Having started school in September, and enjoying it enormously, this last week has seen the first break in the school pattern. With fully employed parents, the answer was for Natasha to go all day each day this week to her usual after-school child-minder - Catharine - who also has a toddler of her own. Although we were assured that Natasha likes going to Catharine’s house, we felt incumbent upon us, as grandparents with nothing better to do, to volunteer for a spot of babysitting. Our daughter said that was fine, she would have to pay the child minder anyway, but if we wanted to come, we were welcome.

We arrived at 5 on Wednesday, and I went with Andrea to pick Natasha up from Catharine’s house - about half a mile away. I was duly introduced to Catharine and the other children. Natasha looked very pleased to see me, and showed me the play room, and where she hangs her coat, and where her paintings and other works are stored or displayed, and where the rabbit lives (and where he goes to sleep, and how he gets his food and water.)

Catherine had provided Natasha with an afternoon snack, so Andrea had awhile to make our evening meal - so Natasha said, "Come on Grandma, let’s play."

We started out on a very large number of piece jigsaw, but soon abandoned that for going to see her new bike - pink with a fuzzy saddle and bag - and the necessary trainer wheels.

That being duly admired, we decided to see her other new thing since the last time we visited - her bedroom had been transformed. Her bed was now on stilts and she had a four rung ladder to climb to get into the top bunk. Because there was no protective rail (they needed to order one) she was not yet sleeping on top, but there were a load of stuffed toys occupying the space.

Underneath the bed was a table, containing a box of jigsaws, and a load of Mr. Men books. Directly under the ladder was a blow up travel bed, with her four favourite dolls (babies) undressed and firmly tucked under several layers. Her bed was in the middle of the room.

"Let’s play school."

"Okay."

"Let’s get the babies dressed. I’ll climb up here and get the clothes, and you get the babies out and put their clothes on."

"Okay."

"Right, Grandma, now this bathrobe is for Annie."

"This one?"

"NOOOO, Grandma. That is baby Susannah. The next one is Annie."

I duly put the dressing gown on Annie and tied the belt.

"Now put this on her."

"But that’s a snowsuit. Does she really want to wear that inside the house on top of her bathrobe?"

"Yes, she does. Now, do it!"

"Okay."

"Now this cardigan is for Sandy."

"Is this one Sandy?"

"Yes, but not that one. The other one."

"Is this one Sandy too?"

"Yes."

"Why do you have two babies with the same name?"

"It doesn’t matter. Put this top on the other Sandy."

"Now that they are all dressed, are they going to go to school?"

"Yes. Now I will be in charge of the upstairs school and we will have reading up here. Hand me up the books. Be careful not to drop them!"

"Okay, here they are."

"Now the downstairs is for doing puzzles. The babies can choose which they want to do, but nobody is to do anything until I say so. All right? I will say, Get Busy, and then they can do the puzzles or read the books. Which places to do the babies want to go to?"

"Susannah wants to read books, so she can go upstairs - Right?"

"Okay, but not yet. Not until I say, Let’s get busy."

"And the two Sandy’s want to do puzzles in the downstairs room. And Annie wants to read upstairs, but we will wait until you are ready."

"Put Annie up here, now. Everyone ready? Okay. Let’s get busy."

So I got out the puzzles and with the help of the two Sandy’s we managed to get one done in a few minutes. Meanwhile it was quiet on the top floor.

"Aren’t you supposed to be reading to your babies?" 
  

"I can’t read yet!"

"Well, you can pretend. Just tell them a story while you turn the pages."

"Supper’s ready," shouted Andrea from down the real stairs, and we both happily abandoned our school teaching duties to see what was on offer.

After supper, Natasha had a bath (showing me how she didn’t worry about washing her hair now, and how she liked to float in the very full bathtub), and then after a story or two from grandpa and her mum, she fell quickly and soundly asleep.

Philip and I weren’t long after her - but Andrea had a lecture to write, so was up well past midnight. Jeff, her husband was off at a conference for the time we were there.

The next day found Natasha looking into our room, hoping we were awake. So we invited her into bed with us. Her mom was busy working. We were expecting our other daughter, Stephanie and her daughter Susannah, later that day, to help with the entertaining, and to provide lunch and supper, as she was in the process of moving house and needed to get rid of the stuff in her freezer.

After our cereal breakfasts, Natasha and I continued playing together. We started again on a few jigsaws - never quite having the concentration to get them finished.

Then she wanted to watch a DVD with me - The Little Mermaid - but she soon became bored with that as she had no doubt watched it many times in the past. So then she decided to sit in the window seat and watch and wait for her aunt and cousin.
 

They finally arrived about 11 - and came into the house with a great number of accompanying boxes and bags. Susannah was very pleased to see us all, and I thought it might be a good idea to get the two children out of the way for awhile so Stephanie could unpack and chat for awhile with Philip. So I suggested we went back upstairs to Natasha’s room to resume our game of school - but with Susannah joining in this time.

"Why don’t you teach upstairs, and Susannah can teach downstairs."

"She can’t have my babies."

"Well, she can get her own baby. Did you bring your baby with you?"

"Get baby." Off she went bringing back her one and only doll.

"She can’t play with my puzzles."

"She won’t hurt them. Just let her have a go at the big one."

"No, she can’t.Get off my books!"

"Natasha, you should be happy to let her play with your toys. When you go to her house, you play with her toys."

"I don’t want to. Let’s have a go on my bike."

"Well, okay, but out in the back yard. Everybody put their coats on."

"She can’t ride my bike."

"No, well, she has a trike to ride of her own - one you gave her."

"She is wearing my cardigan."

"You gave it to her. It was too small for you."

"I’m going in my Wendy House."

"Can Susannah come in too?"

"No she can’t. It’s mine."

Throughout this whole diatribe, Susannah was smiling and content. A very placid child, she adores her big cousin, and didn’t seem to register that her big cousin was being very unpleasant to her.

"I’m taking my bike in my Wendy House with me so she can’t touch it."

"It won’t fit."

"Yes it will."

"And are you going to be the shop keeper now? Susannah and I would like to buy some crisps. Do you have any in your shop?"

"No, I don’t. I will have to make some." She busies around pretending to make crisps and then says, "Here they are."

"Thank you. Here are some crisps for you, Susannah. You give Natasha some money for them."

Natasha grabs the pretend money and slams it in her pretend cash machine.

Soon bored with this whole thing, Natasha decides we should open the garden shed and get out some more toys. We find a cricket set. We eventually manage to set it up, but the stumps and the little bit of wood to go across are very unsteady and keep falling over without the help of the ball. Susannah thinks this is most amusing and laughs loudly.

"Tell her not to laugh. It isn’t funny."

"She is just having a good time. She isn’t laughing at you."

"I don’t like it. I don’t want her to laugh."

After another quarter of an hour of similar one-sided play, one sided laughter, and one very unhappy child, it is finally time to go inside for lunch. Stephanie has made cottage pie, and by the time Natasha has come back down from the bathroom, Susannah is already sitting in the high chair tucking in.

"That’s my chair," said in a small voice - almost in tears.

"But you are a good big girl now, and you can sit beside Grandpa or Grandma on a big chair. You don’t need a high chair anymore."

"Yes, I do. I need it. It’s mine."

So in order to keep peace, Susannah is placed on her mother’s lap, and Natasha seated in her high chair and pulled up to the table. Stephanie gives her a big portion of cottage pie.

"It’s got carrots in it. I don’t like carrots."

"I’ll pick the carrots out, and have them with mine," I offer.

This works and both girls have a very large helping of their lunch. The rest of us eat a mixture of leftovers from the children’s plates, and the rest of the food from the stove.

"Let’s take the bikes out for a ride now," says Stephanie.
 
So it is agreed that Grandma can have a rest while the rest of them take the bike and the trike up the ginnel at the top of the road.

Half an hour later they returned. "How was it?"

"Well, we survived it, just about," said Philip. "Natasha fell over once and hurt her elbow a bit."

Stephanie remembered, "Now Grampa wants to take a picture of you two girls for Grandma to send off to Grace in America."

Suddenly the atmosphere changed. Susannah and Natasha both love cameras and having their picture taken. They started hugging each other in various poses. Being silly and giggling and tickling each other. From the jealous, selfish little cousin of the rest of the day, Natasha became a most considerate, happy child. Several dozen pictures were taken before Philip declared that he had got a suitable one - but the renewal of their friendship continued.

They watched tv together, ate without incident at dinner (as long as I picked all of the green things out of Natasha’s pasta (basil)).

The company packed up all ready to go home, shortly after Andrea arrived back from work. Natasha and Susannah played very happily in the play room - Natasha being the shop keeper, and Susannah being the coffee shop keeper just to the side of her. They managed to 
keep the rest of us supplied with groceries and cakes and cups of tea for a delightful hour before it was time for Susannah to get into her pajamas ready to sleep on the way home, and then get put right into bed. For the first time in the day, she showed signs of unhappiness until we decided that Natasha should get her jammies on too - and then it was a race between the two of them to see who could get into bed clothes first.

Natasha was very sad to see her cousin leave - and gave her lots of hugs and kisses. Susannah was so sorry to be leaving, but said over and over, "See you soon."

Luckily Natasha was soon asleep too, and the rest of us could have our supper and drinks in peace and quiet.

The next morning, Andrea had to get an early train for work, so we were left with making sure Natasha got up, ate, dressed and got to Catherine’s by 9. She was very upset when her mother left - crying and clinging to her. "Don’t go mummy. Please don’t go. I don’t want you to go."

But after the final wrench - watching her mother drive away with tears streaming down her face - I suggested that maybe she would like rice krispie candy (made with melted marshmallows and butter) which we had made together the day before. So two helpings of that, and it wasn’t long before she was dressed, washed, brushed, and ready to lead us the half mile to Catharine’s house.
 
She kissed us goodbye - and I could almost hear her thoughts. "Thank goodness that they only were here for one day, and now I can get back to my normal life."