![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thayerloveWelcome back to The Cooke Legacy! This is chapter thirty two - Cat Fights! Thanks for coming to read, it is appreciated as always. This chapter is contuined to be written by Katie, but narrated by Madeline Cooke (the heiress). With out further ado - let's hear from Maddie!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shanna, my fiancee, and I moved back home to Desiderata Valley after I graduated with my bachelors of art from Academie Le Tour. We met at the Lucky Cards Shack where I bartended for extra cash during my college years. I think that's a neat story because it's the same place my parents Leighton and Hayden met years and years and years ago. They've had a happy marriage and obviously made three beautiful daughters together. I hope that Shanna and I have the same fate in our future.
Speaking of my parents. . . here they are! Still has happy as they day they got married oh so long ago. My mom is a retired Mad Scientist - she left her job early to finish raising me and my younger sisters. My father is still working as a Mad Scientist, but now that he's getting older he would like a job with more normal hours. That's why his new lifetime want is to reach the top of the education track. My sister Molly and brother-in-law Cooper are both in that field; hopefully they have enough pull to help my father find a job too.
Let me not forget to introduce you to the family pets (who are obviously still working on their manners)! These two bad boys sleeping on my parents bed are Pepper and Stinker. Snowball II is roaming around the house somewhere. Pepper and Snowball II were my pets growing up, together they had Stinker, Nessie and Whiskers. But while I was away at college my parents decided that five cats were a little too many to look after while working so much. So they gave Nessie and Whiskers up for adoption.
Shanna and I have set the date for our wedding. It's only one short week away. I think we may have been a bit too ambitious by setting this date. There is so much to be done! We need to finish fully moving into my parents home, find our desired careers (mine is to be a world class ballet dancer and Shanna wants to be a business tycoon), send out invitations, hire a caterer and bartender and last but not least we both could stand to lose a few inches around the middle. Since this will be the most time consuming, we start right away!
"You and Madeline don't worry about a thing dear," my mother Leighton said to Shanna one evening. "Hayden and I are going to take care of everything for you. The only thing I want you and Maddie to focus on is job hunting!" Shanna was happy to hear this news - we did need more help than we thought with the wedding planning and to add to that stress. . . we still haven't found our desired careers yet and we've been home for a few days now.
"Thanks Mrs. Cooke! I appreciate this a whole bunch and I know that Maddie does too."
"Oh darling," my mothe sighed, "Don't call me Mrs. Cooke. You're about to be Mrs. Cooke. I'm practically your mother-in-law now. Call me Leighton!" It makes me happy to see that my bride and my mother are getting along so well. It makes the whole idea of marriage that much sweeter.
"Well I sure hope your mother and I surprised you girls. We weren't going to show you this room until after the wedding, but I couldn't hold in the secret much longer!" My father Hayden laughed as we all sat down to play cards at our new poker table. He and my mother snuck around setting up a poker room for Shanna and me. It was our wedding present - and a pretty perfect idea since it's how we all met in the first place.
"You did, Dad! This is so awesome." I said honestly. The poker table is a nice distraction from the job hunting and wedding planning stress.
"We definitely have to make this a weekly ritual," Shanna smiled, "This was so nice of you guys to do for us. Thanks!"
Mom stayed true to her word when she told Shanna that she and Dad would take care of all the wedding planning. I haven't had to worry about anything related to my upcoming wedding date. Mom said she's already hired a bartender, she's picked out a beautiful buffet table and Dad's sending out e-vites to my wedding. At first I thought invitations over the internet were tacky, but I guess Shanna and I didn't really give enough time to send out our invitations via snail mail! I can't believe my wedding will be here in two days.
I've been working out quite a bit lately. Not only for the wedding, but because I need to be in tip top shape when I get a job interview to go into the dancing field. It's been a week since Shanna and I moved back home and neither one of us has had any luck finding jobs. Not that we're struggling for money (my family has always been very blessed with money), but it would be nice to start working towards our lifetime wants.
The day has finally arrived! Shanna and I are getting married. We decided on simple green dresses instead of big poofy white ones. The wedding is outside my family home in front of the garden. I knew this day was going to be emotional, but I didn't know I would tear up just at the sight of Shanna under the arch.
" I promise to always be faithful and true to you, Shanna. I promise to love you forever as much as I loved you on the day we first fell in love. I'm with you for better or worse because you are my better half." As I concluded my vows I could just hear my mom wiping away the tears.
After we sealed our marriage with our first kiss and wives I couldn't stop smiling. Shanna looked so beautiful and now she was Mrs. Cooke! I'm glad we finally made it to this day. I'm looking forward to starting our lives together as one from here on out.
"Well that was nothing like your father and mine's wedding, Melody." Mom laughed as she was clapping and trying not to cry all at the same time. "Your father and I made our guests laugh because our vows were so silly. But this is so sweet. I'm happy Maddie has finally married her soul mate like you and your sisters did."
Melody nodded as she was clapping along.
"Let's all hope Maddie and Shanna have cute kids just like little Miss Nancy!" Mom added giving Nancy, Melody's only daughter and my only niece, a wink and a smile.
My wedding went by in the blink of an eye. You hear the saying that your wedding will go by in a blur and you won't remember half of it - well I've found out now that that's very true. It's been a week since the wedding and now Shanna and I are settling into marrige life together. We still haven't found our desired careers, but my father has found his! He's leaving his job as a mad scientist and accepted a position as a high school principal. Quite the difference, I know!
He found his new dream job just in time too! My father's elder birthday has arrived and it's time to celebrate. My father, who has had dark, curly hair all his life, now has a head of white! At least he's still got hair, I reminded him.
Shanna has finally found her desired career in the business field. She's going to start out at the entry level position of fiend sales representative. She only makes three fifty at the end of the week, but it's not about the paycheck for us. We just want to work towards our lifetime wants. I hope that I can find the dance career soon. . . I'm beginning to get worried that I'll never start working on my lifetime want!
"Oh my goodness! We're going to be parents!?" I was shocked when Shanna got up one morning and showed me her new belly.
"We're going to be mommies!" Shanna nodded, beaming.
"I can't believe this! Oh this is awesome. This happened pretty quick. I'm going to be a mom. Holy cow! We're going to be moms, Shanna." The pregnancy was obviously still sinking in.
Shanna laughed at my surprise, "I know Maddie, I know."
"I love you, Maddie. I'm thrilled that we're pregnant. I can't wait to raise this baby with you." Shanna pulled me in, but we couldn't get as close as we used to in hugs because her belly was round and pushed me back a little. I didn't mind of course, that's our little baby between us.
"I love you too, Shanna." We shared a quick kiss, both smiling. Then we spent a quick second looking in each others eyes before I realized, "We haven't told my parents yet! Mom's going to be thrilled - you know her lifetime want is to have six grandkids. She's already got four. She's going to be so happy!"
Shanna laughed, "Let's go break the good news!"
"Oh, Shanna congratulations dear!" Mom beamed when Shanna showed off her round, growing belly. "Hello little one. I'm your Grandma Leighton. I can't wait to meet you, sweet baby."
Obviously, my mother was over the moon to hear that she was going to have a new grandbaby soon. Mom was even more excited because she was going to help raise this grandchild since we're living in her and dad's home.
Shanna's belly is growing - it seems like she gets bigger everyday! My wife is always hungry and constantly tired. I feel horribly for her; I almost wish I could be the one bearing the burdens of pregnancy instead of seeing her so tired and swollen all the time. Thankfully her work let her off for maternity leave - I was worried that they wouldn't let her since she was such a new hire.
Stinker has been acting out quite a bit lately. He has never really played with Pepper or Snowball II, his parents. I never thought that he would actually start fights with them though! Pepper and Stinker got into it outside one day after Stinker snuck up and attacked Pepper. It makes me worried that he will do something like this to the baby once he or she is born. . .
We still have poker night once a week. Shanna tries to take naps before we start our games - she gets exhausted so easily these days. She's due any day now, but still tries to be pretty active around the house, bless her heart.
"Girls, I really don't think we should keep Stinker in the house any longer. Leighton and I are worried he will attack the baby while it's sleeping or something. He's just to dangerous to be around a newborn." My father and mother had obviously been thinking about giving Stinker away for a few days. I knew they were right - Stinker was getting too aggresive, but he was my childhood cat. I didn't want to just give him up! But I knew it had to be done. My baby's safety comes first. So after our poker game, I called my sister Molly and asked if she would take him.
After giving Stinker up to Molly and her family, things were much quieter around the house. . . but not for long! Shanna gave birth to our two beautiful children around four in the morning on a Wednesday. We are now the proud parents of twins!! Nate, our new son, resembles Shanna; he is light skinned with blonde hair and blue eyes. Norah, our daughter, looks very similar to me. She has dark skin, blue eyes and blonde hair. This, so far, is the happiest moment of my life. We're finally parents!
Dad has been working extra hard lately. He clocks in early, leaves the office late - does all the right things for promotions. Thankfully, all that hard work as has paid off! Dad's been promoted to the College Dean!
My beautiful, intelligent wife Shanna has also been working hard in her office. She went back to work right after Nate and Norah were born. She's just been promoted to an Executive in her office. That's a big step up from where she started. I'm so proud of my wife - she's well on her way to achieving a lifetime want.
Dad's done it again! He didn't hold his post as college dean for long - he got his final promotion! Now he has achieved two lifetime wants. That's a major feat - some people don't ever get the pleasure of even chasing their dreams, much less making two big dreams come true. Well luckily for my dad, he is now an education minister. His new, and third, lifetime want is to marry off six children. Seeing as how mom is too old to have any more children, this will not be happening.
While Dad and Shanna have been working hard in their offices, Mom and I have been working hard at home raising the twins. Nate and Norah are very well looked after and of course loved by everyone in the family. Mom can't get enough of the twins. I even catch her waking them up early from their naps just so she can cuddle them.
I'm terrified to change diapers (in fact, it's been one of my fears since the twins were born). So I get to do all the fun stuff with Nate and Norah. I feed them, bathe them and play with them when they're awake and happy. Being a mom is great - in fact, Shanna and I are trying to get pregnant again.
Seeing how I haven't changed for the twins yet, Shanna pulls double diaper duty. She doesn't mind though, thankfully. We make a great team as parents.
I have noticed that Snowball II has put on a little bit of weight, but it never dawned on me that she was pregnant! She and Pepper welcomed two little kittens into their new feline family. Isn't it strange that Shanna and I just had a boy and a girl and now Snowball ll is a new mom to a boy and a girl kitten? We've named them Maggie and Zeus.
"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Nate and Norah, happy birthday to you!" My parents, Shanna and I sang along in unison to the twins on their toddler birthday. I can't believe how fast time has flown. My babies are toddlers now! I must say, I'm pretty pleased with how they've grown. Aren't they both too adorable for words? They were such happy babies too. Hopefully if Shanna or I gets pregnant with a third child, he or she will be as easy to care for as Nate and Norah were.
The next morning Mom and I start working on Nate and Norah's basic toddler skills: walking, talking and the oh so dreaded potty training! Norah is doing fabulous - Mom, despite my anxiety and worry about feeding the twins smart milk, gave her a glowing bottle anyway. Mom says it's harmless, but I don't see how something that makes my daughter glow green can be harmless!
"Come on, son. Say "momma" for me please. Say "momma"." Teaching a toddler how to talk is much harder than I ever imagined. Nate, how is proving to be a stubborn little tyke, would much rather not sit in the corner and hear me say "momma" over and over at him. Pleading doesn't help, and neither does bribing. I hope this isn't an indication of how his teen years will be! After a while I gave up - something on Nate's face told me he just wasn't going to talk today!
After giving up on Nate's speaking lessons, I went to lay Norah down for her afternoon nap. I came back downstairs to see what my son was up to and I found him staring happily at the fish, babbling nonsense and poking on the glass. He'll babble and mutter to the fish, but not me! Great!
At least someone has had success with their day. Shanna came home with a promotion the day after the twins birthday. She's now an office senior manager. I couldn't be prouder of my lovely wife! She really is superwoman. A loving mom and wife and a full time manager now. She does it all!
Looks like we'll be adding another baby to our growing family! Shanna is pregnant for the second time with our third child. I'm extremely excited to be able to give the twins another sibling. I know they will be wonderful as a big brother and sister to the new baby.
Well, it's taken much longer than I anticipated, but I've finally started my dream career. On my first day in the dance career path, I got promoted from a tap dancer to a ballroom dancer. I'm glad I didn't have to tap dance too long - this outfit is overly ridiculous and completely uncomfortable! I guess I shouldn't complain too much though - at least I have finally found the job that will lead to my lifetime want.
It looks like in our efforts to get pregnant, Shanna and I may have tried just a little too hard. I've been feeling sick to my stomach lately and I have a sinking feeling that I may also be pregnant. Shanna's already carrying a little one in her tummy, I'm terrified to think that I may be pregnant also. What if we both have twins? Or triplets? I don't even want to think of the idea of us both having quadruplets! I can only hope this is just a stomach bug. Or if I am pregnant, I hope Shanna and I are carrying only one child each!
I really don't know why our cats are so violent lately! Snowball II has been getting into fights just like Stinker used to before Nate and Norah were born. I was hoping it was a one time thing, but every stray that walks by the house gets into a fight with Snowball II. Looks like we'll be finding another home for her asap!
The twins are growing so much these days, physically and intellectually. Nate and Norah both know how to talk, walk and use their big boy and girl potties. I'm so proud of my toddlers! Nate is completely attached to me. He always wants me to tickle him, snuggle with him and talk to him. I love having him need me so much - I know it won't be long before he'll want nothing to do with me as a teenager!
I was worried about Shanna going on maternity leave again so soon after getting promoted to senior office manager, but it's proving to be a good thing so far. She's gotten to spend more time with Nate and Norah than ever. She's helping Norah learn her colors and shapes while playing with the blocks and she gets to love on sweet Nate every chance she gets. A little time off from work is doing wonders for my wife.
"I don't know what we're going to do if we both have multiples. I heard that once you have multiples, your chance of having them again increases! I've already had twins; what if I'm carrying triplets now!?" Shanna was terrified when she found out that in addition to her pregnancy, I was carrying a new baby too! I couldn't help but share the same fear as her, but being pregnant for myself was new and exciting to me that I just wanted to look forward to the births coming up, not fear them.
"We'll work things out somehow - no matter what happens." I soothed Shanna before rubbing her belly. It's still unreal that we're both pregnant with our children.
"Slow down there, speed racer! The way you're inhaling those omlettes, you just might turn into one!" Shanna joked. My new eating habits were a topic of conversation in the house lately. Not only was I eating enough to feel a small village, but I was constantly craving anything with cheese: omlettes, grilled cheese, spaghetti with parmesan cheese. I'm blaming it on the baby (or babies) inside me!
Nate and Norah are aging again! Every time I turn around it seems like my babies are growing up more and more! Shanna, who is now heavily pregnant, couldn't get out of bed to celebrate with us. I'm close to due myself, but I wanted to make sure I saw my angels turn into children. Nate, my handsome freckle faced boy, is as sweet as ever. Norah sure is aging up to be a doll. I'm proud of the children Shanna and I are raising - aren't they cute!?
Not only are the cute, but so smart too! I remember when my parents used to make me, Melody and Molly skill as children - I hated it! But Nate and Norah seem to enjoy reading and skilling. They're so good at it too - I've never seen children knock out skills as fast as mine are doing.
It was a few nights after Nate and Norah's birthday that Shanna went into labor with our new baby. I was there when it all started and I have to admit, it scared the daylights out of me. Knowing that I was going to be going through the same pain very soon was terrifying! In the end though, we welcomed just one (thank God!) beautiful new baby. We named her Nala. She has blue eyes, dark skin and blonde hair like her lovely sister Norah. Mom was there to witness Nala's birth - I'm glad because Nala is her sixth grandchild and completed Mom's lifetime want to have six grandchildren.
Nala was only a few hours old when I went into labor with her baby sibling. My first pregnancy resulted in only one child. Shanna and I were worrying about multiples for nothing! Speaking of Shanna, I wish that she had been here to see our last child born. But she was upstairs resting from giving birth just a few hours prior to my labor. The pains of childbirth were intense, but looking into my daughter's bright blue eyes was worth every second of it! Baby Nicole has dark skin, brown hair and blue eyes. She's the only child to look completely like me!
Maggie and Zeus are fully grown adult cats now! They survived living in our crazy, busy household as kittens; it's miraculous! Maggie is almost all black and looks most like Pepper, her father. Zeus looks like Stinker, his feline brother who was given away for adoption when he couldn't stop fighting with his parents!
My big kids are in school now! I can hardly believe it. Just yesterday Shanna and I were changing their diapers (well Shanna was changing the diapers, I was feeding bottles). Nate and Norah are in the same class thankfully and have been looking forward to their first day of school ever since they turned into children. I hope that they adapt well to being away from my parents, Shanna and I. I want them to like school so that they will be excited about their future education.
Mom is thrilled to have babies in the house again. Nala and Nicole are such well behaved and quite little things too! I've finally gotten around to changing my first diaper ever! After potty training Nate and Norah, my fears of diapers are over. I'm happy to say that with a little help from Mom and Shanna, I'm now a diaper pro!
The older kids are enjoying school so far, thank goodness! They're both extremely smart and catch on quickly - so helping them with their homework is a breeze. Shanna is adapting well after giving birth. She used all of her maternity leave after giving birth to Nala, but now she's going full speed ahead with work and being a mom. I must say, she handles it well!
It's already time for Nala and Nicole to become toddlers. Where has the time gone?!
Nala, on the right, and Nicole, on the left, look more like twins than their older twin siblings do! My babies were both born separately, but they could pass for twins for sure! I'm proud of my little ones for growing up so well. I can't believe that there will be no more babies in the the house until one of my babies has babies! It's crazy to think about. Nala and Nicole are obviously adorable - I knew they would be because Shanna and I made them ;)
-------------------------------------------
This is where I'm going to end the chapter - look back in the next update to see how Shanna and Madeline finish raising Nate, Norah, Nala and Nicole! Thanks for reading, as always. See you next time, Katie
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shanna, my fiancee, and I moved back home to Desiderata Valley after I graduated with my bachelors of art from Academie Le Tour. We met at the Lucky Cards Shack where I bartended for extra cash during my college years. I think that's a neat story because it's the same place my parents Leighton and Hayden met years and years and years ago. They've had a happy marriage and obviously made three beautiful daughters together. I hope that Shanna and I have the same fate in our future.
Speaking of my parents. . . here they are! Still has happy as they day they got married oh so long ago. My mom is a retired Mad Scientist - she left her job early to finish raising me and my younger sisters. My father is still working as a Mad Scientist, but now that he's getting older he would like a job with more normal hours. That's why his new lifetime want is to reach the top of the education track. My sister Molly and brother-in-law Cooper are both in that field; hopefully they have enough pull to help my father find a job too.
Let me not forget to introduce you to the family pets (who are obviously still working on their manners)! These two bad boys sleeping on my parents bed are Pepper and Stinker. Snowball II is roaming around the house somewhere. Pepper and Snowball II were my pets growing up, together they had Stinker, Nessie and Whiskers. But while I was away at college my parents decided that five cats were a little too many to look after while working so much. So they gave Nessie and Whiskers up for adoption.
Shanna and I have set the date for our wedding. It's only one short week away. I think we may have been a bit too ambitious by setting this date. There is so much to be done! We need to finish fully moving into my parents home, find our desired careers (mine is to be a world class ballet dancer and Shanna wants to be a business tycoon), send out invitations, hire a caterer and bartender and last but not least we both could stand to lose a few inches around the middle. Since this will be the most time consuming, we start right away!
"You and Madeline don't worry about a thing dear," my mother Leighton said to Shanna one evening. "Hayden and I are going to take care of everything for you. The only thing I want you and Maddie to focus on is job hunting!" Shanna was happy to hear this news - we did need more help than we thought with the wedding planning and to add to that stress. . . we still haven't found our desired careers yet and we've been home for a few days now.
"Thanks Mrs. Cooke! I appreciate this a whole bunch and I know that Maddie does too."
"Oh darling," my mothe sighed, "Don't call me Mrs. Cooke. You're about to be Mrs. Cooke. I'm practically your mother-in-law now. Call me Leighton!" It makes me happy to see that my bride and my mother are getting along so well. It makes the whole idea of marriage that much sweeter.
"Well I sure hope your mother and I surprised you girls. We weren't going to show you this room until after the wedding, but I couldn't hold in the secret much longer!" My father Hayden laughed as we all sat down to play cards at our new poker table. He and my mother snuck around setting up a poker room for Shanna and me. It was our wedding present - and a pretty perfect idea since it's how we all met in the first place.
"You did, Dad! This is so awesome." I said honestly. The poker table is a nice distraction from the job hunting and wedding planning stress.
"We definitely have to make this a weekly ritual," Shanna smiled, "This was so nice of you guys to do for us. Thanks!"
Mom stayed true to her word when she told Shanna that she and Dad would take care of all the wedding planning. I haven't had to worry about anything related to my upcoming wedding date. Mom said she's already hired a bartender, she's picked out a beautiful buffet table and Dad's sending out e-vites to my wedding. At first I thought invitations over the internet were tacky, but I guess Shanna and I didn't really give enough time to send out our invitations via snail mail! I can't believe my wedding will be here in two days.
I've been working out quite a bit lately. Not only for the wedding, but because I need to be in tip top shape when I get a job interview to go into the dancing field. It's been a week since Shanna and I moved back home and neither one of us has had any luck finding jobs. Not that we're struggling for money (my family has always been very blessed with money), but it would be nice to start working towards our lifetime wants.
The day has finally arrived! Shanna and I are getting married. We decided on simple green dresses instead of big poofy white ones. The wedding is outside my family home in front of the garden. I knew this day was going to be emotional, but I didn't know I would tear up just at the sight of Shanna under the arch.
" I promise to always be faithful and true to you, Shanna. I promise to love you forever as much as I loved you on the day we first fell in love. I'm with you for better or worse because you are my better half." As I concluded my vows I could just hear my mom wiping away the tears.
After we sealed our marriage with our first kiss and wives I couldn't stop smiling. Shanna looked so beautiful and now she was Mrs. Cooke! I'm glad we finally made it to this day. I'm looking forward to starting our lives together as one from here on out.
"Well that was nothing like your father and mine's wedding, Melody." Mom laughed as she was clapping and trying not to cry all at the same time. "Your father and I made our guests laugh because our vows were so silly. But this is so sweet. I'm happy Maddie has finally married her soul mate like you and your sisters did."
Melody nodded as she was clapping along.
"Let's all hope Maddie and Shanna have cute kids just like little Miss Nancy!" Mom added giving Nancy, Melody's only daughter and my only niece, a wink and a smile.
My wedding went by in the blink of an eye. You hear the saying that your wedding will go by in a blur and you won't remember half of it - well I've found out now that that's very true. It's been a week since the wedding and now Shanna and I are settling into marrige life together. We still haven't found our desired careers, but my father has found his! He's leaving his job as a mad scientist and accepted a position as a high school principal. Quite the difference, I know!
He found his new dream job just in time too! My father's elder birthday has arrived and it's time to celebrate. My father, who has had dark, curly hair all his life, now has a head of white! At least he's still got hair, I reminded him.
Shanna has finally found her desired career in the business field. She's going to start out at the entry level position of fiend sales representative. She only makes three fifty at the end of the week, but it's not about the paycheck for us. We just want to work towards our lifetime wants. I hope that I can find the dance career soon. . . I'm beginning to get worried that I'll never start working on my lifetime want!
"Oh my goodness! We're going to be parents!?" I was shocked when Shanna got up one morning and showed me her new belly.
"We're going to be mommies!" Shanna nodded, beaming.
"I can't believe this! Oh this is awesome. This happened pretty quick. I'm going to be a mom. Holy cow! We're going to be moms, Shanna." The pregnancy was obviously still sinking in.
Shanna laughed at my surprise, "I know Maddie, I know."
"I love you, Maddie. I'm thrilled that we're pregnant. I can't wait to raise this baby with you." Shanna pulled me in, but we couldn't get as close as we used to in hugs because her belly was round and pushed me back a little. I didn't mind of course, that's our little baby between us.
"I love you too, Shanna." We shared a quick kiss, both smiling. Then we spent a quick second looking in each others eyes before I realized, "We haven't told my parents yet! Mom's going to be thrilled - you know her lifetime want is to have six grandkids. She's already got four. She's going to be so happy!"
Shanna laughed, "Let's go break the good news!"
"Oh, Shanna congratulations dear!" Mom beamed when Shanna showed off her round, growing belly. "Hello little one. I'm your Grandma Leighton. I can't wait to meet you, sweet baby."
Obviously, my mother was over the moon to hear that she was going to have a new grandbaby soon. Mom was even more excited because she was going to help raise this grandchild since we're living in her and dad's home.
Shanna's belly is growing - it seems like she gets bigger everyday! My wife is always hungry and constantly tired. I feel horribly for her; I almost wish I could be the one bearing the burdens of pregnancy instead of seeing her so tired and swollen all the time. Thankfully her work let her off for maternity leave - I was worried that they wouldn't let her since she was such a new hire.
Stinker has been acting out quite a bit lately. He has never really played with Pepper or Snowball II, his parents. I never thought that he would actually start fights with them though! Pepper and Stinker got into it outside one day after Stinker snuck up and attacked Pepper. It makes me worried that he will do something like this to the baby once he or she is born. . .
We still have poker night once a week. Shanna tries to take naps before we start our games - she gets exhausted so easily these days. She's due any day now, but still tries to be pretty active around the house, bless her heart.
"Girls, I really don't think we should keep Stinker in the house any longer. Leighton and I are worried he will attack the baby while it's sleeping or something. He's just to dangerous to be around a newborn." My father and mother had obviously been thinking about giving Stinker away for a few days. I knew they were right - Stinker was getting too aggresive, but he was my childhood cat. I didn't want to just give him up! But I knew it had to be done. My baby's safety comes first. So after our poker game, I called my sister Molly and asked if she would take him.
After giving Stinker up to Molly and her family, things were much quieter around the house. . . but not for long! Shanna gave birth to our two beautiful children around four in the morning on a Wednesday. We are now the proud parents of twins!! Nate, our new son, resembles Shanna; he is light skinned with blonde hair and blue eyes. Norah, our daughter, looks very similar to me. She has dark skin, blue eyes and blonde hair. This, so far, is the happiest moment of my life. We're finally parents!
Dad has been working extra hard lately. He clocks in early, leaves the office late - does all the right things for promotions. Thankfully, all that hard work as has paid off! Dad's been promoted to the College Dean!
My beautiful, intelligent wife Shanna has also been working hard in her office. She went back to work right after Nate and Norah were born. She's just been promoted to an Executive in her office. That's a big step up from where she started. I'm so proud of my wife - she's well on her way to achieving a lifetime want.
Dad's done it again! He didn't hold his post as college dean for long - he got his final promotion! Now he has achieved two lifetime wants. That's a major feat - some people don't ever get the pleasure of even chasing their dreams, much less making two big dreams come true. Well luckily for my dad, he is now an education minister. His new, and third, lifetime want is to marry off six children. Seeing as how mom is too old to have any more children, this will not be happening.
While Dad and Shanna have been working hard in their offices, Mom and I have been working hard at home raising the twins. Nate and Norah are very well looked after and of course loved by everyone in the family. Mom can't get enough of the twins. I even catch her waking them up early from their naps just so she can cuddle them.
I'm terrified to change diapers (in fact, it's been one of my fears since the twins were born). So I get to do all the fun stuff with Nate and Norah. I feed them, bathe them and play with them when they're awake and happy. Being a mom is great - in fact, Shanna and I are trying to get pregnant again.
Seeing how I haven't changed for the twins yet, Shanna pulls double diaper duty. She doesn't mind though, thankfully. We make a great team as parents.
I have noticed that Snowball II has put on a little bit of weight, but it never dawned on me that she was pregnant! She and Pepper welcomed two little kittens into their new feline family. Isn't it strange that Shanna and I just had a boy and a girl and now Snowball ll is a new mom to a boy and a girl kitten? We've named them Maggie and Zeus.
"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Nate and Norah, happy birthday to you!" My parents, Shanna and I sang along in unison to the twins on their toddler birthday. I can't believe how fast time has flown. My babies are toddlers now! I must say, I'm pretty pleased with how they've grown. Aren't they both too adorable for words? They were such happy babies too. Hopefully if Shanna or I gets pregnant with a third child, he or she will be as easy to care for as Nate and Norah were.
The next morning Mom and I start working on Nate and Norah's basic toddler skills: walking, talking and the oh so dreaded potty training! Norah is doing fabulous - Mom, despite my anxiety and worry about feeding the twins smart milk, gave her a glowing bottle anyway. Mom says it's harmless, but I don't see how something that makes my daughter glow green can be harmless!
"Come on, son. Say "momma" for me please. Say "momma"." Teaching a toddler how to talk is much harder than I ever imagined. Nate, how is proving to be a stubborn little tyke, would much rather not sit in the corner and hear me say "momma" over and over at him. Pleading doesn't help, and neither does bribing. I hope this isn't an indication of how his teen years will be! After a while I gave up - something on Nate's face told me he just wasn't going to talk today!
After giving up on Nate's speaking lessons, I went to lay Norah down for her afternoon nap. I came back downstairs to see what my son was up to and I found him staring happily at the fish, babbling nonsense and poking on the glass. He'll babble and mutter to the fish, but not me! Great!
At least someone has had success with their day. Shanna came home with a promotion the day after the twins birthday. She's now an office senior manager. I couldn't be prouder of my lovely wife! She really is superwoman. A loving mom and wife and a full time manager now. She does it all!
Looks like we'll be adding another baby to our growing family! Shanna is pregnant for the second time with our third child. I'm extremely excited to be able to give the twins another sibling. I know they will be wonderful as a big brother and sister to the new baby.
Well, it's taken much longer than I anticipated, but I've finally started my dream career. On my first day in the dance career path, I got promoted from a tap dancer to a ballroom dancer. I'm glad I didn't have to tap dance too long - this outfit is overly ridiculous and completely uncomfortable! I guess I shouldn't complain too much though - at least I have finally found the job that will lead to my lifetime want.
It looks like in our efforts to get pregnant, Shanna and I may have tried just a little too hard. I've been feeling sick to my stomach lately and I have a sinking feeling that I may also be pregnant. Shanna's already carrying a little one in her tummy, I'm terrified to think that I may be pregnant also. What if we both have twins? Or triplets? I don't even want to think of the idea of us both having quadruplets! I can only hope this is just a stomach bug. Or if I am pregnant, I hope Shanna and I are carrying only one child each!
I really don't know why our cats are so violent lately! Snowball II has been getting into fights just like Stinker used to before Nate and Norah were born. I was hoping it was a one time thing, but every stray that walks by the house gets into a fight with Snowball II. Looks like we'll be finding another home for her asap!
The twins are growing so much these days, physically and intellectually. Nate and Norah both know how to talk, walk and use their big boy and girl potties. I'm so proud of my toddlers! Nate is completely attached to me. He always wants me to tickle him, snuggle with him and talk to him. I love having him need me so much - I know it won't be long before he'll want nothing to do with me as a teenager!
I was worried about Shanna going on maternity leave again so soon after getting promoted to senior office manager, but it's proving to be a good thing so far. She's gotten to spend more time with Nate and Norah than ever. She's helping Norah learn her colors and shapes while playing with the blocks and she gets to love on sweet Nate every chance she gets. A little time off from work is doing wonders for my wife.
"I don't know what we're going to do if we both have multiples. I heard that once you have multiples, your chance of having them again increases! I've already had twins; what if I'm carrying triplets now!?" Shanna was terrified when she found out that in addition to her pregnancy, I was carrying a new baby too! I couldn't help but share the same fear as her, but being pregnant for myself was new and exciting to me that I just wanted to look forward to the births coming up, not fear them.
"We'll work things out somehow - no matter what happens." I soothed Shanna before rubbing her belly. It's still unreal that we're both pregnant with our children.
"Slow down there, speed racer! The way you're inhaling those omlettes, you just might turn into one!" Shanna joked. My new eating habits were a topic of conversation in the house lately. Not only was I eating enough to feel a small village, but I was constantly craving anything with cheese: omlettes, grilled cheese, spaghetti with parmesan cheese. I'm blaming it on the baby (or babies) inside me!
Nate and Norah are aging again! Every time I turn around it seems like my babies are growing up more and more! Shanna, who is now heavily pregnant, couldn't get out of bed to celebrate with us. I'm close to due myself, but I wanted to make sure I saw my angels turn into children. Nate, my handsome freckle faced boy, is as sweet as ever. Norah sure is aging up to be a doll. I'm proud of the children Shanna and I are raising - aren't they cute!?
Not only are the cute, but so smart too! I remember when my parents used to make me, Melody and Molly skill as children - I hated it! But Nate and Norah seem to enjoy reading and skilling. They're so good at it too - I've never seen children knock out skills as fast as mine are doing.
It was a few nights after Nate and Norah's birthday that Shanna went into labor with our new baby. I was there when it all started and I have to admit, it scared the daylights out of me. Knowing that I was going to be going through the same pain very soon was terrifying! In the end though, we welcomed just one (thank God!) beautiful new baby. We named her Nala. She has blue eyes, dark skin and blonde hair like her lovely sister Norah. Mom was there to witness Nala's birth - I'm glad because Nala is her sixth grandchild and completed Mom's lifetime want to have six grandchildren.
Nala was only a few hours old when I went into labor with her baby sibling. My first pregnancy resulted in only one child. Shanna and I were worrying about multiples for nothing! Speaking of Shanna, I wish that she had been here to see our last child born. But she was upstairs resting from giving birth just a few hours prior to my labor. The pains of childbirth were intense, but looking into my daughter's bright blue eyes was worth every second of it! Baby Nicole has dark skin, brown hair and blue eyes. She's the only child to look completely like me!
Maggie and Zeus are fully grown adult cats now! They survived living in our crazy, busy household as kittens; it's miraculous! Maggie is almost all black and looks most like Pepper, her father. Zeus looks like Stinker, his feline brother who was given away for adoption when he couldn't stop fighting with his parents!
My big kids are in school now! I can hardly believe it. Just yesterday Shanna and I were changing their diapers (well Shanna was changing the diapers, I was feeding bottles). Nate and Norah are in the same class thankfully and have been looking forward to their first day of school ever since they turned into children. I hope that they adapt well to being away from my parents, Shanna and I. I want them to like school so that they will be excited about their future education.
Mom is thrilled to have babies in the house again. Nala and Nicole are such well behaved and quite little things too! I've finally gotten around to changing my first diaper ever! After potty training Nate and Norah, my fears of diapers are over. I'm happy to say that with a little help from Mom and Shanna, I'm now a diaper pro!
The older kids are enjoying school so far, thank goodness! They're both extremely smart and catch on quickly - so helping them with their homework is a breeze. Shanna is adapting well after giving birth. She used all of her maternity leave after giving birth to Nala, but now she's going full speed ahead with work and being a mom. I must say, she handles it well!
It's already time for Nala and Nicole to become toddlers. Where has the time gone?!
Nala, on the right, and Nicole, on the left, look more like twins than their older twin siblings do! My babies were both born separately, but they could pass for twins for sure! I'm proud of my little ones for growing up so well. I can't believe that there will be no more babies in the the house until one of my babies has babies! It's crazy to think about. Nala and Nicole are obviously adorable - I knew they would be because Shanna and I made them ;)
-------------------------------------------
This is where I'm going to end the chapter - look back in the next update to see how Shanna and Madeline finish raising Nate, Norah, Nala and Nicole! Thanks for reading, as always. See you next time, Katie
