Here is the next chapter. I want to thank all of you reading and reviewing. It really means a lot. For those "Nasty Reviewers" I appreciate you as well. You may leave some nasty reviews, but at least i know you are still reading :).
It was the morning of the baby shower and Stephanie was excited. It would be the first time she'd see the majority of the RangeMen at once as well as Connie, Lula, and Mary Lou. After getting showered and dressed, Stephanie called Julie to ask if she needed help with anything. Julie told her she had it all under control and that someone would be there to pick up Stephanie in an hour.
When there was a knock at her door an hour later, she unlocked and opened the door to Lester standing there. "Come on in, Les. I just need to grab my purse." Stephanie heard the screen door open and shut. As she turned around after grabbing her purse, she saw Les and was shocked at who was next to him.
"Grandma! What are you doing here?" she asked as she pulled Edna into a hug.
"You think I'd miss this? My baby granddaughter having a baby? Of course I'm here. This nice hunk flew down last night, picked me up, and flew back up here in that big, beautiful jet. I tried to join the mile-high club, but he said no." Edna winked at Steph when Lester paled.
"Oh Grandma, I'm so glad you are here." Stephanie looked at Lester and smiled. Giving him a hug, she said, "Thank you, Les. This is the best surprise."
"You can thank Tank as well. We called Granny last week and arranged for me to go get her. Tank authorized use of the jet."
After Stephanie dried her eyes, they all loaded up into the truck and set off for the baby shower.
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"Okay, so the first game we have you will need your phones for. I'm going to pass out a sheet of paper to everyone and you will get points based on what's on your phone. The one with the most points win. So, get them out and here we go. Oh and NO loading or deleting things during the game"
The paper was handed out and it had 4 columns with different scores above each column. Some of the times for one point included having a fitness app, having Facebook, Instagram, or Snap; having a protective case and no unread messages. For the five-point column, the items listed were things like, due date in the calendar; photo of the mom-to-be; battery life more than 85% or having a glittery phone case. Things like an alarm before 6am, battery less than 20%, cracked case or photo with a celebrity earned them twenty points.
Les was busy circling things on his piece of paper trying to see if he had the most points. However, when everyone was done, it was Tank that had won. He not only had everything in the first two columns, he had most everything on the paper including a video with the mom-to-be and a photo of her from that day. His prize was a 6-pack of beer.
Binkie saw Julie roll out a cart that had 10 baby food jars on it and the labels were missing. "What the hell? I'm not eating any baby food," he told her.
"You can sample a taste or just sniff it, but the one that gets the most correct wins."
Everyone lined up behind Grandma Mazur and waited to see what she did. She took out a piece of paper, discreetly smelled each jar and was sure she knew what to write down. Derrick and Jeffrey went next. Connie, Lula and most of the guys were guessing and trying not to make faces but Mary Lou was confident she had every single one of them correct.
When everyone was done, Julie took the papers and looked them over. Showing the results to Stephanie, she declared Mary Lou the winner with Edna coming in second. When Stephanie looked at what some of the guys wrote, she busted up laughing. "Dog shit? Cat vomit? Ass? You guys are hilarious."
Julie, Edna, Ella and Mary Lou stepped up next to each other, "The final game is mostly for the guys. Steph, you will get to find out who you do NOT want babysitting your baby. Guys, it is time to diaper and dress a baby. The quickest AND most correctly done, wins."
Ella uncovered a table that had five baby dolls, diapers, and clothes. She gave all the guys a piece of paper that had numbers on them. Five guys would go at a time. Once Ella was done and back next to Edna, the timer started. The girls all laughed as the guys tried their hardest to figure out how to put a diaper on and to dress the baby without hurting it.
Stephanie found which ones she did not want handling her child...those were the guys whose baby dolls bounced off the floor after the head hit first. The ladies all laughed when half the diapers were put on backwards and the other half fell off when they lifted the baby up. "Where's the duct tape?" Tank asked when he tore the tabs off the diaper completely. When it was Derrick, Lester, Manny, Junior, and Zip against each other, Derrick came in first place, having correctly diapered and clothed the baby. Zip and Junior tied finishing at the same time; they had had a lot of practice with nieces and nephews. Les and Manny barely got the diaper on before they turned the babies into footballs.
All in all, everyone had fun with the games. When it came time for gifts, Mary Lou handed gifts to Stephanie while Julie wrote down who purchased what so thank you cards could be sent out later
The guys from Rangeman all went overboard. Crib, car seats, highchair, bouncy seat, video monitors, and lots of clothes. Mary Lou purchased a double breast pump and clothes. Ella had crocheted a beautiful baby blanket and some hats for a newborn. After everything was opened, it was clear the baby would want for nothing, and Steph had all she'd need for the next year or two. She just wasn't sure she'd actually go through all the diapers she'd received but Mary Lou assured her, she would.
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Once the trucks were unloaded at Stephanie's place, the guys started working on putting together the furniture so she wouldn't have to worry about it later.
"Grandma, how long are you staying?"
"I told Edward I'd be gone for a week."
"How is Edward? I wondered if you two were still seeing each other."
"Oh baby girl, we are. He is the best. I loved your grandpa, but Edward is everything your grandpa wasn't. It is refreshing." Edna looked at Stephanie and grabbed her hand, "Have you heard from him?"
Stephanie thought about playing dumb, but knew better than to do that with Edna. "No, and I doubt I will. He's supposed to be gone for at least another six months if not longer. Besides, with the way things were left, I doubt I have anything to say to him."
"Don't shut him out if he comes back and wants to talk. He had a lot on his mind the last time you saw each other."
"Grandma, he basically called me a whore. He KNEW he was the only one I'd been with for the past year. He knew I'd never cheat on him. There is no excuse for what he said."
Edna wiped the tears from Steph's face and smiled, "Just hear him out and give him a chance to ask questions, answer questions, and explain. It may not be what it seems."
Stephanie knew Edna was right, but she wasn't ready to hear excuses from Ranger yet. While she wasn't happy with him, she did still love him and hoped she'd see him again at some point.
TBC...