pique a boo

This is Jarred. He'll be my 3rd brother, once he's done brewing. He's due in May to my dad & Deva. I've only met Deva over the phone but she seems lovely. It's the first time I've caught my dad humming on the phone. And she's closer to his age than to mine. That's a big step.

Deva first thought to not know the sex of the baby, then decided she did not want all greens and yellows at her shower. But wanting to know is not always enough. My dad the 2nd to last ultrasound showed the baby waving, sticking out his tongue, and with his legs closed. No matter how they poked on the outside of his inner bubble, he kept his secret safe. I'm not sure, but I think they went in while he was asleep and took his picture.

Jarred will be younger than his nephew Donnell. I know. Feel free to take a minute to let that compute. Donnell is my brother's baby, and will be my first nephew. He's just about done and is due in February to Derek and Sianneh. I haven't met Sianneh and have only talked to her once on the phone. I am choosing to reserve my judgments until we can talk sister to baby-mama. I will keep you posted.

Donnell does not like the cold. If he doesn't move within the womb, someone touches his outer bubble with something cold. He will move away -- as much as space allows. There was a shower in his honor this past weekend, where I took a good step toward spoiling him. I hope to see him in April.

Donnell already has a guardian in Dayana. You should be familiar with Dayana (see: past adventures) but if you're not, she's the baby my mom & Vicki adopted three years ago. She's quite the character, as my mom would say. She already talks to Donnell and plays games with him. My brother says she calls him her baby. Dayana is very smart. Here's part of our conversation from Monday:

"Danie. I'm having surgery."
"Oh. Why?"
"They're going to take to take the two things in my throat and my adenoids."
"And then are you going to eat ice cream?"
"I don't like ice cream."
"What do you like?"
"I like snacks."
"What kind of snacks?"
"I like Scooby Snacks."
"Oh okay. Well after your surgery, I hope you get lots of Scooby Snacks."
"I will."

She's having her tonsils & adenoids removed. When was the last time you heard a three year old says "adenoids?" I rest my case.

Dayana also enjoys hanging out with Ty'yier. He's my 2nd brother (yes, from another mother) and he lives in North Carolina. We talk on the phone less often than we should, mostly about cartoons. We both watch Ben 10, Chowder, and The Misadventures of Flapjack. Ty's clever, but doesn't like school. He's really funny though, and visits Dayana & Derek when he spends the summers with my dad.

I was in college when Ty was born. I didn't even meet him until I left for a semester in Spain. It's difficult to have a sibling that doesn't grow up with you. When he was younger, we couldn't really talk on the phone. Now that we can have real conversations, I realize I don't know how he lives. I mean yes, he goes to school, plays, and avoids homework like 8 year olds are wont to do. But we don't have the shared memories I have with Derek, and I find I want to apologize for that when I talk to Ty. He understands things differently though. He's never known Derek and I to live with our mom and dad. And I'm glad for that, because I don't want him to feel like an outsider.

Jarred will have different situation entirely. My dad and Deva are not planning on living together, at least not that I've been told. My dad fully admits to keeping things from me though in order to keep me from telling you. Selfish? Possibly. I may be even more absent for Jarred's formative years. I'm 27 years older than my brother and I live a whole country away.

Of course there's Derek, who is my 1st brother. He's not technically a child, but there are moments when I have doubts. He's grown up considerably though, since he found out he has a mouth to feed. It's been a good transition and I am proud of him. I haven't seen him

I hope you were able to follow the shortest branches of my family tree. All you really need to know is I'm the oldest, Derek has a child, Ty watches all the best cartoons, Dayana is 3 going on 17, Donnell prefers warm weather, and Jarred is a secret keeper.