Sally sat in her armchair with tears in her eyes as she contemplated what might have caused her to become pregnant again. Of course Ned and her wanted more children, but it was too soon. She and Ned were still wiping 5 bottoms, and now she was about to give birth again in 2 weeks!

How many would she have this time? Her first pregnancy was strange. No Who before her had 5 babies at once. Just how many would she have this time? One? Two? Three? Four? Another five?

What if it was six, seven, eight or even nine? What was Ned going to say?

Of course Ned would be shocked, but mostly excited, just like the last time.

Maybe it wasn't so bad. The last time she gave birth, she and Ned were living in a tiny apartment with 5 babies. It looked (and smelled!) like 5 babies lived there. Now their house was huge and could easily hold another gaggle of children.

Sally closed her eyes and remembered what the pediatrician said when she and Ned both took their 5 little ones to see her for their 12 month check up, which was the day before their first birthday. The doctor examined all five from head to toe, starting from JoJo all the way down to Virginia, as they wanted to examine by birth order.She remembered Ned being frightened as he handed JoJo to the doctor, squeezing her hand as the doctor took measurements of their tiny son's body.JoJo just sat there as the doctor wrapped a measuring tape around his head, along his arms and legs. He got a little whiny as the doctor pried open his eyes, and when she made him open his mouth to see in his throat before she ran her gloved finger along his gums to check for any teeth coming in. He hardly seemed to notice as the doctor placed her stethoscope on his chest to listen to his heart and lungs, and she even gave him a quick hearing test by shaking a rattle behind him and watching as he reacted by turning towards the sound. She even checked his reflexes by smacking her hand on the table and watched as JoJo jumped at the noise. The pediatrician smiled at the calm looking mother and fearful looking father."Normal head circumference, nasal passages look clear, his eyes look fine, his teeth should be coming in soon, his hearing is normal, his lungs and heart sound good, and he's very alert for his age. But there's a little problem with his growth pattern, but we'll get back to that once I examine the other 4."Again, Sally closely watched as each of her daughters was examined and cleared as healthy. Zaneeta and Virginia sat perfectly still and let the doctor do her thing. Faye fussed terribly as she was examined, most likely due to the unfamiliar face and the risk of germs, despite the fact that the pediatrician wore gloves and sanitized equipment with each baby. Rhiannon looked sleepy.Ned and Sally knew it was almost time for their babies' naptime and wish the doctor would finish up soon, so they wouldn't have to deal with 5 cranky babies on their stroll home."Well, they all look fine to me, but that boy of yours needs more nutrition. Are they all still on formula?""Yes, and we started them on solids about 6 months ago." Sally said."Well, I suggest that you keep them on formula for another 6 months. Are they walking?""Yes, about a month ago, they started walking." Ned said."Very good. How are they sleeping?""They sleep 10 hours a night and take 2 two hour naps during the day.""Well, that's normal, but around age 2, they're going to need to drop a nap. We'll come to that when we get there. Also, at their 24 month check up, we'll discuss something I'm sure you two are excited about. Potty training." She looked at her clipboard as she scribbled things down. Ned and Sally looked happy to hear that."Just one more thing. It looks like they are due for their yearly vaccinations. Did you want those done today, or another time?"Ned was about to request for the latter, but Sally cut him off."Let's get those done today. It's better to get it over with than to prolong it."Ned started to sweat. He preferred to put it off for as long as possible, but Sally had a point. Their children needed their shots."Very well, lay the oldest down."Ned was shaking as he laid his son down on the exam table. Ned felt his heart sink into his stomach as JoJo smiled up at him, completely unaware of what was to come.Ned rubbed his son's belly to comfort him."Try distracting him, that usually helps, sir." The pediatrician said as she got a syringe ready.Ned nodded and looked down at his son. "JoJo, look at Daddy."JoJo immediately looked up at his father in wonder.Ned twisted his face to look funny. JoJo exploded with laughter at his daddy's funny face.His laughter stopped abruptly as he felt a prick in his arm.Ned bit his lip as JoJo looked shocked for a second before he scrunched up his face and let out a loud thin wail."WAAAAAAAHHHH!" JoJo cried.The doctor pulled out the empty syringe and put a bandaid over the area. Almost at once, Ned scooped up his tiny son and did everything he knew would calm JoJo down. He placed JoJo over his shoulder and patted his back as he shushed in his ear."Shh, there there, it's okay. Daddy's here. Daddy's got you." Ned said to his bawling son.Eventually, JoJo stopped crying."Alright, time for the girls." The doctor said.Sally held her whimpering son as Ned picked up Zaneeta.And the process started all over. Each baby wailed, or said "No!" as the dreaded needle punctured their skin.Finally, to Ned's great relief, the worst was over.After the pediatrician told them that their babies needed to be weaned off the bottles within a year or their teeth will come out crooked, and after she helped the father calm down from watching his precious babies get poked with a needle, all 5 babies were given lollipops from the nurse as they were strapped into their stroller. Ned and Sally took their babies home, determined to get them down for a nap so they could prepare for their first birthday party.

It was a sign that their babies were getting older. And now they were going to add to their brood.

Sally opened the photo album and found the picture she was looking for. It was of her children's first birthday. All 5 were sitting in toddler chairs around a table cloth covered kiddie table, enjoying bottles of juice and pink and blue cupcakes. She giggled as she saw how dirty her son was, with frosting all over him. She went "aww" as she saw that at that moment, Virginia fell asleep from eating too much sugar. Their first birthday was the babies' first taste of actual sugar, and they dug right in once their mother placed the tray of cupcakes in front of them. Moments before the photo was taken, the babies looked so confused as the party guest, which consisted of their parents, grandparents, their dad's brother and mom's sisters as well as a few of their parents friends sang "Happy Birthday" to them.

It was such a fun and cute moment for Sally to watch as her children gobbled up their birthday treat. Her children had grown from being tiny, helpless newborns who could barely hold their heads up, to toddling around and able to play with other kids. She wanted that moment back.

Sally wiped her tears away and smiled. She rubbed her belly. "I can't wait for you to come out. Your daddy is going to be so excited."

A sudden thought went to her head. What would her current children say? Sure, they were only a year old, but how would they handle their mommy and daddy giving all their attention to some new babies? Would there be sibling rivalry? Would the 5 oldest be mean to the newborns?

And with the 5 oldest kids still in diapers, how could they manage changing times? Sure, it seemed like Sally changed diapers around the clock already, but now she was about to have more dirty diapers to clean up.

And she already had 5 babies still on formula. Were they ready to give up their bottles and start drinking juice from a sippy cup?

Sally wondered if they would be willing to share their toys with the new babies? Would her little "binky thief" son swipe pacifiers from snoozing new baby siblings? Would her "rattle snatcher" Rhiannon share her toys? Would her little germaphobe handle the drool and stinky diapers?

Maybe it was time to introduce JZRFV to being "Big Kids"?

Sally grabbed her purse and rushed out the door to go shopping.