I couldn’t be happier for Molly and Jamie. They tried for a while to get pregnant and had no luck. Then, out of the blue, they were offered the opportunity to adopt Hazel. And when Hazel was just six months old, Molly discovered she was already three months pregnant. And now they have two babies under the age of two.
Henry blinks a couple of times before he starts sucking on his fist.
I soon realize somebody has a wet diaper. “Molly, he’s wet. If you’ll hand me his diaper bag, I’ll change him.”
“Do you want me to do it?” she asks as she rises from the floor, grabs the baby’s bag, and brings it to me.
“That’s all right. I’ll do it.”
As I’m changing Henry’s diaper, Luke comes to stand beside us. He gently touches the baby’s face, first his nose, then his cheeks and his forehead. “He’s so little. Was Sissy this little, too?”
“Yes, she was. In fact, she was almost exactly this size when she was born.”
“Was I this small when I was born?”
“Actually, you were even smaller. You came a little bit early.”
“I guess I was in a hurry.” He gazes at Henry in fascination, watching as I change the baby’s diaper. “He’s a boy because he has a penis like me.”
I bite my lip, trying not to laugh. “Yes, he is.”
Luke turns his attention to Shane, who’s sitting beside me. “Daddy, I really want a brother.”
Shane manages to keep a straight face. “You’ll have to ask your mother.”
Not surprisingly, Luke turns his attention back to me. “Mama? Aunt Annie’s having another one.”
“I’ll think about it,” I say as I finish dressing Henry after his change.
Shane gives me a small smile before he leans over to kiss my cheek and whispers, “Our son wants a brother.”
“I heard,” I say, knowing full well my biological clock is ticking once more.
When Hazel notices the small crowd hovering around her brother, she abandons her new gifts—a stuffed kitty and a soft cloth baby doll with strawberry blonde hair—and crawls over to us. Using the sofa cushions for support, she pulls herself up onto her feet.
I watch as Hazel gazes at her new brother. Her blonde curls are starting to show strawberry highlights. Her eyes are like the bright blue of a clear summer sky.
Hazel reaches out and gently pats Henry’s cheek. “Bee-bee.”
“Yes, he’s your baby brother. Can you sayHenry?”
She looks at me and says, “Bee-bee.”
Molly, who scooted over to join us, leans in to kiss Hazel’s cheek. “That’s close enough, sweetie.”
“Bee-bee,” Hazel says as she brushes his hair.
Not wanting to be left out, Ava leans over from Shane’s lap and pats Henry’s foot. “Baby.”
“I don’t know about the rest of you guys,” Shane says, “but I’m in serious need of coffee. And food. I’m starving.”
He receives rousing agreement from the adults, who rise and collect their children.
* * *
Elly has breakfast so well organized. Parents bring the kids into the kitchen and seat them around the big table. There arenow five high chairs around the long table for the little girls, plus a booster seat for Luke, and a regular chair for Aiden.
“Now the rest of you go to the dining room and eat before the food gets cold,” Elly says, shooing us adults out of the room. “The grandmas and I will take care of feeding the little ones.”
