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The Parent Trip: Rachael and Dan Geraghty of Blue Bell

Sometimes, in the supermarket, people look askance: There's Rachael, with a baby bundled in a sling, a toddler perched on the plastic seat, and a 4-year-old riding stand-up on the front end of the cart.

Dad Dan Geraghty (holding Lila and Grace), Mom Rachael Geraghty (holding Charlotte). (Photo by Elizabeth Ferguson)
Dad Dan Geraghty (holding Lila and Grace), Mom Rachael Geraghty (holding Charlotte). (Photo by Elizabeth Ferguson)Read more

Sometimes, in the supermarket, people look askance: There's Rachael, with a baby bundled in a sling, a toddler perched on the plastic seat, and a 4-year-old riding stand-up on the front end of the cart.

"Oh, you're brave," a stranger will gush. Or, smiling at the three girls, "I guess you're not going to go for a boy." Occasionally, and with a whiff of judgment, they'll venture, "You don't want more, do you?"

Rachael just laughs. By the measure of her own family - eight sisters and two brothers - three is just a start.

They were high school sweethearts who met at a Steve Miller Band concert. Even as a teen, Dan had a sweet streak; during late-night phone calls, he'd stay on the line even if Rachael dozed off. And he remembers the times she couldn't go out because she had to care for younger siblings. "That was an endearing quality, that she was so involved with her family," he says.

After Rachael graduated from Gwynedd Mercy Academy and Dan from St. Joseph's Prep, they traveled separate paths. "We were in different places" - Rachael at the University of Scranton, Dan at Pennsylvania State University - "so it was hard. But the flame kept burning," Rachael says.

And once they reconnected after college, that flame soared. They began dating in January, and by September had one of "those talks" that led to a mutual bottom line: "I want to be with you forever." They were married the following fall, with a wedding party that included Dan's three brothers, a few friends, and all 10 of Rachael's siblings.

Having kids was neither an "if" - both knew they wanted a family - nor, really, a "when." Their approach to baby-making was, and is, simply to be open to whatever happens. "I always said I hoped to have five," Rachael says. "But we're taking it one at a time."

After witnessing her mother's pregnancies, Rachael thought she knew what to expect. But every piece of the journey defied prediction, including the sorrow of a miscarriage at 11 weeks. "I learned miscarriage was more common than you think; people just don't talk about it that much."

When she was pregnant with Lila, she was seized by cravings for cheesesteaks and roast beef. She didn't expect to conk out after watching Wheel of Fortune. And she was unprepared for how gradually her pregnancy became visible. "You know you're pregnant. And you're telling people. But I didn't realize how long it took to start showing."

Labor day brought more surprises: Rachael and Dan had read that fresh orange juice was a refreshing treat after giving birth, so they planned to spend the first stage of labor juicing in their Manayunk kitchen. Instead, Rachael's contractions came so rapidly Dan couldn't jot them down fast enough.

By the time they arrived at Montgomery Hospital in Norristown, Rachael was nine centimeters dilated. She pushed for four-and-a-half hours. "In movies, women are screaming and cursing their husbands. But this was like a slow marathon. I got some strength that I was praying for and just stayed with it."

What helped was trusting her midwife - who had trained with Rachael's mother's midwife during the birth of Rachael's youngest sister - and Dan. "He was my support the whole time," she remembers.

The next two babies followed fast: Rachael became pregnant with Grace when Lila was a year old, and with Charlotte when Grace was nearly 1½. Their closeness made that third pregnancy a challenge: Grace screamed through every dinner hour while Rachael dragged her bulging body around the kitchen, trying to care for Lila.

She was exhausted; only Izze grapefruit sodas and saltines could calm her nausea. Grace was still nursing. Lila never napped. "Some nights, Dan would come home from work and say, 'Just go. Walk around by yourself for an hour.' "

But the added chaos with each new birth also brought a measure of perspective. With Lila, Rachael rushed to Google after every shift in the baby's mood or body. "But with the second one, you think: Did I even eat today? I remember rolling Grace's bassinet into the bathroom and putting Lila in a Pack 'n Play so I could see them both while I had a shower."

Charlotte, No. 3, seemed to know her parents needed a respite; she slept for long stretches, eventually snoozing from 10:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. At Rachael's workout classes, she dozes in her car seat while the music blasts.

The days rocket by: "Oh, somebody's up at 3 in the morning. Oh, it's time for breakfast. I feel like I'm a pinball some days. I can't do anything but take care of the kids. I can't get one load of laundry finished during the day."

And, still, she and Dan want more. He pictures gathering their brood at the dinner table, just as his parents did, to ask about every child's day. And Rachael hopes for a passel of siblings as tightly woven as her own.

That vision powers her through the tense moments, like an afternoon at Whole Foods, all three kids in tow and Dan roaming the aisles, when Grace suddenly sprinted off to find her dad. For a few paralyzing seconds, Rachael didn't know where she was. "I couldn't move fast enough. My initial thought was: Wow, I can't do it all."

She doesn't have to. "One of the reasons Rachael and I have been so great together is that family's always been very important to both of us," says Dan. "We've always been interested in having a relatively big family."

For now, they have their trio, peaceably strapped into strollers on a recent summer day. "It was a Saturday, late morning," Dan says. "We'd had coffee. No one was freaking out. Sometimes you have to step back and remember how cool and surreal it is that these are your kids. Your family. That it's amazing."

The Parent Trip

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