Christmas that year was very quiet for us. Adam's parents had gone to visit family in Florida, Paige and Chris took their crew to South Carolina to visit his uncle, and Luke was with family in Pennsylvania. Jamie had gone back overseas, so it was just the three of us. After the Thanksgiving Day we had, it was a very welcomed day of relaxation. Adam got up early and made us breakfast while I made sure Kayla got her fill of food. When we had all finished eating, we exchanged our gifts and then spent the rest of the day watching Christmas movies and playing with our daughter. For dinner that night, we decided to order out, and since we only had a choice between the diner and Chinese food, we settled for Chinese. For me, it was one of the best Christmases I had experienced in a while.
We rang in the New Year alone, too. All of our friends and family had decided to stay where they were until after the holidays were completely over. Could I blame them? Not at all. Who wants to fight all that traffic when you could be enjoying quality family time? By the middle of January, everyone but Luke was back home and ready to make plans with us. Since we hadn't seen Adam's parents since October, we made them first priority. Since we had missed Friday night dinner, we invited them to join us that Sunday for a nice, home-cooked meal. As I was preparing dinner, I happened to look at the calendar and realized it had been exactly a year since I almost lost my best friends in an accident (and our daughter was conceived). I had promised myself I wouldn't get upset, since they both survived, but I am a seriously emotional person, so I did slip up. Adam walked in and noticed right away that something was bothering me.
"What's going on, buttercup?" he asked.
"Nothing," I said, wiping my face. "I was chopping up onions, that's all."
"You were not," he said. "I know you better than that. What's going on?"
"I just got a little emotional, that's all," I told him. "It's really nothing. I promise."
"Emotional about what?" he asked.
"A year ago today, our little miracle was conceived," I said.
"After a night of hell," Adam concluded. "They both survived, honey. We should be thankful, not upset."
"You're right," I smiled. "I can't help that I'm a highly emotional person, though."
"Is dinner almost ready?" he asked, changing the subject.
"It sure is," I said. "Your parents should be here soon, shouldn't they?"
"I think I just heard them pull up," he admitted. "That's why I asked."
"I'll get the table ready while you go and get the door," I said.
Once Tom and Diane had enjoyed their fill of Kayla love, we all took a seat at the table to enjoy our meal. Kayla started whining almost immediately, so I excused myself to go and take care of her. After checking her diaper, I sat down in the recliner and made sure she got her dinner. Have I ever mentioned that my daughter can eat??? After what seemed like forever, she finally let go so I could burp her and then I laid her back down in her pack and play. When I rejoined the family, they were talking about babies (surprise, surprise).
"So Kara, Adam was just telling us that you had the privilege of delivering yet another baby," Diane said.
"It wasn't planned, believe me," I replied.
"Have you ever thought of becoming a nurse?" Tom asked.
"Actually, I have," I smiled. "And not just because I delivered two of my sister's kids."
"If you're serious about it, we'd be more than happy to help you out with tuition," Diane said. "And our granddaughter, of course."
"That's a really generous offer," I replied. "I will seriously consider it."
"We don't need an answer right now," Tom said. "This is obviously a big step. If you don't want to start until fall, that's your decision. If you want to wait until next year, that's fine too. You have a great job right now and you are obviously in a great spot financially."
"That's why I'm able to stay home with Kayla," Adam chimed in. "I was able to work out a deal with my boss that allowed me to do my work from home."
"That's great," Diane said. "Now onto my next question..."
"Mom asked when we were going to give Kayla a sibling," Adam informed me.
"There's no rush," Tom said. "You two wait until you're ready. She's just loving playing Grandma."
"It's ok," I told him. "We've actually discussed it. We don't want TOO much of a gap between our kids, so we plan on trying again soon, like within the next month or so."
"Well you know you have our help with anything you need," Tom smiled.
"How many kids do you two want?" Diane asked.
"We've discussed no less than two, no more than three," I said. "But I'm always up for discussion. Definitely no more than four, though."
"Really?" Adam asked. "I actually wanted to say four, but was afraid of what you'd say after we found out how many kids your sister and Chris wanted."
"I don't want a baseball team!" I laughed. "Four sounds like a perfect number though. Like I said, I will settle for two or three, though. Let's leave it up to God, shall we?"
"Have I ever mentioned how much I love this girl?" Diane smiled at her son.
After dinner, Tom offered to do clean up duty while Diane spent some time with Kayla. We enjoyed some coffee and dessert later that night just before Tom and Diane were getting ready to leave. As we were saying our goodbyes, Diane asked if they could take Kayla for the night. I looked over at Adam, who nodded his approval and I went and prepared some bottles for them to take with them. Giving our daughter lots of hugs and kisses, we waved goodbye and then closed the door behind them.
"I think I'm going to go and take a shower," I announced. "Would you like to join me?"
"Like you really needed to ask," Adam said. "Go on up. I'll be up shortly."
I got upstairs and prepared my shower to the temperature I liked. I stepped in and started washing my hair first. After applying the conditioner, I proceeded to clean my body. Just as I was getting ready to clean the conditioner out of my hair, Adam finally stepped into the shower.
"What took you so long?" I asked.
"I had to make a quick phone call," he admitted. "I called Jamie to see how she's doing. After you reminded me what today was, I got to thinking about it myself."
"That was super sweet of you," I said. "Is she having fun overseas?"
"She really is," he smiled. "She's thinking about staying a little longer than originally planned."
"Really?" I asked. "Good for her. I'm glad she's having a good time."
"Speaking of good times..." he said.
"I'll see you when you get done with your shower," I told him, letting myself out.
I made my way into the bedroom and threw on a pair of panties. I got comfortable in the bed and waited for my hubby to finish his shower. Figuring he would only be a few minutes, I laid quietly in wait for him to join me in the bed. I must have gotten a little TOO comfortable because I don't even remember him ever coming to bed that night. When I woke up the next morning, Adam was nowhere to be found. Fearing the worst, I ran to the bathroom to see if he had fallen in the shower or something. He wasn't in there either. As I walked down the stairs, I smelled a wonderful aroma coming from my kitchen. I entered the room and there was Adam, cooking us breakfast.
"I am so sorry I fell asleep on you last night," I apologized.
"It's alright, princess," he said. "You had a somewhat rough day yesterday. Sit down and enjoy some food."
"This looks absolutely amazing," I smiled as I took a seat.
"I made all your favorites," he replied. "Mom and Dad are bringing Kayla by after lunch."
Whatever bad memories I had of the night before, everything disappeared in that moment. Later that afternoon when Tom and Diane came over with Kayla, we asked them to stay for dinner again. This time we ordered out. Tom and Adam made plans to go fishing the next day, so Diane and I were going to take Kayla and walk around the mall. By the end of the night, I felt so much better than I had the previous day. Since Adam and his dad were leaving really early the next morning, he was spending the night with his parents, leaving me alone with Kayla. I brought her pack and play upstairs and set it up right next to my bed, falling asleep only mere minutes after she was out for the night.
January ended quicker than it began, and February was upon us. Luke's birthday was during that first week. We had made plans to hang at his place for a little get together with him and some of his other friends. After dropping Kayla off with her grandparents for the night, we headed over to Luke's for the evening. We were the first ones to arrive.
"Happy Birthday, bro," Adam said as we walked in the door.
"Thanks," Luke smiled, shaking Adam's hand and then giving me a hug.
"Are we early?"I asked. "I thought you said the party started at 6?"
"I did," Luke said. "Everyone else is running late. But please, help yourselves to some drinks and snacks."
I took a seat on the couch and opened up the cooler. "I'm not trying to be a party pooper, but do you have anything non-alcoholic? I'm trying to limit my alcohol intake since I'm breastfeeding."
"Of course," Luke said. "Would you like soda, juice, or water?"
"Do you have any orange juice?" I asked.
"You know I do," he smiled, taking off to the kitchen.
Adam sat down next to me and helped himself to a beer. "I hope for Luke's sake this party doesn't turn out to be a bust."
"I know," I agreed. "I guess we'll find out soon enough."
Luke returned a few minutes later with a glass of orange juice and handed it to me. "There you go, bestie. I forgot that there is another cooler behind the couch that has bottles of water in it if you get tired of juice."
"I appreciate that, thanks," I said.
The doorbell rang a few minutes later. As people started to fill up the room, I felt a sense of relief for Luke. I knew that if his other friends hadn't shown up, I would have had to spend a majority of my night consoling him. Luke threw on some music and we all got up and danced. While the boys spent most of the night drinking and talking about women, I decided to make myself useful by serving food and cleaning up dirty dishes. When it was time for us to leave, I gave Luke a big hug and thanked him for having us. After Adam said his goodbyes, we made our way out to the car. Before we got in, Adam handed me the keys and asked me to drive; he wasn't drunk, but he had drank a couple of beers and didn't want to drive home.
Back at our place, Adam went upstairs to cool himself off in the shower while I made a quick call to his mom. I wanted to make sure that she had enough milk to get her through until the following afternoon since I wasn't sure I had pumped enough. Once she had assured me that she was all set, I thanked her again for watching Kayla and then went up to the bedroom to prepare for bed. I stripped down and set my clothes in the hamper. As I turned to make my way to the dresser, I bumped right into Adam. The feel of his skin on mine sent shivers up and down my spine as I jumped up into his arms and started kissing his neck. He walked toward the bed and dropped me back onto the sheets. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled his lips toward mine as he positioned himself on top of me.
I took my hands and ran them from his neck down his back. I didn't know if he was trying to take his time, but I was feeling so good in that moment that I placed my hands on the small of his back and pushed him down further onto me. Once I felt him inside of me, I turned the tables by flipping him onto his back and riding him like a cowboy. He let out a few loud groans before flipping me back over and working me over twice as hard. We went back and forth for hours like this until we had both had our fill...or so we thought. As usual, we jumped in the shower to clean off and my hormones were racing so much that I jumped him while we were in the shower too. Another 45 minutes of pure bliss later, we were both dried off, dressed, and lying in bed holding each other tight.
That following Friday was Sara's first birthday, and we had been invited to Paige and Chris' place for a party. After making sure we had everything we needed for Kayla, we packed into the car and headed over to the house. There weren't very many people there at all; most of them were Chris' family aside from the three of us and Lexi. She was so excited to see me that she gave me a big hug. Since life had been a little hectic for me the last year, she congratulated me on both my daughter and my marriage. I asked her if she wanted to hold Kayla and she was more than happy to take me up on that. Watching the two of them together, I knew that if I ever needed another babysitter I had found one in Lexi. I excused myself for a few moments while I went over to say hello to the birthday girl and her siblings. For babies who were only two months old, the three of them had grown pretty big. I picked up Hannah first to give her a kiss, then proceeded to do the same with her brothers before going to find my sister and seeing if she needed any help with anything.
Even with only a small amount of people there, the party went off without a hitch. We all got a big surprise when Sara decided she was ready to walk and took her first steps followed by a surge of wanting to run around. The surprises wouldn't end there, however. Adam had placed Kayla on a blanket in the grass and that little girl decided she wanted to attempt to follow her cousin, so she started crawling like a maniac. At the end of the day, as we were getting ready to go home, Paige and Chris thanked us for being such big helps that day. Once we had said our goodbyes, we packed Kayla back up into the car and went back home for the night.
I've heard people say that you don't realize how quickly time truly passes until you have kids, but the way the weeks were flying by that year were absolutely insane. The rest of February and the majority of March flew by and before we knew it, we were halfway through April. Since it had been almost 7 months since my last doctor's appointment (I hadn't gone since my 6 week postpartum check up), I decided to pay them a visit to make sure everything was in working order. I wasn't feeling sick or anything, just figured it would be a good idea to go to the doctor more than once a year. The earliest appointment they'd had available wasn't until May 10th, so I took it. When that day finally arrived, Adam took Kayla and went to his parents so I could have some one on one time with the doctor.
"It's nice to see you again, Kara," the doctor said once I was settled in. "How are things going?"
"Everything is great," I said. "Kayla is 8 months old now, growing quite nicely. She actually took her first few steps the other day."
"That's wonderful," he said. "And what brings you here today?"
"I just figured I hadn't been to a doctor since 6 weeks after she was born, and I know I should make it a more regular thing," I told him. "I just want to make sure I'm in good health and all."
"That's understandable," he said. "Have you been experiencing any problems, health wise?"
"Not at all," I said. "The only problem I seem to be having at the moment is a little bit of weight gain. I've put on about 10 pounds since February."
"Why don't you lie back and we'll take a look," he advised.
I laid back on the exam table and lifted up my shirt. The doctor carefully pressed on different spots of my stomach, most likely checking for bloating or any other explanation for the extra weight. He pulled up his chair and the ultrasound machine, explaining that he was going to check for any tumors or anything that might be out of place. I hadn't had an ultrasound since I was still pregnant with Kayla, so I forgot how warm the gel could get. I jumped a little when he applied it to my abdomen, then apologized immediately. He just laughed and said it was no big deal. I waited patiently as he moved the wand around, looking for any abnormalities.
"Well Miss Kara, I believe I have found the source of your little weight problem," he said.
"It's not bad, is it doc?" I asked.
"Not at all," he smiled. "Why don't you take a look for yourself?"
I looked up at the monitor and I felt my heart skip a beat. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Looks like Kayla is going to be a big sister," he said. "Now you said you haven't felt any differences in your body this time around? No sickness, nothing?"
"No," I replied. "This is somewhat of a relief, though. And my husband will be over the moon. We had talked about trying for another one once Kayla hit 5 months."
"Well from the looks of it, you are 3 months and 6 days along," he said. "Which means she must have been just past 5 months."
"What can I say?" I laughed. "We're just that good. Can I schedule my next appointment with you now? I want to find out the gender as soon as possible."
"Actually, if you give me a minute, I can probably tell you right now," he said.
"Really??" I got excited. "I thought we had to wait at least 16 weeks?"
"A baby's genitals are usually distinguished by 12 weeks," he explained. "It depends on how baby is situated in the womb, whether or not we can get a clear view."
"That would be amazing," I said. "I really hope baby cooperates."
He moved the wand around a little more, hoping to catch a clear glimpse of baby's parts. "Well you are in luck, missy. Take a look right here," he said, pointing to an area of the screen.
"Maybe I'm going blind, but I don't see anything," I told him.
"You're looking in the wrong spot," he laughed. "That's ok. I'll print out the shot so you can see it better. Congratulations, mom. It's a boy this time."
"Oh my God, really?!?" I shrieked. "Now my husband will be super happy."
The doctor handed me the ultrasound photo and said, "I would like to see you again in 4 weeks. Make an appointment with the receptionist on your way out."
I sat up and pulled my shirt down. "Thanks again, doc. I'm glad I decided to come in today."
After setting up my next appointment, I got in the car and drove back home. I decided I wanted to surprise Adam with my news while we were alone, so I called him and asked if he could leave Kayla with his parents for a while and come back to the house. I put the ultrasound picture in a frame and set it on the nightstand. Grabbing some candles for mood, I put them all around the room and then changed into my sexiest piece of lingerie. Making myself comfortable on the bed, I waited for my husband to come walking in the door. When he finally showed up and saw me in my element, he didn't even ask what the occasion was before ripping off his clothes and jumping onto the bed.
Adam didn't even noticed my little gut as he tore my outfit off and pushed me down onto the bed. I felt a chill rush up my spine the moment I felt him inside of me. I let out an approving moan as I pulled him in for a kiss. He was very gentle with me as he worked his magic, and I once again decided to surprise him by flipping him onto his back and riding him. He let out a series of approving moans until I decided to move the fun into the bathroom. I got up and teased him to follow me as I turned on the shower and stepped inside. He appeared moments later, picking me up and setting me down to where our genitals could meet. Once he was inside me again, I continued to be the dominant partner for at least another hour before he admitted he couldn't take anymore. We washed ourselves down, dried off, and then got dressed. I signaled for him to sit next to me on the bed.
"I take it things went well at the doctor today," he smiled.
"Better than well," I said. "I'm in perfect health."
"That's always good to hear," he replied, as he started blowing out candles. "When did you decide to do this?" he asked, holding up the picture frame.
"Today," I said. "Why? Do you not like it?"
"I think it's absolutely adorable," he said. "Our daughter's first baby picture."
I laughed. "Honey, why don't you take a closer look?"
Adam re-examined the ultrasound. "This is definitely not Kayla. Unless she's secretly a boy. Did you steal one of Paige's ultrasounds as a joke?"
"No," I said, taking off my shirt to reveal my little bulge.
Adam turned to face me and that's when he finally noticed my little weight gain. "Oh my God! The entire time we were making love, I didn't even notice you had put on any weight. Are you telling me that we're pregnant again?? And it's a boy??"
"Hence the candlelit sex session," I smiled. "I wanted to surprise you."
"Well you certainly succeeded," he smiled back, placing his hand on my stomach. "How far along are you??"
"3 months, 6 days," I said. "We're due near the end of October."
"This is so exciting," he replied. "We'll have one of each now. Just what we always wanted."
"True," I said. "But just because we succeeded in two tries, doesn't mean I don't want to try for at least one more."
"Let's just get through this pregnancy first before we think about adding to our brood, ok?" Adam said.
"Yes, dear," I smiled, giving him one last kiss before we headed back over to his parents' house to pick up Kayla and share our news.
Just as we'd expected, his parents were once again over the moon at the prospect of having another grandchild. It was evident that Tom was the more excited grandparent this time, though, seeing as we were expecting a boy. He almost immediately started talking about taking fishing trips with his boys and teaching him how to drive go karts...typical boy stuff, of course. Adam and I laughed and reminded him that baby boy had to be born and grow up a little before any of that could take place. To celebrate our news, Tom and Diane took us out for a nice dinner. At the end of the night, we said our goodbyes and headed back home, this time with our daughter in tow.
Laying in bed that night, Adam leaned in for a kiss and then put his hand on my tummy. He spent the remainder of the night talking to our son until Kayla got fussy. I started to get up to go check on her, but Adam stopped me and left to go and grab her. When he returned, he had her in his arms. He explained how he changed her and tried to rock her back to sleep, but she still wouldn't calm down. Knowing exactly what she needed, I lifted my shirt and signaled for him to hand her to me. Once my little girl had eaten all she could, I burped her and handed her back to her daddy. She fell asleep before they even made it back into her room. Hey, mom always knows best!