Thanks for the reviews…love reading them…as they are much appreciated
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
"Man I wish my body could produce sperm like my brother…then I would be able to give you those ten kids we talked about when we first got back together Callie" my wife says to me. I laugh at her connotation about her brother's sperm after we both listened to my sister tell my wife and I over the phone that after her ultrasound earlier today…Aria is having twins. I just say to my Arizona "I think the three children that we have are enough…I am happy with our three children…aren't you"? My wife takes me in her arms while she kisses me deeply and says "I could not be happier with our family but what are the odds that both you and your sister would ever carry twins from the same sperm?…just saying…if my body was able to produce sperm like that…ten kids we would have Calliope" in the worst imitation of her Yoda voice I have ever heard.
The summer months have not been kind on my pregnant sister's body and attitude. But now it is the first of November and Aria has taken some time off work while she is now staying here with my wife and our mija at the beach house. Our father has been working like crazy because he has been taking over Aria's schedule and business meetings. With him being out of town and traveling so much we all thought it would be better not only for Aria's sake but for our own piece of mind if she stays here with Arizona and Sofia and me until the babies are born. With Alex moving out a couple of months ago because he found a place to live closer to the hospital which means he is on most Peds cases before my wife even gets to the hospital or even knows about the cases which makes her very happy. But for now my wife and our mija and I are taking care of my sister…until both of our nephews are born.
Two weeks later all four of us are standing in our kitchen preparing breakfast while Arizona has ten and a half month old Marisol in her arms and I have Matthew in mine. Sofia is setting the table while the three adults get everyone's breakfast together. Arizona and I sit both of our twins in their high chairs as we help them eat their oatmeal and cereal…respectively…because Matthew does not like oatmeal. Sofia is helping her aunt with the serving of our breakfast as well as their own. Moving around in her condition is becoming quite a bit harder for Aria as her due date looms. But she is a trooper and with the comforting and encouraging Robbins speeches that her husband gives her every chance he gets…by the videos he sends her from Iraq…she is looking forward to meeting her two sons…in a couple of days.
Dr. Addison Montgomery has relocated to the Wellness Center here in L.A. from the wishes of our mutual friend…Dr. Violet Turner. Dr. Montgomery has taken over my sister's pregnancy case…from a request by me. We have become friends again with the all too much nudging from my wife…after she helped us with the birth of our twins. With Aria's last ultrasound last month showing the boys are healthy and are right on track but Addison's concern is that if they have not been born by the fifteenth they will have to be induced…and the fifteenth is tomorrow. So with the breakfast conversation being about anything else but Aria and Tim's babies, we all finish our breakfast. I carry the twins to the bathroom to clean them up before we leave while Sofia and my wife clear off the table and the breakfast dishes.
With Arizona's back to our daughter and my sister and me still in the bathroom with the twins, suddenly Sofia screams for her mamas when we both hear her say "Mamas, Tia Aria is leaking". By the time Arizona and I make it to Aria's side we see that her water has broken and my sister is standing in a pool of her own fluid. Arizona immediately goes into doctor mode when she begins to take care of my sister while I take Sofia and the twins out to the mini van. Arizona helps Aria into the van and we all make our way to hospital. Arizona is on her phone to Dr. Addison Montgomery and then to Dr. Alex Karev when I hear them both say they will meet us in the emergency room. Next my wife calls her parents to tell them about Aria when her mother tells her that her father and Carlos have gone to the airport to pick up a very special package but she will tell them to come and pick her up and they will all come straight to the hospital.
My father and I are standing beside my sister's bedside in the maternity ward each holding her hand. Aria's contractions are about three minutes apart and Addison says "You both about ready…Aria how are you doing"? My sister raises her head a bit and says "Fine Dr. Montgomery…will this be over soon…I really want to meet my boys"? Dr. Montgomery smiles through her mask when she says "Yes Aria your boys will be here soon". Just then another person walks into the birthing suite when I hear my father say "It's about damn time my boy". I look over at the new visitor in the room when I see the same ocean blue eyes that adorn my wife's face when I whisper "Tim". With a gloved finger crossing his lips through his mask, my brother-in-law moves up to me and says "Hi Callie" and takes my sister's hand from mine as my father and I watch him bend down into my sister's face and say "Hey baby, how you doin'…did you miss me"? In probably the worst Joey Tribianni voice from the TV show Friends that I have ever heard.
My father and I leave the birthing suite when I ask Addison "Will you keep us posted…we will be in the waiting room with the rest of our family"? Addison nods to me to let me know she will inform us as soon as my nephews are born. My father and I make our way to the waiting room when I say to him "A special package huh"? My father just smiles at me and says "Yea, Daniel and Barbara and I wanted to surprise all of you. Daniel has been working on getting Tim out of Iraq for months now…and three days ago he finally did…but the only trouble was that…Tim was stuck in Germany because he could not get a flight out…so Daniel and I flew the Torres plane to Germany yesterday to get him and bring him home…just in time".
"Tim" I scream through my tears as I grab his face and kiss him through his surgical mask. Tim removes his mask to give me a proper kiss hello when we both hear Dr. Montgomery say "Alright you two, here we go…Aria I need you to push so you both can meet your baby boys". Within in five minutes our first born son Timothy Daniel Robbins II is screaming up a storm followed two minutes later by his sibling…but to everyone's surprise…it is not another boy…but a girl…as our daughter is born. Not having a girl's name prepared…because I was told that I was having two boys…I scream out the name "Calliope Michelle" quickly and my husband says to me "Calliope Michelle it is" of our new found daughter's name…named after my sister and Tim's sister. I rest my head back onto the two pillows still holding my husband's hand when I say to DR. Montgomery "Addison, when does the pain begin to cease because I can feel another contraction coming on"?
Dr. Addison Montgomery, a double board certified doctor in both Neo Natal and OB/GYN medicine retakes her seat in between my wife's legs as we both hear her say "Oh my". Just as I am about to say "What do you mean…oh my" to the doctor I hear her say to my wife "Aria push" and seconds later I see our third child come out of my wife's body. Our third child…another boy…makes his presence known by screaming like his brother and sister before him when my wife says "Carlos Miguel" in a whisper after her father and grandfather. I am crying as I kiss my wife and say "You did beautifully Aria…I love you so much…three babies honey…we have three beautiful babies". While the nurses clean off our babies my wife and I stay in our current positions as we continue to kiss one another until Dr. Montgomery introduces my wife and I to our beautiful babies…one girl and two boys.
I walk into the family waiting room wiping my tears with the palms of my hands when I open the door and see my family standing around talking. I clear my throat the get their attention when I say "Aria is doing just fine…she did great…they are cleaning her and the children…so you will all be able to go in and see them soon". My mother comes up to me and when she begins to hug and kiss me I break down in her arms as this action on my part begins to alarm everyone. My mother distraughtly says "What is it Tim…what has happened"? I back out of my mother's embrace when I say "Our sons are fine…but…but…mama…daddy…Aria gave birth to a third child…we…we have a daughter too". With a look of amazement on every family member's faces…they all instantaneously swallow me up in their arms and pepper my face with kisses. Our family excitement is broken up when Addison and Alex both make their way into the waiting room when Addison says "Tim, would you like to introduce your family to your new family"?
Christmas this year has a whole new meaning to it when I look around our family room and see that my Daniel and I along with Carlos all have six grandchildren. Our daughter Arizona and her wife Callie and their children Sofia, Matthew and Marisol along with our son Timothy and his wife Aria along with their children Timothy Jr, Calliope and Carlos are all staying in our home this holiday season. With our six grandchildren almost outnumbering the seven adults in this family, I am loving the pitter patter of hearing their little feet on our hardwood floors. Especially with Matthew and Marisol learning to walk a couple of months ago after they both were trying to chase their big sister Sofia around their beach house. Yes…this holiday season is a wonderful sight to behold…it has been a long time since we have heard the laughter and seen the smiles of our little ones again…and I am not just talking about our six grandchildren…Arizona and Tim…are making spectacular parents too.
I am standing in my in laws dining room setting the table for our Christmas dinner while I am listening to my sister and her husband talking about when she goes back to work next month and how they are going to arrange child care for their triplets. I laugh and smile at the same time when I see the Excel spreadsheet that Tim has concocted with all of the instructions and whereabouts of their children since both him and Aria will now be working. Aria put her foot down when Tim came home from Iraq and did not let him give up on his dream of a military career. And with the simple mathematics of switching living spaces with our father, since the condo has four bedrooms and the guest house only has two bedrooms, Aria and Tim have begun their lives together once again with their three children…and with Tim's dreaded Excel spreadsheet…just like his father before him.
Aria and I are discussing our plans for our upcoming child care when my wife goes back to work next month when my mother chimes in to say to the two of us "You both know that your father and I are retired and would love to help you two out with the watching of our grandchildren if you need us too". My father has retired from the United States Marine Corp on a professional level but he still is on active duty in a consulting manner. He spends most of his retired days playing golf when my mother has her book club or other hobbies to attend to…but when the idea is bounced around about his participation in watching his three grandchildren…he never hesitates or falters with his answer because he agrees with my mother implicitly. He loves every moment he is able to spend with all of his grandchildren.
I am sitting in my parents den watching my father and father-in-law and our children all sitting on the floor together. My father and Carlos are putting some of our children's toys together while Sofia sits quietly in the chair behind her grandfather Daniel's head reading her new books that she received for Christmas. But not Matthew and Marisol…no they are enjoying their grandfathers playing with them as they are climbing all over my dad and Carlos. Seeing the smiles on both men's faces I dare not say anything to the twins about their active playfulness. My wife walks into the den and takes her rightful place next to me as she kisses me briefly and laughs a little. With me not knowing why she is laughing I ask her inquisitively "What's so funny babe"? My wife tells me about my brother's Excel's spreadsheet as she says "You both are so much like your father…it is just uncanny".
Callie and I are having a hard time with this fact…and so are Tim and Aria…not with the fact that our parents…are going to watch our children for a week…but for the simple fact…that we are leaving our babies for a week…to celebrate both of our first wedding anniversaries. After placing all of our children in their beds here at my parents home in San Diego I find my wife crying uncontrollably when I hear her sister doing the same thing across the hall. My brother and I try to console our wives when I kneel in front in front of Callie and say to my wife "Baby I know that you don't want to leave them…but neither do I…but we need this…this time to ourselves. We've been planning this celebration for months and that is why we agreed to stay on Catalina Island…because it is not too far away but it is not too close either. Please baby, I promise you…we will call every day. My mama is a nurse and Alex and Addison are just a phone call away if they are even needed…but they won't be…and we'll be home before you know it…I love you Callie".
My wife engulfs me in her arms as her crying begins to cease and we both fall back onto our bed. Then I hear her ask to me in a whisper "You promise me Tim…that we can fly back from Mexico…if anything comes up with our children while we are gone"? I break from my wife's bear hug when I tell her truthfully "Baby, I already have a friend of mine on standby with his helicopter to bring us back here to San Diego from Cabo if we need him to come and get us. You have my solemn vow that I will bring you back to our babies if we need to come home". My wife begins to kiss me tenderly but the kiss suddenly turns very passionate until we both hear my father clear his throat and ask "You four about ready"? Aria and I break our kiss when my wife says to my father "Yes sir" and my dad says "Well then…let's get this show on the road…I don't want to leave your mother Tim and your father Aria alone too long with the young ones…just in case they all wake up in the middle of the night at once". Aria and I gather our luggage when we meet Arizona and Callie in the hallway and I notice that my wife and her sister are sharing the same swollen bloodshot eyes for the same reason…we are all going to miss our babies.
My father-in-law stops his extended cab Jeep at the entrance of the San Diego International Airport to let Tim and Aria out at the arrival door. My sister and I say our goodbyes while we are both still crying at leaving our children for the first time…but we promise each other to try to enjoy our first anniversary celebration with our spouses…and call each other periodically throughout the week long stay. I climb back into my father-in-laws Jeep and into the awaiting arms of my beloved. Daniel drops Arizona and I off at the docks of Dana Point to await our midnight cruise to Catalina Island. Once he is satisfied that we both have everything under control, he heads back for the one hour drive to San Diego and to our children. I sit comfortably in my wife's arms while we wait to board the Catalina cruise ship.
Our Catalina Express cruise from Dana point to Avalon Bay takes a little longer than expected. With most of that time my wife sleeps in my arms and I let her because I know she is still very upset about leaving our children for the first time. But just as dawn breaks off to our east my wife wakes up to see me staring at her and smiling. Callie first words to me since we left the mainland are "Hey baby, did you get any sleep or did you just hold me and stare at me all night"? While I watch my wife begin to stretch out her tired muscles I say to her "I love staring at you and watching you sleep in my arms". I kiss my wife and walk to the far end of the cruise ship to retrieve my wife and me some coffee. Callie has made her way to the edge of the cruise ship to watch the sun rise when I find her standing against the railing. I hand her a fresh cup of coffee and a banana nut muffin while I too enjoy a cup of coffee but with a large cinnamon honey bun instead of a muffin.
Arizona and I have checked in to our week long stay at the Hamilton Villas on Avalon Bay here on Catalina Island. With our bags loaded on the courtesy golf cart my wife drives us to our awaiting villa…for our first anniversary celebration. Once inside we both tour our villa and find that we are all alone…because we have a corner villa…and the other two villas on either side of us…are not filled for the whole week…and my mind begins to have some nasty…dirty thoughts…and I drop my luggage where I stand…and march my gracious and sexy ass towards my wife. I find Arizona standing and gazing out the large picture window looking out at the inlet bay below us. I walk up behind her and take her in my arms…because I love her so.
First startling my wife with my embrace but then feeling her body melt into mine when my hands glide over her abdomen area. I hear the faint whisper of "Callie" coming from my wife's beautiful mouth while my lips begin to devour her skin on her neck and shoulder. Dropping the straps of her dress down her arms until all of the fabric hits the floor and my Arizona is standing in front of me in just her bra. I am stunned silent when I realize that my wife is going commando for me and with a flick of my wrist I release her boobs from their confinement. With another whisper of my name coming from Arizona's lips I turn her body to face me when I inhale her lips in mine. I lift her bare ass in the air and her legs swallow me up in them as I walk the two of us to the bedroom. For the next hour or two my wife and I make mad passionate love to one another…even with the thought of our children still on my mind…right here and right now…I'm only thinking about my sexy wife.