Published: 6 Apr 2020

Yes, Ben and Ken’s research proved to us that Scott was related to us, to both of us, and to Mom and Dad, and to Sam and Carole also. What Mr. Lane suggested we do was to let things move along as they were for the time being. After Scott’s third weekend and we were awarded permanent custody, then when we went to Family Court in 90 days to have an adoption hearing, the results of the search could then be presented as additional information for the judge to base their decision on. He felt that by introducing it now, it might only delay things even longer. He also told us not to let on to Scott just yet what we had found out. He told us that once he was in our home after his last weekend visit, that would be a good time to sit him down to explain the whole scenario to him, if we all agreed that that was the best time to tell him, he thought that waiting until he was older, he might have a better understanding of what had gone on that led to his birth in the first place.

We did ask him to do what he could to find Scott’s and my father. We knew that both of our birth mothers were deceased, but Mr. Unknown might still be out there and we knew of at least one other sibling to Scott and me, his son, that he had blamed for getting Mike’s second cousin pregnant. Mr. Lane thought that might be easy enough to do, since it had been just about ten years ago that the man had worked at Smith College over in Northampton, about twenty-five miles from where we lived, and a shorter than that distance from where we attended classes at UMASS.

Scott’s second weekend went really well, for all of us. He was treated like the returning prince of the family after we returned home from picking him up after classes that Friday. It turned out we were home just before the school bus dropped off Logan and Blake and they both rushed to go see Scott in his room as Scott unpacked for the weekend. They had some conversation that seemed like shorthand to Mike and me. We were helping Scott get settled in his room, we had learned from the previous weekend and we were not letting a chance to talk to Scott, or listen to him tell us all about his week in school and his week back at the boy’s dorm get past us. We were chatting away, all three of us when the slightly older boys arrived on the school bus. We let the boys get all caught up and we went to saddle a few horses, as that is what the three boys had decided to do for the rest of the afternoon.

Dinner that night saw everyone home and the table conversation was lively as everyone had questions for Scott, since they hadn’t seen him for five days. Carole had some that made Scott laugh, mostly about some of the residents he currently lived with at the dorm. After dinner the boys all had something to watch on TV as we adults talked as we straightened the kitchen, and Carole asked when we were going to tell Scott about being related to us. I related what Mr. Lane had told us and she had to agree with him, even going so far as to say she thought that after the adoption might be a good time to tell him if we felt he was ready then.

On Saturday, we asked Scott if there was anything in particular he wanted to do this weekend and he asked if it was going to be warm enough to go swimming this afternoon. So that is what we did after getting in a horseback ride which Blake and Logan joined us for. Before getting ready to swim for a while in the heated pool, we all had some class assignments to work on. Scott had some questions to answer from his American History text as Mike and I had some chapters from earlier in the semester to review, it was coming up on our period of testing, the closer we got to the holidays and with Thanksgiving just a few weeks away, we were trying to review the earlier chapters now.

Scott seemed to be struggling with something and he seemed reluctant to ask for help, so I walked around the back of the chair he was sitting on and saw he was working on the chapter about the War of 1812 and I went back and sat in my chair, motioned to Mike and got his attention before whispering that it was his area, history, that had Scott stumped. Mike smiled big, this was his chance to look good in Scott’s eyes, a chance to help our future son find the answer to his problem of the moment.

It worked a charm as Mike brought Scott a refill of the bottled flavored water we were drinking, (strawberry we found was a favorite of just about everyone in the house) and began chatting and worming his way into the problem Scott was trying to work out. Without outright giving him the answer, Mike gave him a general idea of where in that text he could find the information he needed. With a determined look on his face, which soon broke into a satisfied smile, Scott was writing down the answer to the question that had been bugging him.

We were soon frolicking in the warm water of the pool and not for the first time I wondered why we didn’t have an off season enclosure over the pool to make it a year round indulgence. Then I looked out over the gently rolling fields to the mountains across the river in Holyoke and realized for the thousandth time that we’d definitely loose that great view if we had the pool enclosed.

We watched two movies that night after dinner that Scott had picked out and we three cuddled on the sofa in the family room as most of the others lounged in the chairs or the other couch with a good view of the huge flat screen TV on the wall we faced. We were so cozy that for a while there in the middle of the second movie, I suddenly realized that Scott had fallen asleep snuggled into Mike’s and my snuggle, so I nudged Mike and he soon realized Scott was out like a light, but with a big satisfied smile on his nine year old face.

With James’ help we got ourselves untangled and we took Scott from James and carried him up to his bed and tucked him in after we got his trousers and shirt off him. Even if he was still asleep, I couldn’t resist kissing his forehead and Mike was right there after me and we stood for a moment, our arms around each other, and we watched him sleep, he was still smiling.

The next day was Sunday and we had all completed our homework, Scott asked us to look his over for him. He was getting used to the idea that we were going to be teachers soon, plus we were much older guys who were still in school. It was a humbling experience for us, for Mike and me both. This was his first time asking us to help with his homework, and except for a few times Logan had asked for our help, this was the first time that Scott had and it made the two of us feel good. It was colder out that Sunday, so the pool was out for an afternoon activity, but we decided to take Scott to get some riding boots right after church. He had been using an older pair of Logan’s and we had found out that he was wearing three pairs of socks with them last weekend and yesterday.

It was a short drive to the farm store where I guess we went a little overboard and we walked out with several new shirts, some heavier weight jeans, a lined denim jacket for cold weather riding, and two pairs of those short work boots and a pair of all weather boots for the worst of the winter weather to come. Scott was like a kid on Christmas morning when he showed Mom what all we had purchased for him. Of course she just shook her head at us as she and Scott clipped tags off before running them through the wash, but the smile on Scott’s face made it all worth it, and the way Mom was acting she really didn’t disapprove, but you could see she knew just how much this meant to Scott, having these clothes waiting for him here at the house when he came back (for good) next Friday afternoon.

We did have time for a short horseback ride before dinner was ready and after that it was time to drive him back to the dorm. On Monday afternoon we got a call from Lucas, Scott’s caseworker and our friend, and one of Blake’s dads. He explained that since it was close to the end of Scott’s school’s semester, they were willing to give him his final exams before he had to change schools after the first of the year. We were pleased about that for Scott’s sake, but worried if it was too much testing for him to get it all done in less than a week, but Lucas told us that Scott was determined to get it all done so he could go to the school out here with the kids he had met at church, and so that we didn’t have to drive him into the city three different days so he could take the tests with his original class.

When we met him at the dorm entrance that Friday he was sitting on the bench again, with about four boxes at his feet, a kid sitting next to him, the kid a much smaller one, and he was clutching at Scott and the two were sobbing. It broke my heart, I knew just what that little guy was feeling, watching this bigger boy, his friend or “hero”, the older boy he looked up to in here, leaving for good. Mike was moving forward fast but I stopped him and motioned toward the sign out window, I went over to the boys and asked Scott to introduce me to his friend.

The younger boy was Lawrence, Larry, and he was six and new to the dorm, having been orphaned just a month ago when his parents were killed in an auto accident and the only other family member was an aunt that was currently serving a thirty year sentence in prison for causing the deaths of five people in a drunk driving accident. Larry’s parents had no other relatives so he had been placed in the care of the state. I asked Larry to stay on the bench while I took Scott to the bathroom and in the hall bathroom I asked Scott what he thought about Larry. He dried his tears on his sleeve and asked if we could take him home with us, he really got to like him a lot and he really did want him as his little brother, he told me he wouldn’t be any extra work for Mike and me, he would take care of Larry for us.

I shushed him and told him that maybe we could all help Larry, in fact I thought that Mike was trying to find out right now just what we had to do to be able to take Larry home with us for at least the weekend, just as we had done before his first visit with us. We went back to Larry and now Mike and Lucas were both talking to him and Scott went right up to Lucas and told him that he wanted to ask Larry to go home with us. Lucas laughed and said that that was just what they had been talking about and they had come to the conclusion that Larry would go home with us for the weekend at least, and maybe the following weekend, maybe for a longer time the next weekend. I spoke up and said that before that second weekend was Thanksgiving week and Mike and I had it off from school and we thought that maybe during this coming week we might be able to pick up Larry, say on Tuesday, and sign permanent placement papers on him then so we could all have a good Thanksgiving on that Thursday.

Mike spoke up and said that that would only have Larry here for one day after the weekend, and we thought that was totally unnecessary, why not just bring the papers needed over for us to sign when Lucas and Nate came to pick up Blake the next evening and we’d all be covered and all official and everything. Lucas could do his evaluation of Larry in our household and then we could all sign the papers. Lucas looked caught between a rock and a hard place, but he agreed to try his best for Larry and us and thought with the Holiday next week he just might be able to get this done for us all. Scott looked up to me and asked if that meant yes or no, and I told him it was a definite maybe, but he and Larry should go and get as much of his things as possible now so we wouldn’t have to come back next week. He gave me that huge smile and then went and shook Lucas’s hand and hugged Mike before telling Larry they had to go pack some of his things up to come stay with us.

Of course while the boys were gone Lucas tried to give us a hard time, but he just kept chuckling and I told him that he was using up valuable groveling time that was supposed to be spent with his supervisor, if that was the person we could get permission from to become Larry’s permanent guardians in less than a week. He took the hint and had us both sign out the boys and took off back to his office after saying goodbye to us.

As we waited for the boys to return Mike and I sat and asked each other what we had just started, we wondered if we were ready for a second boy even before we had Scott totally moved into our home, and then I told Mike what Scott had said in the restroom, that he would take care of Larry. Mike thought that Scott would make a perfect big brother. I had just enough time to call home and warn Mom that there was a six year old coming home with us as well as Scott and she giggled and said she couldn’t wait to meet him.

Mike had taken Scott’s boxes out to the car and by the time he returned I was off the phone and Scott and Larry were coming through the dorm doors with the one box of Larry’s meager possessions. When Lucas called us a few hours later to tell us that the higher ups in the agency had approved Larry’s placement with us to start this weekend, I asked him what had become of all the clothes that must have been in Larry’s family home and he told me that when the police entered the apartment it had been ransacked and that in that poor neighborhood they were lucky to salvage what they had, which was two changes of clothes and a pair of pajamas and a photo album.

Larry got to use the kids seat we had bought for Scott, at least until we stopped in Holyoke at the big mall and got one his own size, and while there, we got him some more outfits and proper shoes, too, but the fun clothes we could get the next day at the farm supply store back home. At least the shelter had provided him with a winter coat and mittens. It was a ball listening to Scott tell Larry about our household on our way home. He told Larry that grandma and grandpa were really neat, but you had to do everything grandma said because she did most of the cooking and she made really good food. Grandpa would help him get taught about the horses, but Ken and Bill were really good with horses too, they were like uncles and there were others too, James and Tim lived there too, and Sam, Carole and Kate lived in their own apartment right next door, too. He told him that the ones he really had to watch out for was the three dogs that lived mostly in the barn and the stable. The dogs were the biggest lickers he had ever seen and they would knock you down and lick all over you and want to play all the time. He had just about finished when we arrived home and we each took a box from the trunk and went toward the front door of our house, after Scott had given Larry the run down on who lived where.

We were welcomed at the front door by Mom and Dad who each greeted one of the boys with a hug and then they swapped the boys so each got his share. Mom kissed Mike and me, and Dad shook our hands as they helped us all in. Since we still had the boxes in our grasp we headed upstairs, asking the boys to follow so Larry could pick out his own room. There were two left unoccupied, and one was right next to Scott’s, with a shared bathroom between them. Of course Larry picked that bedroom and I helped him get his belongings settled in the room and then we went through the bathroom to Scott’s room where he had begun to empty his boxes, Mike was sending Larry’s new clothing through one of the washing machines downstairs with Mom assisting. Scott showed Larry his closet and the dresser that held all his new outfits, showing Larry how everything was either hanging to keep wrinkles out and or folded neatly in the drawers of his bureau. Larry started to go back to his room, but I told him that Mike was washing his new clothes so they would be more comfortable for him to wear in about two hours when everything was washed and dried, then we could fold them, or put them on hangers to keep them neat until he wore them. He wrapped his arms as far around my waist as he could and thanked me, I asked just what he was thanking me for and the tyke responded he was thanking me for everything. By now he had his arms wrapped around my neck and Scott was also thanking me for everything.

Mike chose that minute to walk in, asking where all his boys were and Larry was soon transferred to him, this time holding Mike’s neck in a big hug and Scott hugging him around the waist. Both boys were thanking him, too, for everything. Mike didn’t get as teary as I had gotten, but he did have very shiny eyes there for a few moments. I thought out loud that since we were all up on the second floor that we should all give Larry a tour of the house so he wouldn’t get lost, so our tour began with Scott leading the way, holding hands with Larry as we moved from room to room.

By the time we had almost finished the first floor tour Mom had put four brownies out on a plate in the kitchen with half glasses of milk lined up. She said it was our after school snack, and there was more for dessert after dinner. She and Dad joined us as we all talked at the table, mostly about the boys not having school until after the New Year’s Holiday, and Mike and I having classes and exams until just after the first week of December. That meant that for just about two weeks the two boys wouldn’t have school to go to during the weekdays. Scott wouldn’t transfer into the local school’s third grade until after the first of the year, and Larry had been attending preschool for the last three months in the city, which is why he wasn’t with his parents when they had their fatal accident on the highway.

It was then, just before five, when Lucas called and gave us the great news that Larry would be staying, with Mike and me named as his permanent guardians, and we would all have paperwork to sign late tomorrow afternoon, and that he had just heard from Nate who was going to be dropping off Blake and Logan as they had been at their house up the road since they got out of school today.

One thing that amused all of us was that Larry couldn’t yet tell the difference between the dogs yet and he called them all DOG. It was funny, because they all responded to him so well. While we were at the stable helping Dad with the evening chores there, the dogs followed him closely, each of them stealing a doggy lick now and then. Unfortunately they tried that while he was carrying a half bucket of feed to Dad and he put the bucket down and turned to the three dogs and told them,”Dogs, I’m trying to work here, don’t make me spill the horse food! If you can’t behave you’ll have to go in the barn, and I mean it!!” The three huge dogs just cocked their heads at him and sat on their butts. They sat there watching as he struggled with the bucket over to a stall where Dad was waiting for the feed, the dogs still sitting, waiting for play time with him, which they got as Dad thanked him for helping out and Larry gave Dad a hug and then ran to the dogs with his arms out wide and told them it was play time.

He had only been here for just under three hours and he had those dogs, each bigger than him, responding to him like he had been around them his whole life. I think Logan and Scott were going to have a lot of competition for the dogs’ attentions. Logan and Blake were dropped off by Nate about then and the two older boys rushed in the stable from the barn to see Scott again and to meet Larry. The dogs didn’t even bother to sniff them, they kept trying to lick Larry. Everyone was falling for Larry, and Mike and I couldn’t be happier.

Dinner that night was again lasagna, but there definitely were no complaints. Scott had Larry sitting next to him and he taught him how to take a small bite of garlic bread and then add some of the lasagna so all the flavors blended in his mouth. Larry thought that was the bestest meal he had ever had. After dinner the four boys played a board game before their program came on the TV, the four of them playing, but the three oldest were really teaching Larry how to play and they somehow made it so Larry won the game. I thanked Logan and Blake for that later and they told me in all seriousness that once Larry got the hang of the game he really did beat them all, and no one was holding back at all.

Mike and I decided to watch the show with the boys so we settled into our spot on the big couch and we soon had Scott snuggled into us and then Larry squirmed into the three of us, watching the family comedy and glancing at the others in the room now and then. Mom and dad were snuggled in on one end of the other couch, and Logan and Blake were likewise at the other end, James and Tim were sharing one of the recliners, and Ben and Ken were on the floor with little Kate while her parents were in another recliner, just as wrapped in each other as the rest of us.

Of course by the end of the next show Larry had dropped off to sleep, but we waited until the next commercial break to untangle and take him up to his new room. Scott just had to come and help Mike and me get him undressed and into his new pajamas and all three of us kissed his forehead and tucked him in. I put the night lite on in the adjoining bathroom and we all tiptoed out and back to the couch until it was time an hour later for Scott to go to bed, and Logan and Blake went up then too. We gave them a few minutes to get settled in and then Mike and I went up to do our tuck in routine with them also. When we got to Scott’s room he was just coming out of the bathroom and he told us he had peeked in on Larry and he was sleeping well for his first night in a new place. He asked if Larry was going to get to stay with us and we told him he was, it had been arranged and we’d be signing the paperwork the next afternoon.

We tucked in a very happy boy and he hugged each of us as he said thank you to us, but we told him we had him to thank for introducing us to Larry. I asked him if he wanted Larry for his little brother, and that got me not only another hug, but a cheek kiss as well, don’t worry, Mike got his, too, right after.

So after our boys were safely in their rooms for the night we stopped by Logan’s room to see how he and Blake were settling in and they were already under the covers, but not too old for us to wish them sweet dreams before we left them for the night. Back downstairs, the others were still there, wanting the particulars about our bringing home Larry from the shelter and once we explained the sight that we came upon when we entered, of the two boys trying to say goodbye to each other, well, you had to be there, it just tugged and then pulled on our heart strings and we didn’t hesitate to want to make both boys happy, and they wouldn’t have been for some time if we hadn’t done what we did.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the next couple of days, not by any means. Larry still was seeing a counselor regarding the deaths of his parents, but we had offered to pay her ourselves, we were not accepting any money or reimbursements from the DCFS, we could afford those expenses, and the DCFS had plenty of other things to use those funds for. Larry was doing really well, his counselor told us after her first session with him at our house, and she only anticipated one or two more sessions with him. She told us that we were doing all the right things; giving him a loving home, spending one to one time with him, including all the household in keeping him occupied, and introducing him to things he had never experienced before. She thought a lot of the credit for his transition being so successful was due to his close relationship with Scott, and the attachments to his new fathers.

We knew we were going to have to come up with some sort of care for the boys during the day time while Mike and I were involved with testing for our semester exams after the Thanksgiving break and until the middle of December. It was only a few weeks until Mike and I were free, and we were discussing this at dinner one night when Mom smacked her big wooden spoon on the counter where she had been putting the finishing touches on our meal. She said we really didn’t have to worry about trying to find a daytime babysitter for the boys, she would be home all the time, except for shopping and other local errands, and Dad only had the stable and barn to tend to during the winter months, so both of them would be able to care for the boys, their future grandsons, and she didn’t want to hear another word about it.

We did tell her that we didn’t want to impose on her and Dad, I mean they were the ones who kept the whole place running on a day to day basis, but she was adamant, it would let the boys bond further with them, it would be a great diversion for Mom and Dad, and it wouldn’t be for a real long time either, because after the Holidays were over both boys would be enrolled in our local schools for the weekdays. So it was decided; Mom had spoken.

While Lucas and Carole were too connected to us at this point we had to have someone else from their office do the residence suitability report. A middle aged woman came out one day, I think it was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I remember this because I was doing the honors of mushing up the stuffing, so it was just about three thirty and the boys had all had a turn on the old meat grinder that Mom usually used to grind up a couple of packages of Saltine crackers. Into that went a bunch of spices, like allspice, pepper, etc., and the insides of both beef and pork link sausages, and some water. This made for a weighty mix of things to blend, so someone had to really clean their hands and just get in there and mix it all by hand, mushing and squeezing until the whole roasting pan was full and the ingredients all mixed and blended. The boys were next to me at the counter, watching me get all covered in what would turn out to be the best tasting stuffing in the world when the doorbell rang and Mike, whose hands were clean, went to answer the door. I could clearly hear the woman at the door ask if his mother was home and of course Mom had heard that and she left the sink where she had been cleaning the old grinder and went to the door wiping her hands on a kitchen towel.

We were not expecting anyone and had spent the morning cleaning house with Mom’s supervision, and after lunch we guys had taken a ride on the horses, Larry, Scott, Mike and I, Logan and Blake were with Nate, supposedly baking pies for tomorrow’s feast, since they had offered when we had invited them. When Mom went to the front door the visitor explained that she was with DCFS and was here to do the home evaluation concerning Larry’s placement. Mom introduced herself, but told the woman, a Miss Rodgers, that she must be mistaken, as this home belonged to her son and son-in-law, the couple fostering both Larry and Scott. She then introduced her son, Mike and invited the woman in.

I had heard this exchange and asked Scott to go to the connecting door to Carole and Sam’s to ask Carole to come over for a moment. I knew she had only worked a half day and was home with Kate and was preparing a green bean casserole for tomorrow and baking some rolls for our big feast the next day. Miss Rodgers was looking all around as Mom brought her to the family room/ kitchen where I was finally washing my hands in the sink. I had asked Scott to get Carole because Miss Rogers tone indicated she was either a bit on edge or was in a bad mood, and I thought that having another adult here would be a good idea.

After Mom introduced us guys to Miss Rodgers she asked to see the sleeping arrangements for everyone in the house, not believing that there were still others living here that were not present. Carole and Kate knocked on the connecting door, and Scott let them in and Carole said hello to each of the boys, who then took Kate into the family room area to watch TV. Carole approached Miss Rodgers and began to escort her to the rooms at the back of the house that Mom and dad used, then she escorted her to the second floor and showed her the room arrangements up there, keeping up a running dialogue with the woman, who had seemed to be hell bent on finding something wrong, but I’ll give Carole credit, she had explanations for everything the woman complained about, even telling her that she had misread the form requesting the home evaluation and that the property really did belong to the young men she had met downstairs and that not only that, but that we owned extensive property in Key West and were multi millionaires in our own right, despite the millions we had both inherited from my Grandfather.

It was a changed Miss Rodgers who accompanied Carole back downstairs, and by then Mom had brewed more coffee and she graciously offered cups of the brew to our guests. Miss Rodgers got to meet the boys and we all sat at the big table once I had put the roasting pan into the fridge, all ready to bake in the morning with the neck from the turkey placed in the middle. Once she had checked off all the boxes on her form we found out that this had been her last assignment of the day and she seemed a much more pleasant woman after her visit with us. It turned out, Carole told us after she had gone, that the woman was ready to retire and the influx of younger people working out of the office, like Carole and Lucas, were a bit unsettling for her, but she only had till the end of the year to deal with all that, she was due to retire after the Holidays at the end of the year.

It was just after seven when our true company arrived. James and Tim had volunteered to pick up Jan and Matt at the small airport out in Westfield where our plane was hangared. The guys were eager to come up for a week since we wouldn’t get to go down to see them until mid March this coming year. Not only would they be able to renew their friendships up here, but they would get to meet our two newest additions, Scott and Larry. The boy’s had had a chance to talk to them over the phone during our weekly calls to them, but all each pair had seen of the boys were the pictures on our Facebook page, and the boys had only seen pictures of them we had on our laptop files

Being the closest things to uncles I had I was so excited to see if the boys would form a bond with them as quickly as Mike and I had. I needn’t have worried, as soon as James pulled his car into the parking pad in front of the garage, Scott and Larry were racing to greet them, recognizing them from the pictures we had shown them. Logan wasn’t far behind, wanting to fill his uncles in on his boyfriend, Blake, that they would get to meet tomorrow.

Matt and Jan got settled into their room, Logan talking to them as they emptied their carry on bags into the dresser and closet, keeping a running conversation with Logan going the whole time. I had Larry and Scott helping Mom and me out in the kitchen, getting the big table set and chatting about this and that as the other residents slowly drifted in, and soon everyone was gathered and our pre holiday meal began. Mike and Matt helped the boys pick out a few DVDs to watch as Jan and I stayed at the table, going over some paperwork he wanted me to see and sign where needed. One of the items he wanted to discuss with me was the name of the warehouse conversions that would be completed next spring.

The working name at the time was Strauss Properties, but he thought the name needed some more permanence. I agreed, because that was the name of the development company we had created for use on this townhouse development, as well as the Steamplant project. This property needed a more permanent name and I asked if we couldn’t still continue to honor Grandfather and call it Strauss Place.

Jan liked that and so we filled out the forms to make the name change permanent for the townhouse project which was important because brochures had to be printed and people were actually stopping at the construction office to ask questions, so Jan was going to rent a portable office building and have it delivered to the site to have consultants who could act as sales people for these 200 units. These would be rent to own condos for the lower to moderate income families in the area, fully funded by Mike and me and a few family investors. We were not expecting a profit on these units, but only to break somewhat even eventually.

Just when I thought we were finishing up, Matt asked Jan if he had brought up the house at 422 Elizabeth, the house next to the one we had bought that was next to our house down there, Grandfather’s place. This was a two family, two story home, two, two bedroom units, all updated and just about in pristine condition. This place was now empty and on the market for just under a million, one dollar under a million. I told them both that that was something we needed to talk to Mike about, too, so Mike joined us at the table and we learned that the owners were from out of the country and didn’t get to use their apartment in the house as much as they thought they would when they bought the property, and now that their tenant and property caretaker had moved out of town they were selling it.

I know this building was over twice the size of our guest cottage, thus the rooms would be much bigger, so I asked what everyone thought about asking Jerry and John if they wanted one of the units there, for the same rent they were paying now, and let them take care of that new property like they were currently doing for the cottage we used as added guest quarters. Matt and Jan thought they would jump at the chance and Mike agreed, so I told Jan to get in touch with Ryan Harris, our hunky Key West lawyer, and have him make an all cash offer on the property, then if we got it, Matt and Jan could make Jerry and John the offer for whichever apartment they wanted, and rent out the other apartment at market value. But I threw out there that maybe we should ask Jerry and John if they knew a single or a couple that might like to take over their old apartment in the cottage and take over as caretakers for that property. Everyone agreed and Jan said he’d get in touch with Mr. Harris on Friday.

Both Jan and Matt reported that everything at the lumber yard and the hardware store was fine and that sales had jumped after I had authorized a holiday bonus to every employee and it looked like the enthusiasm that had generated with their last paycheck had carried over to this week as well as even the display staff had outdone themselves and although they had a lot of Christmas displays already, the one they did for Thanksgiving had been outstanding. They had several mannequins dressed as Native Americans showing an equal number of Pilgrim ones how to cook a turkey over an open fire, the fire was a fake one, but very realistic.

The Thanksgiving dinner was to have started at four in the afternoon, but everyone was having such a great time visiting that we didn’t get to sit until nearly five. Lucas, Nate, and Blake were right on time, as were Ben and Ken after they had gotten cleaned up after supervising all the boys on a two hour horseback ride in the earlier afternoon. Tim and James helped us set the big table and the extra one we had set up right alongside it, the long rectangular one from the deck.

Mike and I spent the meal at the “add on” table, we had missed out on spending time with our boys that afternoon while conducting more business with Jan and Matt, it was necessary, but we didn’t want to deprive the boys from having fun with Ben and Ken when they told us they were thinking of taking the boys for a ride. So we sat at the big patio table with our two boys between us as we listened to them tell us all about their rides on the horses that afternoon, and yes, we did promise to go riding with them the next day. This was probably Scott’s first holiday spent out of the orphanage, and we hoped he was having a “special” day, and we knew that Larry was, all he could talk about was the great food and the fun he had with Scott on the ponies.

Later as we snuggled all in on our couch in the family room I asked Scott how his day was going and he said that except for the first weekend he had spent with us, that this was the best of them, and I asked what made this one so special, and he whispered to me that we had given him a brother to share his happiness and new things with, plus everyone here was real nice and didn’t yell at anyone, even the new uncles, everyone got along great, I felt him kiss my cheek then, and Mike whispered that he wanted one of those too. I looked down and saw that Larry had fallen asleep in Scott’s lap and that was why we were whispering. We snuggled in together again and when the replay of today’s Thanksgiving Parade was over, Mom announced that it was time for some desserts.

Mike, Scott and I all laughed as Larry’s eyes popped open at that, seemingly starved the way he ran to follow her into the kitchen end of the room. Except for some snacks while we were all watching TV or a movie, Mom didn’t like us to eat in the family room, and since she was the one who saw to the cleaning in the house we respected her wishes and soon Larry was well surrounded with the rest of us trying various desserts, from the pies that Ken and Ben had baked yesterday to the frosted brownies with butterscotch chips that Lucas and Nate had brought along with their other contributions, all the dishes got rave reviews and plenty of moans that a lot more exercising was in everyone’s future after second, and in some cases, third helpings were eaten.

Editor’s Notes: Glad to see more about Jason and Mike and all the new family members.

As always, it seems that AAKD has come into the picture, and who among us will complain about that?

I can hardly wait for another chapter.

Darryl AKA The Radio Rancher

Art has has given us a sequel to Jason’s Coming of Age. Let Art know you are reading: ArtWest at CastleRoland dot Net

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