A Sea of Blue

I remember exactly where I was when our son Keith and daughter-in-law Nicole called with the glorious news about our first grandchild. It was my first day of school back in August of 2001… teachers’ orientation. We were given an whole hour (!) for lunch and several of us headed to a local restaurant to catch up and enjoy each others’ company before an afternoon of more meetings. It was a beautiful end-of-summer day with a brilliant blue sky and wispy white clouds.

I had been excitedly anticipating a call all morning from Keith and Nicole. It was the day of the ultrasound that would tell, hopefully, the gender of their baby… our first grandchild. They wanted to know and since I am one of those read-the-ending-of-the-book-before-I-begin person, I was sitting on the edge of my life with anticipation.

My phone rang during lunch.

“Hello!?” I said, holding my breath.

“IT’S A GIRL!” Keith announced, “AND HER NAME WILL BE TAYLOR JANE.” I could hear the song in his voice. A GIRL. A GIRL. Wow. As I talked to Keith and Nicole on that beautiful day, my life melted into pink. On the way home from school that afternoon, I stopped at my favorite nursery and bought a stunning pink rose bush and planted it in my garden. Let the pink begin.

Wow. A GIRL named TAYLOR JANE.

It wouldn’t be quite 3 months when I got a very similar call on my way home from school. It was Adam. He and Aimee were expecting their first baby and our second grandchild and they, too, were hoping to “discover” the gender of their baby.  When my phone rang, my heart was pounding in anticipation…

“Hello!?” I said, holding my breath.

“It’s a GIRL!” Adam sang into the phone.

Wow. A GIRL. Another GIRL. This GIRL would be named MADISON DAVIS.

I took a little detour on my home that day to buy a second glorious pink rose bush to plant in my garden.  Our world was definitely wrapped in PINK.

Grandchild #3 was a bit of a wonderful surprise for Keith and Nicole… and this baby decided to keep the up the wonderful surprise by keeping the gender a mystery. It wouldn’t be until the moment Keith stepped from the elevator of the hospital… with all of us waiting in the waiting area… to announce, “IT’S A BOY!”

At that moment our lives melted into pink and BLUE. Yes, ANDREW BARRY changed everything.

And I mean everything.

Grandchild #4’s gender was a purposeful surprise, but this baby surprised everyone by arriving a few weeks early.  Barry and I were out of town at a wedding during that weekend, and we would get the call at somewhere around 2 in the morning that IT’S A BOY! JACOB ADAM brought a shade of BLUE to Adam and Aimee, and yet another shade of BLUE to our family.

Then there’s Audrey and Matthew.  Grandbabies #5, 6, 7 and 8.   Audrey and Matt were going to try to wait for the moment of birth announcement to the world with their first baby, who was due in September… but I was writing at my dining room table on a lovely May afternoon, right before Audrey’s birthday, when she called from New York City with this precious news… “IT’S A BOY!  AND HIS NAME IS WILLIAM!”   WILLIAM TILLMAN in blankets and blankets of BLUE!

A tiny bit over one year later, Audrey again called from New York City with news of grandchild #6… officially a BOY.  Wow.  A BOY!  A brother for William.  ALEXANDER DIMITRI would add yet another wonderful layer of BLUE to our stockpile of BLUE!

On November 13th, 2006, I wrote in my journal these words:  “Oh, my!  Oh, my!  Oh, my!  Three Oh, mys!  Three exclamation points!!!  Three Boys!!!  My littlest Darling… BENJAMIN!  Oh, my… how I love you already! Yes, BENJAMIN BARRY DAVID would make 3 boys for Audrey and Matt and 5 grandsons for Barry and me!!!!!  (5 exclamation points!)

Less than a year from that glorious November day, Audrey would tell us that another baby was on the way.  I wrote in my journal that evening… “My little-baby-oh-how-surprised-I-am Miracle!” And several weeks later, way earlier than anyone, ever, anywhere says that a sonographer can detect the gender of a little person… the news was… A BOY!  And yes, he is.  HENRY MATTHEW.  Grandbaby Boy #6.

Very close to the day Audrey and Matthew were told that their little person is most likely a boy, Adam and Aimee announced the news that grandbaby #9 was on the way!  This baby was going to be a surprise… and it was.  A surprise, that is.  ANOTHER BOY!  In late July, DYLAN JOSEPH made his appearance into this world of BLUE with its precious touches of at-the-beginning-pink.

One moment I will always treasure is the moment Barry and I told Flo that Adam and Aimee had just had a baby boy.  I know I’ve told you before that Flo loved boys… and she looked at us from her hospital bed and with a twinkle in her eyes, smiled and said, “Isn’t that something.”

Yep, Flosie.  Isn’t that something? 7 little guys.  7 little guys within 5 years.

Yesterday, at Jake’s birthday party, as they ran and climbed and played and became every character that boys become… almost impossible to get them to stop for one photograph… I couldn’t help but marvel at this SEA OF BLUE.  7 little guys on the great ship of life… all brothers and cousins… all gifts to us and to each other.   All touched, of course, with the beautiful shades of pink…

Isn’t that something.

About Audrey

Audrey McClelland has been a digital influencer since 2005. She’s a mom of 5 and shares tips on her three favorite things: parenting, fashion and beauty. She’s also a Contemporary Romance Author.

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3 Comments

  1. 6.14.10
    Jane said:

    It was so funny yesterday – I saw the 2 girls running around the backyard playing so sweet together… and then 2 of the boys were wresting on the ground, the other ones were “fighting” with their Indiana Jones weapons… such a difference!! I love it. If one of us has a girl, she is going to be incredibly well taken care of by her older boy cousins!

  2. 6.14.10
    Nancy said:

    Written like a grandma who loves her boys. Having my first grandson now, I can’t wait till he hopefully gets some male cousins. I love my visits here.

  3. 6.15.10

    What a wonderful story… you are indeed surrounded my love and the two girls have so many boy cousins to always protect them 🙂

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