by Patricia Fry
“This is Lily. She’s celebrating her first birthday in a few weeks and I realized I haven’t done a very good job of socializing her among her peers.”
“Good grief, Vannie, you sound like you’re talking about a litter of kittens…socializing her?” Margaret said, feigning a sneer.
“Savannah’s right,” Barbara said. “As we discussed on the phone, Maggie, Lily should start spending time with other children her age. She has a brother, right?”
Savannah nodded. “Yes, Michael’s son Adam is ten, and they do enjoy playing together when he visits, but she doesn’t know any same-age children.”
“Well, come on in. Bradley should be here any minute,” Barbara said, leading them into a large playroom where an infant slept in a crib.
“People leave their little babies?” Savannah asked, quietly.
Barbara nodded. “We consider this the child’s home away from home, which is comforting to parents of infants as well as toddlers.”
“Certainly,” Savannah said. She looked around. “This is a wonderful room—so bright and colorful.”
“Color is important for brain stimulation,” Barbara explained. She motioned for the women to sit down. “There are actually places to sit this morning. That isn’t always the case around here.”
Savannah perched on the edge of a blue floral sofa and placed Lily on the floor in front of her. “See the toys, sweetheart?” she said to the toddler. “Want to go play with the toys?”
Lily looked around then reached for Savannah, who lifted her onto her lap.
“Have you run the day care for long?” Savannah asked.
“I was a preschool major,” Barbara said. She laughed. “I thought I was getting off easy by studying preschool education. But there’s really a lot to it. It’s quite an important and unique study.” Suddenly Barbara looked toward the doorway. “Oh Jenna, honey, hi. Come in,” she invited. “Jenna, this is Savannah Ivey. She brought Lily over to meet Bradley. And this is her aunt, Maggie. We’ve known each other since high school.” Barbara addressed her guests, “Jenna is my daughter. She brings my grandson over a couple of times a week while she pursues her art in peace and quiet.”
The attractive woman smiled and nodded in greeting. “It’s always nice to meet parents of children Bradley’s age.” She set her struggling toddler down and watched him run off toward a large box of toys. “That’s Bradley,” she said. She turned her attention toward Savannah. “And this is Lily? She’s adorable. How old is she?”
“Almost a year. And your boy?” Savannah asked.
“He’s fourteen months.”
“Look at all that curly red hair,” Margaret said. “Like his mama’s.” She turned toward Jenna. “Only yours is straight.”
“Goggie,” Bradley shouted from across the room.
“Yes, that’s a doggie, isn’t it, son?” Jenna cooed.
Barbara looked at Lily, who still sat on Savannah’s lap. “Would you like to play with the toys?” she invited. When Lily balked, Barbara reached her hand out to Lily and asked, “Do you want me to show you the toys? Take my hand, I’ll walk with you.”
Margaret took the opportunity to excuse herself. “I’m going to have to leave,” she said. She blew Lily a kiss. “I hope you have a fun playdate, baby girl.”
“Thanks, Auntie. I’ll call you later,” Savannah said.
Lily turned away from the stranger and buried her face against her mother. “Come on, let’s go play with the little boy,” Savannah said standing with Lily. “I see a doggie over there. Wanna go see the doggie?”
Savannah carried Lily to where Bradley was playing and squatted down with her. “Mommy will stay right here with you,” she said. Lily watched Bradley for a few moments, then she toddled toward a yellow plastic truck, sat down next to it, and began carefully examining it.
When Bradley saw Lily pick up the truck, he walked over and squatted down near her, keeping his eye on the toy. After a few seconds, he reached for it. However, Lily tightened her grasp and pulled away from him.
“Uh-oh,” Savannah said.
Barbara joined Savannah and the children. “No worries.” She picked up another truck and handed it to Bradley, who took the toy and sat down next to Lily.
In the meantime, Lily placed the yellow truck on the floor and began pushing it back and forth. That’s when the older toddler saw his opportunity. He reached out and scooped up Lily’s truck, holding it to him with both hands. Lily stared at the boy. When he placed the truck on the floor next to him, she crawled toward him. She clumsily reached across him, intent on taking the yellow truck, which caused him to topple over and release it. She scrambled to her feet, picked up the truck, and headed straight for Savannah as fast as she could. When she heard the boy crying, she stopped and looked back at him, then she started to cry. Dropping the truck, she rushed into Savannah’s waiting arms.
“Well, that didn’t go well.” Savannah said. “Her first encounter with a peer and she body-slams him and takes away his toy.”
When Barbara sensed that Savannah was embarrassed by Lily’s actions, she said, “It’s normal. It takes time to learn to share. That’s what preschool is all about.” She suggested, “Why don’t you leave her with me for a while today. Come back in, say, an hour.” When Savannah seemed hesitant, Barbara picked up her phone. “Here, let’s exchange numbers. You can text to check on her if you want and I can call you if there’s a problem.”
“Oh. Well, okay, I guess,” Savannah stammered.
“She’ll be fine,” Barbara said, smiling.
Savannah looked at Lily and then back at Barbara. “I could go get those things for her party. I’ll change her first.”
“And leave her something she likes to eat, if you would,” Barbara suggested. She turned to her daughter and asked, “Are you staying?”
Jenna said, “I’d actually like a break, if you don’t mind.”
“A break to go home and work?” her mother asked, chuckling.
“No, I finished the piece I was working on and I’m waiting for some supplies for my next project. No art today. I might do a mall walk.”
“Sure,” Barbara said. “Go get your exercise.”
“Hey, I’m going to the mall,” Savannah said, after checking Lily’s diaper and handing Barbara a baggie of baby treats. “Why don’t you go with me? You can walk, I can get my party favors, and then we can have a smoothie or tea or something.”
Jenna’s face brightened. “I’d love some adult company. Yes.”
Savannah smiled. “I know what you mean.” She leaned toward Jenna as if sharing a secret. “Sometimes I feel like my husband comes home to a boring wife whose vocabulary consists of only single-syllable words.”
“Isn’t that the truth,” Jenna said. “But I have some remedies for that.”
“Oh, share, please,” Savannah said, as the two women headed for the front door.
Before they left, Barbara called after them, “Enjoy your smoothies.”
“Want us to bring you anything, Mom?”
“Yeah, if you go to the coffee shop, I’d love some of those lemon bars.”
Jenna waved. “Sure. See you later.”
“Thank you, Barbara. Let me know if you need me for anything.” Savannah started to walk over to Lily to tell her goodbye, when Barbara raised her hand and said, “I think it’s best if you just slip out while she’s involved with that toy. She’ll be just fine.”
****
An hour later on the dot, Savannah and Jenna returned to Barbara’s day-care facility.
“How’d it go?” Savannah asked, trying not to sound overly eager.
“Come see for yourself,” Barbara invited as she led the way into the playroom.
“Hi, Pops,” Jenna said, acknowledging the man who sat on a sofa between the two toddlers, reading them a story.
When Lily saw her mother, she pointed to the book. “Ki-ki. Ki-ki…mowwww.”
“That’s
right,” the gentleman said, laughing jovially, “the kitty goes meowwww,” he exaggerated.
When Lily started to climb down from the sofa, the man helped her. She toddled over to Savannah, who reached for her. But Lily had other ideas. She grabbed one of Savannah’s fingers and led her toward the toy box, where she pulled out a stuffed cat, saying, “Ki-ki.”
“She’s quite a talker,” the man said. He stood. Lifting Bradley into his arms, he introduced himself to Savannah. “I’m Allan, Barbara’s other half.” He glanced at Lily. “She’s a sweetheart.”
Savannah smiled from ear to ear. “She is a joy.” She reached her hand out. “Nice to meet you.” She then asked, glancing from Allan to Barbara, “So how did it go?”
“Fine, just fine,” Barbara said. “She’s a smart little girl and she knows what she wants. She’s very interested in what’s around her and not afraid to explore.”
“Oh no,” Savannah said. “Don’t let my aunt hear you say that. She’d insist she takes after me.”
When her comment was met with blank stares, Savannah waved a hand in front of her face. “It’s just that I’ve had some…interesting adventures, lately.”
“Really?” Jenna said, grinning. “You must tell me about them sometime.”
Savannah cringed a little, then smiled at Barbara, asking, “So, you learned all that about Lily in just an hour?”
“Yes. Although if you bring her again, I might have a whole different set of phrases to describe her. She and Bradley are still forming so many of their traits.” She thought for a moment and said, “I hope you will bring her again.”
“I’d love to. Can you give me some information about your program—the fees and so forth?”
“Certainly,” Barbara said, leaving the room.
Savannah turned to Jenna. “I so enjoyed spending time with you. It’s been fun and…enlightening,” she said with a wink.
Jenna smiled. “Enlightening? Do you mean my spiel about some of the bad parenting I’ve seen? Sorry about that. I hope I didn’t overstep my bounds.”
“No, no,” Savannah insisted. “You gave me some great insight about this age group.”
Jenna placed her hand on Savannah’s arm. “And you gave me some things to think about with regard to those poor wild cats in my neighborhood.” She pulled back, smiling. “I appreciate the invitation to the Cat Alliance meeting. I just might show up.”
“Great,” Savannah said, reaching out and hugging Jenna. Once Barbara had returned with the information, Savannah thanked her and Allan, then scooped up her daughter and headed for the door. Before she reached the exit, she stopped and looked at Lily, who pushed against her, trying to squirm out of her arms. “I guess she doesn’t want to leave,” she said, grinning sheepishly at Barbara and Allan. “Never had that happen before.” She then nodded. “Yup, I think she likes it here. We will be back.”
****
That evening at dinner, Savannah bubbled over with stories of their day at the day-care center and her chat with Jenna.
“It sounds as though you found yourself a new playmate, too,” Michael said, chuckling.
Savannah nodded and laughed. “Yes, I really like Jenna. It was fun connecting with a mother of a same-age child. It was so relevant.” She thought for a moment, then said, “It’s just not quite the same when I try to discuss potty training, appropriate shoes for a toddler, or educational toys with older women who are past all that or single women who haven’t experienced it.” She took a sip of iced tea. “Jenna and I hope to get together with the kids soon.”
“So did Lily like Bradley?” he asked. “How did the children get along?”
“Actually, Michael…” She hesitated. “…our daughter is a little aggressive. The first thing she did was bowl the little boy over and take away his toy.”
“Bowled him over?”
“Yeah, sort of like she does Lexie when she’s in Lily’s way.”
“She’s a bully?”
“No, she’s just learning how to play. Oh, Michael, guess what her favorite toy was.”
“I don’t know,” Michael said, obviously amused by Savannah’s excitement.
“A plastic truck.”
“Really?” he said.
“Yeah, I think she’s going to be a tomboy.”
Michael looked at their daughter, who was chewing on a teething biscuit. “So shall we get her some boy toys for her birthday?”
“I guess we could, only…”
“Only what?” Michael asked.
“I think she was attracted to that toy because it was something she’s not used to seeing. If she had one of her own, it wouldn’t be a novelty for her when she visits the day-care center again.”
“So you’re going to take her back there, huh?” he asked.
Savannah nodded. “I’m considering it. I think it would be good for her. You should go with me next time. It’s really cute watching her play with Bradley.”
He smiled. “Yeah, I might do that.” He changed the subject. “Hey, did Maggie tell you what happened at their house last night?”
“No,” Savannah said. “What?”
“The cat-pen bandit made another appearance.”
“Really? No, she didn’t say a word. But I only saw her for a minute this morning. What happened?”
“Well, they found the gates wide open on two pens. Thankfully, no cats were missing, although, as Max said, they can’t be sure the cats didn’t go out roaming around before climbing back into bed.”
“Gosh, that’s frightening. This is a pretty good sign that it isn’t a random, accidental oversight, isn’t it?” Savannah said. “Someone is opening those pens on purpose.”
He nodded.
“So what is Max going to do?”
“They’re taking more dire measures to protect the cats. They’re installing cameras and locking the pens, making sure that only key people know the combination in case of emergency.”
Chapter 4
The following morning before leaving for the clinic, Michael joined Savannah and Lily in the bathroom. “Rub-a-dub-dub,” he said, reaching down and tickling the baby under her chin as she sat playing in the tub. He chuckled. “I love to hear her giggle. That’s about my favorite sound in the whole world.” He tickled her again and laughed out loud.
“Better watch out or you’ll go to work looking like a drowned rat,” Savannah said. “She’s at the top of her game this morning.”
Just then, Lily picked up a large rubber duck and slammed it against the water.
“Whoa!” Michael shouted. “You got Daddy.”
As he dabbed at his face and shirt with a towel, Lily laughed and slammed the duck against the water again and again, shuddering a little each time water drops splashed her in the face.
“I’d better get out of here before she causes a tsunami,” he said, kissing Savannah. “What are you two doing today?” he asked, stepping back out of the line of water-fire.
“I think we’ll walk over to Auntie’s and Max’s and see what’s going on. I want to make a date with her to drive to Straley and get the rest of the party goodies.”
“Do me a favor, will you?”
“What?” she asked.
“Take your cat with you.”
“To Straley?”
He shook his head. “No, silly; on your walk. I don’t think he’s getting enough exercise. Did you hear him tearing around the bedroom last night and up and down the hall?”
“No,” she said. “I didn’t hear him. I wonder if he was chasing a mouse or lizard or something.”
“I think he was just burning energy. You know how he gets kind of antsy this time of year when it’s cool out and we’re inside more.”
Savannah nodded. “Okay. I’ll take him along,” she agreed.
****
“What a pretty day it is, Lily. Want to go for a walk?” Savannah asked as she strapped the baby into her stroller a few hours later.
“K
i-ki,” she said, pointing at Rags, who seemed happy to be outside as well.
“Yes, the kitty’s going for a walk with us. We’ll go see Auntie. Want to see Auntie?”
Savannah wheeled the stroller into the Sheridans’ driveway just as Margaret stepped out onto the porch. “Hi, you’re just in time to review the video with us.”
“What video?” Savannah asked.
“Hi, punkin’,” Margaret said, greeting the baby. “You look so cute in your Hello Kitty outfit. Where’d you get that, Vannie?”
“At the second-hand children’s store, actually. They have some cute things in her size,” she said while releasing the strap and lifting Lily out of the stroller.
“Ki-ki,” Lily said, pointing.
Margaret nodded. “Yes, I see you brought your kitty, didn’t you?” She looked at Savannah, asking, “Why?”
“Michael said he needs exercise and I couldn’t find a boot camp for cats.”
“Funny,” Margaret said, grinning. “Yeah, I can just see him in a pole dance class, or maybe Zumba.” That image caused them both to laugh.
Suddenly, they heard a voice behind them. “A cat on a leash? Crazy! You’re taking a cat for a walk?”
Savannah turned to face a tall, gangly young man of about sixteen.
“Sam,” Margaret said, “this is my niece Savannah, her daughter Lily, and her cat, Rags. Yeah, he is a social cat. Loves to be out and about. But he’s been known to get into trouble, so they don’t let him out by himself,” Margaret explained.
Sam rolled his eyes. “I’ve never seen a cat on a leash before, but it’s gotta be better than being locked in a cage.”
Max heard the comment as he joined the others. “Now Sam, you know why the cats are in cages here—for their protection, remember?” He gestured toward the cathouse. “I want you to clean the pens this morning. Becky will work with you. Then later we’re going to have a lesson on the life of the feral cat and why we do what we do here.” He slapped the boy on the back in a friendly manner. “So get ready for some homework.” Max watched as Sam returned to his duties, then he stepped into the house.
“Where’d he come from?” Savannah asked Margaret.
