Hope for All- chapter 69
The family spent the next hour and a half trick or treating around the neighborhood. Samantha and Jonathan filled their bags plus two small ones for the twins. They both met up with some of their friends along the way; Tony relented and allowed them to split up once Matthew started to fuss. By the time Tony and Angela arrived home, Matthew was in a full on screaming mode.
"What's the matter Matthew? You normally love being outside! Are you jealous you can't have any of the candy?" chuckled Tony.
"As cute as he looks in this costume, I think he's over it!" laughed Angela as she began to change him. Once he was out of his costume, he stopped crying.
"There! That's better!" said Angela as she cuddled him. Tony was able to change Anna and soon they were content on the sofa.
"Alright you two! You didn't get much tummy time in today so let's get some in now!" said Angela as she took out one of their blankets and laid it in the floor. They placed them down on the floor as Tony put a bunch of toys around them.
"Pretty soon they will be rolling over! They are getting so big and strong!" he said as he shook one of the rattles by Anna.
"I know! It's going by so quickly! Pretty soon they will be sitting up, crawling and then walking! We are going to need to baby proof this place. It's not exactly baby friendly…" said Angela as she looked around the living room.
"I'll take care of that Angela! Maybe in a few weeks I'll pick a weekend and go to the hardware store" he said. Just then, the doorbell rang.
"More trick or treaters!" said Tony as he got up and answered the door. He handed out candy to about five or six kids.
They spent the rest of the night taking care of the babies and handing out candy. Samantha and Jonathan got back in time for dinner. Mona also joined in for dinner in between her dates. They enjoyed sharing their candy with each other, as long as no one ate any of Jonathan's favorites.
By Friday, the house was back to its pre-Halloween state. The family laughed and shook their collective heads when Tony came home with Thanksgiving decorations. When they pointed out they would be celebrating in Brooklyn this year, Tony just doubled down on his decorating efforts to make the whole month of November festive for the twins.
Angela had starting pumping to try and build up a supply of milk for when she would be out of the house and eventually back to work. She had called Wendy and Isabelle and made a brunch date at the club for Saturday. She didn't truly realize how much she missed being out of the house and around other adults until she was getting ready that morning.
"Alright Tony. They've just been fed and I made it an extra long feeding so hopefully they won't need to be fed until I get back but just in case…" she started when he interrupted.
"There's plenty of pumped milk in the fridge. I know Angela… you've told me four times. We are going to be fine! We will have a morning of cleaning the house and then some tummy time! It's going to be great guys, right?" he asked both babies as they sat in their bouncers.
"See Angela? They agree!" he laughed as he picked them up.
"Okay babies Mommy is going out to remind herself she's still human! You be good for your daddy! I'm going to miss you two so much!" she said as as she kissed them over and over again as Tony held them in his arms.
"Angela go! You're going to be late!" said Tony as he ushered her to the front door. She gave them all one last kiss and headed out the door.
"I thought she'd never leave! Alright you two! We have a full morning of chores ahead of us! Who's ready to learn about vacuuming the drapes?" he asked them. Neither baby acknowledged his question but Matthew began to grunt and turn a nice shade of red before making a string of noises only someone hard of hearing would have missed.
"Oh no… of course you'd wait until she left to poop! Oh and it's everywhere! I'm covered in it and so are you! Well so much for the drapes! C'mon it's diaper changing time!" he said as he headed upstairs.
Angela pulled up to the club and handed her keys to the valet. She was taking Tony's jeep in case he needed the van and frankly she didn't want something so big and bulky. She looked around at the other high end cars and for the first time since she traded it in, she missed her jag. Maybe one day when the twins were older, she'd venture out again and get another one.
She walked up to the main entrance and headed towards the restaurant. Wendy and Isabelle were already waiting for her as she approached them.
"And there's the new mama! How are things outside of diapers and spit up?" asked Wendy as she gave her a hug.
"Oh Angela! You look great! Seriously you look amazing!" said Isabelle as she too hugged Angela.
"Thank you! Not much at the moment other than feeling like I have one of them attached to me at all times! I definitely needed some time outside of the house!" she laughed as the hostess brought them to a table. The waiter came back with their menus and took their drink orders.
"So Wendy, how have you been managing?" asked Angela after the waiter came back with their drinks.
"I hired a crew to come and move out every last one of his belongings… the ones I didn't already either throw out or burned in effigy…" she said as she took a sip of her martini.
"Burned in effigy? Please tell me you are joking…" said Angela.
"While Herb was on a long weekend in the Bahamas with Ms. Perky, I was relocating all his mother's homemade antique tablecloths, his favorite shirts and a few other irreplaceable items of his to the fireplace. It made for the best roasted marshmallows I've ever had!" laughed Wendy.
"Oh Wendy… remind me never to piss you off!" laughed Isabelle.
"So what's going on with you Isabelle? How's the work with the clinic going?" asked Angela.
"It's… going. I'm not used to being the patient, so that's been an interesting experience! I've done most of the testing, just some additional tests left. That HSG test is no joke! I was in pain for almost two days afterwards…" she said as the waiter came back to take their food orders.
"I can tell you now because I didn't want to scare you back then but that machine almost crushed me! It fell during the test and I really thought it was going to land on me!" said Angela as she remembered that day.
"Oh Angela! That must have been so scary!" said Isabelle as she reached over to squeeze Angela's hand.
"Oh it was! Thankfully Tony was there right after to help calm me down" she said as a dopey smile came across her face.
"So I see the newlyweds are still madly in love! Unless you're picturing that busboy over there…" said Wendy as she not so subtly pointed to the young guy cleaning up the table two over from them.
"Wendy! Yes we are as a matter of fact! He's just the greatest father and husband- I always knew he'd be but just being able to know I have an equal in this relationship is all I've ever wanted" she said.
"I bet he's good in bed too…" said Wendy with a wink and a smirk, causing Angela and Isabelle to roll their collective eyes.
"So did they give you any ideas about what could be causing the infertility issues?" asked Angela as she was eager to change the subject of her sex life with Tony.
"No, not really. Some of my blood levels were a little off but nothing that screams this is an issue. Paul's tests came back normal too. It's most likely going to show unknown infertility issues, which is a good thing but at the same time frustrating because it doesn't give us answers" she said.
"What are you leaning towards in terms of procedures?" asked Angela.
"Well my insurance will cover part of the IVF costs if we do the IUI procedure first… six times to be exact! So that's probably the route we will take barring any complications" she said.
"Six times? That's ridiculous! Stupid health insurance! Thank goodness I have it in the divorce settlement to stay on Herb's! It's a waste of money!" she said frustratingly.
"I know. You'd think being a doctor, the coverage would be the best! Sadly, that's not always the case. So how are those babies doing Angela?" asked Isabelle, needing to change the subject.
"Oh they are doing well! Matthew gives us a run for our money! He's the clingy one; Anna for the most part is the laid back one. They are still getting their nights and days mixed up, plus the sleep regressions… but other than that it's been a piece of cake!" she laughed.
"So Daddy Tony is by himself today… I'm surprised you haven't called home yet! Herb offered to watch Jenny when she was about six months old. She screamed the whole time I was gone. He met me in the driveway when I got home, handed her to me and fell asleep until the next day! At least you've got a good one Angela!" laughed Wendy.
"I do, I really do. I'm not worried about Tony. Half the time, he's more together than I am! My only worry is if they will take the bottle for him. So far, it's been hit or miss, mostly miss with them, especially Matthew. Other than that, he's incredibly capable" she said as her thoughts started to wander to what was going on at home.
"All right! Bath time- check! Changed- check! Falling asleep in the carrier as I start my chores- priceless!" he said as he started to head downstairs, both babies appearing to be sleeping, until he hit the bottom step of the stairs. Anna started to fuss and then full on wail.
"Anna banana! What's wrong little girl? You are changed, you shouldn't be hungry! Are you gassy?" he asked as he stuck his hand inside the carrier to try and get her to burp, only to have his hand hit a soft, squishy mess coming out of her diaper.
"Oh c'mon! We just had a bath! Little girl… you're lucky you're adorable!" he said as he headed back upstairs.
The food arrived soon and the three enjoyed their meal. Angela caught them up on their Halloween costumes, Samantha and Jonathan's school achievements and their plans for Thanksgiving in Brooklyn. Isabelle told some horror stories from the hospital as well as updates from Marci's term in Finland. Wendy provided the neighborhood gossip, letting them in on all the latest developments with Joanne Parker and her pool boy, still servicing the house in November.
"Well, I guess I should be getting home to check on things! It was so good to see you both! We really need to do this more often! Especially since the twins are older" she said as she hugged them both.
"Well, my calendar is sadly open… hey, maybe the busboy is free after all!" said Wendy as she made a made dash over to the poor guy. Isabelle and Angela just stood by speechless, until they almost doubled over laughing.
"That poor guy doesn't know what's coming!" laughed Isabelle.
"No he doesn't! This was wonderful and so needed! Please reach out once you start the IUI procedures. We only did two, but I can provide as much support as you need" she said as she gave her another hug.
"I will do that! It's such a lonely process. Having support will really help" she said as they both handed the valet their tickets. Soon, Angela was back in the jeep heading home. She decided to take the scenic route home, enjoying the peace and quiet. She decided to stop at the store on the way home and pick up some more diapers, wipes and some other things for the house. By the time she pulled into the driveway, it was about a half an hour past the twin's next feeding. She could hear crying before she even opened the door.
"C'mon Matty boy! You gotta at least attempt to take the bottle!" said Tony as he was trying in vain to get a screaming Matthew to take the bottle.
"Hi my little loves! And my big love… how did it go?" she asked as he put down the bags and headed over to the sofa to relieve Tony.
"He won't take the bottle! Anna took hers like a champ but he wants nothing of it! Also, I've become an expert in baths as they both had blowouts- separately of course- which required two rounds of baths! I've changed clothes three times since you left and haven't gotten anything done! Other than that, it's been a piece of cake!" he said as he handed him to Angela.
"Matthew Jonathan Micelli! What are we going to do with you? You want to join The Bower Agency? I'll put you on the payroll!" she chuckled as she tried to get him to take the bottle. After a few minutes, she finally got him to take it for a few moments before he started screaming again.
"Alright little boy I give up!" she chuckled as she latched him.
"I'm not sure what we are going to do with him if he keeps refusing the bottle" he said as he picked back up Anna to burp.
"We just have to keep at it. He will get it eventually. We still have plenty of time before I go back to work" she said as she wiped away his tears, gently stroking his little face.
"If you say so… alright Anna! Daddy needs a burp!" he said as he continued to burp her. She let out a burp followed by what could only be described as projectile vomit all over Tony, the sofa and the floor.
"Oh little girl no! Oh Tony… I think you need to go and shower…" she said as had to stifle a laugh at the look of utter disbelief on his face. Silently, he cleaned up Anna and handed her to Angela. He scrubbed the carpet, sofa and himself as best as possible and headed upstairs.
"I think you two might have broken Daddy!" she chuckled as she heard the bedroom door slam shut and the water start to run in the shower.
A half an hour later, Tony was back downstairs, cleaned and verbal again. Angela finished feeding both babies as she rocked them in her arms.
"I'm sorry Angela. It was just one mess after another! I can take them back" he said as he tried to take one of the babies.
"Tony, I'm good. I've missed them so much so I'm just going to get my cuddles in! You have to study for your exams. Why don't you go to the library?" she suggested.
"Are you sure?" he asked as he sat down across from her on the side chair.
"I'm sure… I think you need some air! Go and head to the library. When you get back, I'll try and sneak in a nap" she said as the babies started to drift off in her arms.
"Okay sweetheart. I'll be back in about few hours" he said as he grabbed his books, kissed them all goodbye and headed out the door.
"Once you two wake up, the three of us need to have a chat about going a bit easier on your poor father!" she laughed as she rearranged them on her chest as they continued to nap peacefully.
Tony arrived on campus about twenty minutes later. He stopped for lunch since his plans had gone right out the window after the third change of clothes. He finished his meal and headed to the library. He was able to reserve a cubicle to study and managed to get in about an hour and a half of studying before he was ready to call it quits. On his way out, Tony heard a familiar voice call out his name.
"Kathleen? How are you?" asked Tony as he met her near the doors.
"I'm good! Trying to study for a big algebra exam. Professor Drake is horrible!" she said.
"Oh great! I have to take him next semester! Good times ahead!" he chuckled.
"Well, assuming I pass his class, I could give you my study guides, maybe even get you to join our study group!" she said.
"The study guide would be great! I'm not sure I'll have much time for study groups with the babies and a full course load again next semester but I appreciate the offer" he said, Angela's warning to keep away from her present in his mind.
"Oh okay, no problem! How are those babies? They must be getting big!" she gushed as Tony pulled out the recent Halloween photos he got developed the day earlier.
"Oh my gosh they are just adorable! Your son really is a spitting image of you!" she said.
"He is! He's giving us a run for our money too! Anna is just the cutest little one, looking just like Angela…" he said lovingly as he looked back at the photo. "How are your sister and niece doing?" he asked.
"Good! Mary is doing well- motherhood really suits her! Hannah is doing much better too! She's such a strong little girl! Are you and Angela going to the childbirth class reunion next month?" she asked.
"Yes! We got something in the mail this week about it! Would love to see how all the babies are doing now! You and Mary going?" he asked.
"Yes! Well I guess we will see you there! Alright I've gotta go. Good seeing you Tony!" said Kathleen as she headed into the library. Tony grabbed all of his books and headed out to his car to go home.