A Year to Remember(56)

Apparently I had taken too much time in the bathroom, because when I came out, Caleb sat in a chair in the corner reading the newspaper completely dressed.

“I just talked to my parents. They said everyone will be over at eleven. We should get to their house around ten to get ready.”

“Get ready?”

“You know, so you and my mom can decorate and get all the food ready for my dad to grill.” He stated it so matter-of-factly, I wondered if I had forgotten he hadn’t told me I had responsibilities at the barbecue. If my parents threw a barbecue for Caleb and me, we wouldn’t be expected to lift a finger unless we volunteered.

“What are you going to do while I’m slaving away in the kitchen barefoot and pregnant?” I asked sarcastically. “I’m going to help my Dad set up the grill.”

Yeah, because that takes two people.

I concluded I wouldn’t mind helping his mother and didn’t say anything to Caleb.

As it turned out, his mother spent most of the time showing off her photo albums, specifically pointing out pictures of Caleb as a baby.

“He was such a wonderful baby. He never cried, and he slept through the night starting at two weeks old. Of course, back in those days we put cereal in the bottle, which I’m sure you know is the secret to getting a baby to sleep for long periods of time.” Actually, I knew practically nothing about babies. I’d have to take her word for it.

Caleb had been an adorable baby with big round blue eyes and rolls of pudgy baby fat. It was difficult to equate that baby as the lean man Caleb was today.

Until I turned five, my mom had to force me to eat. I had such a small appetite my mom swears my brother and I used to share one hot dog and I still didn’t finish mine. I don’t know what changed, but after I started kindergarten, I began to gain weight, my tummy sticking out in every one of my pictures. Soon, I began to eat two hot dogs for dinner and I never felt full. I thought about food constantly throughout the day, always asking when we would eat. Sweets and bread were my favorite and I’d often hide food in my room.

My mom put me on my first diet at eight years old. I remember losing twelve pounds even though I ate such things as a Taco Bell taco salad. Too bad I don’t have that kind of metabolism now.

Hopefully, if Caleb and I have children, they’ll take after him. Chubby babies that turn into athletic, lean adults.

“What did I miss?” asked the female version of Caleb.

Caleb’s sister who appeared to be about twelve months pregnant waddled into the kitchen wearing a child on her back in something that looked like a backpack with holes for feet. Hmm, I didn’t know kids were in fashion.

“Gamma!” the little boy wailed, holding his arms out to Carol.

“Larry!” Who names their kid Larry these days?

“Thanks, Mom,” Caleb’s sister Crystal said, obviously relieved of having to carry an additional twenty pounds on her already overtaxed pregnant body.

Crystal took off the contraption and groaned in satisfaction.

“Hi, you must be Sara. I’m Crystal, Caleb’s sister. It’s so nice to meet you!” She threw her arms out and tried to hug me, but the basketball under her shirt kept her from being able to completely fulfill the embrace.

I laughed in sympathy and hugged the side of her, patting her back at the same time. “It’s really nice to meet you, too! Why don’t you have a seat? Can I get you something to drink?”



I pulled out a chair for her so she could get off her feet. I couldn’t imagine being responsible for three lives with a fourth one growing inside of me. She deserved a seat in my opinion.

Crystal turned to her mother. “I like her. At least someone treats me right!”

While Carol greeted and played with her grandchildren, Crystal and I got to know each other. If she lived in Michigan, she’d be a candidate for my new best friend. Although we led completely different lives, we had no trouble finding things to talk about, maybe because she reminded me of Caleb.

Her children ran through the house shouting at the top of their lungs while she tuned them out and talked up her brother to me. Meanwhile, Caleb periodically ducked into the kitchen to give me a quick kiss, and then continued chasing the kids, threatening them with tickles and belly blasters, which Crystal explained as raspberries on the tummy. It was hectic and crazy and I loved every minute of it!

I met Nancy and Chris, Caleb’s aunt and uncle, who seemed more conservative than the rest of the family. They didn’t like the noise of the kids and spent most of the time sitting on the family room couch drinking wine. Still, when we prepared to leave the barbecue at nine o’clock that night, I already felt like part of Caleb’s family. We hugged his family goodbye and then his mother burst my little fantasy of perfection.