All In the Day of a Mother

by Maggie O'Malley

dedicated to Momma Shelly, all my sisters, and all my family. Special dedication to my big sister Steffi. Thanks for the ball game and the hotdog. I will never forget that day.

Steffi was sitting all alone on the swing in the backyard. Momma Shelly glanced out the kitchen window as she was preparing afternoon lunch, and saw her thirteen-year-old with her ball cap pulled down over her eyes. She watched the young teen sitting slumped and dragging her feet back and forth across the ground as the swing slowly rocked.

Shelly sighed and shook her head. She didn’t need her Evil Witch powers to sense just how sad her daughter was. Any good momma seeing the image that Steffi was cutting could tell her baby was hurting, and Shelly doing her very best to be a good momma set aside lunch preparations for the moment and headed for the back door to see if she could help.

Shelly stood at the screen for a moment and regarded the solitary sullen teen. Just an hour ago Steffi had been all smiles. Granted, she'd been anything but smiles that morning but the two of them had worked everything out, or at least Shelly THOUGHT they had. She closed her eyes for a moment and Steffi's emotions were now hers. Shelly felt tears welling in her eyes as her daughter's frustration and sadness became hers. Sighing, she head out the door to see if she could help her daughter once again. Steffi's state not only reminded her of this morning, but of a time over a year ago.

The young mother had felt these very same emotions from Steffi the first time they had met. It was the girl’s great need to be loved and to belong that had brought her to Shelly and convinced the Evil Witch to transform the troubled soul into one of her daughters.

Then however, Shelly's powers did not extend beyond chatroom magic, and all she could do was weave that for Steffi and give her cyber hugs as often as she could. Shelly's love and acceptance coupled with that of her new sister's gave the girl love and a sense of home but not all children are equal when it comes to need, and Steffi was just one of those kids who needed more understanding, more attention, and more love.

Shelly sensed her daughters need and the pain she carried as a result. It worried her to no end, and frustrated her deeply as she didn’t have the power to satisfy her child's need and take away her pain.

Each night before bed, Shelly would talk with the Boss and ask him to grant her true Evil Witch powers. There were so many she wanted to help, so many who suffered and would be lost without the benefit of magic. When she thought of those troubled souls, she thought of Steffi, and then her prayers would become tearful pleas to the Boss.

It was during one of those nights that Shelly had buried her face in hands and cried for the sick souls she needed to heal and children she so need to take care of, when the Boss dried her eyes, lifted her from her knees and granted her wish.

That night was six months ago and so much had happened. Shelly was allowed to share her power with her sister Jenna and the pair got other sisters as they went about the world healing those souls sick of the body and the spirit. Within a few days, Jenna, Richard and lil Cathleen were the family they truly always had been, and Momma Shelly had more kids than the old lady who lived in the shoe.

A sprwaling old two story house, that as big as it appeared to be on the outside, had to be bigger on the inside, was filled with the sounds of happy girls and one happy baby boy named Huggy. A dozen girls ranging from three to 16, including several sets of twins all shared the home that love and magic had built.

Shelly had given all her cyber daughters the option to make their cyber family a reality and most of them readily accepted the chance to truly be the girls they had always been in their hearts and dreams.

These six months had been the happiest of Shelly's life and of her children's as well. Of course the adapting to the bodies and the family they had only knew in cyber life took some minor adjusting, but because the hearts and the souls were always right, they easily slipped into the body and the life that now matched.

The littlest ones had the easiest time of adjusting, as Shelly had taken away most of their pain and scars from the life before, in order for them to truly be the young innocents they needed to be. To them, that past was a monster under the bed or a scary dream that a quick cuddle with mommy soon chased away.

The older ones retained all or selected memories of their life before. Shelly had left that decision up to each of them and the past didn’t seem to be getting into their new futures’ way anymore than it did the little ones.

Yes, for the most part it had been a very happy three months. Oh, there was the usual squabbling among siblings that any large family endures. Shelly had been peacemaker numerous times, settling disputes over bathroom, blouse, and stuffed toy possession. She had listened and comforted both teen and toddler tears. She had awoken to breakfast or children in bed several mornings, and paced the floors at night waiting for the last of her chicks to make it in after a date.

All and all, she couldn’t be happier and she felt her children were too, but...still there was Steffi. The child that worried her the most before the magic, worried her the most after. Yes, she was happy with the transition and happy to be part of the family. For the most part, those baby blues of hers shined with a true joy they had never known before, but her wounds from the past life ran deep. Shelly had offered to take away a great deal of those painful memories, but Steffi held onto all but a few saying that in order to really appreciate what she had, she never wanted to forget what it was like to be without it.

Being thirteen is an awkward age for any young girl becoming a woman. Parents call this the "terrible teens", the second terrible stage following the terrible twos. Hormones begin sculpting the mind and body, school and peer pressure becomes an issue, and boys become an interest instead of a nuisance.

Puberty is enough to cause temporary insanity in any normal girl and the parent that has to suffer through it with her, but for Steffi it was doubly difficult as the hurts from the life before had hardly healed, and now she was taking on a whole new set. And....add to that, Steffi was also very much the tomboy.

While most of her sister's were ready to steal deals at the fashion mall, Steffi was looking to steal second for her baseball team. Ally and Elsa spent hours reading Teen Dream and Young Miss. Steffi asked for a subscription to Sports Ilustrated. Amelia and Angela told her that accessories can be a girls best friend. Steffi agreed saying she hated to go anywhere without her baseball cap and her mitt. Steffi's idea of putting on makeup was the eye black she smeared on beneath her eyes before each game. Her idea of formal attire was a pair of jeans and a tshirt that had less than three holes in them. Dress was a dirty word, and the only time she had worn one had been to honor her mother's request when they attended synagogue.

Shelly's heart would go out to her daughter as Steffi would sit in synagogue squirming like a restless toddler. Constantly pulling at the collar or tugging on the hem, Steffi battled to survive her silk and lace prison. Once home after services, Steffi would fly up the stairs, shed her dress and heels, and then return in jeans and tee with the relieved smile of a condemned prisoner granted parole.

And as for boys....the only ones Steffi seemed to moon over where those who were in the starting lineup for the Phillies, the Eagles or the Seventy-Sixers. In her former life she had been a big Philadelphia sports fan, and even though she no longer resided in her native state, she still supported them. Shelly would hear Steffi cry out in obvious pain, and then go running up the stairs, arriving at her room only to find Steffi having head phones attached, and her distress being a bad officials call at the ball game she was tuned into.

Shelly had discussed her concerns about Steffi's tomboy lifestyle several times with her sisters. Janet, the baby sister of the family, had fancied herself as a bit of a tomboy growing up, and still kept a running family joke insisting Shelly's magic had never worked and she was still a boy. No one took her too seriously, as it was hard to find much "boy" in the 5'4 shapely diva who was rarely seen in anything other than a mid-length dress and that usually in some shade of pink.

Janet said being a tomboy was who she needed to be then and in time she found her own definition of feminity and womanhood. She was confident that Steffi would do the same, and that Shelly needed to support her decision to be herself, even if that self was a jean and ball cap wearing second baseman.

Shelly and her sisters agreed with Janet, and Shelly had supported Steffi in her choice, and told her that should she ever wish to embrace things a bit more feminine, she could count on her mother and her sisters to help. Steffi hugged and kissed her mother and then said she was late for ball practice, and headed for the field on her bicycle that she wished was a motorcycle.

So....all of this went on for nearly five months. Steffi seemed to be relatively content being a tomboy sister in a house mostly full of potential Barbi's. Kay, Steffi's younger sister, did share her love of sports, and had joined Steffi on the local baseball team as a pitcher. Despite her smallish size, she had sent many of the boys back to the dugout shaking their heads after being struck out by a 10-year-old girl with a wicked curve ball.

Steffi and Kay also had a resident little sister's fan club as Maggie and Baruchah, the five- year-old twins, idolized their slugging big sisters and constantly whined to tag after them to games and practice. Shelly finally got the twin toddler's cheerleading outfits so they could "play" too. Jenna got Cathleen one to match Maggie and Baruchah's so the duo became a toddler trio and a regular fixture at the ball games.

Steffi had really been making progress and Shelly could see that despite the raging hormones, the battle of baseball versus barbie, and the normal day to day stresses of life with eleven sisters and a baby brother, she truly seemed more at peace.

It is the nature of all mothers to worry and when you have a dozen children that’s a lot of sleepless nights, but the baby she had worried most about finally seemed to be finding her place and Shelly breathed a sigh of relief.

Sadly it was a short sigh, as over the last three weeks, Stephie had become moodier and more withdrawn. Shelly knew it was more than just hormones and peer pressure, or the Phillies six game losing streak.

She had quarreled badly with little Baruchah, sending the toddler running to her momma with tear filled eyes. Shelly intervened immediately, and as with most sibling disputes, it was all just hurt feelings and a misunderstanding. The pair made up immediately, but Shelly could feel something else, far deeper still troubling her baby. Shelly wanted to help her, but she sensed Steffi wasn't ready yet, and didn’t push the issue.

Over the last few days, saying Steffi hadn't been herself, was putting it mildly. At home, she had barricaded herself in her either her room or the bathroom, coming down only for chores and meals. Even her beloved sports weren't immune from whatever was bothering her, as her play was noticeably subpar. She had made three errors in her last game on routine plays from short and fired one ball almost twenty feet over the head of the first baseman. She faired no better at the plate, striking out twice and getting chided by her coach for not having her head in the game.

Thursday morning it all came to a head as she nearly gave her mother a coronary, and stopped all her sister's in mid-cereal shoveling, when she came down stairs dressed in best jeans, a t-shirt that did not have a number, logo, or "property of" printed on it, and most of all MINUS BASEBALL CAP.

Silence echoed through out the dining area as Steffi took her seat and reached for the corn flakes. Pouring herself a generous bowl, she finally looked up at her wide eyed staring sisters and barked, "What's everybody lookin at?"

Maggie who always sat next to her, smiled up and innocently asked, "Steffi you fogoted you baseball cap. You wants me go gets it? I can gets it weal fast."

Steffi sighed. "No Maggie, I'm not wearin it today. The strap is broke and I gotta get it fixed."

A few sisterly giggles sneaked out from Steffi's siblings but she soon quieted those with a stern look around the table. Maggie and Baruchah though were oblivious to such subtlties, and curiosity got the better of the pair of kittens.

Baruchah, sitting on the other side of Steffi, tugged on her big sister's shirt. "Steffi how comes you all dwessed up? Is you goin to synagogue todays?"

Shelly had stopped pressuring Steffi into wearing dresses for services several months ago and instead allowed her to wear her best jeans and shirt instead.

Steffi dropped her head and sighed again. Forcing a strained smile she answered Baruchah. "No Baru, I'm not going to synagogue. I don't have any clean school clothes today cause it was Elsa's turn to do laundry last night and now I have to wear this."

Elsa's eyes flashed as she locked them on her little sister. "That's not true Steffi! I did all the laundry last night."

Steffi matched her sister's intensity. "Oh yeah, well you didn't get mine then."

Shelly intervened before it got out of hand any further with a simple but effective, "That'll be enough girls," and then commented on how nice Steffi looked, regardless of why she was dressed or what the laundry situation was.

Steffi smiled thinly, grumbled, "Thanks mom", and then went back to mixing her corn flakes with milk.

That probably would have settled it for the morning had it not been for the twin toddlers again. Maggie begin sniffing the air and then leaned over toward Steffi and sniffed her shirt. Looking up at her big sister, she commented with a puzzled look on her face, "Hey Steffi you gots stinks purdy on yous. You smells just like mommy now. Is you gonna bees a mommy?"

Steffi dropped her spoon in her cereal and glared down at Maggie. "No Maggie...I just grabbed the wrong shower gel this morning. Alright? Now eat your cereal and give me a break squirt."

Maggie nodded and then retreated, but Baruchah moved in from the left flank. "Steffi...you gots baseball game dis mornin?"

Steffi closed her eyes, took a breath to gather patience and then turned to Baruchah. "No Baruchah, I don't have a baseball game this morning."

Baruchah smiled innocently and then added, "Ohtay".

Quiet lasted for but a few more seconds before the little one was at it again, "Steffi if you no gots games, how comes you gots eyes stuffs on yous?"

That remark drew everyones attention to Steffi's face and now under closer inspection, it was obvious there was hints of mascara, shadow and blush, left over from this mornings scrubbing.

Kay stared wide-eyed at Steffi. "I can't believe it Steff. You wore make up!"

The giggles started again and Steffi's face got beat red. Shelly started to intervene and then Maggie finished her big sister off.

Smiling proudly and not realizing what she was letting loose she quickly added. "Hers did wores make up and i saws her toos. I seened her thu da keys holes in da door."

She then turned her smile to Steffi and added. "And I saws you wearin a dwess too and you looked just likes a weal pwincess and you was dancin and smilin all happys and goin, Shaun Shaun Shaun, and makin kisses too."

Steffi shoved herself back from the table. Her face flushed with anger and embarrassment as she fired her first shot directly at the closest target. "I can't have any privacy around here! I am sick and tired of you little rugrats following me around and getting into my business. From now on stay out of my room, my games and just LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Steffi then broke into tears, grabbed her book bag and bolted from the room. Ally got up to go after her but Shelly stopped her daughter and told her to let her go for now. Steffi would talk when she was ready and until then everyone was to give her a wide berth.

Maggie just sat there in shock for a few moments. Finally tears began to well in her eyes and she cried, "Steffi no loves me.". Tears turned to sobs almost immediately and soon Baruchah joined her as well. Shelly collected them both and held them in her lap, rocking away their tears and eventually calming the pair. She assured them that Steffi still loved them very much and really wasn’t mad with them. She did however tell them that big girls don't go round peeking through keyholes and they were never to do that again. They promised solemnly and then smiled big as they hugged on momma. Shelly held her twin toddlers close and wished she could solve Steffi's problem with a snuggle.

Shelly got her girls off to school and daycare and then wondered what she was going to do when Steffi came home, or more accurately what would Steffi let her do. Maggie and Baruchah had innocently managed to embarrass her in front of her sisters and her mother. Her pride now obviously wounded, Shelly was afraid Steffi might retreat even deeper.

Shelly poured herself a cup of tea, and rang fingers through her long multi-colored locks. At least now this last month finally made perfect sense. Mother nature, in the form of a boy named Shaun, had finally caught up with Steffi. Somewhere between the baseball games and blue jeans, her little girl was finally growing into a young woman, and because she had been such the tomboy, the transition had to be even more painful and scary.

Shelly wiped away a stray tear as her heart ached for her little girl. Steffi like all the other girls Shelly had rescued, had already had too much pain in their lives. Growing up is a painful learning experience, and a necessary one, but having sisters and a mother to teach and support a young girl is what helps her through it. Shelly could only wonder now after this morning’s scene if her daughter would give her family a chance to help.

Shelly would get her answer ten minutes later, when she heard the front door open. When the young mother came out of the kitchen to investigate, she was greeted by a very sheepish Steffi who stood in the living room clutching her books to her chest and sniffling. Shelly smiled at her daughter and opened arms to her. Steffi dropped her books and ran to them. Momma pulled her baby in and the young girl finally let loose with some much needed sobs. Shelly knew hugs were more needed than words at this moment and just quietly stroked her girl's hair as she cried herself out.

Steffi finally calmed down enough to talk, so Shelly directed her over to the couch and let her begin. She apologized for not going to school today, but she just couldn't face anyone after this morning. She also said she was sorry for hollering at Elsa, and especially at Maggie and Baruchah. Shelly told her she would get her chance to apologize and all would be forgiven. She also told her she wouldn’t be punished for missing school today, although she would have to make up her work.

Steffi smiled lovingly at her mother and thanked her before shifting around nervously again. Shelly hugged her tightly and told her she didn’t have to talk about anything she didn’t want to, just as long as she knew she could always talk her momma about anything she did want to.

Steffi sighed and then blushed. "I kinda like a boy Momma. His name is ummm...Shaun, but i guess you know that now,huh?"

Shelly nodded and smiled giving her daughter silent encouragement. "Momma I wasn't even trying to like him. I been playing baseball with him on the same team for months now and never even thought about stuff like that and then.....and then....all the sudden a few weeks ago, he was talking to me about our last game and telling me what a cannon I got at shortstop ya know, and then he like smiled at me real big and umm...umm... all the sudden I kinda gotted hot in the face and my stomach kinda gotted sick and i guess that's when I caught it or something."

Shelly raised an eyebrow at her little one. "Caught it?"

Steffi slumped and nodded. "Yeah, you know, the Barbie Blues. I keep thinking about him all the time and how cool his smile is and how purdy his eyes are and...and...now whenever we practice or play ball together, I can’t seem to concentrate and all I do is mess up. You know....the Barbie Blues!"

Shelly nodded. Her little one was suffering from a bad case of first love.

Steffi sighed, defeat evident in her voice. "Momma...I ummm...kinda wish he sorta couldn’t concentrate around me too. Ya know?"

Once again Shelly nodded.

"Momma", Steffi asked, "I kinda saw the other girls that Shaun talks to after games and they are all purdy and stuffs like Ally and Elsa and well....I just can't do all that stuff. You know....the make up and the dresses. I umm...sorta been practicing and stuffs in my room but I just cant do it right. If I come down those stairs all made up and in a dress everyone would laugh and Shaun would think I am the total goof."

Shelly hugged Steffi, her heart aching with both her pain and her daughters. "Steffi...Ally and Elsa have been working on makeup and clothes long before I was able to bring us together as a family. It took them quite a while to be that good but I am sure if you'd let them, they'd be more than glad to help you learn."

Steffi rolled her eyes. "I don't think Elsa's gonna want to."

Shelly smiled and shook her head. "Quit worrying about what happened this morning. Elsa loves you and so do the rest of your sisters. Twelve women in the same house are not going to get along all the time. I can only imagine what its going to be like when a few more of your younger sisters start having their monthlys. Oye vay! But....the point is honey....just because we snip at each other doesn’t mean we don’t love each other. This is what REAL families do Steffi. We're going to fight from time to time, but we'll always be there for each other when we need it most. Trust me Steff, your sisters will help you with this if you want it, and if you dont think its too wierd, so will your "goofy" momma too."

Steffi hugged her "goofy momma" tightly and kissed her. "I love you Momma."

Shelly pulled her baby in close and returned the kiss and the sentiment. "I love you too baby."

Steffi sat quietly for a few moments and then sighed. "Momma?...If I start wearin maybe a little bit of make up now and then and umm...maybe some kinda more...well you know... more girl like clothes and maybe even dresses now and then am I gonna kinda go totally Barbie eventually? Cause I like sports ya know and i like my jeans and I don’t want to read fashion magazines and I still want go to ball games and I still want a motorcycle. I mean...I really like Shaun a lot but I don't have to become a cheerleader now or something do I?"

Shelly could see the fear in her daughter's eyes. It was more than just worrying about learning to dress and do make up. It was more than just dealing with her first crush. She was genuinely afraid if she gave into these new feelings, she was going to lose herself. Shelly set out to set Steffi straight.

"Steff honey, first of all...you don't have to change the way you dress, or quit playing sports unless YOU want too. You can have all those things you said you wanted, EXCEPT for the motorcycle and we've been there and done that already. I don't think you will ever go "totally Barbie" either, okay?" You're a young woman now. That means you can steal bases at the afternoon ball game, and steal boys’ hearts at the school dance that night. You can wear jeans and ball caps, blouses and skirts. You can have baseball cleats and four inch heels. Honey what I am trying to tell you is you don’t have to give up anything or BE anything that doesn't feel right. And the same thing applies to Shaun. If you want him to like you, then you need to be YOU, and a cheerleader you aint. Be that fiery little shortstop with a cannon as he called it, but...there's also no harm in maybe showing him the YOU that lies beneath all that sandlot dust and can almost fill out one of her mother's dress."

Shelly emphasized her last point by glancing down at Steffi's breasts that at 13, were nearly the same sized as her own. Steffi blushed and then laughed. "Mom!!!! I'm so sure."

Shelly looked at her own small breasts and giggled. "Yeah...I'm sure too. You're almost bigger than me."

That both hugged and cuddled and laughed then. Both Shelly and Steffi were relieved. Steffi, because she realized that growing up wasn't going to result in becoming a Stepford Wife. It was just another part of life. She wasn't going to lose herself or the things that really mattered to her. On the contrary, she was only going to gain.

And Shelly, because she knew her baby was going to be alright now, or at least until the next teen crisis approached.

The two spent the rest of the morning with Shelly giving Steffi a few make up lessons, and even a short trip thru the mall. Steffi held her mother's hand for security the same as her younger sister's did. She was unsure and reluctant at first but then she saw it, a beautiful off the shoulders mid-length powder blue dress. Shelly saw the "look" in her daughter's eyes and knew she was hooked. Actually it was an excellent choice, as the light blue brought out Steffi's sapphire blue eyes and her honey blonde locks. Shelly had Steffi and the dress in the changing room before the girl had a chance to protest. It was a little big in the bum and breast, but Shelly could take it in, or just let Mother Nature continue to work her magic on Steffi and should be able to fill it out nicely by summer's end. A quick stop for shoes and a few swipes of plastic later, Steffi had an outfit that would have Shaun the slugging first baseman hitting homeruns in Steffi's honor.

They returned home shortly after noon and Steffi went out back and tossed her baseball against the screen for awhile while Shelly started tonight’s dinner and then fixed lunch for both her and Steffi. It was then she noticed her daughter sitting on the swing and looking so somber. Sighing, she wondered what else could have her down again so quickly.

She quietly made her way across the yard and slipped into the swing next to her daughter. "Hey Lil Sport. What's gotta ya down? You're not having second thoughts on that dress are you? We can take it back if you want, but I think you looked wonderful in it."

Steffi shook her head. "No Momma. I really do like the dress. I'm just kinda thinkin bout something else."

Shelly resisted the urge to just take the image from her daughters mind. She did want to help but only if Steffi wanted to share, so she didn't use magic and she didn't push, she just waited. Steffi finally came to her with it on her own.

"Momma, I was really pretty rotten to Mags and Baru. I mean I was all upset and stuff and then when they like blurted everything out and stuff I just kinda....well you know...kinda went like spazz. I know they didn’t mean to spy and stuff. I guess they're just bein umm...umm...

" Little sisters?", Shelly finished her daughter's words for her.

She shook her head and then smiled softly. "Yeah Mom. I mean they really are little sisters to me aint they? You know...I mean real little girls. It's like when I look over in the stands and they are up there going crazy shaking pom poms, or when I help you get them into the bath tub, or when I see them sound asleep on the floor with crayons still in their hands, its hard to imagine they were ever boys, let alone adults."

Shelly nodded. After six months of having her babies home it was hard for her to imagine them as being anything else other than the children they were now. Reaching over, she squeezed Steffi's hand. "Steffi, in all the ways that really matters, they never were boys or adults. It's your heart and soul that carries the truth. The bodies was a prison, the life they had to live a necessary lie. You're were no different, just older, same as it is now and always will be."

Steffi nodded her understanding and then stared off across the yard. "Mom, they are pretty good little sisters you know, I mean for being rugrats and all. I really do feel like a royal rat for hollerin at them like that. I kinda wanna do something to make it up to them but I don't know what."

Shelly cupped her chin in her hand and thought. Her hazel eyes lit up when an idea came to her. "Hey, I know! Why not take them to a ball game. You know...a major league game. I know you promised them both a trip to the Vet to see the Phillies or the Eagles play. I bet they would be tickled to no end."

Steffi frowned sadly and shook her head. "Momma, I would give anything to be able to take them to the Vet and buy them their first hot dog and watch a real Philly or Eagle game, but they tore down Veteran's Stadium years ago. Now I'll never get the chance to share that place with them."

Being the mother of twelve hadnt left Shelly much time to stay abreast of sports and she hadn’t heard about them tearing down the Vet. As a mother, she could only suggest an alternative, but as a witch, she didn’t have too. Looking around the next yard to be sure she wasn’t noticed, she winked an eye and suddenly three tickets appeared in her hand. She smiled as she handed them to Steffi. "Now look kiddo, you know I don't do this often, but...I think the Boss will let me indulge considering the rough time you've had of it lately and how important this it. Now...these are three tickets to see a ball game at the Vet. You get to pick the sport and the date. You can take them to see Mike Schmidt hit three homeruns, or a classic Eagles-Giants match up. The choice is yours little one but you know the rules about time traveling. You are not allowed to change anything. Just watch. Understood?"

Steffi jumped off her swing and into her mothers arms sending them both falling to the ground, and ending up in a pile of giggles. Steffi hugged her mother tightly and kissed her. "I understand momma, I won't mess anything up I promise. I just can't wait for Maggie and Baruchah to get home. I just hope they'll forgive me and want to go."

Shelly pulled her daughter into the grassy cuddle. "Honey...I already told you. We're a family and we love each other. Those two little girls adore you. Trust me, they've forgiven and forgotten by the time they got to daycare, but...I still think the three of you could use this time together. And that reminds me....I better be sure you have money. Even at 1970's price those two can break you on hotdogs alone."

Steffi laughed and nodded as she imagined the toddler twins loose at the concession and gift stand. Finally getting to her feet, she helped her Shelly up and then put her arm around her momma and snuggled. "Momma I love you."

Shelly held her tight. "I love you too sweetheart."

Shelly sighed happily. Two potential disasters averted in one day, and it wasn’t even two o'clock yet. "All in the day of a mother. Ohy vay!"

The End