mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog

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Just a PSA

penny-polendina-isms:

Reblog if you don’t ignore rps and asks but sometimes it takes you a while to think of a response, or you only have time to answer a question or two before doing other things.

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

How do you feel about Arnold having a girlfriend at such a young age?

“Heh, a lot of parents might say 10′s a little early to be calling someone your boyfriend or your girlfriend,” Stella chuckles. “After all, Arnold hasn’t even hit puberty yet, it’s hard for a boy to discern infatuation over love at his age. But they’re very sweet on each other; there’s nothing to really discourage. Helga’s a great girl, we’d love to call her a part of our family.”

“We figure it hardly matters what Arnold or Helga call each other, their relationship is going to be the same regardless,” Miles agrees with a smile. “And if they stay this sweet on each other until they’re teenagers and adults, which they probably will, and they get married…”

“…then I guess it was meant to be,” Stella finishes for him tenderly with a small peck to her husband’s cheek.

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shcrtman:

He stayed stock still on the couch, a look of realization appearing on his face. His mom’s words eliciting a soft gasp from him. “You’re right! I’m gonna have the coolest sister on the block!” Now it didn’t even matter to Arnold what gender the baby was, he was just stoked to finally be getting a sibling. He made a mental note that after telling Gerald he’d start making a list of all the things he wanted to teach, tell, and show the new baby.

Arnold glanced up at his dad, a wide smile gleaming on his face. “That sounds great! Oo, can I tell Grandma and Grandpa at dinner?! Pleeaase!” Immediately he switched on the puppy-dog eyes. No parent could resist puppy-dog eyes. Even he knew that.

“Of course you can, champ!” Miles ruffled Arnold’s hair excitedly as he stood up from the sofa. No way he could resist that pleading puppy-dog look on his son’s face, even if his life depending on him saying ‘no’. Not when it came to this. “You can tell everyone at dinner tonight! And when it’s time to find out if it’s gonna be a boy or a girl, we can have a big party to celebrate!”

“Hoh, this is so exciting!” Stella could still hardly believe this was happening; their tiny little family was going to have another new member! Part of her hoped it was a girl, but she would love another little boy with every ounce of her heart and soul too. She just knew the baby was going to be one of the family in no time and that he/she and Arnold would get along famously. “We have to start getting ready as soon as possible!”

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

shcrtman replied to your post “I swear, someone better give me a good reason not to give Mr....”

//Ok this is so great and you know Phil would be right there with Stella ready for the takedown

HelgaProtectionSquad2k18

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

“I swear, someone better give me a good reason not to give Mr. High-and-Mighty Pataki a fresh black eye. Or strangle him.”

“Stella, we’re all angry at him, but you can’t assault someone for something like that, you could go to jail for that.”

“Watch me, Shortman, I’m not afraid to go to court.”

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

Sorry for being MIA the last couple of days. My muses were kind of muffled by some IRL stuff that’s been going on the last couple days. I’ll be getting to all my asks and drafts tomorrow! Fingers crossed nothing else happens!

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This started with me kind of hoping we get a small bonding moment between Helga and Stella in the movie. I think it’d be really nice if Helga had an adult female role model type of person who could actually be there for her if she needed it and who better than Stella, really. Also I get the feeling Stella would love her and make it a point to show she’s cared for, especially once she finds out her family situation. I also think it’d be cute if Helga is a little star struck with both Arnold’s parents at first because a) they created the most important person in her life and b) they’re pretty badass/cool. Anyway, I kept thinking about it and remembered Stella saying the punching line like two times in The Journal, then this happened, b/c if anyone else is more than ready to punch pple in the face it’s Helga.

I couldn’t help adding Miles and Arnold in there for some shortaki either. I am weak.

Also I guess this can take place after my other comic (just ignore that I changed Arnold’s shirt ‘cause we got his new jungle outfit) where Arnold realizes he’s fallen for her. He hasn’t told her yet, but he’s def falling harder by the second.

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shcrtman:

Nervousness bubbled up in his stomach as he plopped himself on the couch between his parents. This was definitely ‘family meeting’ territory now. He turned his head and his gaze was fixed on his mom as she spoke. As he listened his mind snagged on the word ‘clinic’ for a moment. His little heart stopped momentarily. Everything seemed to slow down, that was until he heard the rest of her statement. He took a breath knowing that there wasn’t anything to worry about.

So why would she have needed to go to the clinic he wondered to himself. A million thoughts swirled in his mind. She said there was nothing wrong with her, so she couldn’t have been sick. Was she planning on going back to San Lorenzo? Did she go to the clinic for vaccinations for the trip? Brow furrowing he glanced at his dad. If she were going back to San Lorenzo his dad would surely be going with her. He would have had to get the same vaccines. At least that’s what Arnold suspected.

His attention shifted back to his mom as she continued. The weight of her hand on his shoulder felt reassuring. And there was something about the tone of her voice, it was excited but at the same time soothing. It made Arnold forget completely about any nerves he’d felt. And then it happened. Arnold heard the words he’d always longed to hear but had all but given up hope on. He almost couldn’t believe his ears.

“A baby?! Really?! I’m- I’m gonna be a big brother?!” He asked looking back and forth between his parents. Though he definitely didn’t wait for any answers. “I always wanted a brother or sister! I hope it’s a boy! I’m gonna teach him to play baseball. And football! And Gerald and me can teach him our handshake! And we can all go to baseball games at Quigley Stadium! And Dinoland and Wanky Land and the Cheese Fair and, and—“ He could’t even finish his thoughts, they were all coming too fast. It was clear from his inability to stay on one subject for more than a fleeting moment that he was somewhat excited by the news. After all, he’d heard all the stories about Gerald’s brother and sister and heard all Helga’s gripes about her sister, he’d finally get to see what all the fuss about having a sibling was about. He jumped up onto the couch and gave each of his parents a big bear hug in turn. “I can’t wait to tell Gerald!”

Both Stella and Miles were more than relieved to see Arnold so overjoyed. Stella suppressed a small delighted laugh with her hands as Arnold shelled out his thoughts rapid-fire, and Miles’ anxiety immediately vanished as his hand grabbed Arnold’s shoulder in a vain attempt to calm him; not that he really wanted to. They both threw their arms around their soon-to-be-eldest boy and held him tight in return for a brief moment.

“Hehe well, you know you can do all of that if it’s a girl too, Arnold,” Stella giggled, unable to contain her own motherly joy; any worries she’d had about Arnold being sour about her pregnancy or having a baby sibling seemed to vanish entirely. “I’m so glad you’re as excited as we are!” She cheered with a vigorous nod. 

“We still have to tell Mom and Dad so we can start planning,” Miles interjected politely with his own newfound energy as he pat her shoulder excitedly before looking down to Arnold. “Why don’t you go tell Gerald now and we’ll tell everyone else at dinner tonight? How’s that sound?”

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shcrtman:

Arnold sat at his desk upstairs in his room when he heard his mom call for him. A smile appeared on his face at the sound of her voice. It wasn’t something he could control, it just happened. He was just still so excited to have them back. “Be right there, Mom!” He called back as he finished writing his last answer on the page in front of him. His mom and dad hadn’t really told him anything, but Arnold could sense something was up. His dad seemed nervous—but not a bad nervous. It was more like an excited nervous. Either way, Arnold decided it wasn’t something to be worried about.

He threw his pencil down and jumped up from his seat. He bounded out of his room and down the stairs. The smile still gleaming on his face. Upon arriving downstairs he found his parents sitting in the living room. He tried to read their expressions as he entered the room. Neither of them looked upset, so that was a good thing, right? “Hi Mom, Dad. What’s up?” His voice was calm and collected but inside his curiosity was starting to rise. The scene before him was starting to feel like the beginnings of a family meeting.

“Well...” Stella took a deep, excited breath as she sat down next to Miles on the sofa and patted the portion of the sofa between them, beckoning Arnold to sit down in between them. “I just got back from the clinic, and I’m happy to report that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with me.”

She felt Miles put an arm around her shoulders, both excited and a little anxious to see how Arnold might handle the news. On the one hand, he may have been really excited, but on the other, there was the possibility of him taking it the wrong way as well. Like it or not, there was nothing any of them could do to change the happy accident that fell in their laps, but... they could only hope he’d be happy and excited.

“In fact, it’s something very good, and very exciting,” she continued, putting her hand on Arnold’s shoulder as she seemed to beam in a way, hoping he would feed off of her excitement. “The doctor ran some tests and they told me that, well... in a few months, your father and I are having another baby! You’re going to be a big brother!”

Miles squeezed her shoulder noticeably and tried hard to mask his anxiety with his own inner excitement, hoping and praying Arnold took the news well. They had a 50/50 chance of Arnold reacting any number of ways, it was hard to tell how he was going to respond to news like this; he just hoped it was a good response.

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“Arnold! Can you come down into the living room for a minute?” Stella called up the open stairs to her son’s bedroom, loud enough to where she was sure he’d hear him before hurrying back downstairs. 

It had only been a few minutes since she’d returned from the walk-in clinic. It was purely on Miles’ insistence when she’d been experiencing chronic cramps for the last few days. It was the same way over ten years ago; she was certain that she was fine, but Miles was the worry-wart that urged her to ‘double check to be sure’, the big lug. 

Admittedly, the drive home was a bit nerve-wracking, wondering how her boys would handle the news. Miles, waiting downstairs, was both excited and nervous, for the same reasons she was. Mainly, how Arnold might react. It was one thing to hope and wish, but a whole other situation entirely to learn it was really happening.

@shcrtman

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

shcrtman:

Arnold knew his parents meant every word they said. He knew they loved him. Even before getting them back he knew how much his parents loved him. His grandparents never let a day go by without reminding him of the love they themselves and his parents had for him. He knew he was lucky to have that—not every child was.  

Despite knowing that his his mom and dad would do anything for him, he couldn’t help feeling the teeniest bit of guilt in the pit of his stomach. Of course it was secondary to the fear and anxiety he felt, but it was still there. This was a recurring thing with him, these terrors waking him up and in turn disturbing their sleep. It must have been tiresome to have to comfort him night after night all because of the nightmares. He tried to shake the thought from his mind. His anxious mind was just trying to create more problems for him in the moment.

As his mother’s gentle touch worked to wipe away his tears Arnold decided to let them in a bit. If he didn’t talk about what he’d seen in his nightmare he feared it would remain in his mind to fester and create more problems. He also feared his hope for more sleep would be ruined.

“You-you wouldn’t wake up.” HIs voice still soft but stronger now. “Every other adult woke up…but…but you wouldn’t. We tried everything. Everything we could think of. To wake you up. Nothing worked.” He paused momentarily, looking to and from each of his parents’ faces. “I-I couldn’t save you.” His gaze fell from them, biting his lip fighting to keep his tears from starting up again. 

Oh... a variation of the ‘I found you, but you were dead’ dream. It wasn’t quite as bad as the “Return of Lasombra” dreams, but still one of the pretty bad ones for Arnold to go through at night. Finding his parents in the middle of the jungle was such an awesome burden for a ten-year-old boy to bear; of course a part of him would still fear failure, still fear that his success was never real...

As hard as it was to smile when hearing this little boy admitting what he’d seen in his nightmares, Stella did her best to offer him a small, supportive smile as her hand cleared his other cheek free of tear traps, while Miles kept his hand around Arnold’s back and gave him gentle but firm rubs and pats. It was the best thing they could think to do to help him calm down.

“But you did save us, Arnold,” Stella reminded him in loving comfort. “You and your friends dispensed the cure for the Sleeping Sickness and woke us up. You’re our little hero, Arnold.”

“I know how real it can feel in the moment, champ,” Miles continued for her in kind, his smile wavering when his memories of the similar struggles him and his wife had gone through at night. It was tough to recall and recount, but if it helped be of any comfort to his son, it was worth fessing up to. “Sometimes, your mom and me have nightmares about the stories we heard, about what you had to go through to wake us up. Sometimes... we wake up worried we’d lost you in the middle of the night somehow.”

Oh, the many nightmares they’d both shared and had on their own; Lasombra returning from the dead to exact revenge by killing or taking Arnold, waking up to only Eduardo curing their illness while Arnold had died in the fight for the Corazon, some other crook breaking in and hurting Arnold... But at least there was one comfort in all of that:

None of them were alone. A lot of the time, solidarity could be a child’s best comfort.

Taking a breath as his comforting smile returned, he continued, “So we understand how that can feel. But no matter how vivid and real those nightmares feel when you’re asleep, they won’t change what really happened when you were awake. That’s something we sometimes have to remind ourselves of too...”

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                                          and we’re wrapped                       in L I G H T                                                                               and L I F E                                                   & L O V E

                                                  ( art ) ♡ ( template )

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

Celebrating my mom’s birthday today, so while I’ll be lurking and available to talk, I may not be able to get to replies until a bit later today. I’ll try to get to everyone I owe replies to!

Pffft, ya know, all two of you. XD

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

protective sentence starters

as requested. Feel free to change pronouns or anything else !

“Don’t you hurt a single hair on his/her/their head.”

“Hands off!”

“What do you think you’re doing to him/her/them?”

“I’ll never let you go.” / “Don’t ever let me go.”

“Don’t ever leave my sight again.”

“I got your back.”

“Where are you going? It’s not safe out there!”

“Do you trust me?”

“Be more careful next time. I don’t want to bandage you up again.”

“Hey, it’s cold outside. At least wear a jacket.”

“I’d die for you.”

“You’ll back off if you know what’s good for you.”

“Get behind me NOW.”

“Here, I have an extra weapon.”

“Duck, you idiot!”

“Go on without me.”

“Well what did you expect would happen while you’re walking alone at night? Come on, let’s get you away from that creep.”

“Hey. Pal. I’ve got a gun/knife/fist/weapon and I’m not afraid to use it.”

“You can stop hugging me now.”

“You scared the shit out of me. I’m never going to stop hugging you.”

“Quit babying me! I can protect myself.”

“I’ll always be there to save you.” / “I know you’ll always be there to save me.”

“If you even THINK about touching him/her/them, I’ll kill you.”

“[choked up] I thought I lost you.” / “[choked up] I never thought I’d see you again.”

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shcrtman:

His mother’s embrace, the warmth of her arms around him, the feel of her actually there with him erased his number one fear—that they’d never been found. He tightened his grip on her momentarily, only to double check, before loosening his arms again but leaving them flung around her. He needed the reassurance that this wasn’t all part of his nightmare as well. If his mind was capable of creating the things he’d seen in his sleep he didn’t doubt it could create the false image of his mom comforting him.

Breath hitching, he tried to focus on her soothing voice. Her words echoing in his ears. You’re safe now…you’re safe now…you’re safe now… He was safe. He knew he was, now. Nothing could happen to him while he was in his mom’s arms. He knew she would do absolutely everything in her power to protect him. Both his parents would. He was sure of that.

Putting all his focus on his mom comforting him and letting her words overtake everything else swirling in his mind he hadn’t heard his dad come into his room. He jumped slightly at the light touch of his dad’s hand on his back. He pulled back from his mother to glance in the direction of the touch and caught a glimpse of his dad now sitting with them. A weak smile appeared on his face, relieved to have his dad there with him now too. A few more tears, again from relief, rolled down his cheeks. One small hand leaving his mother to grip onto his father’s shirt—which was all he could reach.

At his father’s advice Arnold began slowly taking a few deep breaths. The weight and warmth of his dad’s hand on his back making him feel even safer. Nuzzling up to his mom again his tears came to a stop leaving only damp tracks on his cheek. The visions from his nightmare starting to dissipate. The knowledge and proof that his parents were truly there with him taking their place. With his breathing returning to normal Arnold was able find his voice. “I love you.” He spoke softly. It came out barely a whisper, but in the now quiet it was loud enough—he hoped. His hands gripping each of his parents a bit tighter letting them each know his words were meant for the both of them.

The two of them both sat by Arnold patiently, letting him grab and tug whatever and whoever he needed to in those few moments to ground himself and help himself feel safe again. When Arnold grabbed at Miles’ shirt, he and Stella both gave him little, reassuring smiles of their own before he scooted himself closer to the both of them to give his boy more to grab onto and wrapped his arm around his small back a bit more.

That small voice he spoke in nearly broke their hearts, but at the same time was a relief to hear; it meant he was finally calming down to a degree. They both looked down to him with all the love in the world as they held him close to them. Letting him hold onto them and be close to them for as long as he needed to. They may not have been able to take away all his fears or erase the terrifying memories of what happened in San Lorenzo, but they would hug him, dry his cheeks, wipe away his tears and bring him back down to Earth for as long, and as many times, as they needed to.

All they could do was hope that that was enough.

“We love you too, Arnold,” Miles echoed back to Arnold with a firm, loving pat on the back, his voice warm and secure in his words. “We love you so much, son.”

“And we’ll always be here when you need us,” Stella reassured him, bringing up her hand to start wiping away the tear tracks from Arnold’s cheeks, her movements delicate and slow to make sure she got everything and provide some extra motherly comfort for Arnold. “For anything. Anything at all.”

As much as they both wanted to know what had plagued Arnold that night, they knew better than to pry right after a nightmare. Either Arnold would tell them on his own accord tonight, or they could ask him in the morning when he’d had a bit more rest. They decided to let Arnold decide how he wanted to handle this or how much he wanted to tell them tonight if he wanted to talk about it at all.

[mr-and-mrs-shortman-blog]

shcrtman replied to your post: Was it hard readjusting to regular life at home...

oh my god my heart can’t take all this breaking!

HONESTLY, you deserve every bit of heartache you get; comin’ onto my blog, strollin’ up yo my muses, bringing your boy in here and absolutely

WRECKING MY SOUL, GIRL, DAT REPLY DOH

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I didn’t expect to get as many ideas for Miles and Stella as I am until I really started rolling with writing them and rewatching the series. So many ideas that I want to bring up and propose but go “Wait, is it too soon for that?”

Good lord, these two cuties have taken over my life, send help