We are anticipating an addition to our family.
It has been six years since we last eagerly anticipated the birth of a baby. That baby, now that boy, is the most beloved of grandchildren to Floyd and I, the most beloved of nephews to his aunts and uncles. He is sunshine and spitfire, sweetness and sass, smart and silly, rambunctious and cuddly. He is all the contradictions that make up a five year old. Watching him grow and learn has been amazing. He has cemented our blended family into an emulsion of simply family. No step. No half. No part. Just family. Jason did that. If you want to love and claim Jason (and everybody does), then you have to claim one another. I never saw that coming, but will be forever grateful for it.
And now, another baby is on the way. A baby boy? A little brother for Jason to teach all the cool boy stuff he has perfected over the years? A rough and tumble mini-J to fall in line behind a beloved older brother? A baby girl? A little sister that J can protect and pamper? Pink and ruffles? Dresses and bows? Dance recitals, like her mama? How I love to see a man with a baby girl! I can just imagine George with a daughter. And Floyd with a baby granddaughter. How fun it would be to take a little granddaughter shopping, to teach her to cook and to do crafts with her. I do those things with J, but somehow I think it might be different with a girl - or not!
Boy or girl, I do know that this baby will be born into a family that will adore it. It will have wonderful parents. It will have grandparents and great grandparents that love it unconditionally. It will have aunts and uncles who enjoy playing with and spoiling it.
This child will change the dynanics of our family, as all babies do.
I am appreciating this time of anticipation, knowing it lasts only a short while before the whirlwind begins. I love having this knowledge, that a tiny new person is coming into our family. This time to prepare and eagerly anticipate.
I love being the grandparent. All I have to do is wait. Linda is doing all the hard work. I appreciate her more than I can say.
