It's the morning of the newly annual Castle family trip to the Hampton's. Everything is packed and now being loaded into the family minivan. The kids are finishing eating and cleaning up as Kate is helping Castle load the van. Bags are being stacked Tetris-like, so they can fit everything Arejay needs plus everyone else's bags and beach items. It's not quite summer yet, but a since having the baby Kate just felt the family needed a little get away for a few days. Arejay is seated in his car seat which has been hooked in securely in one of the captains chairs in the second row. Victoria's booster seat had been moved so that Kate could easily get him in and out and sit close to him during the trip. Turning she watches Castle go back inside for a few more things and Johanna coming out, headphones in and her arms crossed as she walks to the van. She was mad because Nate had accidentally walked in on her as she was changing. No big deal Kate had thought because it was an accident, but apparently to Johanna it was a big deal. It's just then that Arejay begins to cry. She knows he wants out for just a little bit, and she's willing to hold him but with Johanna in the way she can't.
"Hannie, move, please!" Kate barks pointing her finger to towards the door of he elevator. The girl is still mad, so she does not move because she wants her mom to know how mad she really was.
"Do you hear that crying?" She pulls at her daughter's headphones yanking them out of her ears. Johanna is beyond mad now. Her protesting is not working.
"That's you're brother and I need to get to him. You can go feed him if you like. Or you can go back inside and help dad." Kate tells her daughter as she shakes her head.
"Your choice, in the car or out of my way!" Kate snaps glaring now at her daughter. Johanna huffs and storms off. She does not want to go on the trip at all. She hates being stuck in a car with her younger siblings. She knows it's going to be hell. Kate is climbing in now reaching into Arejay's car seat and rescuing him letting the baby fall into her arms.
"Hey, there little guy, you ready for your first trip to the Hampton's?" Kate smiles and kisses his head softly. The baby looks up at her and almost lets out a smile.
"So close!" She chuckles softly trying to get a smile out of him still. Kate can't help but smile back at him. Her family may have its issues, but she loves each and every one of her kids. Whether or not they love her back all the time.
Putting Arejay back in his car seat she turns to see Castle coming out of the elevator, suitcase at his feet, Victoria on his shoulders and Sidney being held upside down.
"Got ya!" He cackles trying to sound like an evil pirate or something of that sort.
"Oh NO!" Kate gasps playfully as she runs over to her husband and two kids. The two are laughing as Castle is trying to hold tightly onto Sidney, but his laughing is making it hard.
"Mommy will save you!" Kate laughs reaching carefully to pick up Sidney and place him on her hip. He's still laughing as Kate tickles him walking over to the car.
"Ok mister, get in the car for mommy so we can go," Kate explains setting the boy down inside the van so he can go sit in his seat.
"You too Little Sir," Kate adds watching Castle pull her off his shoulders and set her on the ground. She runs over and hops in finding her booster seat and attempting to buckle herself in.
"Momma! I need help!" She calls yanking on the belt but not strong enough to pull it over her body and into the buckle.
"Can you help your sister Sidney?" Kate asks
"I have to help your father with some bags."
"I'll try!" Sidney calls as he helps his sister get the buckle hooked into the holder. Kate's back moments later stacking the last two bags on top of the rest of them in the back. Castle had just appeared again with his two oldest ushering them to the car.
"Hannie, you in the front, Nate you can sit in the back. Don't complain or I will make you sit next to each other." He sighs as the two get in. Castle helps Kate get in, and he goes around and gets in the drivers seat Dax finding a spot in-between Kate and Arejay on the floor. Pulling out of the spot Castle turns the music on and heads towards the exit gate. He's got the sensor in his hand as the gate swings up and lets the van through. Arejay is sleeping thankfully as Kate is messing around on her phone trying to take selfies with her kids sitting in the back. Nate is laughing at his siblings and their choice of funny faces. He can't help but wonder how they come up with such funny ideas.
"What do you think, Should mommy send that some to her friends?" She chuckles showing off the latest picture she had taken. Nate's tongue was sticking out, Sidney was making a funny face as he gave Nate bunny ears, and Victoria was trying to make it look like her eyes were popping out of her face.
"Yeah do it, mommy!" Sidney giggles.
"Alright." Kate smiles and opens up her Facebook app on her phone. She hits the upload photo button and selects the picture of the four of them. She uploads it with the caption 'On the way to the Hampton's with these hooligans'.
A while later the family is half way when Arejay begins to cry. Kate would have just pulled out a bottle and fed him but when she smells the poop, she knows they have to stop.
"Babe, hey, can we pull over? I uh, smell some poop." She chuckles her nose plugged as the stench is starting to float around the inside of the car.
"Oh yeah sure." Castle nods flipping on his emergency flashers and pulling over into the emergency lane. Getting up out of her seat Kate reaches into the diaper bag under her seat and pulls out a diaper. Laying the newborn down on her seat she unhooks his onesie and strips him of is diaper checking his bandage while she had him exposed. Putting a clean diaper on, Kate pulls her shirt up and unhooks her nursing bra letting the little boy latch on. She lets him feed for about ten minutes while Castle puts in a movie and starts it for the kids.
The family arrived within the hour and finally gets everything unpacked. They have so much more stuff than last time and by the time they are finally done they are almost passed out in front of the TV. To tired to get up and do anything Castle pulls out his phone and opens up the Pizza Hut app and orders two large pizza's for the six of them. He know's in the morning his kids will be begging to go to the beach, so he makes sure they eat and go straight to bed. It was still cold but he hoped that maybe the sun would come out enough tomorrow to warm things up so they could at least go down to the sand. Ushering the kids to bed Kate soon finds herself picking up the few toys that had been strewn across the living room floor. Tossing them into the toy box she closes it and takes the last drink of her tea before putting the glass in the sink and coming back out to walk with Castle to their bedroom.
Kate fell into bed that night exhausted.
"I cant do this anymore!" Kate pouts panting softly. She'd just spent the last hour trying to wrangle her kids to bed, not to mention cleaning up the toys in the living room.
"Shhh… don't wake the baby!" Castle shushes his wife coming into bed with her. Arejay was sleeping in the bassinet that sat in the corner of the room sleeping away.
"I'm sorry, I just," She pauses yawning.
"I know, I know," Castle chuckles.
"Four kids was a lot but five kids is even more of a lot." He adds yawning along with his wife.
"Yeah, but we make due." Kate smiles softly and rolls over laying her head softly on her husbands chest.
"You're the best you know." Castle smiles kissing his wife.
"Me?" Kate questions.
"Yeah you, it's always you."
"You are so good at being a mom, not to mention being captain, I don't know how you do it." He sighs softly.
"I don't know either, I just do it." She tells him.
"Well, don't stop ok? Because I love this you. The strong mom you."
"Ok, well I wont." She chuckles softly yawning again.
"We should sleep, its going to be a long day tomorrow." Castle says giving his wife a goodnight kiss before reaching to turn the light off and quickly fall asleep.
A/N: Short chapter but there will be more. Hopefully, they will go down to the beach. Maybe the kids will bury Castle in the sand.