Undine’s excitement (and her attempt to hide it) suggests that if she ever was sick, she has long since recovered. Despite Undine’s mistrust of Elmer, she lets him carry Paul, suggesting how reckless she is with her son. Alternatively, it’s possible Undine is deliberately trying out a new father for her son to imagine life after a divorce. Ralph’s physical shortness represents his inadequacies, at least in Undine’s eyes.