To My Kids,

Your faces when we surprised you on the day Sam was born are something I will keep filed in my memory for as long as my mind will hold them. We all knew he would be coming soon. He was a full week overdue and each of you had been asking since mid-September when I thought he would arrive. Gerret, especially. Every night when I hugged him goodnight, he'd ask if Sam was coming that night and when he got the chance before school he would ask if Sam would be coming that day. My answer was always something like, "I hope so."  We were all anxious and getting impatient as the month wore on without the production of this long awaited baby. 

That day, Dad sent you off on the bus like any other day. It was typical for you not to see me in the morning. All of last year, I was gone before you woke up, teaching early morning seminary. All of the first month of school this year, I was generally in bed, overcome with the exhaustion that pregnancy exacted on my sore, stretched body. The only difference on the day Sam was born was that I was not upstairs in bed, I was in the bathroom downstairs, soaking in the tub since one in the morning, breathing deeply through every pain so as not to make noise and wake you or alarm you. Dad simply explained that I wasn't feeling good and you would all need to use the bathroom upstairs that morning.  And you all did without a second thought. 

After the three of you filed onto the bus that morning, Dad called my midwife and Sam was born just two and a half hours after she arrived. 

When the bus delivered you home that afternoon, I was waiting for you at the end of the driveway with Dad. There were three extra cars in our driveway, only one of which you questioned. Dad's car was here because, voila... Dad. That wasn't too out of the ordinary. Sometimes Dad comes home early from work. Then there was Grandma and Grandpa's van, which also appears in our driveway from time to time when they pay a visit. The third car was the black Hyundai driven by Aunt Olivia. 

"Why is Olivia here?" You all wondered.

 We made up an excuse about the lease expiring on that car and Aunt Olivia wanting us to say goodbye to it. It was true that the lease was up, but you would soon find the real reason she had come inside. First though, you found everyone waiting inside, including Aunt Elise who was seated in the living room with a jumble of blanket in her arms.

 It was like a party in our house that afternoon. It was already decked out for Halloween at Auburn's request.  Bats, owls, and skeletons hung from the kitchen ceiling, pumpkins adorned the island bar.  The celebration was complete with an ice cream cake which read, "Happy Birthday!" and bouquet of red roses from Grandma decorating the counter.

One of you, probably Nolan, asked why there was a birthday cake and we all knowingly smiled. Sam was there, but he was hidden amongst the commotion of your arrival home with backpacks and papers and the need to use the bathroom combined with the absurdity of having not only Dad home, but also your aunts and grandparents. It was explained that the cake was brought because it was someone's birthday. 

"Who's birthday?" You asked. 

Oh, that look of utter astonishment when Sam's arrival was announced and you finally noticed the little bundle in your aunt's arms. The room burst into frenzy as the three of you simultaneously jumped up and down, exclaiming your elation and shock, and rushed to get a look at that bundle. It was one of the best moments of my life.