Growing Another Almeida
"Dinner's ready!" Tony called from the kitchen.
Michelle directed their son's attention away from the 'Go, Diego, Go!' DVD he was engrossed in. "Come on, Anthony. Daddy's done making dinner. Time to eat."
"But I'm watching 'Diego!'" The three-year-old disappointedly protested.
"You can finish it after dinner, 'k? Daddy and Mommy are hungry. And I think sissy's hungry too." Michelle slid her hand across her rounded belly.
He reluctantly averted his eyes from the TV screen and started making his way out of the room. He sighed heavily, emphasizing his displeasure with the situation. "A'right."
Michelle paused the show and smiled at his response. He had already started picking up on a lot his father's habits. He was getting into the stage where he wanted to copy whatever he saw Tony do. Michelle found this endearing. Having a little Tony around just doubled the joy in her life.
They gathered around the kitchen table as Tony scooped up some spaghetti from the pot on the stove into three bowls. He placed a full plastic bowl in front of Anthony and a bowl in front of Michelle before he sat down with his own. Michelle poured a glass of water for herself and one for her husband and handed Anthony a sippy cup of apple juice.
Once everyone was seated, they began to eat. Michelle watched Anthony struggle to gather a forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. "Do you need help with that, sweetheart?"
He scrunched up his nose and continued to focus intently on his food. Something he got from Tony was his stubbornness, and he collected independency from Michelle. With the mix of the two, he was always determined to do things on his own. "No. I can do it."
He attempted the transfer of food into his mouth once again, but ended up watching the forkful unwind and fall back into his bowl. He slouched over with a defeated look on his face and turned his glance over to Tony, watching him fork his food and eat it effortlessly. He tried to imitate Tony's methods, only failing again at getting a sufficient amount of the pasta into his mouth.
"Let Daddy help you, Anthony," Michelle tried another time.
"Here buddy, let me show you." Tony grabbed Anthony's fork and cut up some of the noodles into smaller pieces. "Look... Like this." He twisted a few noodles onto the fork and held it up to his son. Anthony took the fork and successfully swallowed a whole bite. "Now you try it."
With wide eyes, Anthony twisted the spaghetti around his fork like Tony demonstrated to him. The bunch of noodles loosened a little, but he got it in his mouth nonetheless. A smile broke over his face.
"You did it!" Michelle praised his success and smiled.
Tony ruffled his dark, curly hair and offered his accolade as well, "There ya go."
Satisfied, Anthony continued to eat his food until he cleared his bowl. When he was finished he licked his lips and took a big sip of juice, washing it all down. "Mmm, that was yummy. Thanks, Daddy."
Tony smiled and leaned over to kiss his head. "Welcome."
Michelle stood and cleared all the empty bowls from the table. She placed them in the sink and began to wash them along with the other dishes when Tony came up behind her. He gently pushed her out of the way and took the half-rinsed bowl from her hand. "I got it, honey. Go sit down."
"No, you made dinner. It's just a few dishes, I got it," Michelle argued.
Tony shook his head, "No, you need to rest." He looked down at her stomach, implying the baby that had been wearing her out in this seventh month of pregnancy.
Michelle sighed and gave in, knowing that she really would rather be sitting down. Their unborn daughter was a mover. Even more than Anthony had been. She didn't settle down much, and as much as Michelle tried to disprove it, she was tired.
Tony leaned down to Michelle's abdomen and placed his hand over it tenderly. "Speaking of... How's my baby girl doin'?" He pressed his lips against Michelle's covered skin. She beamed as she thought back to all the times Tony had done the same things when she was pregnant with Anthony. Tony had started building a bond with their son before he was even born- which was made evident by their close relationship today- and now he was doing the same with their daughter.
Anthony observed the exchange from the opposite side of the room, like he had been doing for the past few months whenever Tony did it. His head tilted to the side and his eyes displayed interest. "Why does Daddy always talk to Mommy's tummy?" His question hung in the air, directed at either one of them.
Michelle smiled at Tony as he stood up and looked into her brightened eyes with his own. He turned to Anthony and walked over to where he stood, scooping him up in his arms. "You know how you're going to have a baby sister soon?"
He looked at his dad intently with a hint of a smile, "Yeah."
"You know that she's growing in your mom's tummy, right?" He spoke to his son gently and smiled at the thought of having another child with Michelle who would be joining them in just a couple months.
Anthony nodded understandingly, "Uh huh."
"Well, sometimes I like to talk to her while she's in there. Just like I talk to you."
"Oh." He glanced over at Michelle and her baby bump.
"You know, Daddy used to talk to you, too, while you were in my tummy," Michelle added.
Anthony looked back at Tony. "You did?"
"Yep!" Tony smiled at him and kissed his curls.
Their little boy looked both pleased and confused with this news. "Oh... I don't remember it."
Michelle chuckled and also stole a kiss from her son's curly head. "It's ok, we don't really remember things that happen before we're born."
Anthony just responded with a small, closed-mouth smile before his three-year-old attention span directed his mind off the subject. "Can I finish watching 'Diego' now?"
Tony chuckled lightly as he set him back down on the ground and nodded. "Yeah, you and Mommy go on and finish 'Diego' and I'll finish the dishes."
Anthony grabbed Michelle's hand, jumping up and down excitedly. "Come on, Mom! Let's watch Diego!"
"Ok, ok, I'm coming." Michelle pecked Tony on the lips before being dragged out of the room by the eager child.
Later that night when pajamas were on and teeth were brushed, Michelle took Anthony to bed. She pulled down his red covers and kissed his cheek buoyantly as he crawled in.
"Can I have a story, Mama?"
Michelle looked into his big brown eyes and smiled over him. "Yeah! I can read you a story. Which one do you want?"
Anthony picked out one of his favorites and scooted over to the side, allowing Michelle room to sit beside him.
Tony and Michelle had decided early on that it was important for them to read to Anthony often. They wanted him to be well rounded and, well, smart. They also loved the time it allowed them both to spend with him and the joy on his face with the turn of each page.
Michelle cuddled next to him on the bed and opened the book, reading the story as his eyes lit up. He pointed to the pictures and commented on all his favorite parts, as always.
When the book was finished, Michelle closed it and squeezed Anthony against her, kissing his head full of hair. "I love you so much."
Anthony reciprocated the hug. "Love you too!" He settled back and focused on Michelle's bulging stomach as he had earlier. "Mommy, can the baby hear when Daddy talks to her?"
Michelle placed the arm that wasn't around her son on top of her stomach and considered the question. Leave it to Anthony to ask the sort of thing that she didn't really know how to answer. "Uh, I think so. I think she likes hearing our voices. It's good to talk to her. It's like she's getting to know us before she gets here." Michelle ran her fingers through Anthony's soft curls and grinned as he drew circles around the surface of her belly with his little finger, appearing content with her answer.
"Can I talk to her too?" he asked, looking up at Michelle hopefully.
"Of course you can. I think she'd like that."
He sat up more in the bed excitedly and placed his hand gently on Michelle's round belly. He leaned in close, the corners of his lips curling upwards, and his voice raised up an octave or two when he spoke. "Hi, baby." His hand smoothed over the bump and he kissed it through Michelle's thin camisole. "I love you."
Michelle felt her heart melt at the sight. Overwhelmed, she held back the tears of joy threatening her eyes and smiled wider.
Anthony looked up at Michelle exuberantly. "What is sissy's name?"
Michelle opened her mouth to answer and realized she didn't have one yet. "Daddy and I haven't decided yet. What do you want her name to be?" she asked, interested in his response.
He looked back down where the baby resided as Tony entered the room and noticed his son's thoughtful expression. "What are we thinking about?"
"Anthony's thinking about what he wants his sister's name to be," Michelle answered Tony somewhat theatrically. She stayed focused on her son, curious to see what he would say.
"Ah, he is now?" Tony raised an eyebrow at Michelle and shot her a skeptical look, implying that asking a three-year-old what to name a baby could be a bad idea.
"What about Madelyn? I like that name!" Anthony glanced over at Tony, his eyes begging for approval of the choice. He must have heard either her or Tony mention the name before because it was one of the names they had been considering.
Michelle looked at Tony, her lips curving into a victorious grin. Madelyn was the name she had been pushing for the hardest. She directed her attention back to her son, "You like that name?"
Anthony shook his head up and down more rapidly than necessary. Tony scratched his cheek. His head dipped down as a barely noticeable chuckle escaped his lips. "Well, Madelyn it is then." He glanced at Michelle for final approval and she nodded affirmatively.
"Madelyn... Grace?" This time Michelle looked at Tony for approval. Grace had been another name they'd been tossing around for a while.
Tony nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I like that.. Madelyn Grace Almeida."
Anthony released a small squeal and shook the bed a little as he bounced up and down a couple times on his knees. He spoke to his sister again, enthusiastically, but still softly, "Hi, Maddie! I'm your brother, Anthony." Michelle loved that the nickname for her rolled off his tongue so easily. "And you're gonna love Mommy and Daddy." He kissed the belly again and patted it with his little hand before kissing it again one last time.
Michelle and Tony both giggled at the enthusiasm and endearment given from their child. Michelle patted his back and slowly got up from the bed, grunting from her effort in the process. "Ok ready for bed, sweetheart?"
Anthony rubbed his eye with his fist and yawned, the sudden excitement quickly waning. "Yeah.. But can we pray for Maddie first?"
Michelle's eyes squinted in light of her delighted smile. Her son already cared so much for his unborn little sister. "Sure.. Why don't you pray for her.."
Anthony nodded and sat back on his bed, legs crossed, hands folded, and eyes shut tightly. Tony wrapped his arms around Michelle's waist from behind, kissing her cheek and resting his chin on her shoulder as they watched their son.
They stood close to the bed as he began to pray. "Dear Jesus, thank you for letting Mommy have my baby sister in her tummy. Please help her to grow good. Let her come soon and help her to like me when she comes. Amen." He opened his eyes and reached for Michelle, circling his arms around her the most he could. "G'night, Mommy." He kissed her belly once more and added, "Night, baby."
Michelle leaned down and tucked Anthony under the covers. She brushed her hand across his forehead and kissed it softly. He wrapped his arms around her neck and kissed her cheek as she gave her goodnights back to him. "Night, honey. Love you."
"Love you too." He let go and waited for Tony to give his goodnight love too.
Tony repeated Michelle's actions. "Goodnight, little buddy. Love you."
Anthony replied through another yawn, "Love you too, Daddy."
He was completely out cold by the time Tony and Michelle turned out the lights and exited the room. Michelle rubbed her stomach gingerly and couldn't hinder the smile from her face as she entered the living room and picked up a few scattered toys from the ground.
"Maddie." A smooth, deep voice sounded in her hear accompanied by a hand running through her messy curls and another on the side of her stomach. She turned her head around, landing into her husband's deep, tender kiss. He finished his thought after they pulled apart. "I like it.. The name Maddie. I'm glad he chose it."
"Me too." Michelle wrapped her arms around Tony's neck, pressing her enlarged front against him. "We have a great son, you know."
A single chuckle came from Tony's mouth before he replied. "Yeah, we do. You're a good mom."
She colored a little at this, but smiled again and locked eyes with him. "Well you're a pretty great dad. He already looks up to you so much."
He bit his lip and made circles on her stomach with his hands. "Our next one's gonna be all you, baby."
She giggled and questioned his seemingly sure prediction, "And how do you know this?"
A wry grin made its way across his face and he kissed her lips again before answering, "Because I'm just that lucky."