Destiny's play-Last Part, Epilogue-Pg 74,81 (2/4) - Page 33

Originally posted by: serialwatcher16

Opti,

I can't even think 1% of the ideas that you come up with and as to putting them down on paper, i don't have the words. So everybody should stick to their core competency. You write and I read.

😃

Part XCVIII

As soon as they reached home Geet and Maan carried their babies to their room and Geet got busy feeding Ishan who was the most demanding of the three. The two girls were relatively easier to please. Both of them lay drooping, one each on each of Maan's shoulders, on their way back, the motion of the car rocking them to sleep. Maan carefully laid them both in their respective cradles and kneeling between the two cradles, he rocked them gently. A few minutes later Meghna opened her large eyes and looked around. Seeing her father's face looking over her lovingly, she smiled and kicked her chubby arms and legs, indicating her desire to be carried by him. Maan smiled back and lifted her in his large arms, placing his palm at the back of her neck and head to support them. He noticed her licking her lips indicating that she too was hungry.

Maan looked at his wife and asked, "Geet, when are you planning to feed my Ribby? She seems to be pretty hungry."

"What can I do Maan? Your son has a gargantuan appetite which never seems to get satisfied. He's not letting go!"

Maan walked up to Geet and kneeling before her, he bent over to gaze at his son while holding on to his daughter. Ishan saw him from the corner of his eyes but continued to tug at Geet, sucking vigorously. Maan stretched his hand forward and pressed his son's cheeks from both sides with his thumb and middle finger so that the boy was forced to let go of her.

"That's enough, Ice darling. Let your sisters have their share of Mama's feed, too! You can't corner it all!" he said firmly and still holding his daughter in one hand, he lifted his son from Geet's lap. He then passed on Meghna to her and propping Ishan up on his shoulder with one hand, he lightly slapped his baby bottoms with the other, "Chalo, greedy fellow. Time to go to sleep."

After he burped him, he rocked him back and forth on his shoulders till little Ishan's eyes turned heavy and he soon dozed off. Geet who had started feeding Meghna, gazed lovingly at the sight of her tiny son sleeping peacefully in his father's strong arms. She just about finished feeding Meghna when Sahana woke up and started whimpering to be fed. Maan laid Ishan in his cradle and picked up his daughter, bringing her to Geet. She sighed and exchanging Maan's Ribby for his Petal, she cradled her against her bosom to start off another feeding session. For the past two months she felt she was doing nothing but perennially feed her three hungry babies. While she enjoyed bonding with her babies in this manner, she felt perpetually drained and worn out. Her eyes were rimmed with dark circles as she hardly got a couple of hours of sleep every day.

Maan had been extremely helpful and kept his word of taking care of the babies - changing them, bathing them, burping them, entertaining them and putting them to sleep - but as far as feeding them goes, there was not much he could do to help. He suggested that they rotate their feeds, i.e., alternatively give mother's milk and formula feed so that the babies get the benefit of mother's milk and she also gets some respite in between when they are bottle fed, but Geet wanted to exclusively feed them herself, at least for the first three months.

Not wanting to upset her, Maan made sure she replenished her energy by making her drink plenty of water as her body needed extra hydration to produce milk. A jug of water was always kept by her side which he refilled constantly. He also kept feeding her plenty of fruits, greens, vegetables and fish. Although they normally do not cook non-vegetarian food at home, both Geet and Maan do have them when they go out for lunch or dinner. As he was told that fish was rich in protein and iron, he learnt how to prepare various dishes in fish from Sameera and requested Rano to allow him to cook them for his wife. Rano, who would not dream of allowing anyone except Ramu kaka into her kitchen, that too to cook fish, had to consent because he was doing it for her daughter and her grand children. She had given him a separate saucepan and requested that he uses only that for cooking the fish. Although Ramu kaka had volunteered to cook on more than one occassion, Maan would not allow him to do so. That day too he had prepared fish fingers before leaving for the wedding.

After putting all the three babies to sleep he went to the kitchen and brought the dish to his wife who had in the meantime dozed off out of sheer exhaustion. He gently kissed her forehead which woke her up. He then fed her the fish till the plate was empty. After she washed up he sat by her side on the bed, their backs to the head board and put his arm around her shoulder. She leaned on his chest and thanked him for being so caring and he grunted that she should not be thanking him for he was only doing his duty. They then started discussing their babies.

"Who do you think our babies have taken after?" asked Maan curiously.

"Is there any doubt on that count, Maan? Ishan looks exactly like you."

"Does he now?" he asked in surprise. "I don't see the resemblance" he declared, observing him more closely. Looking at his daughters, he continued, "But I must admit that Petal and Ribby take after you."

"They have your lovely kissable M-shaped lips, though. I am sure once they turn into young ladies they will have guys cueing up to kiss them," she said teasingly, to irk her possessive husband.

"Let the guys dare!" roared Maan, menacing. "They'll have to face me first."

"Why, are you going to kiss the guys?" asked Geet innocently, trying hard to suppress a smile.

He glared at her. "I'll break their bones if they so much as lift their eyes to see my beautiful daughters lustfully. I'll choose the men my daughters will marry."

"You think your daughters will let you have your way?"

"Of course they will, won't you darlings?" he asked leaning towards their cradles.

"Sh..sh..don't wake them up."

"Sorry, darling, you're right. As it is they hardly let you sleep. Shouldn't be waking them up now!" he wagged his finger. "I will ask them whether they agree with their dada when they wake up. You go ahead and catch up on your sleep while you can, baby." He patted her head reassuringly. Soon she fell asleep again. Gently lifting her off his chest he stretched her on the bed and went to sleep himself.

They wouldn't have slept for more than an hour when the babies woke up one after another. Maan hastily got up and switching on the bed lamp he went to their cradles. While Ice wailed loudly, Ribby and Petal made whimpering sounds. Feeling their bottoms, he realised they needed a change of diapers which were soaked wet. He brought them fresh diapers and changed them but soon they felt hungry and started crying again. He looked at Geet who was still in deep slumber. He didn't have the heart to wake her up. It was the first day that Geet had stepped out of the house after child birth and although they had not stayed back for all the rituals of the wedding, it must have been pretty exhausting for her, he thought. Just then Anwesha who had heard Ice's wail, knocked on their door and asked her brother if he needed help. He asked her to keep an eye on them while he gets them something to drink. She nodded and rocked their cradles in turns to pacify them temporarily.

He ran to the kitchen where he had the formula feed and feeding bottles stored without Geet's knowledge. He heated water in two separate vessels, one for mixing the formula food and the other to sterilise the bottles and nipples. After the water started boiling in both the vessels, he first rinsed the bottles with the hot water from one vessel and waited for the water to cool a bit in the other vessel. Looking up the instructions given in the label on the side of the tin, he then mixed the powder formula and liquid concentrate with the required amount of water and cooled the milk before filling all the three bottles. He checked the warmth of the milk by holding the bottle against his wrist and satisfying himself that everything was alright, he took the bottles back to his room. Anwesha was having a tough time managing the three hungry babies. He rushed to her rescue and quickly thrust the nipples of the bottles into the lips of his daughters and gave the third bottle to Anwesha who in turn put the bottle in Ishan's waiting mouth. Soon the babies were sucking the nipples contentedly as their hunger was satiated. Maan and Anwesha smiled at each other.

After the babies had finished their bottle, Maan and Anwesha burped the babies and returned them back to the cradle. Just then Geet turned in her sleep and not feeling Maan next to her, she got up with a start and tried to open her groggy eyes. The light from the night lamp made her crinkle her eyes. When her eyes got adjusted to the light she opened them wide to see Maan and Anwesha bent over the cradles. She asked them if anything was wrong, concerned about her babies. Anwesha assured her that everything was fine and that the babies have just been fed.

"Fed? How?" asked Geet confused.

"Bhaiyya gave them bottle feed," replied Anwesha.

"What??? Bottle feed when I am around?" she shrieked, in indignation.

Maan who was busy patting the ever restless Ribby to sleep, asked his sister to take care of her and sat beside Geet.

"Geet, take it easy darling. You were too exhausted and the babies were crying of hunger. I didn't have the heart to disturb you after today's exhausting outing. So I decided to take care of them myself."

Geet burst out crying. "What sort of a mommy am I, sleeping through my babies cries," she wailed pitifully.

"Sh....sh ...give yourself a break, sweetheart. You are the best mommy these babies can have and you are doing a fine job. Breastfeeding three babies is an awesome challenge and so far you are doing a stupendous job in nourishing our babies." He pulled her into his arms and held her head to his chest.

"Yes, bhabhi. Bhaiyya is right. Nobody can do a better job than you but you do need to let people help you. We are all there for it. An occasional bottle feed should not hurt the babies."

Geet smiled half heartedly but told Maan she can go back to sleep only if she has the satisfaction of feeding them herself. Anwesha took leave of them and wishing her bhabhi and bhaiyya good night she gently kissed the cheeks of her nieces and nephew and left them to their privacy.

Maan rolled his eyes and passed on the ever ready Ice to her. Although the boy was initially not willing to feed, having been fed only moments earlier, he soon got busy. After a few minutes, he slept against her bosom. She smiled and gave him back to Maan who in turn returned him to the cradle. The girls were fast asleep by then. Maan raised his eyebrows silently enquiring what to do. Geet smiled and said that it was alright as they will be up soon enough, ready for their next feed. As she settled back on the bed, Maan turned off the light and tried to catch a few winks of sleep before the next round of diaper changing and feeding starts.

Continued here