NC2-Quality Time (standard:other, 980 words)
Author: Kittykat	Added: Jun 07 2005	Views/Reads: 3184/2134	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
“Mom! She hit me!” Brian, my nine year old, yells. “He hit me first!” six year old, Samantha retaliates. I am in the middle of a turning point in the new story I’m writing and am trying to concentrate. I only need a few more moments to get my t

“Mom!  She hit me!”  Brian, my nine year old, yells. 

“He hit me first!” six year old, Samantha retaliates. 

I am in the middle of a turning point in the new story I'm writing and
am trying to concentrate.  I only need a few more moments to get my 
thoughts out before they disappear... 

“Mom, she did it again!!” 

I straighten my fingers over the keyboard and take a deep breath.  “Give
me just a minute to finish this and I'll take care of it.” 

Two seconds later Samantha runs to my side crying something about a
stick. 

“OKAY!!”  I yell, “OKAY!!!” 

I hit the save button and close all the open windows on the computer
screen. 

Their dad is sitting on the couch as if he didn't hear a thing.  I give
him a kick and said, “Get the lawn mower ready, Brian needs something 
to do.” 

“YAA!!  I want to do it, I want to do it!!”  he yells. 

At the same time... 

“What about me?” Samantha says while jumping up and down, “What about
me?” 

“Just what I want to do on my day off,” Dad grumbles as he kicks the
recliner footrest under the chair.  It's the day after the 4th of July 
and the factory is closed for the week. 

“We can set up the tent in the backyard for a sleepover outside. 
Samantha, go get that thing to blow up the mattress from the closet and 
I'll meet you in the backyard.”  As I go out the front door, I glance 
at my husband and say, “They're bored and need something to do.  Spend 
half an hour with them and they'll be set for a while.  They can play 
in the tent getting it ready for bedtime." 

As we go outside, Dad bringing up the rear, I can hear him grumbling to
himself. 

He drags the lawn mower out of the shed and I grab the bag with the tent
from its resting place on the shelf.  I hand Brian the bag and he 
scurries around back while I grab the inflatable mattress and Dad fills 
the mower with gas. 

While cradling the small machine like a kitten, Samantha drags the cord
of the electric air pump to the back yard.  Brian runs back to the shed 
and watches while Dad gets the weed eater ready. 

They decide to start mowing in the back so the tent can be set up. 
Brian pulls the cord of the lawn mower trying to start it.  Dad has the 
weed eater, I can tell the T.V. is calling him by the way he carries 
the grass trimmer. 

“Mom look!”  Brian yells.  “I can start the lawn mower all by myself!” 

Four pulls later I go back to work on the tent, pulling it out of the
bag. 

“Mom, watch!!” 

Dad impatiently moves around to the side yard as he cuts an even edging
around the house. 

“I'm trying to put the tent up.  Do you need help?”  I look back in his
direction. 

“No, I can start it myself.  Watch!!”  Brian pulls it half a dozen more
times and it finally starts.  “See, I did it!!” 


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