Chapter 10—Swimming Lessons
Kelly came in through the kitchen door and he immediately knew something was wrong.
He could hear Maggie crying upstairs in her room…so he dropped his bag and took the stairs two at a time.
"Lyssa?" he called out as he reached the top.
Alyssa stuck her head out of the kids' bathroom.
"Oh…thank God you're home." She said. "Can you get Maggie? She needs her bottle…and she's probably wet."
"What's goin' on?" Kelly asked.
Mornings weren't usually so chaotic.
Then he heard a tiny, pitiful, little voice.
"Mommy?"
Jesse was sick.
Alyssa ducked back into the bathroom and Kelly heard Jesse retching.
This was going to be a fun day…
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He went into the nursery and Maggie was standing in her crib holding on to the side…crying at the unfairness of having been forgotten.
"Its okay, Baby Girl…" Kelly told her as he picked her up. "Daddy's here…I've got you."
He laid her down on the changing table and removed a Pamper that probably weighed as much as Maggie.
After he cleaned and powdered her he snapped up her sleeper again and picked her up.
He stuck his head in the bathroom to find Jesse curled up in Alyssa's lap looking sick as a dog.
Kelly took Maggie downstairs and got her breakfast…her cereal and fruit…and made himself a cup of coffee.
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Alyssa came down the stairs carrying Jesse.
He was almost as big as she was…but when he was this sick…
She took him in the family room and laid him on the couch…then ran into the kitchen to get a bottle of Gatorade, a cup, and a medicine dispenser.
"What's goin' on with Jesse?" Kelly asked.
"He's been up all night…" Alyssa said tiredly. "He got sick in his bed about one in the morning."
"Why didn't you call me?" he asked.
He felt guilty. It had been a pretty quiet shift…and at one o'clock he'd been sleeping like a baby. To think that Alyssa was home alone with three kids…and one of 'em throwing up all night…
"I was a little preoccupied, Kelly." She replied tersely.
"I'm sorry, Babe…" he said.
The last thing he wanted to do was pick a fight with her.
"What can I do?"
Alyssa thought for a second…and then she remembered.
"Honey…today's Maggie's swimming lesson at the Y."
"She's like…eight months old. She can't even walk yet."
"Its parent/infant swim…you go in the water with her." Alyssa told him. "You can take her to that…it's at ten thirty."
That gave him a little over an hour…
"What do I need to do?"
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It felt really, really weird going into the men's locker room with a baby. The place was almost empty…just a few men about his dad's age.
He slipped into his trunks…and started to get Maggie into her swimsuit.
First he had to put this stupid looking diaper on…there was nothing to it…how was that gonna catch anything she did?
Oh, well…Alyssa said it was the rule. No swim diaper, no swim class.
Then he wiggled Maggie into a cotton candy pink one piece suit with silver ruffles around the straps and across her butt.
He scooped Maggie into his arms and grabbed their towels. He carried his daughter out to the pool where everyone was waiting.
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He was immediately aware of everyone's eyes on him. He glanced around…and saw he was the only dad there. He was the only man in the entire place…
There were six other babies…and their mothers. The instructor…a little blonde thing Kelly thought was supposed to be in high school…called out the babies' names.
Simon…Hillary…Becca…Destiny…Benjamin…Tessie…and Maggie.
They all got into the water. It was one of those zero-depth pools where you walked right in. Kelly waded in just above his waist…and dipped Maggie in the pool. Right away, she giggled and squealed. She loved her bath at home…it only made sense that she'd love this too.
The moms hadn't stopped staring at him…and it was getting really uncomfortable.
Then one of the women introduced herself.
"My name's Jennifer…and this is Benji."
"I'm Kelly…"
"We don't get many daddies around here…" Jennifer observed.
"Well, my wife would have been here…but one of our other kids is sick."
"Oh…well…it's…nice you could come."
The instructor asked everyone to form a circle…and everyone started walking around.
Kelly decided to just go with the flow…until the moms started singing "Ring Around a Rosey"…
When they got to the part about all fall down they dunked the babies in the water. A couple actually dunked them…the others just sunk them a little lower in the water.
Then they started again!
They did that about three times…and Kelly though it was just about the most ridiculous thing he'd ever seen in his life. He was gonna have to talk to Alyssa about this when he got home.
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Thankfully they didn't sing anymore…they all fanned out to let the babies kick.
Kelly separated himself and Maggie from the rest of those lunatics…and he sank down into the water up to about his shoulders. Nobody had to tell him what to do. He held Maggie out in front of him.
"Can you kick, Baby Girl?" he asked her. "Can you kick for Daddy?"
Maggie just laughed as she kicked her little feet. The sound echoed all over the pool…and Kelly couldn't help but chuckle himself.
He never did rejoin the circle…he and Maggie were doing fine on their own.
They splashed and laughed…especially when he tried to get her to blow some bubbles. She could already make really good "raspberries"…having two big brothers. And the bubbles in the pool fascinated the little girl.
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When the lesson was over, Maggie didn't want to get out. Again, no surprise there. She'd stay in the bathtub till she was blue if he'd let her.
As he stepped out of the pool onto the deck…he was immediately aware of all the moms staring at him again. He felt like he was under a microscope or something.
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He wrapped Maggie in her towel and set her on the bench right in front of him. Then he quickly wrapped his towel around his waist…grabbed his baby…and fled into the locker room.
Once he was safe inside, he dried Maggie off and changed her back into her clothes. He'd have to give her a good bath as soon as they got home and wash the chlorine off her. Once she was dressed, he stood her on the floor beside the bench that ran between the rows of lockers.
She was pretty good as long as she had something to hold onto.
Kelly dressed as fast as he could…and slipped his leather jacket on. Then he packed his wet suit and towel along with Maggie's into his gym bag.
He pulled Maggie's jacket on…picked her up and carried her out.
"Did we have fun, Baby Girl?" he asked as they made their way to the car.
Maggie just giggled and clapped her chubby little hands.
And Kelly couldn't help but smile as he shifted his grip on the baby and cuddled her close.
"Let's go home and see how Jesse's doin'…" he said.
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Alyssa was curled up on the couch with Jesse in her arms. He'd fallen asleep against her shoulder.
Kelly came in the back carrying Maggie…who'd passed out in the car on the way home. He set the bag in the laundry room and carefully shrugged off his jacket, trying not to wake the baby. Finally he peeled her coat off and carried her into the family room where they kept a port-a-crib set up.
Andy and Jesse called it "Baby Jail".
He laid her down and joined Alyssa over on the sofa.
He leaned in to kiss her…and he laid his hand on Jesse's cheek.
He was really warm.
"He's running a fever…" Kelly said.
"101.8…" Alyssa replied. "I called the doctor…she can see him at two. I already called Leslie. She's coming to stay with Maggie…and Andy can walk home with Nicole and Garrett. I need you to help me take Jesse. I can't carry him."
"No problem, Baby." He told her.
Alyssa leaned against his strong shoulder…
"How was the lesson?" she asked.
"Maggie loved the water…" Kelly answered diplomatically.
"And what about you?"
"All those women were staring at me." He said. "I mean…they've all got babies…I think it's safe to say they've seen a man before…"
Lyssa chuckled quietly.
"Honey…I guarantee…they've never laid eyes on a man like you."