ANGELA WINS GOLD IN HOPE/BABY RELAY

Tonight for the first time Angela won a gold medal in the Hope/Baby relay. Let me recap the action.

Its 9:21 at night, the opening bell is sounded, Hope gets out of bed upstairs and makes a faint sound. Angela has sharp ears from competing in this event many times, she knows immediately what’s at stake. She springs to her feet determined to get to Hope before she fully wakes up, cries, and wakes the Twins, creating a trifecta of awake children at 9:21.

Angela turns and performs the dangerous Baby Chuck by tossing Grace 3 feet laterally into my arms. Too risky you say? What mother throws her sleeping baby 3 feet into the arms of her clumsy and sleepy husband? One who is trying for the Gold Metal. A woman who knows what’s at stake. God gave us twins for a reason, so we’d have a spare, we can take these kinds of risks.

Then without hesitating this fearless competitor spins, slides across our hardwood floor, nimbly dodging a pink shopping cart, a pink dollhouse and 2 pink purses, she reaches the stairs in record time.

Now Angela vaults over the ottoman blocking the stairway from crawling babies, and she is now at the most difficult part of the track. The silent stair run. Many a past competitor has run up the stairs, only to wake the baby sleeping in the pink crib next to the stairs. Many competitors have also walked quietly up the stairs, only to reach Hope too late, after she has awoken fully and started crying.

Angela performs the silent run, maintaining a full run up the stairs without making any loud sounds. With the agility of a shoulin monk, she reaches the top of the stairs before Hope, and without waking any children. She scoops Hope into her arms and soothes her back to sleep.

The time is now 9:21:17:05

Gold Medal.

--Andrew