First Times (1/1) – part 8 of the 3rd Annual REAL World Thanksgiving Marathon
Ala Moana Center
"So, who's the mom to be?" the smiling saleswoman asked as she approached the group cooing over onesies at the Janie & Jack store at Ala Moana Center.
Carrie and Jenna immediately took a step back and pointed at Catherine, matching 'not me' looks on their faces.
Mary's look was somewhat more wistful.
"Congratulations." The upbeat woman whose name tag identified her as Crystal smiled warmly. "When are you due?"
Catherine's heart did a somersault.
"June 29th," she replied with a smile.
Crystal had dealt with thousands of moms-to-be in her years at Janie & Jack and something about Catherine struck a familiar chord for her. In an attempt to confirm her suspicions she asked, "Is this your first?"
Catherine nodded. "Yes."
"Also my first grandchild," Elizabeth added proudly as she squeezed her daughter's hand.
Mary pulled a tiny yellow onesie off the rack and held it up to the oohs and aahs of the others. "And my first niece or nephew."
"And the first time I've been the bestie of a pregnant woman," Carrie grinned playfully.
Crystal looked expectantly at Jenna.
"I have five of my own," she snorted. "Not a lot of firsts left for me."
Grace grabbed Casey's forearm and squeezed. "It's the first time the two of us are gonna get to help plan a baby shower," she said excitedly.
"It's gonna be so fun," Casey bubbled.
"I know it's early to start buying outfits," Catherine said, her eyes drawn back to the racks of colorful onesies, "but we were walking by and couldn't resist."
"I understand completely," Crystal responded sincerely. "You take all the time you want. Look around. If you need anything just ask."
As Crystal left them and approached another group just entering the store Elizabeth spotted a navy blue onesie covered in anchors. "It might not be too early," she said, her eyes sparking.
Mary's hand flew to her chest. "That is adorable and look," she pointed to the racks a few feet away, "they have little shoes to match it."
As everyone moved to stand in front of the racks of tiny shoes, each pair cuter than the one before, Jenna picked up a pair of teensy socks. "There is nothing in this world cuter than socks for a baby," she sighed.
Carrie pinned the experienced mom with a wicked grin. "Do they make you think about having another one?"
Jenna bark laughed. "Absolutely not." She pulled several more pairs off the rack. "But, Catherine, you should expect lots of sock gifts from me. When I see them I just can't resist."
McGarrett Rollins Home-Living Room
"Are you sure you're gonna be ok in here?" Aaron asked for the third time since Jenna dropped the kids off and the women headed to the mall for a girl's day out.
Steve and John had taken the little ones for a morning swim and now they were settling in the living room to watch tv with Grandma Ang.
Dylan, Kaitlyn and Jacob sat side by side by side on the couch, vibrating with excitement, eyes on Cody, waiting for his okay to spring their surprise.
"I can take Joan out back with me," Aaron offered.
Joan looked up from her spot on the floor in front of the couch. "I wanna pay wif kids, Aa-won."
Grandma Ang ran her hand over the young girl's silky hair. "We'll be fine. Don't you worry about us. You boys just go out back and do … whatever it is you want to do."
Jacob looked at Cody, clearly on the edge of exploding. "Now, Cody?"
"Go ahead," Cody grinned.
"We have a surprise!" Jacob blurted. "For you, Grandma Ang!"
"For me?" she grinned delightedly.
Dylan pulled a disc from behind his back. "We have Game 7 of the World Series!"
Cody beamed as Grandma Ang's mouth dropped open.
"You … what … how?"
Kaitlyn clapped her hands together. "Someone at my mom's work taped it and we asked if she could make us a copy and she did and we're gonna watch it with you!"
Joan reacted to the excitement of the other kids and threw her hands in the air. Jacob hopped off the couch, took Joan's hands, helped her up and the two of them began doing a pint-sized happy dance.
"This is the nicest thing …". Grandma Ang held out her arms and Dylan and Kaitlyn happily fell into her embrace. "You are just about the sweetest angels I've ever been lucky enough to meet."
"Mom didn't tell them she was able to get a copy of the game until this morning," Cody reported. "She knew they'd have never been able to keep the secret."
"I didn't tell until it was time," Jacob, who was now sitting on the floor with Joan, exclaimed proudly.
"You did great, Jake," Cody replied and Jacob's chest puffed out.
"Well, all there is left to do now is make some popcorn and watch the Cubs kick some butt," Grandma Ang grinned.
McGarrett Rollins Home-Deck
"Have you guys talked about how you're gonna set up the nursery?" Danny asked. "Are you gonna use the guest room? I mean … I know it's early yet but being as you two are the most organized people on the planet …"
Steve shook his head. "We haven't talked about it.".
"If you want my advice you need to minimize the number of steps from your bed to the crib. You never quite get used to being woken up out of a sound sleep by the screams," Danny grimaced, "and the quicker you can get there the better."
"Screams?" Steve asked uneasily.
"Screams," Danny confirmed. "It's how babies communicate. Some are louder than others but they all scream. Am I right, Joseph? Aaron?"
Well …" Joseph glanced at Steve's uneasy features, "The word scream has a bit of a negative connotation. They cry … loudly."
Aaron shook his head. "I gotta agree with Danny. Sometimes there's no other way to describe the sound than scream."
"The key," Danny twisted the lid off his water and took a long sip, "is learning to decipher what each scream means. There's a 'hungry' scream and an 'I need to be changed' scream and an 'I want attention' scream."
"And don't forget the 'I had a bad dream' scream." Aaron shuddered at the thought. "That one can be especially piercing."
Cody nodded in agreement. "When Jacob has a bad dream he could wake up the neighbors."
Joseph saw his son-in-law's face pale slightly and knew exactly what Steve was thinking. The idea of his own child suffering as he did was a terrifying thought.
"The good thing about children's nightmares," he said, making eye contact with Steve, "Is that all it takes is a few hugs and kisses from mommy or daddy and they go away immediately."
"I'll say," Danny agreed. "I remember when Grace would have a nightmare she'd be happily back to sleep five minutes later and I'd spend the next half hour in the kitchen trying to get my heartbeat to return to normal."
"All part of being a parent," Joseph sat back with a contented smile. "The best job you'll ever have."
"Hey, maybe for your next remodeling project you could just blow out the whole side of the house and add a nursery suite … maybe a couple extra bedrooms for down the line … just in case," Danny suggested.
"How about we don't do that and we have money to send the kid to college," Steve countered.
"College?" Danny snorted. "Are you kidding me? If there was ever a kid pre-destined to go to Annapolis, it's this one."
Steve smiled proudly. He'd never try to force the naval academy on his child but he could only imagine the pride he'd feel standing next to Catherine watching their son or daughter be commissioned.
John went to the cooler and grabbed a bottle of water. "Maybe let's let the kid be born before we start worrying about those kinds of decisions."
Ala Moana Center
"Do you girls wanna go in here?" Catherine asked as they stopped in front of Charlotte Russe.
"Oh, that's okay, we don't have to." It was one of her favorite stores but Casey knew the adults in the group probably wouldn't be interested.
"No, let's go in," Carrie said. "They have some cute things. I mean nothing I'm not a decade too old to wear but let me live vicariously through you two." She pointed at Casey and Grace.
They entered the store and the two teens were drawn immediately to a display of torn jeans.
Grace dug through the pile for her size. "These are so cool."
"I love the ones with the patches," Casey squealed excitedly.
"They look like they're ready to be thrown away," Jenna grumbled. Casey shot her a disbelieving look and she added, "I know. I know. They're so cool."
"I used to own a pair something like those," Mary chuckled. "I can't believe they're in style again."
Catherine watched the girls looking at the jeans with what could only be described as love in their eyes. "I never went for ripped jeans. At least not that I remember."
"No, you stayed away from those," Elizabeth laughed. "But you went through a tight jeans phase and a one shoulder shirt phase I'd like to forget."
Mary looked on in amusement. "I used to drive Aunt Deb crazy with the outfits I wore."
"My mom threatened to lock me in my room at least once a week until I changed my clothes," Carrie chuckled.
"It's a time honored tradition I guess," Catherine sighed.
"Yes, it is," Elizabeth looked at Grace and Casey with an affectionate smile. "Why don't you each pick out a pair and let me buy them for you?"
"Oh, you don't have to do that," Casey responded immediately.
"No, you definitely don't," Grace agreed. "We were just looking."
"I know I don't have to but I want to," Elizabeth said cheerily. "I need to get my spoiling muscles in shape before June."
McGarrett Rolins Home-Living Room
Cody peeked his head in the living room to check on the kids on his way back from the bathroom.
Jacob and Joan were sitting on the floor, constructing skyscrapers out of wooden blocks while Kaitlyn and Dylan sat on the couch on either side of Grandma Ang engrossed in the game.
"How's it going?" he asked.
"Great!" Dylan clapped enthusiastically. "This is a really good game."
"The Cubs are winning 6-3 in the seventh part," Kaitlyn reported happily.
Dylan leaned across Grandma Ang and tapped Kaitlyn's leg. "Inning," he corrected.
"Oh, that's right. Inning," she smiled.
"Okay," Cody smiled. "I'll be out back if you guys need anything."
Beach
"Further," Steve called up the beach to Cody. "You might be able to beat me at basketball but I can still throw a football farther than you."
Cody laughed as he took three steps back.
Steve let a pass fly and it whizzed past Cody's head and landed ten feet up the beach.
"Told you," he yelled triumphantly.
Cody turned and tossed the ball back but it landed well short of Steve.
"Come on," Steve teased. "Was that your best shot? You're gonna have to come get that and try again."
Cody jogged down the beach to retrieve the football then returned to his previous position.
"Is your plan to wear him out running around so he can't throw as well?" John asked.
"It wasn't," Steve chuckled, "but now that you mention it."
"This is why I'm glad I have a daughter." Danny adjusted his sunglasses. "I don't have to worry about maintaining my athletic superiority."
"Didn't Grace compete in the SEAL challenge and get a blue shirt?" Aaron asked.
"Face it," John pointed out, "she might already be able to kick your ass."
"Catherine could beat my time at obstacle course by the time she was fifteen," Joseph said proudly. "And I was still active duty at the time."
"Niblet will probably be scaling rock walls at five," Danny snorted
Joseph looked at Steve with a broad grin. "Wouldn't that be great?"
Ala Moana Center
"I can't even remember the last time I bought anything in Victoria's secret," Jenna laughed as they approached the store.
Casey and Grace wanted to make a stop in Old Navy so the others went on ahead with plans to meet at the food court in thirty minutes.
"Are you kidding?" Carrie asked incredulously. "Well, we have got to remedy that situation immediately."
Jenna shrugged. "I don't really have any need for fancy underwear."
"You don't need a man to wear nice bras and undies for," Mary said decisively. "You wear them for yourself. For how they make you feel."
Catherine and Elizabeth nodded in agreement.
"I love wearing my cammies over a little red thong," Carrie grinned wickedly. "Makes me feel … empowered."
"I've never even had on a thong," Jenna admitted.
"Oh, honey," Carrie chuckled, "we have some work to do."
McGarrett Rollins Home-Living Room
"It's going into extra innings," Dylan said nervously as Aaron peeked his head in the room. "Even though I know how it ends I still have butterflies."
"Me too," Grandma Ang smiled and took his hand.
"I pix Kait-win haiw," Joan said happily as she sat on the couch, brush in hand and barrettes in her lap, with Kaitlyn on the floor in front of her.
"I see that," Aaron chuckled. "Catherine just called and said they're on their way home from the mall."
"Sounds good," Ang smiled. "As soon as the game's over, and we celebrate the win, I'll help Elizabeth make some turkey tetrazzini."
Aaron grinned. "I was hoping you'd say that."
As the women entered the house they could hear the men in the kitchen arguing over whose throw went further. Catherine shook her head but before she could say anything she heard the announcer on the tv yell, "The wait is over. The Cubs are World Series champions!"
Grandma Ang and the kids exploded into cheers. The men came in from the kitchen just in time to catch a replay of the final out. Everyone gathered in front of the tv and watched the celebration both on the field and on the couch.
Elizabeth wrapped her arm around Catherine's shoulders and whispered in her ear, "This is a great family to bring a child into, isn't it?"
Catherine looked at her mother with sparkling eyes. "The best."
THE END
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