I realized I had to take action when my husband suggested our daughter wasn’t “European” enough. I thought I’d gone too far, but as I watched his world come apart, I came up with a plan to teach him a lesson. I found myself standing in my living room, gazing at my spouse as if he were unfamiliar. Peter’s words lingered in the air between us, and my world tipped on its axis.

“What do you mean, you want another kid?” I asked, attempting to maintain a steady tone.

“Amelia’s only one year old, and you’ve been distant ever since she was born.” Peter sidestepped my stare as he ran a hand over his hair.

“Well, Nora, I just hoped she would end up pale and blue-eyed like my mother and sister. However, she doesn’t resemble my vision at all.”

My mouth dropped. “Are you serious right now?”

“I just thought maybe our second one would look more… you know, European?”

I answered sharply, “No, actually, I don’t know what you mean.” “Care to explain?”

Peter moved apprehensively. “Let me say that I’m honored to be Norwegian. My family won’t put up with Amelia looking so… brown, I’m afraid.”

I was hearing things that I couldn’t believe. Speaking about our daughter as though she were a letdown, even my own spouse. I started to feel angry, and before I knew it, we were having a heated disagreement.

“Peter, she’s our daughter! How are you even able to think this way?” I yelled.

He cried back, “I can’t help how I feel!” “I just wanted a kid that looked like me!”

We spent what seemed like hours going back and forth. I was heartbroken and fatigued by the time Peter stormed out, slamming the door behind him. But while I sat there in the stillness, a thought started to come to me. I grabbed my phone and called my mother.

“Hi, Mom. Do you have a couple days to watch Amelia? Peter needs to learn a lesson from me.”

Thank God, my mother didn’t ask a lot of questions. She merely uttered, “Obviously, honey. Whenever you’re ready, invite her over.”

“Thanks, Mom,” I moaned. “I’ll explain everything later, I promise.”

After Peter departed for work the following morning, I packed up Amelia’s belongings. I kept thinking about Peter’s remarks as I zipped up her little luggage. How was he not able to notice her perfection? With a heavy heart, I traveled to my mother’s house. Mom hugged me after taking one look at my face when I got there.

“Oh, honey,” she said. “What happened?”

That’s when I broke down and told her everything in tears. She listened with incredulity and rage. “That man,” she murmured once I was done. “I ought to give him a piece of my mind.”

“No, Mom,” I wiped my tears and answered. “I have a scheme in place. Please just watch after Amelia for me. She drew Amelia closer as she nodded.

“I’m sure I will. You take the necessary action.”

It was harder than I thought to leave Amelia. I gave her plump cheeks a kiss and breathed in her lovely baby smell. I whispered, “Mommy loves you so much.” “Never forget that.” I spent the day preparing myself for what was ahead after I came home. That night, my heart began to race as soon as I heard Peter’s key in the lock. Entering, he scowled at the unexpected silence. “Nora? “Where is Amelia?”

I inhaled deeply. “I gave her up for adoption.”

Peter became very pale. “What? What topic are you discussing?”

I said in a firm voice, “Well, you said you wanted a more Nordic-looking child.” “I therefore believed we could try again. Perhaps this time we’ll have the pale-skinned, blue-eyed child you’ve always wanted.”