Golfing with Mom

This started out as a short story about princesses, somehow I got lost.

I was the youngest of three siblings growing up. My older sisters Kat and Debbie were both older by a year or two. My mom Joanne, and dad John, were products of the war generation which made my siblings and me ‘baby boomers’. I grew up in a suburban neighborhood and had a middle-class neighborhood upbringing.

My mom and dad were quite athletic in their youth and still were very active and loved to golf.
My sisters were never into sports, but dad and I used to have fun playing every sport there was. We went swimming, played tennis, and threw the football around. Dad taught me how to throw a curveball and how to hit a driver.

I fell in love with golf. It’s just you and the ball, no excuses. Dad and I set up a couple of old tires in the large lot next to ours and would hit golf balls at them for hours.

My sisters had no interest in golf, but a couple of their friends were always asking me to show them how to swing. I thought that was pretty cool. Sandy was the first to ask, “Danny, show me how to hold the club.” The grip on the club is crucial and is usually butchered by beginners. I realized Sandy was pretty smart to ask that first. After showing her the grip, I demonstrated the swing. Now, for someone almost nine years old, I did have a pretty good swing. I had been swinging at golf balls for almost 5 years and loved the game.

Sandy and I were having a blast shooting golf balls at the far tire and laughing at our misses. Wow, that was fun. I looked at Sandy and she just smiled back and said, ‘let’s do this again Danny’.

The next day Sandy brought her friend Renee with her and came to our house to see me! Debbie thought she was going to embarrass me and shouted out “Danny, your two girlfriends are here to play”. I was excited to see them and couldn’t care less about any embarrassment. We grabbed our clubs and headed outside. My mom came out to watch with us. My mom is a very good golfer and helped all of us.

Golf sounds boring but the four of us played different games to see who could beat the best. It helped to keep everything focused and we had a great time. Afterwards we went back to our house and had lemonade and cookies. My mom asked the girls if they had ever been on a golf course before and they said no. My mom said we should all play together sometime, and their eyes went wide with excitement.

At the same time, I used to ‘caddy’ for my dad every week when he golfed in his league, which was after work. I loved walking around the course with my dad and his friends and watching all of their shots. My mom also golfed in a ladies league every Tuesday morning.

The next day, Sandy and Renee were over in the morning again. I asked if they wanted to golf some more, but they said they wanted to do something different today and asked me to come over to Sandy’s house. My mom told me to have fun and she would see me later. The girls were excited as we all ran over to Sandy’s. “We’re going to let you play inside games with us today Danny.” Great? “That sounds great Sandy! What’s first?” “A Tea Party, of course. Here’s your princess doll, Danny.” Sandy and Renee had their own American Girl dolls and started showing me how to dress mine for the tea party. I had played with my older sisters lots of times, so I didn’t have any problem playing with the girls. Sandy’s mom brought us a snack at asked me if I was having fun with the girls. “Oh yes, Mrs. Conner. We just had tea with the queen!” We were all laughing while Mrs. Conner just shook her head at us. “What’s next Sandy?” I asked.

“C’mon Danny, we’re going to a birthday party for the queen!” I had never been to one before and it sounded like more fun, especially if we got ice cream and cake. After following the girls into the attic, they started opening trunks with clothes in them. In the midst of a whirlwind of dresses, Sandy and Renee emerged in Princess Dresses. Sandy was Cinderella and Renee was Snow White. They asked me to come over and close my eyes.

After I felt the dress come down on me, I opened up to see Elsa looking back in the mirror. “How come we are dressed as princesses?” “Because we are having a birthday party with the queen and only her princesses are invited, silly.” That made sense to me, so we put on our princess shoes and put princess tiara’s in our hair. Sandy said that all princesses wore lipstick, so we all put on her pink lip gloss and then we were ready to go. “One last thing,“ Sandy said as Renee and I sat down next to each other. “All princesses wear nail polish.” After Sandy painted all of our nails in a pink glitter, we went running around air-drying our fingers and ended up in the kitchen.

Mrs. Conner greeted us in a Queen of Hearts dress complete with a crown. We all started squealing even louder and just then my mom walked in. Her mouth dropped as Sandy, Renee, and I all lined up, curtseyed and said, “Welcome to the birthday party, Mrs. Hanson.” I ran over to my mom and gave her a big hug, then stepped back and said, “I’m Elsa. These are my princess friends Cinderella and Snow White! Can you stay for the party?”

My mom was flabbergasted. I was having the time of my life. I was wondering why I had never been invited to such a birthday party before. My mom gave me a big hug and sent me back to the other princesses. We started out with ‘Happy Birthday’ for the queen. After the Queen of Hearts cut the cake, we ran back upstairs with our cake and ice cream to share with our dolls. This was the best times ever for me. After we were done eating and playing and cleaning up, we took off our dresses and put on our regular clothes.

We all came downstairs together as my mom was standing next to Mrs. Conner. I ran up to her and gave her another hug and then we said our goodbyes and left to walk home. “Danny did you have fun with your girlfriends today?” “Yes, mom. It was the best day ever. I love playing with my friends.” Thank-you for letting me play princesses with them. I had the best time ever.”

My mom was looking at me with a slightly amused gaze. I think she wanted to forget what she had just seen and was looking for her boy. Mom asked me to help her put away the washed clothes, and I helped her fold them. We went into my room and my mom helped carry my jeans and t shirts.

Mom finished and sat down on my bed next to me. “Danny, would you like to go on the golf course with me in my league, like you do with your Dad?

“Sure Mom, that would be awesome!”

“We’ll have to find you something to wear. The ladies league is a bit different than your dads. We wear coordinating shorts and tops and accessories. Do you want to go out and see what we can find for you? How would you like to bring your friend Sandy, too?”

I called Sandy and she was as excited as me. She asked her mom and it was decided that we would all go out. Mom and I picked up the Conners and we all were soon on our way to JCP. Mom and Mrs. Conner were talking about what we needed for golfing. They thought Sandy and I both needed new outfits for golf. Sandy and I sat in the back seat and were soon playing ‘cats in the cradle’ with each other. I asked Sandy where her dad was and she replied, “gone.”

We finally arrived at the mall. “C’mon girls, let’s get going,” mom said. I thought nothing of the ‘girls’ remark. There were four of us and three were girls, how else would she refer to us? Mom and ‘Aunt Carol’, Sandy’s mom, led us to the girls department at JCP.

“We should start with some shorts, girls,” mom said. We looked at lots of different shorts, but Sandy definitely liked the shorter style with cuffs at the bottom. “Don’t these look great for the golf course Aunt Jo?”

Sandy had on bright pink shorts with a little stretch to them to fit close to her body. I screamed and hugged her at the same time. “Those are perfect, Sandy!” She had a big smile on her face and handed me a matching pair in baby blue. I grabbed them and scooted back to the changing room. Soon after that I was back out and standing next to Sandy. Mom and Aunt Carol were standing behind us. “Those look perfect girls. Let’s find some golf tops to go with them,” Aunt Carol proclaimed.

Before we left the department, Sandy focused on some other clothes. “C’mon Didi, let’s get golfing tops, like the pros wear.” We found some sleeveless polos and tunic tops and before I knew it, Mom and Aunt Carol were at the checkout counter with our tags and clothes.
“Didi?” Did I just acquire a nickname? I felt I was part of the lady’s side now. Didi indeed!

After getting the shorts, it was obvious what we still needed. Sandy and I took off for the lingerie department and found some training bras, as she called them. When mom and Aunt Carol caught up with us Sandy was showing them the bras ‘we’ had found.

“Mom, you told me you would take me to get bras sometime soon. Can we at least get measured???” The moms had caught up with us and brought a young sales associate along to help. “Hi, my name is Allison and let’s get started. Take off your tops, girls.” I looked at Sandy and kind of shrugged my shoulders and we both took off our shirts.

“Let’s take you first, Sandy.” I sat and watched in awe as this gorgeous girl measured my best friend. “You are a full 32A,” she declared. “Now it’s your turn Didi.” She took a few different measurements with me holding my arms out or up. Now she looked at me. You’re also a 32A Didi. Let’s go find some bras, girls.” Sandy and I were giggling and hugging while telling our moms that we were the same size. We soon had about a half dozen 32A bras in all sorts of colors and styles. Sandy begged our moms to let us keep on one of the new bras. We were both standing next to each other with a bra and shorts on. My mom pulled out one of those disposable cameras from her purse and Sandy and I posed in a little hug, showing off our new bras.

Sandy then handed me one of the tops we had tried on. “Didi, you wear the teal one and I’ll take the red one. With the slightly padded bras we had on, Sandy and I looked cute, to say the least. We were also starting to look like sisters, but what the heck, don’t they always say that about best friends?

“C’mon Didi, we need to find underwear. I love the bikini style, don’t you?” I didn’t know bikini style from any other style, but Sandy loved them, so why not? Joanne and Carol caught up to us at the panty display.

“Didi, they have a sale on. You can pick out 10 pairs,” Mom said. Carol told Sandy the same thing and soon we had two of several different colors and styles of bikini briefs. Sandy winked and made sure there were matching thongs in both piles.

Sandy and I walked out together like models and our moms were laughing following behind us.

Next stop was the shoe department. We found some sparkly looking tennis shoes and Sandy and I of course got shoes that matched. Mine were mint green, while Sandy got the pink shoes. The moms said we also needed a sandal with just a little heel. Sandy again started squealing and pulled me over to the sandals on display. We decided on a white sandal with a strap that went over our toes, and one that buckled around our ankles. Mom also decided that we needed both white and black tights and also picked up a few packages of pantyhose. We took off the shoes we wore in and Aunt Carol handed us each a pair of slightly raised flip flops.

We were having a blast shopping and I think Sandy and I were wearing our moms out. We stopped at their snack area and Sandy and I got to share a chocolate malt. The moms told us to stay here while they had a few items to get themselves. Sandy and I got a brain freeze right away and we started giggling at each other. After finishing, Sandy stood up and grabbed my hand.

“Come with me Didi. I know our moms said to stay here, but I need to go to the bathroom. Will you come with me?”

“Sure, I will Sandy. Let’s go.” I started to slow down as we came to the facing doors. Gentlemen to the right and Ladies to the left. Sandy tugged my hand and pushed open the Ladies room. It didn’t seem much different than the Gentlemen’s. The first thing I noticed was that it smelled like perfume instead of a locker room, but there were no urinals, only stalls. Sandy led me to the first one and opened the door for me to walk in. “Make sure that you sit down and wipe after you do your business.” That seemed easy enough. I pulled down my panties and shorts and sat down. I pointed my penis down and felt a big relief that we had come in. I dutifully ‘wiped’ afterwards, even though I usually just shook it a little. After pulling everything back up, I found Sandy at the mirror.

“Wash your hands, Didi.” While they were drying under the hot air blower, Sandy got out her lip gloss and was putting a coat on mine when the moms walked in. “There you two are, we wondered how long you could hold out.” Mom handed me her bags and Aunt Carol did the same with Sandy. We sat together on the little couch while our moms took care of business.

Mom looked at her watch and said we needed to get moving. We had been at JCP for hours and now headed to the top floor and into the styling salon. Mom said Sandy and I needed to get our hair evened up. Sandy and I got our smocks on and Sandy asked if we could get matching cuts.

Matching what? This had been great fun but getting my hair styled like Sandy’s seemed like one step too far. My mom stepped in and said maybe another time but still had them trim our split ends and after putting a little curl in, we both ended up with a similar looking style anyway.

As they were finishing up Aunt Carol said she had a surprise for us for being such good shoppers today. She was letting Sandy get her ears pierced. Sandy started squealing again and I joined in with her excitement. My mom came over to me. “Didi, I don’t want you to feel left out. It’s up to you if you want to get your ears pierced today too.” Sandy looked at me with a big grin on her face as she was examining her new starter studs. I had a big grin on my face, “why not?”

Soon we were on our way back to the car. We all had several bags and boxes to carry and managed to stow them in the trunk. Sandy and I were soon fast asleep laying on one another in the back seat while our moms talked. We woke up when we arrived at the Conner’s house and Sandy and I got out of the car, excited about all of our purchases. We found all of their packages in the trunk and we were soon taking everything into their house. Our squealing started up again as we looked at all of Sandy’s new stuff. Sandy showed me where she was putting her new bras and panties. She even showed me how to fold them. I never folded my underwear before and thought ‘why would I, nobody even sees them?’ But if my new BFF folded her panties and bras, so would I.

My mom said it was time to go home. I gave Sandy a big hug and told her I would see her tomorrow. Mom told her we wouldn’t be home in the morning, but we could play in the afternoon.

Mom helped me put all of my new things away. I think she was very impressed that I knew how to fold my bras and panties. Then we went to her room and she surprised me by pulling out a matching golf outfit to mine. Mom’s had a culotte instead of shorts. It looked like a skirt in front, but from behind, they looked like shorts. Everything of ours matched. “That’s for tomorrow Didi. We need to be at the course by 9am.” “Wow, mom. We’ve never matched before. This is totally awesome. Do we have matching underwear too?”

Mom looked a little surprised but then went to her lingerie drawer and pulled out one of her bras for me to inspect. “Our bodies are a little different now before you start puberty. Do you see the size of the cups? I wear a 38-C.” She then surprised me further by unbuttoning her blouse and removing it so I could see her bra. “Take off your top, Didi and come over here and stand by your mom. My mom was beautiful. She was about 5’7” with her long brown hair and very shapely body. She bent down to show me how the bra supported her breasts.

Then she said “my bras are bigger than yours Didi, but we can still match. Let’s see what we can find.” I was wearing one of the padded bras from Betsey Johnson that came in a set. My bra was pink. Mom looked over her selection and found a red bra with lots of lace on it. Then she shocked me further by taking her current bra off and putting the red one on. “I know we have never talked about your body Didi, but now you can see what girls grow into.” We put our tops back on and then Mom held my chin and put some lipstick on my lips. “How does that taste, Didi?” Then she turned to the mirror and put the same color on her lips.

Whoa! I just got my first sex education lesson from my mom like it was the most natural thing in the world. She then proceeded to tell me that Dad had taken Kat and Deb to visit his parents in Florida because they were concerned about the grandparents’ health. We would have the rest of the week together while they were gone.

Mom asked if I wanted to help her fix dinner for the two of us. “That would be great mom. Can you teach me how to cook like you?” A big smile came over her face as she pulled me into a big hug. “Let’s go Didi”, mom said as she walked with me hand in hand to our kitchen. “The first thing we need to do is wash our hands and get our aprons on.”

After that I brought our step stool over the counter and mom and I put together a salmon salad. I helped shred the lettuce and cut up the broccoli and onions. Mom showed me how to prepare the salmon fillet and then cook it in our oven. We put asparagus in with the salmon and Mom started the coffee. Soon, everything came together. Mom let me cut the asparagus into smaller bite size for the salad. Then she showed me how to remove any remaining bones and then we shredded the salmon onto our salads.

Mom started the coffee machine brewing and soon the percolating sound and smell of coffee wafted through our kitchen. Mom loved having coffee with dinner and I thought maybe I could try it too. My mom poured a cup similar to hers and set it in front of me. “Let me know if you want more, Didi.”

By now the 800 pound gorilla in the room was starting to rear its ugly head. “Mom, this has been the best day ever, thanks to you and Sandy. I never knew that tea parties, and birthday parties and shopping could be so much fun. Why didn’t we ever do this before?”

“I know you don’t realize it now, but these are normally girls’ activities. But there is nothing wrong with playing with your girlfriends or your mom, is there? Let’s clean up the dishes Didi. Do you like your new nickname?” “I love it mom, it’s pretty special since Sandy gave it to me. Do you like it?” Mom told me her best friend growing up was named Diane and she called her Didi. So yes, she loved the name for me.

After we washed and dried the dishes, Mom took me into the living room. “Do you want to watch TV, Didi? We need to get up early to golf, but I wanted to talk about tomorrow with you. When we get to the course, there will a lot of ladies that will want to say hi and introduce themselves. We’ll just introduce Didi as though you have been here your whole life. Can you do that?”

“Yes mom, of course I can. Can I wear a visor like you too?” “Of course, you can sweetie.” Let’s get ready for bed now, you still have a few things to do. Mom brought me into the bathroom and explained how to cleanse my face at night, especially because of the make-up she let me wear today. First thing was Ponds Cold Cream, as mom carefully worked it into my skin. Then she took tissues and wiped the cold cream off. Lastly, she took a hot washcloth and carefully blotted my skin. That felt heavenly.

“Didi, we need to take care of your ears, honey. Here’s a Q tip, first we’ll put a little alcohol on it then swab around your ears, twisting and turning your earrings in the process. You’ll need to do this every morning and night until the holes heal up. You can also just twist your earrings once in a while during the day to help keep the holes open.” Then mom went to one of her bags. “This is for you Didi, and this is for your mom.” Mom held out two matching nightgowns in pink that came down to my knees. “I love you, mom. You’re the best mom ever.”

After mom put me in bed, I fell asleep and dreamed of tea parties all night. The next thing I knew mom was sitting on my bed holding my hand. “Time to get going, sleepyhead.” I was super excited about the day. Mom told me that we would eat breakfast, then get dressed and go. After breakfast, mom and I went back to her room. She had our clothes all laid out. I sat in awe as my mom went to the bathroom, then got changed into her outfit. She started out by putting on the red bra and matching red panties. Then she put on her blue checked top and culotte, and finally her shoes.

“Your turn Didi. Go to the bathroom then come back out and we’ll get you ready. Here is your bra, turn around and I’ll fasten it for you.” After the bra, mom put on my matching top and shorts. Then she gave me some no-show socks with a little fuzzy ball at the heel. I put those on and then my new tennis shoes. We stood together in front of the mirror like mother and daughter. “You look beautiful mommy, thank you for bringing me along.”

Mom insisted that I put some sunscreen on my neck and arms, then proceeded to put a little waterproof mascara on me, then a dusting with powder on my face to protect it and finally she handed me a lip gloss with an SPF 20 and showed me how to use it. She even gave me a little backpack purse to put my stuff in. We were off to who knows where.

My mom and her friends didn’t ride in motorized golf carts back then, but they pulled their clubs on little golf buggies. My mom, Joanne, was known as Jo to her golf friends. I soon was surrounded by the women golfers as I walked with my mom, pulling her cart along.

“Hi Jo”, one of my mom’s friend called out. “Who is this little darling with you? My mom was practically beaming. “This is my youngest, Didi.” I said hello and she reached out to give me a hug. “Even matching golf outfits, too. Didi you look just like your mom.” I thanked her friend Midge, who I soon found out was a hairdresser and took care of many of the ladies, including my mom. “Jo, you’ll have to bring Didi with you on your next appointment.” Then she turned to me. “Let me see your nails, that pink glitter is one of my favorites, too. I love those shoes Didi, are they new?” “Yes, they are, thank you for noticing them. My mom helped me pick everything out for today. We even have matching golf visors.”

All of the ladies were very nice to me. My mom golfed with a woman who was younger than most of them, and two other ladies my mom’s age. If you have ever played golf with four women who were having a great time regardless of the score and talking nonstop, you would understand how we played nine holes in about 3 hours. I found out the younger lady, Faith, was a teacher at the local community college. She taught fashion design and I was fascinated by her stories of the fashion industry and new trends. The other two women, Bev and Sue, had husbands that worked together with my dad at the big manufacturing company in town.

I was especially proud of the way my mom played. She clearly was one of the best golfers, but she was always encouraging the other ladies. I also thought mom was the most beautiful of all her golf friends.

After the round was over, mom and all of the other ladies went into the clubhouse. The first thing mom said was for me to go to bathroom and make sure I wash my hands thoroughly because of the fertilizer on the grass. Faith was sitting with us and said she needed to go too. So, my second visit to a ladies rest room was with a stunning young college teacher. I dutifully sat and peed and then wiped. As I was getting up, Faith said from the next stall, “Didi, do you have any monthly supplies in your backpack?” I had no idea what that meant. I said, “Faith, I think my mom does. I’ll go get her.” I ran over to my mom and whispered in her ear, “Faith just asked if I had any monthly supplies in my backpack.” Mom reached into her purse and gave me a long package with some sort of tube in it and also a long flat thingie. I ran back to the bathroom and called out to Faith, “I’m back with supplies, Faith. I then bent down and handed both packages to Faith. “Thank you Didi, you’re a lifesaver.” I was washing my hands again when Faith emerged. She gave me a hug and held me, “you know what this means, don’t you? We will always be ‘blood sisters’ forever.”

That sounded slightly gross and I didn’t know what she meant, but I knew I had crossed another threshold that may be difficult to un-cross. My mom was once again beaming and made sure I sat right next to her. It seemed like most of the ladies were drinking a 7&7, but Bev and Sue had ordered Cosmopolitans. Mom ordered me a virgin Shirley Temple along with a Chicken Salad. (Were they out of cheeseburgers?) I loved the Shirley Temple it tasted like 7up, but was red and sweeter and had a cherry in it, too.

I got my second sex education lesson there as I quietly ate while the conversation got lively. I think there were 12 ladies in total. Aside from Faith’s monthly visitor, I also learned about what sexy lingerie was for, what premature something was, that they keep their ‘girls best friend’ in the nightstand, and that these women were liked caged animals, waiting to be let out. My mom would sometimes hold her hands over my ears and laugh. I just held onto mommy’s hand and took in all the sights and sounds. We had now been at the golf course for almost four hours when Mom said it was time to go. I got kisses from all of the golfers, some right on the lips. Midge made my mom promise to bring me in at her next appointment, which was that Friday.

“Wow, mom. You said your league was different than dads and you were right. That was incredible and you are incredible. You are a great golfer, mom. Can we do this again?”

“Of course, we can sweetie. I loved having you with me the whole time. The other ladies were jealous of me having Didi join us. Should we get another matching outfit to wear? I’ve got a great idea Didi. Let’s go home and get cleaned up, then we could go back to JCP. I saw an outfit that would be perfect for us. Midge loved your earrings, by the way. Make sure you keep twisting them.”

No sooner than we pulled into our driveway, Sandy was waiting for us. “Hi Didi, how was golfing with your mom? You guys have matching outfits, that looks cool.” Mom intervened the interrogation and asked Sandy to take a picture of us in our golf attire. Sandy went upstairs with me while mom went to her bedroom to freshen up. Mom told me to wash my face and hands and then come into her room.

I was filling Sandy in on our morning while I washed up. She sat on the counter in the bathroom like we were two girls chatting as I got cleaned up. I was telling her about the ladies both on and off the course. We were giggling about some of the shots and also about the conversation afterwards. When I was ready we went to my mom’s room. Mom had changed into a floral looking empire waisted dress in an overall pink and purple pattern. She had on pantyhose and purple pumps that matched her dress and she was a vision.

“Wow, mom, you look fabulous. Where are you going?”

“WE are going out tonight. Dinner and a movie. Are you interested?” Sandy and I started squealing again. “Can Sandy come too?” “Yes, sweetie Sandy and Aunt Carol are coming but you don’t have anything to wear. Can you bear another shopping trip?” YES, we both cried out. “You can wear your white sandals and white tights, but you don’t have any dresses, Didi. Go put on your tights under your shorts and then slip into your sandals. Be quick, we don’t have a lot of time to spare.” I had never put on tights before, so Sandy helped me. They felt silky and wonderful on my legs as my eyes got wide. “Don’t they feel great Didi!” They did feel quite wonderful. I pulled my shorts up and they looked a little strange. “I have the perfect skirt for you to wear shopping Didi, c’mon.”

We told my mom to meet us at Sandy’s, then we ran out. Sandy was still talking while we were running to her house. “You need a short denim skirt to go with those tights and sandals Didi. I have a white skirt for you to wear and I’ll wear my blue denim skirt.” We went to Sandy’s bedroom and both changed into the skirts and Sandy wore a low-heeled black bootie to go with her skirt. She looked hot. We looked at each other, then started giggling and hugging. I started to feel a little uneasy again about walking into the mall in a skirt, while shopping for a dress. I looked at Sandy, “Sandy, are you still ok with me being your BFF? I just love doing stuff with you, but I wonder about how you feel.” “Didi, don’t be silly. You’re my best friend forever and ever. Let’s use this red lip gloss before we go see our moms.” Crisis averted. The moms whistled at us when we came in and soon we were laughing in the car on the way back to the mall.

Mom and Aunt Carol were telling us stories about going out to dinner with their moms and how it was always a special event. My mom was recounting all of the new things that had happened to me recently. I loved my new earrings and haircut. I had just experienced my first tea party and birthday party as a princess. I got fitted for my first bra and now had a drawer full of bras and panties. And my favorite was dressing up in matching outfits and going out on the golf course to watch my mom. I was a bit overwhelmed and was glad when Sandy grabbed my hand. “Didi also got her nails done for the first time, too!”

I didn’t know what to expect but we went to a couple of teen girls’ stores. Sandy started grabbing dresses and soon we were back in the changing room with our moms out front.
Sandy started taking off her clothes, so I did too. We were standing there giggling in our bra and panties and I wondered what was next. Our moms were shushing us from outside the room but that only made it worse. Sandy handed me one dress and she put hers on then we zipped each other up. I went to my backpack purse and handed Sandy the lip gloss. We both applied a thick coat and went out to see the moms with our sexy model walk!

Aww, how cute. Aren’t they adorable? Are they sisters? We had drawn a little crowd with all of our noise in the changing room and now there were a half dozen saleswomen looking over at us. “I know just the dress”, one lady said. “We just got in an order of little girls pumps. What size are you two? Aunt Carol said we were both size five, and the salesgirl left to retrieve them.

Sandy grabbed my hand and we went back in the changing booth, giggling even louder. We got our dresses off when the door flew open and the suddenly the ladies were back. Sandy took the pink and I got the baby blue dress. The salesgirl told mom that they were Bonnie Jean, Cold-Shoulder Lace, Fit-And-Flare dresses. Then the woman from shoes came back with matching pink pumps for Sandy, and blue for me. Sandy was hugging me and telling me they were her first ‘heels’. I put mine on and stood up and felt a little strange, but still the heel was only 2”, even though it was very pointy. Sandy stood on her heels too.

“Follow me Didi.” Sandy proceeded to use her best model walk from one end of the room to the other. She turned while I tried my best to copy her. It actually seemed a little easier to duplicate her walk because of the higher heels. All the ladies were cracking up and Mom told us to get changed and we would take those. On the way back to the car, Mom steered us into the Merle Norman store. A young salesgirl came up and asked if she could help us. “We are going out for dinner and movie tonight and I’d like to see if you can help our little princesses here. Sandy and I let out another squeal as the lady told us her name was Cora. Mom told her I was just starting to use cosmetics and wanted me and Sandy to get ‘color-matched’. We were color matched and we were the same. We both had light brown hair and hazel eyes and our skin was considered ‘beige’. Cora put our supplies in a bag and then showed Sandy and I how to do our eyes for tonight. Cora had us both sit next to each other while she worked on us. “You really don’t need any type of foundation with your clear skin, girls. This is a tinted moisturizer that makes you look a little older.” Sandy was practically shaking she was so excited. I thought to myself that this must be a very special event and I immediately got into the mood with Sandy.8

“To finish things off, a little eyeliner and pink eyeshadow. Next we finish with two coats of mascara on the top and bottom lashes. Moms can I change out your girls’ lipstick and nail polish. We just got this soft red Liquid Lipcolor in a color called ‘Sugar Kisses’. Mom and Aunt Carol shrugged their shoulders and soon we were sporting shiny soft red nails. She also showed us the proper way to apply lip gloss with the angled part of the brush. When we finally reached home, we let the Connors off and told them we’d pick them up in 30 minutes.

As soon as we entered our home, the phone rang. Mom picked up and I could tell she was talking to my dad. She had a stoic face as she listened to Dad. He said his parents were doing better but he needed to stay down there a while longer. He said his company was letting him work out of their local office. Mom asked to talk to Kat and Debbie. She asked them what they were doing to keep busy. Then she reminded them that this was their idea and they would be staying with the grandparents while she and my dad figured out what to do.

Mom handed me the phone and said quietly, “we need to keep this short, we have to get going.” Then she went to her bedroom to finish getting ready. I listened while my sisters complained about Grandma being even more strict than mom. I had no idea what that meant. Then my dad came on the phone and said to hang in there and take care of mom while he was gone. Take care of mom??? Mom was taking care of me. We said our goodbyes then mom was back with purses for both of us and off we went.

I asked mom what Kat meant when she said that Grandma was even more strict than you. Mom smiled and said, “promise me you’ll never become a teenager, Didi.” Then she turned to me and asked if I liked my new dress. I wasn’t quite sure what to say, but I blurted out that it’s the most beautiful thing I have ever worn, and another thank you for getting it for me.

Aunt Carol and Sandy got in the car with us and we headed to the restaurant. The moms had plenty of instructions for us. Keep our voices down in the restaurant, no running, sweep your skirt beneath you when you sit, and be on your best behavior. That didn’t include the very detailed instructions on how to get in and out of a car. It must have been important because it was repeated again to us. Sandy looked at me and we started giggling again.

Mom said it’s very important to make the right first impression. Sandy and I looked at each and tried not to giggle while holding hands. The moms rolled their eyes as Sandy and I successfully got out of the car without flashing our panties. We both had our purses over our arms walking beside our mothers. I knew this was crazy for a boy, but I’d never had so much fun with anyone before. We were seated and the waiter asked for our drink orders. Mom and Aunt Carol asked for a glass of wine and ordered virgin Shirley Temples for Sandy and me. The waiter looked at us and said we didn’t look old enough to drink with a stern look. We gulped and looked at our moms. They were laughing and our waiter winked at us and said, “I can let it go just this once.” Sandy and I looked at each other and broke out in the giggles, while trying to shush each other. The mothers were shushing us now too and the whole restaurant looked over at us. Well, the waiter just blew our mothers admonitions in a matter of seconds. Mother said if we wanted pasta or spaghetti, we would need to wear their special bibs to keep the sauce off of our dresses. Sandy ordered spaghetti and I ordered Lasagna and we had breadsticks to keep us busy.

Aunt Carol looked at me and asked, “How do you like your new dress, Didi?” I looked at Sandy and Mom then back at Aunt Carol. “I love it Auntie, it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever worn. Do you think it makes me look fat?” She laughed and then gave me a big smile. “You are a delight, Didi. I don’t remember anyone more excited about their first dress.”

After dinner mom and I went to the bathroom first. When we got inside she opened the first door for me and started to say something, when I interrupted. “I know, sit down and make sure you wipe.” I had a big grin on my face as my mom gave me a little swat on my backside. We finished and after Sandy and her mom went, we paid our bill and left for the theater.
We watched the new Disney movie, and everyone cried but at the end we all left happy. We were tired and happy as mom and I finally walked back into our home. Mom helped me get changed and cleaned up then told me that I could sleep in her bed tonight if I wanted to.

I couldn’t believe this day. The best day ever, and now I get to snuggle with my mom while everyone else is away. We put on our matching nightgowns and mom kissed my forehead. Sleep came too quickly. I dreamed about Sandy and me out golfing in a league like the ladies today.

I wasn’t quite sure what to make of Dad and my sisters staying longer in Florida. Kat and Debbie sounded like they wanted to come back, but Dad seemed focused on his work. I was just glad that my grandparents were on the mend and my sisters were there to help.

The next morning mom was full of energy and told me we had a big day ahead. She got me dressed in the shorts and top, with just a training bra and panties along with short socks and my new sparkly tennis shoes. Mom dressed in shorts and a top too, and we went to the kitchen.

“Would you like to learn how to make French Toast today Didi?” “I’d love to mom! How can I help you?” “Let’s start with an apron to keep everything clean. Get out the eggs and milk and bread from the refrigerator, Didi.” I helped break the eggs in the bowl and measured out the other spices with mom watching. “Very good Didi, now we heat our electric skillet to 350 F.” Mom showed me how to dip the bread in the mixture, careful not to soak too much in, and then place them on the hot skillet so we had four pieces on cooking. “When the bottom is brown we flip them Didi.” It seemed simple enough as I watched mom deftly flip them over and then when they were done, onto our plates. I guess two was limit for us ‘girls.’ We put warm maple syrup over them and a sprinkling of powdered sugar on top and started in.

Mom had started the coffee when I was mixing the ingredients and it was ready as we started to eat. Mom gave me a cup and saucer like hers and said if I didn’t like it not to drink it. She also gave me a small glass of orange juice and my vitamin. Mom had her vitamin out also. Then she pulled a rectangular pill pack out and popped another smaller pill from it. “What’s that for mommy?” “It’s a pill to help protect woman, Didi.” “Do I need one too, mommy?”

Mom sat back and sighed while that 800 lb gorilla once again took over center stage. “Didi, what you and Sandy and I and Aunt Carol have done these past few days have been a lot of fun and exciting. We all know you were born a boy. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t experience some of the things that girls do. Having parties and golfing and shopping can be done by boys or girls. But there can be some possible issues that we will deal with if and when we see them. But my advice as your mom is that if you like doing these things, then keep doing them. If you want to stop it all tomorrow, that’s what we’ll do.

But these little pills put the choice of having a larger family with me. Your father is down in Florida because his assistant moved down there first. I told him that you and I were staying here. His company was able to find him a job near your grandparents, although different than what he was doing here. I am making our family decisions now.

Your sisters comment about the grandparents being stricter is interesting. Kat and Debbie jumped at the chance to get out from under my protection as their mother and went with your dad. But things haven’t quite worked out like they wanted. Their dad is gone a lot and the grandparents are glad to have them waiting on their needs. Instead of more freedom, they have less. And your dad is finding out his old assistant isn’t as interested in him with his new job.

A lot has gone on this past week and I didn’t want my precious Didi to worry. Things have worked out the best for us and I don’t want to wait another minute to make more memories. I’ll let you have one of my small pills today to make sure we both have full protection.” Mom smiled and pulled another plastic pill pack out of our medicine cabinet and handed it to me. “Look at the pack, Didi. Do you see the days on the top? Today is my first day and it is a Wednesday, and so it is yours too. Take the top ‘Wednesday’ pill out, then swallow it with your juice.” After swallowing the pill, I got up and hugged my mom. “You are the best mom ever!”

Mom said this was a special occasion and I wasn’t to take any more without her approval. But today we both had our full girl protection!

That morning mom showed me how to clean the house. We got our bedsheets off and our dirty laundry to start a load. I had no idea how to use the washing machine even though I was almost ten years old. I learned about separating whites and colors and hand washing our ‘delicates.’ After we put the first load in, mom showed me her routine. She started with the upstairs, straightening up then dusting. We each took different rooms and then she showed me how to clean the bathrooms. We had three bathrooms, so I took ours and mom did the others. I had no idea how much bending and scrubbing went into making a bathroom shine.

Vacuuming was relatively straight-forward but I found out I needed to move things like our chairs instead of just going around them. Then we put the switched the clothes from washer to dryer and put in our last load. Mom asked if I wanted to invite Sandy and Aunt Carol for lunch. I thought that was a great idea and I called Sandy. They were over in 15 minutes and brought a cinnamon sprinkled apple pie they had made. I was excited to see Sandy again. Sandy told me how she helped her mom clean this morning, too. Then Sandy helped her mom bake an apple pie. “That is awesome, Sandy, I’ve never baked a pie before.” Mom winked and smiled at me. I knew pie making was in my future. What fun.

“Didi, I am going swimming with Renee and some friends this afternoon. You have to come!” I loved swimming and looked at mom, “can I please?” Mom shrugged her shoulders and said it was alright with her but Didi didn’t have a bathing suit. “I’ve got one you can borrow Didi! Please!” Why not? Let’s go. After we cleaned up lunch, I went with Sandy over to find a swimsuit while mom and Aunt Carol finished their coffees. Sandy had just gotten a new yellow bikini and gave me her pink one. Since we were just measured, we knew we were the same size. We grabbed our towels and sandals and piled into Aunt Carol’s car with our moms in front.

I had seen my mom in her bathing suit before, obviously, but she seemed to simply glow today
in her maroon, ruched, one-piece suit. When we got to the pool, our moms were walking around with the other moms while Sandy and I found Rene and the other girls and all jumped in. Renee and Sandy introduced me to their friends. I knew their names from my sisters but they were all one or two years older than me and didn’t know Danny from the man in the moon. Didi was all set to have a great time. After swimming for a while, Sandy said we needed to work on our tans, and we were soon laying on the lounge chairs. We flipped over a couple of times before our moms came looking for us. We asked if we could get an ice cream?

All of the girls I was with and their moms went for ice cream. One of the ladies from the golf course, Sue came over to us with her daughter Masie. “Hi Joanne, the girls are having fun.” “Yes, what could be better than swimming and ice-cream?” I heard that John had transferred down to Florida, are you joining him?” “No, John is on a special assignment and took our kids to help with his elderly parents in Florida, leaving just Didi and I here alone this summer. It was so nice to see you again, Sue. See you next Tuesday.” I could tell mom didn’t like her for some reason, little was I to know that that Sue had spread the rumors about dad, and mom just let her know that she knew it.

When we got home, Sandy and I were bored and asked the moms for something to do. “Well, we’ve started learning how to cook and take care of the house. How would you girls like to get a pattern and learn how to sew?” Sandy and I looked at each other and said “Yes, can we make matching outfits? We can go to the fabric store this afternoon and look for patterns and material, why don’t you two look through some magazines to find something you like?”

I knew that everything we were doing was considered ‘girls activities’, but I thought why not? These lessons from mom seemed like good training for the future whether it was for a girl or a boy. I wondered if my sisters knew how to run the washing machine. It wasn’t rocket science but very helpful information for living on my own in the future. Besides, I really liked wearing the bra and panties and doing all the other stuff with the girls.

The moms and Sandy and I had fun picking out patterns at the fabric store. It was a little hard for me to visualize how all the little patterns went together, but that didn’t stop Sandy and I from picking out more fabric in blue for her and pink for me. Our patterns had little bears on them and Sandy and I couldn’t help pretending to tickle the little bears.

That night we had patterns all over the floor and were busy cutting and pinning our materials. I enjoyed the process and with everyone helping, we made some progress and promised to start sewing tomorrow, Thursday. Sandy and Aunt Carol went home and mom and I cleaned up the house again, sorting out the two patterns and collecting all of the scraps. Mom took me to her bathroom to clean up. I wasn’t wearing any makeup but mom wanted me to cleanse and moisturize every night. “You’ll thank me later, she smirked.” Since it was just the two of us, we got into her bed again, but it was early and we watched a Hallmark movie, with lots of tears at the end.

It was wonderful being around my mother so much the past week. I never knew all the things that women did, which I was oblivious to. I was only nine, but what other kids got to do all the things I did? And how many could cook, sew, and take care of the house themselves? Not many, I’m sure.

But still, I knew that this would end sometime. I was a boy, and ‘normal boys’ don’t get to do act like girls. But that was enough thinking about that for me. I just enjoyed the movie with our pillows all propped up, watching together with Mom. The next morning I was up before mom. I was excited about our sewing project. Mom showed me how to make a ham and cheese omelet and I got to help break the eggs and stir them up again before mom poured the mixture into the omelet pan.” Mom put some frozen hash browns in another pan and soon the kitchen smelled wonderful. Mom put my vitamin out and again I asked for a girl pill. “Mom, I know I’m not a real girl, but I love pretending with you. Mom was about to say they were only for real girls, but caught herself and said, “okay Didi, you can take these pills like mom, but before they are gone we are going to see my doctor. Is that a deal?” “Yes, mom! Deal!”

Sandy and I learned how to sew that day. Aunt Carol brought over her sewing machine and we sewed our first project together. We made matching rompers and actually sewed material together, watching in awe as the sewing machine stitched our material together. We also watched our mothers closely as they help show us how to put on the buttons and sew the buttonholes with their machines. I thought, “this sure beats getting all hot and sweaty playing baseball.” Sandy and I modeled our rompers and headed over to her house to play with her dolls again.

I came back early to help mom clean up and get dinner. I gave her another hug for teaching me how to start sewing. “Didi, you are just the best daughter in the world! Your sisters always fight me when I want to teach them basic skills around the house.” Mom said we were making a homemade chicken pot pie for tonight and the Connors were coming over. Mom showed me how to peel the carrots and then I helped mom parboil the chicken. Then we made the pie crust. That was interesting, mixing the flour and other ingredients and watch as we kneaded into a ball, then rolled it out and cut the bottom out to line our pie dish. After we poured in the mixture, we cut strips of crust and weaved them in crisscross pattern on the top. After putting foil around the edges so they wouldn’t burn, mom helped me put it in the preheated oven and set the timer.

At dinner, mom reminded me that we had an appointment with Midge at her beauty salon tomorrow. I couldn’t imagine what services that mom had done every week, but I was looking forward to going. Mom said we could lay out my romper tonight so I could wear it tomorrow. The pot pie was delicious, and I was excited telling Sandy how I helped. That night mom brought out another nightgown for me, this one a bit shorter that fell to the middle of my thighs. “You can’t wear the same nightgown every night, Didi.” This one felt very slinky and had matching panties too. I fell asleep quickly again after the long day. As I dreamed, I felt like I heard something vibrating and my mom moving around in the bed.

The next morning was similar to the last. Mom and I got up, had breakfast, did the dishes, then got dressed to go see Midge. Mom said ladies usually dress up a little when they go to get their hair done. She laid out my white bra and panty and also a pair of pantyhose. “The pantyhose and your sandals will dress up your romper a little. You can also wear one of my string of pearls and matching earrings.” Mom also let me wear a little mascara and blush and gave me a purse to carry. Mom looked like a million bucks and smelled delicious, too. Another great adventure with mom. I hoped they never ended.

We arrived at Midge’s Beauty Emporium a little before 9am. Mom and I had stopped at a bakery shop on the way to get donuts and coffee to take for Midge. Mom handed Midge her coffee and the box of donuts when we saw her. “You are a sweetheart Joanne, thank you. Hi Didi, you look all grown up today. How would you like to help me while you mom gets beautiful?” Sure, Aunt Midge, do you like my romper? Mom is teaching me how to sew. What can I do to help you?” ‘My, my, what a go-getter you have on your hands Joanne.” The two of them laughed and then Midge gave me a smock to go over my romper to keep it clean. “How would you like to start by tidying up all of the stations here? The other stylist will be coming in soon and they will be surprised to have everything ready.”

“Sure! Mom has been showing me how to carefully clean our house. Can you show me how to get started?” There were six stylists in total, so I started at the first station. Midge showed me how to carefully put all of their implements in the proper place, then I used a duster to get all of the hair off of the counter and the chair. Then I found the broom and dustpan and swept the whole area. After I did the first one, Midge gave me a few tips and I finished the rest of the stations while mom and Midge talked. Midge was giving my mom a ‘wet set.’ The other stylists started arriving and Midge told them how I cleaned up their stations for them. I was rewarded with many hugs and kisses. I thought to myself “why have I been missing these things?” I loved the Beauty Emporium.

The first to arrive was Gigi, the manicurist. “Hi, my name is Didi, Midge said I could help. Would you like some coffee and a donut?” “Hi Didi, aren’t you the little helper. Come with me dear.” I immediately took a liking to Gigi. She was around 20 and beautiful. She took me to the back to get her coffee. “You need to stay away from the donuts Didi, they go straight to your hips.” I giggled with her.

Gigi didn’t have an appointment for about an hour so she showed me how to do my nails. “Let me show you how to get nails like mine, Didi! First we take off your nail polish with a cotton ball. Next we push back any dead skin near the cuticle, then we wash the nail in our solution. After your nail dries, we shape it into the customers request. Let’s do yours in a round shape. That looks great. First comes the base coat and filler. This smooths out any imperfections in your nails and protects your own nails.”

I was totally mesmerized with this lady. She was talking non-stop and I was taking in every word. She started with last night’s date, dinner and drinks at a local pub. Then she took him back to her place… “Haha, sweetie! Your ears are too sensitive to hear the details.” She laughed and laughed.

“Now, we put on the first color coat. I think you have a lavender look, Didi. Do you agree?” I soon had two coats of Lavender and one clear gloss top coat, and a wealth of sexual knowledge that I had no clue about until several years later.

After the Gigi onslaught, the rest of the stylists were simply stunning. There was a lot of hugging and air-kissing going on. And for me, a surprising number of little kisses I got right on my lips! Gigi told me to follow her and we went into the back room. “I could use your help here, Didi. I have a baby about 2 months old that I am breastfeeding. The problem is that I have more milk than little Bobbie can drink. So I need to pump. Is this grossing you out Didi?”

“Oh no, thank you so much for telling me. How can I help you Gigi?”

“You are so sweet, Didi. We have matching names, don’t we, Didi? Sweetie, I need to expel my milk before I get started out there. Hold those bottles.”

Then Gigi proceeded to take off her top and bra and I helped hook her up to the milking machine. I had never seen women’s breasts before and I was mesmerized. Gigi sat back with the milking cones attached and closed her eyes. “That feels so good to expel the excess milk and let my breasts get back to normal.” I didn’t know what to say to that.

“I’m glad that helps, Gigi. Is there anything else I can help you with?”

Gigi had me help her remove the milking cones over her breasts. I stood there holding these two large suction cups watching the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Then Gigi said:
“Hold those two against your breasts Didi, you can feel the excitement that is in your future.”

As I positioned the two conical shaped breasts over my own breasts, Gigi said: “This is the best part Didi, feel the warmth inside when the machine starts.”

I didn’t know what to feel. I used to be a boy, now I think I’m a girl. I’ve never seen breasts before, up close and personal. But Gigi’s breasts were amazing. They moved and were just sensuous inside the milking domes. But now that they were loose, unbelievable. She sensed my worship of her breasts and said, “Didi, would you like to feel how a woman’s breast feels? I’m sure you will be getting your own very soon.” Of course, I would. How is that possible?

“Here, Didi, put these cones over your breasts. Now we turn it on and you can feel what I just went through.” Oh my, what a sensation. When she turned on the milking machine, it created a suction and pulled on my little, almost non-existent nipples. I was unresponsive to Gigi as my eyes rolled back. My little nipples were now sticking straight out, much bigger than before. Gigi turned off the machine and helped me get dressed. “Now you see the future for you Didi!”

I was then taken back to Midge who was in the process of taking the curlers out of my mom. “You can learn how to take the curlers out, Didi.” “Thanks, Midge, you’re amazing.” Midge handed me the rollers and I put them away in her basket. After she was done, she showed me how to use her fingers to make the curls in my mom’s hair really stand out. “Come here Didi, put your fingers here and here, can you see how the curls fluff out? It was amazing watching Midge work, no wonder all the ladies liked her.

Mom looked incredible when she was done. I gave her a big hug and told her I loved her.

“Didi, can you stay here with Midge for a while? I have a few errands to do. Then I will be back and we have a big day ahead of us.”

“Okay mom, that sounds great.” Then turning around, “Ms. Midge, what can I do to help?”

After mom left, Midge said she had about 15 minutes until her next appointment and put me up in her chair. “Didi, your hair is fairly long, would you like it to grow longer?

“Oh, yes, that would be wonderful.”

“Let me give it a little cut and we’ll work on letting your hair grow into a longer style.” After a few snips, Midge used her curling iron to expertly put my hair in a very stylish look. “Thank you Midge, you are an artist!”

Midge asked me to go get her next client and ask them to come back with her. I was so excited, I had to concentrate. I walked out and saw the young lady waiting. I walked up to her and asked, “would you please come with me back to see Midge?” She had a big smile on her face and gave me a big hug. She held my hand as we walked back to see Midge. I said, “Ms. Midge, here is your favorite client, Laura” and then did a quick curtsey. Laura and Midge were laughing at my antics but Midge said, “I think Didi is a natural in hair styling, don’t you Laura.”

They both started hugging and kissing me and I thought I was going to drown in a sea of estrogen. “Didi, did you just get your first bra?” Midge asked. “Yes, Aunt Midge, I’m the same size as my friend Sandy, we’re both a 32A.” “My, my, my, aren’t you the growing girl!” Laura asked what kind of bra I had on for my first. I wasn’t sure so I lifted up my bra so she could see: 32A La Perla, you are going to have a big blossom very soon, Didi!” I didn’t know what ‘blossoming’ meant, so I thanked Aunt Laura.
Mom returned and thanked all of the ladies. Midge asked if I would like to help her tomorrow morning at her shop. I shook my head yes, and asked her what I should wear?

“Your mom can help you sweetie. Just look around the shop and see how everyone is dressed.”

Soon Mom and I were on our way to her doctor. With my hair and nails and clothing, mom looked at me and signed me in as Didi. Not long after that the nurse opened the door, called my name and led mom and me back to the exam room. She took my weight and height and said I was just right for my age.

Dr. Andrea Brenner had been my mom’s gynecologist forever and she asked me a few questions to get started. “Didi, how long have you been wearing girls clothes? “Just a couple of weeks. My friend Sandy invited me to a Princess Tea Party. We had a great time.”

“Do you like taking your girl pills with your mom?” “Oh, yes. I love to take them with my mom. I hope my girl pills will help me be closer to her. Mom said I could take them as long as I saw you before the pack was gone. I hope you agree with us.”

“Didi, we have taken some blood of yours to analyze. Then we can decide what to do. Right now, I am going to give you a shot that will give you more time to make your decision. Just bend over at the waist and my nurse will administer it.” Ouch!

Before leaving, Dr. Brenner’s office she asked me ‘the’ question. “Didi, do you ever wish that you were a girl?” I had been thinking this same question over and over in my mind.

“I really don’t know, Dr. Brenner. If you had asked me a while ago, I would have laughed. But now I love being Didi. I feel so much closer to my best friend Sandy, and of course my mom. I don’t think I would have ever felt this way if I was Danny. But I don’t feel that I’m not Danny any more, I just like being Didi all the time. I have experienced so many things that girls do, I am amazed. I am having a hard time trying to answer your question, Doctor.”

“That’s quite understandable, Didi. I’m glad you have given this so much thought. But we are in no rush to make any decisions. I’ll see you again in a couple of weeks, sweetie.”

Mom took us back to the big mall. “Didi, we have our ‘Ladies Invitational’ coming up at our golf club next weekend, and I want to golf with you. Will you be my partner?”

“Wow, mom!!! I get to golf with you? That would be the best ever!”

Mom proceeded to take me back to Macy’s to find our outfits for the event. “It’s two days, Didi. Friday and Saturday golf, then we have dinner together to find out who won. I want us to match all the time, so people will know you’re my daughter.” “Thanks Mom!”

My mom helped me out of the car and held my hand as we walked in to Macy’s. “Didi, besides our outfits for the tournament, there are a few other things we need to get for you. You are going to need a new bathing suit, a panty girdle with garters, a leotard to exercise in, and a couple of sports bras. I also talked to Aunt Carol about having you try out for Sandy’s soccer squad, and you’ll need some workout clothes and soccer shoes.”

“Wow, mom. I guess we are going forward with Didi in a big way!” We shopped and shopped and shopped some more. Didi was acquiring quite the wardrobe. We one week to go until the tournament and mom wanted us to have as much Mommy - Didi time as possible. So did I!

Mom said we were going out for dinner tonight after we got changed. She had me soak in a bathtub of bubbles and inspected me for any ‘errant hair’. I had none and Mom helped me dry off and moisturize. “Didi, we are meeting some nursing friends of mine for dinner, so I want us to dress up a little more than usual.” Although these weren’t matching dresses, they were both baby blue and we looked wonderful together. Mom handed me a blue purse and we left.

Mom drove us to the seafood restaurant but showed me before we left how to enter and exit the car modestly and gave me a smile as I completed the maneuvers. I felt a little self-conscious about dressing like my mother, but I loved being this close with her. “Come on Didi, let’s meet my friends. I have been taking training courses to refresh my nursing skills, Didi. I am going to be working in the hospital while you are in school. You’ll love these girls!”

That was the first bombshell to land. There were more to come, but not tonight. Mom introduced me to the other nurses and I got hugs from everyone. These ladies were just like my Mom; hard-working and loving. I learned a lot about nurses that night as they told stories about working. I could see the glint in Mom’s eyes listening to their stories and could tell she couldn’t wait to join them. I know I would never have had these experiences as ‘Danny’, but I was still him, wasn’t I?

Saturday, mom was up early and reminded me about our big day. Mom had a full day of training and this was the biggest day of the week for the Beauty Emporium, so I knew I would be busy. After mom dropped me off, Gigi took me back to get ready. She again pumped her breasts and I asked if I wanted to. I thought ‘why not’. “You can’t do this every day Didi, or you’ll get boobs as big as mine. haha” What? I can get bigger breasts by using a pump? I need to talk to mom.

Gigi started out by showing me how to apply acrylic nails, by doing mine! They started out long and Gigi filed them into a ‘Coffin Nail” shape. They were still real long. Gigi said she would cut them back before I left, but she thought it would be fun for me to have ‘glamorous nails’ for the day. Wow, what a change. My nails were beautiful. But I soon found out that they were not real practical. I got a lot of compliments, but I had to learn to be careful not to poke anything or anyone. I also got to help shampoo some of the clients. The morning flew by with all of the ladies talking and laughing and leaving ‘beautiful’.

Mom came by just after midday and said we we had a lot to do this afternoon. I showed her my nails and she thought they looked very nice for me, and thought the blue nails made me look older, too. I told her that Gigi said she would file them down, but Mom said that could wait, we had an appointment at her golf club. On the way to the club I asked mom how her day was. She smiled back and patted my hand. “Thank you for asking Didi, that was very thoughtful of you. I had a very productive day. The head nurse on the pediatric ward spent time with me today to review normal client procedures. It was very rewarding to be able to help people and start to put my nursing degree to work.”

Mom looked very serious. “Didi, I want you to know that whatever I am doing, we are in this together. I will only be working while you are in school and I can take time off for all of your activities. Is that alright with you dear?” “Oh yes, Mom. Thanks for including me. I’ve never seen you as happy as you have been lately. You are an inspiration for me.”

“Today, you and I are having a golf lesson with our pro, Brooke Hastings. She is going to give us some tips on how to win next weekend.” Mom had this competitive streak that was pretty strong at times. We got to the club and mom had our golf outfits to change into. I had a sleeveless yellow polo and a golf skort to wear. Mom had even found little pink golf shoes that fit my feet. Mom got undressed and again I marveled at how fit she was. Her breasts were gorgeous and mom caught me staring at her. “Come here Didi, you can help me change into my sports bra. This goes over my head and you can help me pull it down in back. But don’t poke me with your long nails! hahaha”

Our golf pro Brooke had just graduated from Northwestern University and was trying to earn her way onto the pro tour, but that was hard to do. In the meantime, she was working at the club, giving lessons and practicing her own game. Brooke was tall, about 5’8” and had a very toned body. Mom and I met her in the pro shop where we got our practice balls. She noticed my long nails and said they looked beautiful. She liked long nails but kept hers shorter because of her career. She actually said a few of the pro golfers liked having long nails, too.

The first thing Brooke showed us was how to stretch before swinging. She showed us how to stretch our legs and our core muscles to warm up. Next she showed us the proper grip. Mom and I had practiced many times together and that was always something she stressed, too. “Very nice, Didi. You have a neutral grip and your grip pressure is firm but not overly so. You and your mom are off to a great start.” Brooke was a great teacher and made our lesson a lot of fun as well as hard work. “You have a lot of potential Didi. I’ll talk to your mom about getting involved in our junior program. If you keep practicing, the sky is the limit for you, young lady.”

We picked up our other clothes from the locker room after thanking Brooke. She said she would be running the tournament next week and was looking forward to seeing us play. Mom told us that we would go home and change and were going to the pool with Sandy and Aunt Carol. I couldn’t wait to show Sandy my nails! “Mom, do you have a breast pump at home like Gigi uses?” I think I still have my pump around the house, why do you ask?” “Gigi told me if I used it consistently that someday I would have beautiful breasts like yours.” Mom laughed. “Oh did she? Gigi was just kidding, Didi. But it does feel nice to have the breast pump on, doesn’t it? Don’t worry Didi. The boob fairy won’t be around for a couple of years, but you’re not going to miss out on anything. Every girl wants their breasts to grow faster, but we just need to be patient.” Mom always knew just what to say.

Once we got our bathing suits and coverups on, we picked up Sandy and Aunt Carol on the way to the pool. Sandy loved my nails and had to show everyone once we arrived. I told them it was just for a couple of days, but they were special for me. Sandy and I hadn’t seen each other in a couple of days and it took us a while to catch up. Sandy told me she was going to a soccer camp in a couple of weeks and wondered if I wanted to come with her. I told her I would have to ask my mom, but it would be great if I could.

Sandy looked at me with a serious look. “Didi, do you know Jason and Brian from my class?” “I know who they were, but have never met them before.” “Jason called and asked if we would be at the pool today. I don’t know what they had in mind, but we need to be careful.” It turns out that after lurking around watching us swim and laying out working on our tans, the two of them asked us if we wanted to get a snow cone at the concession stand. That was weird. The moms gave us some money and said we needed to leave afterwards.

After getting our snow cones, the four of us sat at a picnic table eating them. The boys didn’t seem to have anything to say. I told them that Sandy and I were golfers and were pretty good. Sandy said that we were going to soccer camp together, too. They still didn’t have much to say and after we finished the snow cones, we told them we were leaving. They suddenly were smiling and asking us when we would be here again. I looked at Sandy and shrugged my shoulders. Sandy said they could call her.

“What did the boys say, Didi?” “It was strange mom. First they called Sandy to see if we were coming to the pool today, then they just stood around watching us. Then when we told them we were leaving, they were all excited about when they could see us again. They are weird.” Sandy was a couple of years older than me and had a distinctly different perspective of what just happened. My mom just smiled at me.

After our big day, mom and I planned a quiet evening together. Sandy and I made plans to practice golf in the morning and start another sewing project, this time a sundress. Mom and I made a greek salad and some chicken noodle soup. We put on our pajamas and robes and ate dinner together. I asked mom about dad and my sisters. “I have been talking to them about coming back here Didi, but I have conditions for them. IF they can convince us that they are sincere, then they will be back in a couple of weeks. Otherwise, they can stay with your grandparents in Florida for the next school year. I have given them a week to decide.”

“Ok, mom, I know you will take care of us.” I was so tired, I was practically asleep before my head hit the pillow. I had nothing but pleasant dreams, and strangely enough had a dream about my nails turning all different colors. I had to check them when I woke up but they were still the same. My mom saw me looking at them and said, “Are you tired of having long nails, Didi?” “When I first got them on, they felt strange, like I had on oversized gloves or something. But now I kind of like them,” I said with a big smile on my face. “Is that crazy?” “Let’s see how you feel after sewing today Didi. They do make your hands look very feminine, you can keep them a while longer if they don’t bother you.”

Mom had another surprise for me this morning. “We are going to church today Didi. We stopped going for a while, but now we are going to be regulars again.” I liked church before, the people were nice enough to me. Mom said we were going to a new church with Sandy and Aunt Carol and sure enough, after breakfast and another dress up session with Mom, we were on our way. Mom was wearing a blue, floral print dress that came just below her knee. It had an asymmetrical hem and flutter sleeves and I loved it on her. Mom had picked out an embroidered lace, fit and flare dress for me. It was a color called ‘blush’ and had embroidered flowers detailed into the yoke of the fancy dress. I also was wearing opaque tights in a color called ‘Pink Wisp’ and my white sandals.

There was certainly a lot more to going to church than I had previously know. Sandy and I met some other girls our age and then found our mothers again to get ready for the service. The woman minister spoke with conviction and passion, but no yelling like our last minister. We met a lot of nice people and they all asked us to come back again. The moms asked each of us on the way home to tell them one thing that we either did like or didn’t like about the church. Sandy spoke up, “I like having a woman minister. I felt a better connection to her.” “I like the the fact that the people there are so friendly. Even the kids included Sandy and me right away.”

After lunch, Sandy and I went outside to practice our golfing. “Didi, how can you possibly hold a golf club with those long nails!” She was laughing and so was I as my nails were quite ridiculous for a real golfer. “Sandy, what was going on with those boys at the pool?” “Don’t tell my mom, but I think Jason likes me.” “Everyone likes you Sandy, you’re the best.” “I mean likes me, likes me.” Huh? “Do you mean he’s your new BFF?” “No silly, you’re my BFF, nothing will ever change that.”

“Sandy, my mom said my sisters and dad might return in a few weeks if they meet all of her ‘conditions’, and I’m scared of what might happen to me.” “Don’t worry, Didi. My mom told me that your dad and sisters are going to have a completely different attitude and will happily accept either Didi or Danny or both. Don’t worry Didi, we won’t let anything happen to you.”
“But what will I do when school starts? You aren’t in my class and I won’t know anyone as Didi.” “Your mom will take care of things, Didi. She won’t let anything happen to you.”

We finished golf and went back inside for lemonade with mom. I got cleaned up and we all went to Sandy’s house to start on our new sewing project. Now that we had ‘experience’, Sandy and I knew what to do first. Cut out our patterns and pin our dresses, then cut the fabric. We took our time and spent most of the afternoon cutting out our fabrics. The moms called a halt to the project so we could work on dinner. Aunt Carol said that I could visit with them tomorrow and finish our project while mom was back at training Monday.

Mom said we were going to put together a cookout meal and Sandy and I could help prepare it. It was exciting for me to spend so much time with my mom. My senses were on overload. We put on our aprons, then mom brought out some ground beef. We put that in a bowl and added some spices and bread crumbs and an egg. We mixed it all together and then mom showed us how to make perfect hamburger patties. We put those in the refrigerator and then started on the potato salad. Sandy and I watched Mom and Aunt Carol slice up the cooked potatoes and then mix in the other ingredients. Then Sandy and I took four ears of corn and soaked them in their hulls in water to get ready for the grill.

Dinner was wonderful and now Sandy and I at least knew how to prepare a cookout. I told Sandy and Aunt Carol goodnight and told them I would see them in the morning. Mom and I went up to our bedrooms. I went to mine and got changed, then washed my face and used my moisturizer. Mom came into my room and sat on my bed. “I know you are worried about your dad and sisters, but please trust me on this. They have promised that they will fully support Didi and Danny and will never say one bad thing. If they do, that will be their last straw, and they will return to Florida. Secondly, your dad will be home by 5:15 every night to help put dinner together. Lastly, your sisters are now very interested in learning how to sew and cook and clean our house and they will have you to help them.”

My mom was my hero. I wanted to be just like her. She was smart, compassionate and was teaching me how to learn to be just like her. She liked to golf, all her friends admired her and now she was restarting her nursing career. I didn’t know exactly what my dad and my sisters did to get her passions up, but I knew she would figure out what to do. I decided to stop worrying and trust my mom.

On Monday morning, mom was up and had more energy than I had seen in a long time. Mom seemed to just glow as she told me about her training for the day. She said she would be back after lunch which would give Sandy and I an opportunity to sew our dresses. This sewing project was quite a bit more challenging. Our dresses were tiered-ruffle with flowered patterning. Mine had a Lilac Floral motif, while Sandy’s was a pink Peony Floral. They had wide shoulder straps and came just above our knees. I learned what a good seamstress that Aunt Carol is and how much more involved it was to add the tiered layers.

Mom loved the dresses that Sandy and I had to model for her when she came to pick me up. After I changed back, I thanked Aunt Carol and told Sandy I would call her later. She said she had some juicy gossip about Jason. I thought yuck.

Mom had arranged for another practice session with Brooke. I knew something was up and asked mom, “do you think we can win this tournament? “Winning the tournament would be great Didi, but it’s not realistic to think we can win the first time playing together.” But I want us to make a good showing and there are a quite a few teams that I think we will have a chance to beat. We are going to be playing in a modified alternative shot format and I want to make sure you have a chance to practice. Also, putting becomes even more important in this tournament so Brooke is going to work on our chipping and putting with us today. She even mentioned some putting exercises we can do at home.

Brooke was a dynamo again. “Didi, I love your outfits. I see you still have your long nails. Are you going to keep them?” “I am thinking of keeping them, but not quite this long. I have grown quite fond of looking at them.”

“Ladies, both of you strike the ball quite well so that is something we are going to pass on today. Didi also gets to tee off from the junior markers, so that will give you a potential advantage on several holes. But tournaments are won and lost on the putting green. If you eliminate any 3-putt holes, you will pick up 3-4 strokes right there. We are also going to practice shots in the sand traps. If you can safely negotiate out of the sand traps with only one shot, you will again pick up 3-4 shots on the field. Those two things can mean the difference between first place or 10th place.”

I could tell Mom was really getting into this and my excitement level went way up as well. Brooke started out showing us how to read greens. We paced out different distances and then looked at them from different angles. She showed us where the ‘fall line’ was on the putt and how to determine the right angle to get it rolling properly.

“Let’s start out with ‘lag’ putts ladies. These are long putts where you are most concerned about distance. Let’s break this down into 3 different putts. Stand six feet away and see what line you would take. Now move back six more feet, does the line change? Now come over to the low side of the putt. Does the putt go uphill or downhill, or does it do both at different spots? Lastly, and sometimes most importantly on a long putt is identifying the grain of the grass.” Mom had a smile on her face but I had no idea what Brooke meant by the grain of the grass. She showed me how when the grass looked shiny the grain was going away from you, but if the grass looked darker, the grain was coming toward you. This made a big difference in the speed of the putts.

“Wow, Brooke, you sure know a lot about golf. That will help us a lot. She came up and gave me a hug and said “You are going to be a very good golfer Didi, just like your mother. Just keep practicing. I put together some information on our junior golf tournaments coming up this summer. This would be great experience for Didi. There will probably be college scouts at the tournaments as well. Women’s collegiate golf is big time and could pay for you to go to a premier college Didi. I would be happy to tutor you this summer to get ready for them.” I looked at mom with a big grin and she smiled and nodded her head and said, “Sandy can join too Didi. After your soccer camp is over, you two can focus on golf.”

Before going to bed, mom told me that this week was busy at the salon because all the women and girls that wanted to be ‘beautiful’ for the banquet at the club Saturday night. She told Midge that she would set my hair overnight so she could create a special ‘do’ to show everyone that came in tomorrow. After rolling me hair using setting lotion, my mom wrapped a turban around all of my curlers for the night. She said she also had some new jewelry for me to wear tomorrow. She showed me the little gold hoops with a red ruby hanging on the bottom with a matching heart locket to wear around my neck. Mom opened the locket and there was a small picture of mom and I. I loved it.

Then Mom gave me a real serious look. I wondered what had happened.

“Didi, I am starting my period today. You won’t be getting these like I do, but all girls experience this and I want to make sure that you understand. Someday your friend Sandy or one of your sisters, or another girlfriend will need your help. Every four weeks our bodies cleanse themselves to be ready for the new month. All of the cleansed fluids come out onto a pad or tampon. This will last for four to six days for women. Let me show you what I mean.” Mom had me sit on the edge of the tub across from her. She showed me where she put her tampon and showed me how to insert it properly and dispose of the tubes. Then let me watch while she put a heavy duty pad inside her panties and pulled that up, too. “Didi, you won’t need any tampons, but you should always carry extra for your friends,” mom winked at me. “Let me show you how to put a pad in your panties to catch any overflow.”

By the next morning, Mom had figured out a pretty smooth process for getting ready. We woke up, had breakfast, and then cleaned up. Next we got changed for our day ahead. Mom had started wearing ‘nurses scrubs’ with a jacket over that. Since I was going to be with Midge, Mom helped me find skirts and tops like the stylists wore. They all wore some sort of pastel colored top with their name on it, and paired that with a dark skirt like navy blue, or purple or black. On Tuesday I felt like some sort of flower with my lavender peasant top and black denim mini skirt. Mom had also purchased a set of black ankle boots for me with a chunky 2 1/2 inch heel which were surprisingly easy to walk in.

When we got to the Beauty Emporium, Mom got out with me and walked me up to the entrance. She reached down and gave me a big hug. ‘I know you’ll have a great time with Midge, sweetie. I’ll see you this afternoon.” I hugged her back and said, “ I love you Mom!” Midge opened the door and waved to mom and said “c’mon Didi, let’s get going. I see your hair is still in curlers, let’s take them out and see what we have to work with.

When she took the curlers out my hair still was very tightly curled. She said that my look for today was ringlets. After she carefully arranged the ringlets on my head, she used a lot of Aqua Net Firm Hold to keep them in place. She again told me how important this week was for the salon and she wanted everyone to see my hair and nails that came in. I then went and helped Gigi set up for the day. The first thing Gigi did was pump her breasts. Her breasts were amazing to produce all that milk for her baby. She asked if I wanted to pump too. I gave her a wink to let her know, that I knew it was just for fun, then said “absolutely, I can’t wait.” When I pulled up my top and unhooked my bra, Gigi rubbed some cream on my breasts first and said this was to prevent ‘stretch marks’. It felt heavenly to have her apply the cream and then she hooked up the cups and had me ‘pump’ while she got redressed and did her makeup. My breasts felt a little tingly with all of the suction, but I just closed my eyes and relaxed for a few minutes.

Midge had worked out an ‘associate beauty assistant’ program for me for that week and she had a special surprise this morning. Today I would be greeting people to show them my nails and ringlet style. I would also help the receptionist Andrea by booking new appointments and helping to wash hair. Midge applied a little bit of makeup as a special treat. My eyebrows were shaded into an arch, then I got a little blush on my cheeks and some pink lip gloss that Midge told me to keep in my purse to reapply during the day.

But my first step was with Gigi again. She was amazed that I hadn’t damaged my nails. I told her I had learned to love them and would be sorry to see them go. Gigi said we could try a brand new style she had learned called ‘Stiletto Nails’. She thought it would catch on quickly but she needed a model. I quickly agreed and soon my nails looked like daggers! Then she applied two long strokes of different colors on my first finger. She took a toothpick and drew a flower design combining the light pink and lavender colors. By now the rest of the stylists were coming in and everyone loved my new nails. When Gigi finished my nails, I thanked her and went out to sit with Andrea to let my nails dry thoroughly. Gigi said a lot of ladies were going to fall in love with my nails and she would be busy all week!

Andrea showed me her appointment book and what all of the codes meant. She put a little ‘cheat sheet’ on the desk that I could refer to also. Soon the door opened and our first customers walked in. It was Aunt Carol and Sandy! Sandy had on an outfit similar to mine. “You didn’t think you were going to have all the fun by yourself, did you Didi?” I showed her my new nail design and Sandy squealed, ‘you are becoming such a girly girl, Didi!” Gigi took us both to her station, “Didi, would you like to help me put acrylics on Sandy?”

“Would I? Of course I would.” I watched closely and filed Sandy’s left hand’s fingers, while Gigi did the right hand. Sandy and I were giggling and amusing Gigi while she worked. Gigi told us she wanted Sandy to show off a different style for her customers. “I am doing a French Manicure style for Sandy. She will have square nails with white tips and pink nails.” Sandy and I were having so much fun, I wondered why this never happened to me before.

Soon Sandy and I were working together, greeting all the customers. There were quite a few girls that came in that Sandy knew and introduced me to. They were all older, like my sisters and Sandy. We showed everyone our nails and Gigi’s booking sheet quickly filled up for the week. After the salon was quite busy, Midge came to ask Sandy and I if we would like to learn to braid hair. “Yes!,” we screamed. After we settled down Midge took us to her station. She had cut and highlighted the woman’s hair and ‘Lizzy wanted a fancy braid for tonight’. Midge showed Sandy and I how to use our long nails to separate her hair into sections. Then we started on top of Lizzy’s head by weaving the three strands together on each side. As we got to the top, Midge combined our six strands into three and asked us to hold the sides as she wove them together.

I loved braids in women’s hair. They looked so sleek and sophisticated. I wondered if my mom would let me braid her hair. As Midge finished Lizzy’s braid, she tucked it inside itself and then completed it with a pretty bow. It was beautiful.

Midge said we had a little break time and asked Sandy if she would like a braid like Lizzy’s. Sandy got a big smile on her face and said, “I would love that. Can you show Didi and I how to braid each other’s hair?” Midge said she could, but Didi’s hair was in ringlets today so we would only be able to work on Sandy’s hair. Midge showed me how to do a French Braid and also a Fishtail Braid and a Dutch Braid. Midge said we could use the Dutch braid when we had soccer camp. She told Sandy that she could practice on my hair tomorrow.

When mom and Aunt Carol picked us up around 4pm, we were beat. They said we were going to another golf lesson. Sandy and I rolled our eyes and groaned in unison. The moms were laughing as we pulled into the Putt Putt Golf Course. Sandy and I were suddenly charged with another surge of energy and were jumping up and down screaming, “yes, yes, yes.” We had a great afternoon together and all I could do was think as Didi. I didn’t mind, Didi is a very nice person.

As we were finishing getting ready for bed, mom called me in. “Didi, let me show you how we change our pads and tampons. First we take them off and wrap them in tissue and put them in the waste basket under the sink. The pad is pretty simple. You pull down your panties and pull the pad away from them. Then we change our tampon. Here is the string we left before. Now we just give a gentle pull and let the tampon come out.” She also said to wrap that in tissue and put it under the sink. Then she did the reverse. “Come here Didi, this is the spot where my tampon goes in. After I insert it, then I push it in and pull out the wrapper.” After being shown that twice, it seemed simple enough. Then she inserted her pad in her panties and handed one to me. “You should make sure you are wearing a pad during my period, too, Didi.” “I will mom, you can count on me!”

Wednesday at the Beauty Emporium was aesthetician day for Sandy and me. Eleanor was their aesthetician and she started us with a quick overview. We began by learning how to wax various parts of the body. Some it seemed to be more painful than others. We also learned more than I ever thought possible about makeup and makeup removers. Sandy and I started with each other, plucking away to achieve the perfect eyebrows. I think we took out a little too much, but at least we matched. Then Eleanor took us through a complete makeup lesson. Sandy and I looked like models when Eleanor was done. We started doing some model poses together and soon had every laughing with us.

Midge had Sandy and I keep our made up faces on to see if we could fool our mothers. When they saw us, they told us we looked ‘very grown up.’ Since it was so late in the day, the moms decided we would stop at the little pub near home. I had never been in this pub before. It wasn’t very big and it wasn’t very well lit, but it smelled good. Our waiter took us to a round booth a little higher than the floor. After we got seated, he asked what we wanted to drink and my mom looked him right in the eye and said, “we’ll have four strawberry dacquiris!” Sandy and I looked demurely at each other and then fluttered our eyelashes for the waiter. He left in a rush for our drinks. Mom said to me, “where did you learn that from Didi?” “I don’t know. Did I do something wrong?” “You did nothing wrong, I just don’t know where you learned it from. Your actions were perfect for a flirty teenage girl, like your BFF, Sandy!” Sandy and I put our faces next to each other in another ‘model pose’ and we were all laughing when our waiter returned with our drinks. Sandy’s and mine were non-alcoholic, of course.

Then our waiter looked at Sandy and me and said, “I didn’t know we had two famous models in our little pub today.” I wasn’t sure what to do when Sandy gave my hand a squeeze and stood up. “Well, today is your lucky day Carlos, you are looking at two future professional golfers.” We all had a big laugh. Mom said tomorrow was our last day with Midge because Friday and Saturday was the tournament. Mom got up and asked me to go to the restroom with her. “Didi, tomorrow is the last day of our period so we just use a regular pad tonight.”

The moms told us on the way home that since tomorrow was our last day with Midge at the Beauty Emporium, we were going to have a special slumber party tonight. Sandy and I were excited and began asking all sorts of questions.

“Why is it a special slumber party? What are we going to do? Are we going to watch a movie? Do we get to play with makeup?” The moms just laughed and said that would spoil the surprise. We stopped at the grocery store on the way home so the mom could shop for their ingredients. Sandy and I walked behind them, guessing at what was the surprise.

When we got to the aisle with all of the feminine protection supplies, I pulled Sandy aside. “Sandy, my mom is on her period now, so I am too. Can you show me what products you use for your period? She told me how she used tampons when her flow was heavy, but usually used pads when finishing her period. I told her this was our last day and we were just wearing a pad. She showed me the two brands she used and we took one of each back to our moms. “Mom, will you buy these for me so that I am prepared for our next period?” Mom gave me a big hug and said Sandy was a good friend to help me, and of course, we ladies always need to be prepared.

We stopped at Sandy and Aunt Carol’s so they could get their stuff for tonight. I helped Sandy pack her bag with her nightgown, robe and slippers. Then Sandy pulled out a matching pair of panties and a one of her new bras, and told me that was so she could put on clean underwear in the morning. Our moms were putting some things in a dress bag, but we couldn’t see what they were. They were sure acting funny getting our stuff ready. “Sandy, could I ask you something rather personal?” Of course, Didi. That’s what BFF’s do!” “You know I am pretending to have my period with my mom?” “Yes, I’m very excited for you.”

“Sandy, my mom explained what happens to your body and the monthly cleansing and I think I understand. But I’ve noticed other things too. Sometimes mom doesn’t look like she feels good, but she says that she is just a little bloated. The next time your period comes, can you describe to me what you are feeling? If you’re feeling good or your feeling blue, would you share these things with me?” If you feel like you know it’s coming or you feel anything different, would you tell me, too? I feel like I am missing out. Not that it’s a pleasant thing, but I’d just like to understand better. If that is too personal, I understand.”

“Didi, you are the best girlfriend ever!” I am due in about a week. Ugh, just in time for our soccer camp. Maybe you and I should be on the same schedule, lots of girlfriends are.” “That would be great Sandy. I was afraid I was getting too personal with you.” “Absolutely not, girlfriend. That’s what friends are for.” I almost couldn’t wait for ‘our’ next period!”

Back at my house, the moms were in rare form, “Tonight we are going to bake another chicken pot pie, and you girls are going to help.” We helped get all the supplies unloaded, then we helped parboil The chicken. As the chicken was cooking we helped knead, then roll out the dough and cut out the big circle and then long strips. I wondered how I could ever have this life as Danny?

The chicken pot pie was quickly becoming my favorite and we pulled it out of the oven an hour and fifteen minutes later. After dinner, Sandy and I got some clues about tonight. “Now that you girls have long nails, you need to learn how to take care of them. We are going to strip our polish off and show Didi how to paint our nails! With three sets of nails to practice on, I knew I needed to pay attention to make everyone pretty. I learned how to use a cotton ball to wipe off most of the polish and to use cotton swabs to get any remaining.

Next mom asked if I remembered my mani-pedi? How could I forget? Mom asked what Gigi did before putting on the new polish? “Yes, she gave a foot and hand massage. Can I do that for you ladies, too? I felt a little taken advantage of, but I loved giving the girls foot and hand massages. Gigi was a master and I picked up enough to make it enjoyable for the party. Then I was told to do everyones toes first. Sandy wanted to match with me and found a very risky red that our moms turned a blind eye to. When they said they wanted the same color, I knew I was on the right track. After the foot massage, the girls were putty in my hands. They soon had a base coat, three color coats and a top coat to finish the shine.

Mom had a specific nail polish for me that was a sparkly blue and a similar color in pink for Sandy. After all of that, I learned a lot about applying nail polish and we were well on our way to a relaxing slumber party night.

Mom said we should curl our hair next. I had never tried to put rollers in anyone’s hair before and I was excited to learn how. Mom showed Sandy and I how to put big rollers in our hair overnight and we soon had a lot of rollers with a hair net over us. Sandy and I were getting tired and the moms said we had to get up extra early tomorrow, so we went to bed. Sandy and I got to sleep together. “Sandy, my breasts are starting to itch a little. How do yours feel? “Oh Didi, I’m glad we are the same size. My nipples have been a little swollen lately and I hope the boob fairy has made a visit.” “Sandy, I have had a breast pump on my chest for the last week with Gigi, it feels amazing, but my nipples are really sticking out. Is that bad?”

“Didi, you naughty girl, no wonder you have big ‘headlights.’ Girls use a breast pump to save milk for their babies, but for you the breast pump is just stimulating you nipples and extending your whole areola. Let me see”. Sandy manipulated my breast so she could see everything. I felt weak in the knees as she released me. “We really are like sisters, Didi. Your breasts are the same as mine, look.” Her nipples and aureoles were perfect and I just stared. “Sandy, I love your breasts. Can I touch them?” “Sure Didi, that’s what girlfriends do.”

Mom said that we had to get up early tomorrow so she shoo’d Sandy and I to bed early. I didn’t see where Aunt Carol stayed, but the night was quiet. This was the best ever. Snuggling with my BFF. Sandy and I were still wondering what the surprise was. Mom told us to leave our hair up in the curlers. After breakfast, mom and Aunt Carol had some new things for us. We were told to put on the sparkly tights and 3” heels. Sandy and I still had our hair up in curlers, but now we knew what was going on. We were Princesses once again!!! “Hello, this is my best friend ‘Cinderella’.”

We made it to Midge’s by 7am and we were shown how to do an up-do. We had our hair in big rollers for doing sophisticated sets. Sandy and I soon had ‘princess tiara’s’ woven into our hair. After a glamour makeover, Sandy was once again Cinderella to my Elsa. We had on our sparkly tights and high heels underneath and we were having the times of our lives.

The Beauty Emporium was ground zero for all serious Prom Queen aspirations. “Sandy, I’m just happy they are letting us stay around in our costumes. There must have been twenty or thirty ‘Prom’ enthusiasts for Sandy and I to help that day. She was my best friend and helping me with everything. I couldn’t wait for golf with mom tomorrow. But I now knew that my BFF Sandy was my best friend forever and ever. And I loved that more than anything else.

I know I promised you golf with mom. I loved golfing with mom. This was the best time ever in my mind. My mom and I were loved and admired for our style and our swings. My style was simple, straightforward and direct. Sandy took forever to get set up and swing. How can I tell you about that 6 weeks that changed my life in ways I could never imagine. I have so much more to tell you about Sandy and me and my sisters and my dad, about soccer camp and school. Maybe another day.

Happy Mothers Day, Mom. I love you. D