Creating Family

"To be very honest and blunt, I'm happiest when I can do something for both my wives. I just love taking care of them." Al said.

The evening ended with no new partners for the night. The next morning we had leftovers for breakfast, spent the day enjoying our expanded family and talking. At about four in the afternoon Kathleen found me sitting in our van listening to the radio.

"Needed a little space?" She asked. I nodded.

"Still need it or can I join you?" I motioned her into the van. She got me into the shotgun seat and her into my lap. She didn't talk once we were situated. The radio played classical music and my thoughts wandered.

When I came back I noticed it was almost dark and getting pretty cold. "Let's go inside, Sweetheart."

"Daddy, I love you. I love being held like this. When I was little Melissa and I would sit on your laps while you and Daddy Bob watched football or anything. We felt so loved and safe. I still feel it." She kissed me. My heart filled and ran over.

We went back inside. Mark met us and asked, "Was it a good conversation?"

Kathleen answered, "The best. Daddy knows how to listen."

Dinner was very informal and mostly leftovers again. I had a turkey and ham sandwich with cranberry sauce. I also had smashed potatoes with cranberry sauce topping. Al watched me make my plate and asked, "If I can find some vanilla ice cream for dessert will you put cranberry sauce on it too?" I smiled and nodded. I love Kim's cranberry sauce.

We went to bed early that night so we could be on the road early the next morning. We backed out of the driveway at exactly six in the morning. Coffee in traveling cups steaming and a traffic and weather report on the radio to begin our drive. At seven-thirty I saw a Cracker Barrel restaurant and stopped. Marion laughed because she saw it just as I did and she felt the van start to slow in that same instant. Everyone in the family knows I love breakfast in the Cracker Barrel.

The waitress who served us treated us like she was a sister, an aunt or someone we had known all our lives. We joked, laughed and bantered like we had been having breakfast together for twenty-five years. It was a great breakfast, great food, wonderful company and when we were ready to leave I left her a huge tip. She hugged all of us as we left.

Back in the van Melissa asked, "Dad, how big a tip did you leave?"

"The bill was about sixty. I left her thirty. I don't know what exact percentage that is, but she earned it."

"She was just having fun."

"Yes, and it's contagious! I loved breakfast! I feel good about the whole morning."

We sang along with music from the radio. We talked about Alissa and Janet and their parents. I thought about the four days until Melissa and Kathleen needed to head back to school.

When we got home we all went into work mode. The washing machine started running, the house got cleaned, phone calls were made to friends the girls wanted to see before going back to school. I took their car in for service.

When I got back there were young people in the house and it was noisy. They finished the leftovers and were good enough to clean up before they left. I stayed in my basement office while they partied upstairs. Kim joined me for a while and then Marion joined us. Before bedtime Kathleen and I spent some time in the basement and I made another deposit, without bellowing.

On the day the girls left for school I watched the weather reports every couple hours. A big winter storm was headed for them but I thought they would get to school before it found them. They drove straight through and beat the storm by five hours. They called from their apartment at one in the morning.

The next morning I was back at work. Marion went back to work two days later. She worked in the office of the middle school where all four of our kids had attended. We reestablished our routines and life went along smoothly for a few weeks.

Kathleen and Melissa emailed every few days to tell us about school, the weather and about looking for post-graduation employment. Nothing was said about periods or pregnancy.

On Valentine's Day we were having dinner at a favorite restaurant when Marion's cell phone rang. A second later Kim's rang and so did mine. We answered and heard the two girls screaming, "We're pregnant!"

My wives got all the details. I just sat back, overwhelmed by the knowledge that Kathleen was having a baby... and it was mine. Marion and Kim talked to the girls for a long time and I didn't hear any of it.

The next day both Moms got calls from their sons. The wedding plans had been moved up. Seems Janet and Alissa had made the same announcement to Ken and Mark that Kathleen had made the day before. The wedding was for March first.

I put my foot down and said that there were to be no phone calls between ten at night and seven in the morning. Even with that I worried some days that the lines would melt from use. Melissa and Kathleen flew back for the wedding of their brothers.

None of the girls looked pregnant at the wedding. I heard people at the reception saying, "The first baby comes anytime. The second one takes nine months."

At the end of the weekend Kathleen and Melissa flew back to school. Melissa called home in April and let us know she had accepted a job offer, starting in July. They would be two hours away.

I was feeling like life was accelerating. I was fast heading towards being grandpa three times over. My birthday was sneaking up on me and I hoped no one noticed. Let the focus be on the new generation.

No such luck.

Kim arranged for us to fly out on the Friday before my birthday to Seattle. She and Marion packed for us and arranged everything. All I had to do was follow directions and say, "Yes, Dear," often.

On Saturday we took a taxi from the hotel in Seattle to a ship docked in Vancouver B.C.. For seven days we cruised the Inside Passage to Alaska. We had a cabin with a balcony and we could sit on that balcony and watch islands drift by. We saw whales in the water near us, moose, bear, and elk on the shore and eagles flying near us, all from our balcony.

Either Kim or Marion called the girls every day. I know because I got to see the phone bill. It was a case of no news is good news. The doctor told Kathleen she was doing fine. Both girls heard a faint heart beat.

During the summer all the kids moved, got settled and came home for a couple of visits. I still felt like life was accelerating.

On September fifth our three cell phones rang, three times. At six in the morning we were told that Janet was on her way to the hospital. Her contractions were five minutes apart. Kim and Marion were already packed. I was too, I just didn't know it.

At eleven-twenty the cells rang again. Kathleen was on her way to the hospital. Her contractions were five minutes apart. That complicated things. Janet was a three hour drive to the west of our house. Kathleen was two and half hours south.

Marion was going with me to Kathleen. Kim put her suitcase in her car and headed for Janet.

At two the cell phones rang again. Alissa's water broke. We kept driving.

The cell phones allowed us to be in the delivery room with Kathleen and talk to Kim who was with Ken and Mark. Alissa delivered first. A six pound three ounce boy. Born at seven twenty eight in the evening.

Kathleen delivered at nine-fifty. She delivered a seven pound exactly, girl. Fifteen minutes later Janet had an eight pound two ounce girl. She had lots of auburn curly hair. Kim said the baby looked like she did when she was a baby. She said Alissa's baby looked at lot like Ken. Ken said both babies looked like him. Mark said neither of them looked like him.

Marion told Kim that the little girl sucking on Kathleen's breast looked a lot like me. Then she said maybe it was because sucking is something I like doing so much.

Kathleen and Melissa named their daughter Roberta N. Jones. I asked what the "N" stood for. Kathleen looked at me for a long time before she answered: "The birth certificate will only show the "N." Anyone who asks will be told it's a secret. You will always know it stands for the name of her Daddy, Melissa's and mine."

"Oh. Him. I think I can keep that secret."

"I love you, Daddy." We hugged. I got to hold the baby for a while and then she was passed to Grandma Marion and then on to Momma Melissa. They had already decided to be Momma Melissa and Mommy Kathleen.

We rented a big lodge by the lake for Thanksgiving. Between birth and Thanksgiving our extended-expanded family had spent lots of time together. The lodge had seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms and a huge central living area. I made sure the place had a big TV for football, a big kitchen for all the cooking and lots of space between the bedrooms with babies and those for us older folk.

I sat in one of the four recliner chairs and started watching football with the other Grandfathers and Dads. Kathleen came in from the kitchen and slid into my lap. The other grandfathers watched as she tore off pieces of a warm fresh roll and fed them to me.

Mark said, "My sisters have been doing that since they were about two."

Al said, "I hope she tells Janet and Alissa about the tradition."

When the roll was gone Kathleen kissed me and left the room. She went back in the kitchen.

The instant half time began Melissa, Janet and Alissa walked in, each carrying a warm roll in her hand. Each went to her Daddy and sat in his lap. Each fed her Daddy pieces of warm roll. Mine was buttered.

They left and a few minutes later our wives came in, each smiling and holding a roll in her hand. I smiled and watched. Kim walked to Al and sat on his lap. Marion sat on Paul's lap. Carol sat on my right leg, Beth on the left. Each woman fed the man she was with the roll she had brought.

The game restarted and we missed the first few plays. We were being fed rolls. When the rolls were gone each woman kissed the man she was sitting on. The kisses I got could have started a fire! Both women knew how to kiss and seemed to enjoy doing it.

When the kisses ended the four women got up and Beth said, "I think the boys are hard! Amazing what a warm roll will do to a man." They giggled and left us.

It was a good game. We have no idea what happened during halftime on the field.

It was a great dinner. Early in the evening the families with babies went to their end of the house and were not seen again until morning. The grandparents sat by the big fireplace and talked. At nearly eleven Paul stood up and stretched. Carol asked, "Is that the signal that you want to go to bed?"

"Yes. Would you like to go with me?"

Kim asked, "Which of us are you asking?"

Paul looked at Kim, then at Carol. Carol spoke. "We talked in the kitchen. We said we wanted the relationship first. We agreed, we have it. Since you asked first, you get first choice. Any woman here is ready and willing to go to bed with you, Paul. Choose."

Paul thought about it for a while. Then he asked, "You're serious?"

Carol said, "I was right. He thinks this is a trick. He thinks if he picks Kim or Marion Beth and I will be pissed. Paul, I want you to take either Kim or Marion and go to bed. I want you to love her like you love us. We are family."

"Kim, would you please go to bed with me?"

"Yes! Go to your suitcase and get what you need for tomorrow. We'll use my bedroom, where all my stuff lives."

Al was on his feet, stretching. We all laughed. He said, "Marion, would you do me the honor of this... sleepover?" We all laughed again. That left me, Beth and Carol.

I stood. "Ladies, I love sleeping with two beautiful women. Tonight I'd be especially honored if the two beautiful women were you."

"We're going to my room," Beth said, "I tote more stuff than Carol and anyway her room is next door."

"I'll get stuff for tomorrow and meet you in the hallway." I said. I got my clothes and dop kit in less than a minute. When I entered the room Kim was starting to undress. Paul blushed. I kissed Kim and helped her off with her blouse. I grabbed my stuff and left, saying, "Keep the noise down a little, Ok?"

They both laughed.

Carol stood in the hallway, barefoot and with her blouse unbuttoned. She aimed me into the bedroom and closed the door behind herself.