said Hazel’s Daddy. “It would be good for them to burn off some more energy before naptime. My little tot will be bouncing off the walls if we take her inside.”

“Alright girls,” said Mellie’s Daddy. “Good job finding all those eggs! Do you think you can find the last ones too?”

The three ladies nodded earnestly.

“Then off you go, little ones!” said Daddy. He gave Mellie’s bottom a pat to send her on her way, and she toddled off back into the garden with her two friends, diaper squishing wetly between her thighs, eager to find as many eggs as she could.