(Though it's definitely cute when the grandpa shows up!) There are certainly ways that a mother-and-father family could try to incorporate a dad into the story if children ask about him (i.e., he's already waiting at the hospital for mommy) but for such a special and family-based occasion I think it's clear that the author and illustrator chose this to be a mom-only scenario. While this could work well for some families, I could also see it being a problem for others. Just an FYI: There is no daddy in this story. Helen Oxenbury's illustrations are marvelous here! I love everything from the color choices to the subtle changes in the mother's baby belly, to the humor in the spreads with the baby doing silly things. And, in the end, he is both comfortable and excited that "there's going to be a baby." The little boy imagines all sort of funny scenarios of a baby doing those things.
Throughout daily errands and special outings, the little boy asks questions about what the new brother or sister will be like, and the mother proposes some ideas, maybe the baby will be a banker, or a baker, or work at a zoo, or become a doctor. We watch her baby bump grow through spring showers, summer-time at the beach, and the first fallen leaves of autumn.
This story follows the seasons as a mother tells her little boy in late winter that "There's going to be a baby" in the fall.
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