(Chapter Five) Third Time's The Charm?

Well, here we are again. Suzanne was in labor for the third time. And apparently she never got used to the pain either.

Marisol and I couldn't help but ask ourselves why she decided to keep having babies if it brought on so much pain... and why did we keep watching???

So much for that son I had wanted. Please welcome Melissa Marie Stratton. Wasn't the third time supposed to be a charm? Whoever said that didn't know what they were talking about. Again - don't get me wrong, I love my daughters more than life itself, but I'm old-fashioned. I believe the man should be the one to carry on the Legacy name.

If we couldn't have a son we would at least have a male puppy. We adopted little Linus. He was pretty much Stephanie's but the whole family loved him.

As it always had in the past, time had a way of getting away from me. My birthday came and caught me by surprise. I was officially an elder - and not a very fashion conscience one at that.

Suzanne didn't even seem to notice. We were still just as much in love as the day we were married. What a happy life we had created. And so far our lives were pretty ordinary. I have heard some real horror stories about some families around town. How did we get so lucky? I could only hope that the future generations would be as fruitful as Suzanne and I had been.

Shortly after my birthday, it was our sweet Melissa's birthday. Just as she had for our first two daughters, Suzanne baked Melissa's birthday cake. She was becoming quite good at it.

In a whirlwind of birthdays Marisol was becoming a teenager. Where did the time go?

What a beautiful young woman she was becoming, despite being a female version of her old man. Two teens in the house... no wonder I was gray already! (I rolled Popularity for Marisol - that is one of my LEAST favorite aspirations. Yuck!)

Thankfully Melissa got her looks from her mother just as our first born, Stephanie had.

I know, I know... hadn't we learned our lesson yet? How much more pain could Suzanne endure with the tremendous agony labor put on her body? We just couldn't seem to resist. And now with two teenagers and a toddler who would grow up in the blink of an eye, we missed having a baby around. Besides, I was still intent on having a son.

"This is it, Mark. I'm not getting any younger and neither are you. Stephanie and Marisol will soon be off to college and I don't know how well we'll be getting along." I promised her if we didn't get a son this time, I would choose an heir from my daughters and be proud of them.

Here we are - just as I knew it would come too quickly. Melissa's birthday.

It never got any easier seeing your little angels growing up, no matter how many of them you had.

Another beautiful, healthy young lady. How did we get so lucky?

Suzanne went into labor in the bathroom. She had been practicing a speech for the Scientist of the Year banquet, with Melissa waiting in the wings, nonetheless.

FINALLY, we have a son! We gratefully welcomed Maddox Malakai Stratton.



And then we also welcomed Sebastian Scott Stratton. Yes, HUGE surprise - we had twins. Never in a million years did I expect this.


Boy were we going to have our hands full.