Goodbye to an Era

My old childhood neighbor David Jacang stopped by from California again today, this time bringing his wife Nadine and all four of their children. Here is his son Kawika and my boy Bretty once again having a grand old time...



Kawika in Hawaiian means "David," so really, here in this next picture is David, "David," Bret and Bret...



When you have as many kids as we do, it's always a bit awkward going over to other's houses. After all, we bring along 6 rambunctious children, each of whom has a great desire to explore every nook and cranny of their new surroundings. When you have one or two kids, it's easy to keep them occupied because there is at least one parent for each child.

Most folks just get terribly uncomfortable when you bring a gaggle of kids over to their house.

So when David & Nadine's four kids started to wander through every room in our house, it must have been a relief because, well, it's just another day of chaos for the Bicoys. Our combined 10 kids were up and down the steps...



Looking over each other's shoulders...



And following one another around...



It was a heck of a lot of fun for the kids! David suggested that perhaps we all take a short trip to Disneyland some day this year -- and my kids were overjoyed about that possibility! I tell you, big families are different -- so the prospect of having fun with another big family sounds like a blast to our six children.

No matter how many kids you have, however, at some point you have to realize that with each new child that blesses your home, sooner or later one of them is going to be the last child you're going to have.

Such was that realization today, as an era came to an end in our home.

After six children, today marked the day that our youngest -- and last -- child moved out of her crib. So began the adventure of dismantling the crib that served as the bed for at least the first 18 months of life for each of our six children...



We removed the mattress, but all six of the kids just had to get in the crib one last time...



Finally, it was taken apart...



And replaced with a new bed for Malia (complete with brand new Dora the Explorer sheets to cushion the blow)...



Unfortunately, the new bed and Dora sheets aren't quite up to what she thought they would be because Malia's now choosing some very awkward places to fall asleep...