How JB Became Famous

[Toni]

Chapter X.X.XVI: JB's a Boy



When we got home Mama made me carry some bags into my room, and then I started playing with my dolls but, before I even got started, Mommy called me into the den. She wanted to see my new clothes and, after I had shown her the dress I had on I had to go back and get all the bags and try on everything! all over again! That was getting my clothes changed about four hundred times today.  



Then Mommy showed me what she had bought today while I was clothes shopping and it was a potty chair to keep in the den, because she remembered when we talked about my pooing in my diapers just because there wasn't time or she was busy, and that would be for when she was busy, and I didn't already have something to catch my business.



I said, "But I'd still have to get you to take my panties and shorts down."



And Mama said, "Couldn't you do that yourself, Jade?"



"'Guess, but I haven't in almost a week now."



And Mama and Mommy smiled for some reason, and Mama said, "We just need to make sure you either have a diaper on or nothing then, sweetheart. If no one is around to take your clothes off that will be our fault if you make a mess. OK?"



That seemed reasonable to me, and then they wanted me to try it out. So they pulled my panties way down and made sure I was holding the skirt, I was wearing the new pink and purple one right then, way up. The potty didn't look like a chair at all. I was kind of like a saddle for a horse, with a part in the back that stuck up high and a pointy part in front the front that was almost as high. I sat across it, and my bottom fit just fine but it was too low for me, so Mommy got a box to put under it and said she would get a piece of wood to use as a stand tomorrow.



Then I tried to use it, I didn't push I just relaxed to see if any thing would come out but nothing did. Finally they let me get up and I started to play with the blocks and dolls that I kept in the den, but Mommy said there were other new things in the kitchen.



The new things she called 'plugs' but I knew they were pacifiers like babies used, and didn't like doing something else babyish right then but didn't really say anything. Mama said she would show me how they worked and she put honey all over one, and put it in my mouth, and I got to admit that it did taste real good.



Then she reminded me about homework, and I went and did that. I had history, but that was easy because Mommy helped me. While I was working I kept the plug in my mouth, in fact it was kinda stuck there because of the honey all over it, and while I did the history, and was sitting in Mommy's lap, I said, "Can I just do this at home," only it was hard to talk around the pacifier and my mouth felt stuck still.



And Mommy knew what I meant though, and said, "You can use them where ever you want, sweetheart.



I also had Arithmetic I had to do alone again but not as much as last night, and I had Science, and I had to read stuff for my new reading class. And I left the plug in the whole time, even after the honey was gone, but sometimes I pretended to have candy on my thumb too, especially when I got to the real hard problems.



As soon as I was done with all the homework Mama said it was bath time, and I sat down on the floor and started to cry.



Mama picked me up, but I didn't want that either. I said, "I want to play!! I never get too! Ever!"



She held me real tight and said, "But, Jade baby, you did a lot of fun things today. You went to get pretty clothes and met Gina. And you went to Volleyball and Cheerleader practice. That was all fun wasn't it."



"No. That was shopping and practicing, I want to use my toys, and I never can."



"Oh, there is fun, and then there is playing. I remember that now. We will have to remember that."



"Yeah," I said. "And yesterday was all setting up my bed, and day 'fore was having dinner, and I only played that once."



"Yes, Jade love, it is time for a day off. Well, we don't have to do your hair, so the bath will be quick tonight. How about you get in the tub and have, Oh, ten minutes to play with the bath tub toys before you wash, and then you can have ten more minutes after you are done?"



"Will you come play with me in the tub?"



And Mama did, in Mommy's real big tub, and I played with my boats and gave the dolls their baths, but with the boats mostly because I wanted too. Then all the sudden I knew something, and I jumped out of the tub and ran to the den to sit on my potty chair.



Mommy came in from her office, and Mama came in after her wrapped in a towel. And they laughed at me, and I said, "Well I didn't have anything to catch it on," and they laughed harder. Mama said, "But, doll, you were right next to a toilet in the bathroom, and I was right there to help you, why did you come all the way in hear?"



I blushed and said, "I didn't think of that. Ooops."



"It's OK, sweetheart," Mommy said, "we needed to break-in the new potty chair, but sometimes you will have to still use the big kids potty too."



When we got back into the tub Mama said, "I feel like nuzzling, Jade, would you mind?" So we did in the bathtub. Then I went back to the den before I got dressed and played with my trucks and blocks for my play time, and Mama got me a new pacifier with honey, and it was good idea because I could use both hands on the trucks while I s*cked on it. And then I had to nuzzle Mommy too before I got dressed for bed.



It was Mama's turn to put me to bed tonight, and she and I remembered we hadn't gotten any new nighties at all, but I said I wanted to wear an old t-shirt, but Mama said I could wear the old-fashion nightie I'd worn last night again, and made me do that. Then I had my bottle of warm milk, and I think I fell asleep before I was done.



The next morning Mama was in bed by herself again when I went in and I climb in and began to nuzzle right away with out waking her but, when my Mommy came in and brought my morning bottle, she was awake enough and we switched to it right away.



After Mama left I had to nuzzle again. Mommy got me a pacifier with honey on to eat and I played with my trucks while she fixed breakfast. I let her feed me again t, oatmeal with cinnamon.



When she was dressing me I said I wanted to wear boy unders all day today and only boy clothes. We had only got three pairs of boy unders ever, and the package hadn't been open yet. I picked a pair that was blue with yellow seams and had big yellow trucks all over. Then I wore a yellow t-shirt and bright blue overalls.



Mommy asked if I was in boy mode, and I hadn't thought about it but, yeah, I was a lot today. And she said that was OK too. Now it felt weird wearing things that let my pieces hang so much, but it was what I wanted to feel like today.



When I went to the infirmary in the middle of morning classes to go potty, and Mama saw them, she didn't seem so happy. After my nap she wanted to put in some girl panties, but I pointed out that I was wearing all boy clothes today, so they wouldn't do, and she let me keep the unders with the trucks again.



Mama had to leave as soon as Amanda arrived because she had a class to teach, and it was Amanda that finished dressing me.



When Mama had gone I said, "'Manda, why does Mama want me to wear girl stuff all the time."



Amanda got very serious and said, "I don't think kids are supposed to all know this, but a friend told me that she used to have a little girl that got very sick when she got to be in junior high and died, and Ms Marks thinks it is because she thought the girl was really a boy and had not let her do enough girl stuff. So now she wants to make sure that other girls that people think at boys know it's OK to do what feels good to them. She just wants to be sure that you know that, JB, so you want get so sad that you don't want to live, like her little girl did."



I felt real sorry for Mama, and wished I had known her little girl. Maybe I should have let her put me in the panties after all.

[Toni]

Chapter X.X.XVII: JB's Uncle



I guess Amanda noticed how sad I'd got because she gave me a big hug right after she tied my shoes. I put my hand on her chest while she did that, and she said, "No milk in mine yet, you know, JB?" And I pulled my hand away.



She smiled at me and said, "I don't mind you touching them, JB." Then she pulled her shirt up and she didn't have a bra on and didn't need one because hers were just small little mounds that stuck out, but she did have the little eraser heads like Mommy and Mama, and the dark round spot too, only smaller. I put my fingers on her little eraser and, while I played with it, I said, "I just - - so weird, 'Manda, but no one seems to mind. Don't you think it's creepy I nuzzle and wet and just wear unders - and - and - and other stuff?"



She laughed! And she said, "No, JB, I don't. No one thinks that you're creepy or weird that knows you. I promise. We think you are sweet and wonderful. We had some creepy things that happened here last year, and it changed people's ideas about what is creepy. They think you are working things out, is all.



"Also, around here a lot of kids nurse longer than most places, I don't know why. Even in the schools they have rooms where kids can go to have lunch with there moms, so no one thinks its strange that someone like you still does. I'll tell you a secret; I know some other eighth graders that still nuzzle. There's a boy and his cousin that go here that both do. But the girl has two little brothers so all she ever gets is the leftovers. And they aren't the only ones either."



"Who??" I asked. I mean I'd thought that Gwen was way big to still do that.



Amanda said, "Nope, that's enough secrets for today. If I don't get you to class soon the teachers will think we've been playing, and I'll get in big trouble."



The two boys in my Arithmetic and Reading classes still treated me like a girl and were nice today, even though I was dressed all in boy stuff. And the girls at PE didn't mind that I didn't have panties on and still treated me the same too. Some even said my boy's unders were cute and talked about the "little trucks" on them. That really shows how girls don't know lots of stuff, because they were big trucks, dump trucks and bulldozers and things, it's just the pictures that were little. And they didn't even care, but laughed, when I explained that to them.



Before practice started I asked them if it was OK for me to be a cheerleader part time, and they all said they had talked it over with the cheerleaders yesterday after practice, and I could if I only did there games at first and still had to do warm ups with them before I went to the cheerleaders. I thought that was a good way to split it too, and was glad they were happy. But they told me that Mommy had already got me a volleyball uniform ordered and that I had to find a time to wear it if I was going to be dressed like a cheerleader at the games. I didn't know what I was going to do about that.



Cindy's leg was better now so Abby was the one that took me into the locker room after the volleyball teams warm ups were done, and Mama was just coming in when I got done. She told me she had finished her work quick, and I was going to have to skip cheer practice today (My first day!) and have a day off, and that is what I'd talked about last night so I was stuck. The cheerleaders were real sad when I told them, but I promised I'd come the next day.



When we got home we saw Glyn and her mom unloading groceries from there car, and there were two little boys with them.



I waved and hollered to Glyn, and she ran over but went right past me.



"Aunt Nora!" she screamed, "Are you moving back in for real?"



"Yes, I am, Glenda Good Witch," Mama said.



Glyn's mama came over and the two boys followed her. She said hi to Mama and me and invited me over to Glyn's house to play with them. While that sounded like fun, I really had had other plans. Mama is smart and knew this.



She said, "JB has lots of new toys he is dying to try, and I think something special got put in the backyard today. So why don't all of you stay over here."



I grabbed Glyn and ran to the gate to go straight to the yard, and she didn't resist. The littler of the two boys followed her. And it had come. May new swing set that Mommy had bought was all set up, and there was a big wood box on the patio that was a sandbox too.



Three of us went to the swing set and I got in on and Glyn got in one, the little boy climbed on the one that was a long board to hold two people. The other boy hadn't come with us, but came out through the house with Mama. He just sat on the patio and watched us.



I went over to examine the sandbox. It had a big top on it, to keep cats out Mommy had said, and it was heavy and I asked the bigger boy to help me and he did but didn't say any thing, and the sandbox did already have sand in it too!



I called Glyn to show her, I still didn't know the boys' names. And then me and the little boy went inside to get my trucks and stuff. We played in the sand, and it wasn't like the beach of course, but we made a big pile that was close to being a castle and we built roads and dug holes with my bulldozer and dumptruck and crane and things. And called to Glyn to help but she didn't for long and went inside and got a bunch of my dolls and brought them out, and I told her not to bring Britney out with the sand, but the others were OK.



She played at the table with the big boy, who just stared at one of those handheld video game things, and I thought that couldn't really be fun and tried to get him to help us in the sand box, but he wouldn't. But when the little kid asked him to push the swing he did, so at least he was a nice big brother.



Glyn brought the dolls over to the sandbox, and she and the doll played in the sand while I worked on the roads (she had a dress on but didn't mind crawling around where those boys could see her panties I noticed. Of course, she didn't mind me seeing them either.). Then Trisha, her mama, came through the gate and said, "Glyn, boys, it's time to go pick up the big kids."



Mama came outside, she had been sitting at the table by the window doing work, and said, "Trisha, Glyn can stay if she wants, and why don't all of you come over for dinner tonight?"



Glyn was all for that and so was I, but Trisha said we had to do our homework before dinner if we were going to do that.



Then she noticed how sandy the littler boy and Glyn were and made them take off all there clothes except their unders, and the little boy said, "Why doesn't Jerry have to too."



The big boy said, "'Cuz I'm too big to do that, baby,"



Glyn's mom said, "Jerry, how dare you talk like that. You weren't going to have to because you hadn't been in the sand, but now you have to so you remember you aren't all that big, big shot."



The big boy, whose name I had only just learned was Jerry, drew in a deep breath between his teeth but then took off his shirt and pants himself because he didn't want in more trouble, and he was wearing boxers so, unless you were right beside him it looked like he had on shorts anyway, and I decided I should get some unders like that for times I was going to be a big boy instead of the old-fashioned kind I was wearing and had always.



I still didn't know the little kid's name even though we had had lots of fun together, but I said bye and waved, and Glyn went with them to get her books to bring back because we were going to do homework together.



Mama looked at me and put her hands on her hips and stared and tried to look mean at me, but she did it so much I knew she wasn't mad at all and laughed.



She said, "I forgot what a mess sandboxes made, Jade. We need a rule no clothes in the sand, OK?"



"Not even unders?" I asked.



"Unders will be OK, but you would have to change them when you wash off." And she already had my shoes off me and was working on my overalls when she said that. When she pulled my shirt over my head, she had her face right by me and said, "There you are, again." Which was just like a game Mommy had played with me once what seemed like a very, very long time ago. And I laughed and threw my arms around her and kissed her face all over. She left me in my unders, but I asked her to take them off. And I asked her for a drink because I had got sand in my mouth a lot from eating imaginary candy on my thumb while I played.



When Glyn got back carrying her books she took her unders off too and we did our homework out on the patio. Mama gave us both juice, but she put mine in a bottle and Glyn's in a sippy-cup.



Glyn kept a finger inside her crack almost the whole time she did her homework, she obviously liked doing that a lot. I only rubbed my tube sometimes because I had to hold my bottle and write at the same time. She kept talking about how hard her homework was too, but I could see mostly it was just adding and stuff that I could do even though arithmetic wasn't one of my best things, and I gave her help, and I even told her what some of he words in her reading book meant, and she was real surprised that someone with a bottle knew that stuff, because she didn't know that I was really old.



Then I looked in the window and Mama was hugging a man! And I thought Mommy might get mad about that.



When Glyn saw where I was looking she yelled, "Daddy!" and ran inside and jumped on the man. I followed her inside.



Mama said, "And this is our little piece of Jade, Al."



The man said, "How do you do, Jade?"



And I said, "Fine." All very formal and polite and stuff, but I tried to get behind Mama. Then I said, "Who is that man, Mama?"



And Mama picked me up, the same way the man was holding Glyn, and she said, "That is Glyn's father, Albert Marks, pumpkin, and he's a very nice man and my brother, honey."



The man said, "Since I'm your Mama's only brother, Jade, you better call me Uncle Al and Glyn's Mom Aunt Trish from now on."



I smiled at him, because being a brother meant that he could hug Mama. Glyn said, "Does that make JB my new cousin now?"



The man nodded and he said, "Sure it does, sweet pea. And, Jade, I'm glad to have a new..." but then he stopped and looked at Mama and whispered, "Niece or Nephew?" even though he had seen me standing there with nothing on.



Mama looked at him, raised her eyebrows and shrugged her shoulders.

[Toni]

Chapter X.X.XVIII: JB's New Cousins

Glyn and I were sent back out to finish our homework, and I only had two more problems to do but Glyn had to write some sentences with spelling words. When I was done I move my chair by hers to help her and she got up and tried to sit in my chair but that didn't work so she sat on my lap. And that meant my head was about at her shoulder, but she was half standing too so I wasn't squashed. I put my hand around her and gave her some good sentences to write and rubbed her legs and we giggled because I made some funny sentences mostly, and then I rubbed inside her while she was writing and she started wiggling her leg. That was because she could feel my wiener next to it.

When we were done with her homework she told me to stick my tongue out, and she licked it. Which tasted real weird. She said, "That's the way French people kiss."

I was pretty sure she had got that wrong, because at my old school and neighborhood I'd seen people doing French kisses. I said, "I think you do it inside the mouth and longed," and she opened up her mouth and I put my tongue in it on hers and held it there. I like regular kisses better, but though of something and put my lips on her cheeks and said, "Mummph," while making her cheeks wet. She giggled, and I said, "That's a baby kiss."

"Yeah, Tommy used to do that all the time," she said.

"Who's that?"

"My cousin that was here before. He doesn't do it that way now because he's six, but he did when he was real little."

"Oh, those boys are you cousins."

"Yeah. Let's see if we can turn the sprinklers on!"

"Oh, I wanted to play on the swings and sandbox more. --- I know we can swing with the water on!"

"Yeah!!" Glyn said, and we ran in to see if we could. There were spriklers right under the swings, and it was neat, and Glyn could only go a little higher than me too, but she was afraid to jump out when it was as high as I'd do that at.

One time when I flew out she landed just after me and then got on top of me, and we hugged, while I had a sprinkler right under me, and I squirted some water out without even knowing when it started, I think being in the sprinkler makes me sometimes. My pee got on her leg, but Glyn just laughed because there was plenty of water around to wash it off with.

Then she said, "Open your mouth again." And she stuck her tongue in again. "Do you like doing that?" I said, and she shook her head, and I said, "Yeah, big kids do weird stuff, don't they?" and we just kissed lips and she moved her hand across my tube, and I put my finger in her. Then she said, "Know what? Do a french kiss in there."

And that was a weird idea but I did it, right on her little bump inside, and she liked it.

Then she licked my wiener and put her lips on it, and I liked that, but she said, "Too bad you don't got somewhere I can french kiss inside beside your mouth."

I got up and stuck my bottom right at her face, and she laughed real loud but said, "No way my tongue is going in there, silly JB." And I guess that was a lot to ask, but I said, "Do your finger in there then." She did but only a tiny way. Then turned around and stuck her bottom hole up in front of me and I put my finger all the way in, but she didn't want me to leave it there and pulled away, and rolled on the grass next to me again.

Suddenly she jumped up and said, "I got to go to the bathroom," and ran towards the house. I reminded her that it was OK to pee in one spot in the flowerbeds, but she said, "Not that kind of bathroom" and ran into the house all wet.

I went to the door to wait for her and saw that her Mom was in the kitchen where the grown-ups were watching her. Mama came out with a towel and said it was time to come in. I didn't want to yet really, but didn't fuss; I just looked pouty at her, and she carried me into the kitchen and got a pacifier and put honey on it, and I opened my mouth and let her stick it in, and sat in her lap until Glyn came out of the little bathroom by the back door.

Glyn's mom made her bend over and rubbed her bottom with a baby wipe when she came out; she had to let her mom do that or put patties back on. "Glyn said, "You don't to Gerogie."

And her Mom said, "He's big enough to be careful if he is going to be naked. This way if I find a mess I know who to be mad at."

"What if we fart?" Glyn said, and I laughed, and her mom said, "Look under you right away and tell me if there is anything there. Or you will be in huge trouble later, Glynda."

"No, Gerogie will," and she laughed, and then said, "Where's he?"

"At home doing homework, and I can tell things by mother's magic so don't count on getting away with anything, young lady."

Me and Glyn went to the den and played until it was dinner time and all the grown-ups sat around in the kitchen. Glyn wanted to play with the dolls some more, but I got her to help me build with the blocks, and we made a zoo for a bunch of my plastic animals and some of the stuffed ones too.

When Mommy finally got home I jumped into her arms and tried to kiss her and couldn't because I had the pacifier in my mouth and had had so long I'd forgot. And she thought that was real funny of me. And me and Glyn got the table set for all the people that were eating.

Glyns mom - my Aunt Trish now, right? - called her house and told Glyn's brother to come over, and a few minutes later he walked in, and I knew him already.

It was that other boy, besides Sam, Abby's brother, that had hit me with the door, and the boy that was one of Mama's infirmary aides and had walked me to class once last Monday.

Now I knew why he had known secrets and who it was that always told him more than he wanted to hear: Glyn. And since he was nice I wasn't mad at Glyn for it. But somehow I had been sure that Glyn's brother was lots littler, bigger than her but not in my school, and had even been surprised he had been let stay home alone today. But I couldn't remember why I had thought that.

Anyway I smiled at the boy because he had been OK on Monday, and he said hi to me before he did to Glyn or his mom and dad, and he gave my Mama a hug and a kiss and said, "Hi, Aunt Nora," and didn't even look uncomfortable doing it like most big boys would.

The food was on the table and we all ate sitting down like it was at a restaurant not in at the TV, and I didn't let Mommy or Mama put any in my mouth, though they tried and I had to push some of the vegetables onto my fork with my hand and Glyn did it all alone to. But when we had ice cream for dessert I let them clean the bottom of the bowl for me and feed me that and George did that for Glyn when he saw Mommy do it for me.

When dinner was over Aunt Trish took Glyn's hand and they went into the den and Mommy took mine and we followed and Glyn and me sat on their laps on the couch with our legs all tangled together while we nuzzled (well she did I was still just doing practice nuzzling.), and I petted her special spot with my toe and she rubbed me their with her foot. And Mama and Uncle Al and George were in the kitchen talking., until Mama brought Mommy a bottle, and I switched from her nipple to the bottle, and the milk was nice and warm and the special kind that I usually only got when it was bed time.

When I was about half done with my milk Glyn sat up and put her head on her mom's neck and her mom rubbed her back and hugged her until she felt like getting up. Once Glyn was up Aunt Trish called, "Hey Gerogie, come here a minute, your sister left you some."

And Geroge called back, "Mom! No! Not in public!!"

And I heard his dad say, "George, this isn't public; it's all family. Go and be nice to your mother."

And I had my eyes closed, 'cuz I usually did when I nuzzled or had the special warm milk, but I knew that George came in and sat down because he moved my legs into his lap, and I realized what he was doing there and why I was sure Glyn's brother had had to be not much bigger that her, and I smiled and remembered what Amanda had told me about people in this town nuzzling 'til they were older.

I sat up and Mommy rubbed my back until I burped, because bottles sometimes made me. And when I did Aunt Trish called Glyn over. She had started my movie about the pretty girl that has to change the beast back to a person, but she came when her mom called.

Even though Aunt Trish whispered I heard her say, "Would you two mind if I gave a taste to JB? Your aunts can't feed him for real yet, but he has had a taste, just not the right way."

Georgie said, "NO!"

But at the very same time Glyn said, "Sure," and turned around back to the movie.

And I guess that change George's mind because he said, "Just for a second."

I smiled at George, because I think I knew how nice he was being to me right then, and I kinda didn't want to have a taste from Aunt Trish anyway because it was such a special thing, but Mommy pushed on me just hard enough to let me know it was OK with her, and because George and she were being so nice I didn't want to say no to it.

Since she was already going I got to taste it. And it was like my special milk but lots better, and I got a big smile because of it. Aunt Trish said, "I have extra during the day, JB, and have given some bottles to your moms. Pretty soon they won't need though."

She didn't let me have much though, maybe because George was watching, and when we stopped I gave her a hug and a baby kiss (don't know why I did it that way) instead of saying "thank you."

I lay on the floor to watch the movie next to Glyn and she rolled over to snuggle, but when Mommy and Aunt Trish went into the kitchen George stayed on the couch, and I climbed up next to him and he didn't mind much, and then Glyn pushed me to the other side of him and said, "My Georgie." But she didn't mind him holding me if she was beside him too.

I kissed George's cheek and whispered, "Thank you," and he said, "It's alright, but not forever," and kissed my forehead, and I put my hand on his lap and felt his wiener there under his pants-it was big! - and I rubbed it. He didn't mind and Glyn saw me and didn't either, but he got up real soon. I think, maybe because he heard my Mommy and Uncle Al talking about basketball teams and wanted to tell them something about that.

So Glyn and I were left all alone to watch the movie, and we leaned on each other until I thought of something else that Amanda had told me, and I asked Glyn, "Do Tommy and Jerry have a big sister in George's grade?"

Glyn said, "Yeah, and know what? They have to still keep bottles and plugs at their house for 'Manda even though little Tommy stopped using them way before last year."

I smiled big time because now I knew a secret about Amanda, and it was a nice secret to know too. But I wasn't going to use it to tease her with, of course.

Then I asked Glyn when she had stopped using them and she said, "Way before last year too mostly. I did longer than Tommy. Don't tell, but I still like bottles sometimes when I can't nuzzle."

Of course I was gonna tell anyone that either, but I hugged her tighter so she would be sure.

Just then Aunt Trish and Uncle Al came in and said it was time for her to go home and go to bed. I get to stay up later because I have naps.


*******
Comments, suggestions, even complaints if nicely worded, are much appreciated - even adored!!

[Toni]

Chapter X.X.XVIV: JB Gets a Lecture

When everyone was gone I went into the kitchen, and Mama said, "Poor little Jade."

I just looked at her like: Huh? because I didn't know what she meant. And she set me on the counter and said, "You needed a day off from all the special stuff, and it turned into a party again! I don't know what it is with you. You just create special times all around you, don't you?"

I laughed, but I didn't know if she was kidding or not. I said, "It was still good!"

Mommy said, "JB got to be a seven year old today and just play with kids that age and with toys too. Didn't you, sweetheart."

I hadn't thought of it that way, but I said, "Yeah." Then I asked, "Want me to help with the dishes?"

"Of course, sweetie," Mama said, and "You are being a big kid tonight, aren't you, honey?" Mommy asked. I just put the stopper in the drain and started to fill up the sink.

Mommy said, "We don't need to fill it, JB. We just rinse and let the machine do the real work."

I remembered about those machines from some of the foster homes so I got off the counter and started bringing plates from the table. As soon as we had everything in the dishwasher Mommy asked me if I was to big tonight to have a plug with honey on it, and I just held my mouth open 'til she put on into it. Then I went and watched my movie (and sat on my potty chair).

Mommy was the one that got me ready for bed that night, and she didn't want to take a bath with me because she did after she ran mostly and, she said I should use my own bathtub because I had only once so far, but I did get to make lots of bubbles in it.

While she was washing me I said, "Mommy, should I not have boy time because Mama's little girl never got to enough? Does it make her sad I do?"

Mommy dropped the wash rag and said, "JB! What other secrets do you know?"

I said, "I know that Amanda nuzzles and uses pacifiers and bottles too."

"I shouldn't have asked and really didn't want an answer, honey. I suspected the first part, but had no idea of the other two.

JB, no, you should not be a girl more for Nora. She does have fun when you are a girl, but she loves boy JB too. She just wants you to know that either one is just fine. OK?"

I said OK (though I still wasn't so sure Mama really felt that.), and we talked about when my volleyball uniform would come and my being a cheerleader and other stuff until my hair wash washed and my bath over. After Mommy had dried me off she wrapped the towel around me and made me walk, didn't carry me even though I put my arms up for her, into the den. She made me sit on the stool right in front of her and Mama, and I had to look right at her while she talked. She wasn't mad at all, just being very, very serious and I had to be very big and listen.

"JB," she said, "this is complicated, so pay attention." She was using her teachers voice. "Your Mama and I love you, and because of that you have to do some things most thirteen year olds don't. For example we insist that you wear a diaper when you sleep so your skin will not get sore from being wet, and we insist your having creams and things put on you so you will not get a rash. But, honey, we could do that in other ways rather than using your changing table, or even sticking your legs up, though that makes it easier on us."

I started to say something right then, but she put her hand up to hush me. Mama was looking at her too, but I thought she agreed for sure.

Mommy then said, "But, love, we don't have to dress you, and we don't have to take you potty all the time or, especially we don't have to have other people help you do that..."

Mama interrupted and said, "Marnie, we do need to check Jade's bottom quite often if we aren't cleaning it though to make sure it is very clean. We don't want that rash coming back."

Mommy nodded and then said, "Also, we are going to continue the naps; they really do help you a lot. But we don't have to dress you though. And, JB, we don't have to nuzzle and you don't have to use bottles all the time, or even at all. Not even sippy cups if you do not want to, or plugs; these are things to do if you like to, and you're not the only or even the biggest kid that likes to. You already know that, don't you?"

I nodded again and already had a question that worried me but Mommy didn't stop yet.

She said, "Now, I will tell you, sweetheart, that I would feel very uncomfortable if I ever had to leave you alone, though I wouldn't feel that way with most of your classmates. I guess that doesn't make sense, because you have probably been left alone and taken care of yourself more than any on them have, but it would just worry me to death, baby.

"Nora," Mommy said to Mama, "JB was thinking you would be happier if Jade were a girl more often."

Mama shook her head, and even though I'd been being very big up to then, she grabbed me and sat me in her lap. "Jade - Jaden - JB," she said, "I love it when you are in girl mode, as Marnie calls it, but I love all your modes, sweetheart. I wanted to be sure you knew you could do girl things, and I hoped you would like them that's true but, baby, I wouldn't make you really. Well, I would have made you at least try a little bit, because I thought you would get use to it. But I wouldn't have made you if you couldn't get use to it. I promise."

I said, "You weren't mad I was a boy all day today?"

"You were?" Mama said, I think maybe she hadn't even known I was. "No, I wasn't. You can decide when to do that, and you can decide when to be in girl mode if you ever want too."

Mommy said, "Uh-oh. We do have a problem with that. The team has a game this Friday, day after tomorrow, and it's an away game and you promised to be there. I don't know how the other school would feel if we took a boy mascot into our locker room with us, and I would not feel good about leaving you outside alone, or making you go into a boys locker if you needed to. I was planning on you being a girl that day, but if you don't want to I will figure something else out. Maybe George could come along to watch you."

"George is only in my class too," I pointed out because she seemed to have forgot that although she was treating me big right then.

"I know, JB, I know, but still I don't feel right about letting you be on your on. You are just too sweet a baby to me, even if it seems silly."

I leaned back on Mama's arm and said, "I can be a girl then. But I like George a lot too."

They both smiled at me and petted me, I started to eat some imaginary candy -- oh, you know really by now -- I s*cked my thumb.

Then I remembered the first question I had and said, "So now, do I got to tell you everything I want you to do from now on." That seemed like making a lot of decisions all the time to think of everything.

"I don't think so, sweetheart," Mommy said.

And Mama said, "Why don't we go on like we have, but if you don't want to do something right then, you may always tell us."

I nodded; that was better than me always having to always ask.

"And we will ask about some things, like what you wear, so you will have to make some decisions sometimes because only you know how you feel," Mommy said.

"But if I say no to a plug or a bottle or something does that mean I will never get another ever?"

"No, love, it doesn't. If you say no enough we might stop asking if you want hat thing, but that doesn't mean you can't ask for them again," Mommy said.

Mama said, "And sometimes we will insist, Jade, that will mean it is for you safety and health. So if we say so twice, none of this means you may argue about those things, OK?"

I nodded and stretched out my arms to Mommy and said, "I want to nuzzle in my rocking chair. That's my 'cision, and it's your turn."

"Oh! We've made a little tyrant!" Mommy said.

I shook my head, because I had only been kidding, and she laughed and picked me up in a tight hug.

Mama said, "I'll get the bottle ready."

And I asked, "Will it be the special milk from Aunt Trish?"

Mama said yes, and I asked, "When will you be able to make that, and I can nuzzle for real?"

"Soon, baby, soon," both Mommy and Mama said right together, and I giggled all the way to my room.

[Toni]

Chapter XL: JB's Girl Day; Part 1

I woke up the next morning and my ballerina light was already spinning, but I lay in bed and looked at the picture of the castle for a while. I had my thumb in my mouth and wondered what had happened to my plug. I had to get up on my knees and look under all the covers before I found it. It was down between the bars and mattress and had almost fallen out of the bed.

Once it was in my mouth I hugged Holly and Howie Bears and watched the ballerina and thought how pretty she was, and how pretty my Mama and Mommy were, and my room was, and my swing set was, and everything was. And I almost started to think about how ugly everything used to be but tried to stop myself from thinking about that and got up and started to go into Mommy and Mama's room.

When I opened my door Mommy was already coming up the hall carrying my bottle and al sweaty from her run. "Did you over sleep today, honey pot?" she asked.

I shook my head and said, "Couldn't find my plug," and she smiled and took my hand, and we went into her room, and I climbed on the big bed to wake Mama in my special way while Mommy went to take a shower.

Mama needed to hurry so Mommy took me as soon as she got out of the shower and started to give me my bottle, but I made her take the t-shirt off me first. Last night I had wanted to sleep in a long shirt with a dinosaur picture on it, but now it felt stupid to me this morning.

Mama had already left, of course, when Mommy started dressing me after breakfast, and I got to pick out all my clothes even before she put me up on the dressing table. Here is what I picked for today: A pair of white unders that had tiny little kittens and puppies playing all over them; a pair of green denim shorts that had yellow flowers on the back pockets and yellow around the legs and front pockets; my yellow shirt with the jade colored star that was the first Mama had given me; some socks that came just to the top of my shoes and not even to my ankles and had yellow bands at the top and yellow pompoms at the back; my all white shoes; and I asked Mommy if I could please wear my necklace and jade bracelet that went on my ankle too, and she let me.

When we got to school to go inside I started skipping across the parking lot, and mama grabbed my hand so I couldn't. Just before we went in the door back by the teacher's parking, she reached down and took the plug out of my mouth that I had totally forgot all about, and said, "I don't think we are ready to use those in the halls, JB." But she was smiling too, and I put my hands up to her shoulders and said, "But I can get rides when the busses aren't here yet."

"Only after I put some of these books in my office, sweetie," she said, and I skipped to her office door because we weren't around cars anymore, and then she carried me to the infirmary where I waited with Mama until the busses came.

Abby got there and she said how sad she was because she never got to see my unders anymore, and I started to push my short down but told her she could instead, and she did and thought the kittens and puppies were as cute as I did. And I asked her about Lee, and she smiled, and saI Lee was becoming sweeter everyday, and I asked her if I could play with her some time, but that wasn't really Abby's choice because she was really still a kid too.

I decided to take Howie Bear to all my classes today because Holly had had a turn before.

During science we did an experiment at the front table again, and one of the big boys reminded everyone I couldn't see, and said I should sit on the table. One of the girls said, "You just want to get a look at Jade's panties, Joe." Which embarrassed me, and the boy turned red, and it made he teacher mad, and she got a chair for me to stand on. But after the class the boy said to me that wasn't why he had said it and he was sorry.

The cheerleader heard him and she laughed. I think she laugher at both of us I think, and I didn't know her name, but almost decided I liked the boy a lot better then her. But I still let her walk me to History class, and she said it was just Joe she was trying to bother, nor me and I wanted to believe her.

She had to stop at the girl's room, and took me in with her, and none of the other girls said anything or minded about my coming in there at all. The cheerleader was putting on some lipstick - she said it was "just gloss" - and wanted to put some on me, and I let her, but when Mommy saw it she said it was too much for me to have on and wiped part of it off with a klenex right in front of the kids in class.

During reading class Carl and Henry finished there work almost as fast as me, so they could come into the castle while I was there. One of them sat on each side of me, and Henry started kicking the pompom on my sock with his toe, and I had to fold my legs up under me so he wouldn't. Then Carl whispered that my shirt was pretty, and I said, "Sussh." Then Henry said my hair was pretty, and this was just getting really, really stupid, and I moved over to a different part of the castle.

But they only let me alone for about three minutes before they came and Henry asked if he could pet Howie Bear, and I did let him, but I held the bear while he did. And then Carl petted him too, and he stuck his head out real fast all he sudden, and he kissed my cheek! Right in the classroom! And I got up and moved again, and class was finally over before they came over to me more.

Then the teacher told me to wait after class, and I was sure I was in huge trouble, and it was all the boys fault. But I wasn't in trouble. The teacher told me that Carl and Henry were doing better work then ever before, and it was just to come and sit with me, but if they were being too big of pest she would banish them from the castle. And I did have to think about it, but I told the teacher, if it was to help them learn, I guessed I could put up with it. And she smiled and said, "Jade, being a beauty does have disadvantages, and putting up with silly boys with crushes is one of them. Don't be too mean to them and break there hearts, and teasing them is a very bad idea, but that doesn't mean you have to put up with every dumb thing they can think of either, honey. Make sure they know you just want to be friends for now."

I think I had an idea what she meant and meant to do what she had said, but as soon as I got out of the classroom both of them were standing there, and when I went over to one of the volleyball players who was going to go with me to the art room they started walking with me, and Henry tried to hold my hand - in the hallway - and that was against the rules. Well it was against the rules for boy and girls to hold each others hands at least; girls held hands with girls sometimes and didn't get in trouble, so I guess boys could hold boys hand too, but they never did of course. And I some times held girls' hands on the way to class, and the teachers saw us and didn't mind, so....

Oh phoo. I don't know what. But I said to Henry, "Don't. Just be friends, Henry, and don't mess things up."

He looked down at the ground and didn't say anything until we were almost at the Art room, which was way out of his way, and neither did Carl. When we were all by the door Carl said, "Are you going to the dance this Saturday? Will you dance with me if I'm there?"

"And with me too?" Henry said. And the girl that I was walking with was laughing about the whole thing, but trying not to let us see she was, and maybe she was a little jealous too because she was a seventh grader, and they hadn't asked her.

I said, "Don't think my Mommy will let me. See you this afternoon. Bye." And I went into the Art room real fast. Away from them at last.

At lunch I told Abby and Amanda about Carl and Henry trying to hold hands and wanting to dance (I didn't say anything about the kissing.). And none of the girls thought that was weird, well at least not in the way I did. Some of them did think that all boys were weird, and that this was a typical example but not unusual. One of the girls sad I should talk to a cheerleader about this kind of problem; and another said that wouldn't work for me because all of them would just have ideas about how to be mean to the boys, and that I wouldn't want to do that.

Finally Abby said, I had done right and to just keep saying 'friends', 'friends' over and over, but if they tried to force anything to tell a teacher or Mommy and Mama real, real fast. And I thought that was what the Reading teacher had said too.

When I got done eating I went to the infirmary, and after I was changed for my nap and just before I nuzzled with Mama I said, "I can't go to the dance this weekend, can I?"

And she said, "No, baby, I don't think this is a good time to do that." So that problem was solved; thank goodness, and I forgot all about those boys as I nuzzled and had my bottle in Mama's lap.

I got real sleepy before I was done but didn't fall asleep this time, and after Mama tucked me in I started thinking about them all over again. I thought about what a pain boys were, and how those two were the worst pests ever, and how sometimes it was so funny they did that, and that they were kind of cute pests.

[Toni]

Chapter XLI: JB's Girl Day; Part 2

When I woke up I had a memory of doing cheerleading dances, but it was Carl and Henry I was doing them with, and they were dress like cheerleaders too, and it was all just to weird. I got up on my knees and looked around for my plug, because I remembered Mama putting one in my mouth, but I could find it anywhere and lay back down on my back and tried to put my thumb in my mouth and the plug was already in there - I'm such a dummy some time.

I found the button and pushed it over and over and Mama came in, but Amanda wasn't with her yet. She said, "Good morning, sweetheart. I need you to be patient for me; there is a hurt boy out front," Then she gave a nice hug and had to leave. I didn't fuss or anything because I could hear the boy crying, but she hadn't brought my juice and hadn't even put the bars down, and I was trapped. I sat crossways and kicked the bars and hugged Holly.

Finally Amanda came in, and I smiled at her, and she smiled at me and handed me a bottle of juice. I took the plug out and held it out to her, but I didn't let her take it with her hand; I stuck it in her mouth and she left it there. She sat on the bed, and I put my head in her lap and was giggling at her because of the pacifier and reached under her t-shirt to find her nipple and play with it. She liked that and reached under my shirt and played with my belly button.

When I was almost done with the juice I sat up and took the plug from her and tried to stick the bottle in her mouth, but she wouldn't open up. She said, "It's time to get you ready. Ms. Marks said I should let you pick what you want to wear, so come here."

She opened a drawer and Mama had several sets of clothes in there. On one side was boys clothes and the other was more girlish things but not my girly-est. I said, "I can just wear what I had on this morning."

And Amada said, "Yeah, but why would you want to?" And that was a very good point.

 I found a pair of lime green panties that had a big yellow flower right in front and little yellow flowers all over, and I got my jade colored shorts out, and Mama had brought the yellow t-shirt I had liked that had a the pink butterflies all over it. I said, "'Manda, would people make fun if I wore this?"

"No! It's real nice. Why would they make fun?"

"Because it's pink and pretty."

Amanda patted the bed, and I lay down and she started undressing me. While she wiped my bottom she said, "JB, everybody thinks it's fine for you to wear pretty things. Just stop worrying about it. The few that might not don't know you and just see someone cute whenever they see you."

I nodded, and she got some green socks out and rolled the tops down after they were on my feet. When my shoes were tied I said, "OK, we still have time get up here and finish your bottle, 'Manda." And she got on the bed and put her head in my lap and took the bottle. There wasn't much and she finished quick and then, with me still holding her, she said, "OK, Jaden, I know you played with my brothers yesterday. What did they say?"

"Nothing!" I said.

"Did George say something?"

"Nooooo!"

"Glyn!! I'll skin her alive!"

"No! Please! It's OK. I think it's nice, and you look cute with a plug or a bottle, 'Manda." I was brushing her hair with my fingers and she was still looking up at me.

"I'll spare her, but I hope you aren't as big a blabber mouth as she is."

"I won't tell. Promise."

She sat up and hugged me and then lifted me off the bed. I said, "Now, I guess I got to change you sometime too, since I fed you."

She giggled and said, "I don't do that, Jade, sorry. But it is OK you do because I like helping you." And she took my hand to lead me out.

We got out to the front office of the infirmary and the boy that was hurt was sitting there with an ice pack and a bandage on his head, and I could see some blood coming through the bandage, and it was Carl!!

I let go of Amanda and rushed over to him and said, "What happened? You 'K?"

And Carl looked up and saw me and then he sat up straight and said, "Hi, Jade!" but nothing else.

I said, "You OK?" again, and he said, "Yeah, I got to go to the hospital."

"Why!?!" I was rubbing his shoulder with my hand, and was very worried.

"Oh, it's no big deal. I bashed my head on the goal when we were playing floor hockey at PE. It doesn't hurt me, much."

Then he put his shoulders back and said, "I got the winning goal though - I think." Like that would make a trip to the hospital worth while.

He started to pull the bandage back and said, "You want to see it? Ms. Marks says it will take at least seven stitches to close it up!"

"No!" I said, "Leave the bandage alone. Doesn't it hurt?"

"OH, just a little," he said; then he smirked and said, "It would feel lots better if you kissed it."

I rolled my eyes at him, and Mama came over and told him to quite down, and she put her arm around me  and told me to get to class. I said, "Bye, Carl. Listen to Mam -- Ms Marks. And I hope you're OK."

Carl said in sort of a moan, "I'll be OK if I just get a little kiss."

I rolled my eyes again (what else could I do.) and then I kissed him right next to the bandage (what else could I do; I didn't want him to feel bad, did I?), and he smiled and waved as I walked out the door.

Outside the door Mama gave me a tighter hug and giggled and said, "You little minx!" And I didn't know what that meant, but she had to hurry back inside, and I didn't get to ask her.

Amanda was laughing a lot, and I didn't see why people were all laughing and stuff at all, and I said "What??"

Amanda said, "Is that one of the boys you were complaining about at lunch, Jade?"

"Yeah, but he was hurt."

"But that's OK because he made the winning goal in a PE game and was sure to tell you about it too."

Well, I did giggle about that part. "Boys are just silly about that stuff, but he was hurt."

"I know. I saw him when I got there, and he was worse than you think; he didn't mind if I saw how much he hurt, but you almost cured him with a look; he sat up as soon as he saw you."

"Yeah, well I heard him crying."

"And you kissed him, Jade. That's not the best way to get him to stop bugging you during Reading class, you know."

I humph-ed. "What could I do? I just felt bad, and he does try to be nice."

We were at the door to the Arithmetic class, and she said, "Nothing, really, I guess, Jade. Boy, you are such a girl, Jade!"

[Toni]

Chapter XLII: JB's Girl Day; Part 3



I waited for Henry at the end of Arithmetic because I didn't know if he knew what had happened to Carl.



He pretended to laugh and make fun of Carl when I told him, but he kept looking back towards the main hall and the infirmary the whole time. It was kind of cute the way he didn't want anyone to know he was worried, and I decided to take him to the infirmary.



Carl's mother was there to take him to the doctor's for his stitches, but Carl still asked me for another kiss right in front of her, and then Henry got all flustered and told me it was unfair I'd done that and all. And Mama and Cindy and even Mrs. Carl's Mom all started laughing and I didn't know what to do! And Mama pushed me out of the door and told me to get to class, and I was really glad to go, and Cindy was still laughing.



Boy, was I happy when I finally got to the girl's locker and got away from boys for a while. I mean they are just so silly, aren't they?!



Mommy and all of the girls in PE had already gone to the gym and were doing exercises when I got there, so I just started to do then without taking my clothes off today.



But I had something else new for wearing to volleyball practice, and changed into it after I'd nuzzled with Mommy during announcements. It was my new volleyball uniform, and since I was going to wear a cheerleading outfit to the game tomorrow I got to wear it today. The shorts looked like the shorts boys wore for gym but were lots shorter and tighter and had slots that came part way up the sides (they stopped just in time to not show my panties.), and they were bright blue with yellow stripes and - this was the neat part - they had a panther paw print on the butt. The shirt was also mostly a regular t-shirt, and I got one that was yellow with blue stripes and letters, and one blue with yellow stripes and letter. The stripes were on the sleeves and shoulders. And the front said 'Panthers', and the back said 'Jade' and '0', that was my number because I was just an honorary team member, and I decided it was an OK number for me, and even kind of funny because most teams didn't have a '0'.



The whole volleyball team really liked it, but I saw Abby talking to Mommy about something, and when I went into the locker room after the warm ups Abby went too. She got one of those pads that girls wear sometimes when things are happening with their bodies, you know when they bleed from there, and put it in my panties. I told her that was stupid because I didn't ever do that because I had other parts, but she said, "I know, Jade, but those shorts are so tight even you make a bulge and this might hold it down."



"Oh," I said, "You know sometimes you can tape it too, someone showed me."



"Yep," Abby said, "but this will be a lot more comfortable if it works. Let's see." Then she pulled up my shorts and felt the front of the shorts and it didn't look flat, it had a bulge still, but the bulge was wider and thicker; my panties felt real, real tight too, but I said they didn't feel too bad, and we went out to show Mommy, and she thought it looked better too.



Even though I was wearing a volleyball uniform I had to go to my cheerleading practice next, and the cheerleaders had worked out three cheers that I had to learn real, real fast so we could do them at the game the next day.



The first was real easy, just a dance to some music that we would do during half time. I wasn't going to be in the front line for it so I could kind of watch the girl in front of me. The only hard part was supposed to be kicking my leg up way over my head, but that wasn't to hard at all.



The second part was what we did when the team came out at the beginning of the game, and we all did cartwheels and two of he girls jumped in the air and spun around before they landed and that was real neat and I wanted to learn to do that real soon, but for tomorrow I was just supposed to do two cartwheels than a summersault and stop on my bottom with my legs spread way apart, and I was supposed to do it at just the same time that two other girls did it and getting the timing just right took us about two thousand tries but we got close, and at least the whole squad didn't have to be in sync for that part.



The third was for timeouts and like that when we could be on the court instead of the time line. The girls wanted to have two girls grab me, each with an arm and leg, and throw me to two other girls and then have me thrown back. I really, really didn't like that idea! I had just been played catch with before, and I didn't want to ever, ever do it again. And when I told them they didn't listen until I was crying, and I was almost ready to run to Mommy, but then the coach finally told the other girls to think up a new idea, and most of them thought that was OK, but that girl that had talked about my panties in front of boys in science this morning said it was all messed up now, but she was out voted.



This is what we worked out instead: We would do on of the regular sideline cheers and at the end two of the girls would do stirrups (that's like putting there hands together like as a step and then they kind of throw other people into the air), and the girls on the end would step into their hands and fly up and do back flips and land in the splits on the ends. At the same time two girls in the middle would threw me real high and I'd kick out and then land in the splits with one leg out in front and one in back. The girls that had thrown people would do flips and land on their knees.



We did it about two hundred times, and I felt like my legs might come off, but then the coach had a camera, and we looked at it on the little tiny screen and I saw a way I could make it better and so did some of the other girls and we all wanted to do it some more, and then when practice was almost over the volleyball players came and watched us and even they thought it was really, really good.



Heather and one of the other cheerleaders tried to talk Mommy into letting us skip classes tomorrow so I could learn even more of the regular cheers before the game, because I only knew three of them (plus the three special routines.), but Mommy decided to be a real meanie about it and said I knew enough for the first time, and she didn't want me totally worn out by cheering the whole game.



The cheering coach said she was pretty sure my cheerleader's uniform would come the next day, but she wasn't certain - I hope it does; I hope it does! Heather gave me some sparkly blue nail polish to put on tonight though, so first thing tomorrow I'd look like a cheerleader, and she promised to help me with my make-up like all the cheerleaders wore while we are on the bus. I didn't think I could wait! I knew tomorrow was going to be wonderful!!



While I was taking a shower with all the cheerleaders and the volleyball team though, Cindy and Amanda kept telling everyone about Carl and Henry and me having two boy friends, and everyone laughed, and I think some of the seventh graders might have been jealous too because Carl and Henry are real, real cute, and they all admitted that. And I tried to tell them that I hadn't meant to get both of them for boy friends and that just made the girls laugh more, but I don't think any of them were real mad at me or anything; I hope.



But I also got worried and I grabbed Cindy and took her to a corner to talk. I said, "Someone is going to tell Carl and Henry what I got between my legs, aren't they? What's going to happen?"



Cindy said, "I've known them a long time, Jade, and I don't know for sure. It's possible they already know though, and not care. Some people feel that way. You should talk to Ms Marks and Ms Evens about it. I'll see if I can talk to them with out letting on. OK?"



I nodded and hugged her; she is nice.



That night was just a plain night at home, which made it real weird because I hadn't had one before, even when it was my 'day off.' After homework I played a game with Mama and Mommy, and then Mama and I played dolls. Then Mama pretended both me and Mommy were her little girls and gave us a bath together. Mommy painted my fingernails before I got dressed for bed, and Mama put some curlers in my hair, but there weren't a lot and they weren't tight so it was OK. Then I wore my frilliest nightie to bed and slept all the way to the next day.