A Christmas Wish

One of the most common questions that I get asked when out and about with my children is, “How did you end up having triplets?”

I have been asked this so many times, that I have actually come up with quite a few different answers to give people, based on my mood and the time of year.

My favorite reply comes from something my son did at Christmas-time for many a year.

When Bregon was little, the time came when he decided that all he really wanted in life was a baby brother or a sister.

He was probably about four, and was an aspiring little inventor/scientist much like his favorite cartoon hero, “Dexter,” which was an admirable choice for his age, or so I had thought!

We had this cat that had decided to have her litter of kittens in a box smack dab in the middle of our living room, right under our Christmas tree during cartoon time one Saturday morning before Christmas.

Of course there wasn’t any way to keep my 4 year old from watching the ENTIRE process from start to finish, short of leaving the house entirely.

He stuck it out for the entire process- all 5 kittens worth, and didn’t seem bothered by it a bit…or so it would seem.

Little did I know, what my son had wanted more than anything in the world at this time, was a baby brother or sister.

In his tiny 4 year old mind, he had very analytically decided that if the cat could have kittens seemingly single handedly, and they had come out of her nether regions, that the same must be true of humans and their reproductive systems as well.

He didn’t ask any questions about any of it, so I figured he was okay with everything.

Fast forward a few days later, and I discovered him coming out of the bathroom in tears, bawling his little boy eyes out.

I hugged him and comforted him in typical mumsy fashion and asked him what was wrong.

He very tearfully said that he was in the bathroom trying to make a baby brother or sister like the cat had made kittens.

He was upset because his every attempt had kept coming out brown and he was trying to figure out how to make his come to match his own skin color.

The poor little dear actually had come to the conclusion that was how babies were made…via the potty.

I had a LOT of explaining to do, but he finally understood that he was not going to be able to “Create” his own baby brother or sister.

He went back to his drawing board, and I really didn’t hear too much more about the subject until it came time for our annual visit to Santa Claus.

We put on our Christmas outfits, and made our way up to the mall with Bregon in his little Christmas t-shirt and Santa Hat complete with beard, wish-list letter in tow.

It was almost Bregon’s turn to sit on Santa’s lap, when it dawned on me that I had no idea what it was that he was going to ask Santa for this year for Christmas.

He handed me his little letter which was done in picture form as he was only 4 and really wasn’t up to writing much more than some semblance of his name.

Then he began to translate for me. He was asking for a Nintendo 64, and a baby brother and sister. This last part was called out to me as he was led by the elf up to sit on Santa’s lap.

Over the next few years, Bregon continued to ask Santa quite in earnest for a baby brother and sister.

Some years it was one, or the other, and sometimes both. But he always remembered to include them on his list.

The way he figured, Santa was the best way to finally get what he wanted, someone to share his toys with!

Every year, it seemed that Santa would just smile that knowing smile at me as Bregon hopped down off of his lap.

Well, it took a little while, but Santa finally did manage to deliver. I found out that I was pregnant in August a few years ago.

By mid-September, we knew that we were having not one baby, but THREE!

By Christmas-time, we were able to find out that Bregon was going to have 2 baby brothers and a baby sister.

So, it might take a while, but we now know that Santa really can come through with even the most difficult of requests.

And if you ask me how it was that I ended up having triplets, I just may tell you to be very careful what your children wish for at Christmas-time!

I think Stephen Sondheim may have said it best in “Into The Woods” when he wrote, “Careful the wish you make, Wishes are children…Careful the path they take, Wishes come true.”

Bregon used to ask Santa every year for a little brother or sister or both. It would appear that Santa interpreted it as that we needed triplets. Santa may just have actually delivered!