Mixed up HomeStay

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica got in the car with Bao and headed to the mall. It took them a while to get there, but when they arrived, she figured she’d take Bao to some stores she’d like that Lexi probably wouldn’t want to go to. “We can do some shopping for you honey.” She said smiling. “Do you want to walk around a little and we can just stop into any store you think you’d like?” She offered. 

Lexi nodded and held her doll while Robert pushed her. She wasn’t trying to whine, she was just extremely thirsty. 

When they got to the counter, she looked at the drinks. “Can I get another lemonade daddy? Please?” She asked hopefully. The lemonade was the drink with the least amount of sugar that wasn’t water or soda with fake sugar.

She looked at all the ice cream and decided on some lemon flavored soft serve. 

[Ishigreensa]

Robert smiled and nodded.

"Lemonade is probably the best choice, anyway," he told her.  "I don't trust fake sugar especially in sodas, and while I know water is probably the best thing for a little girl, I'd like you to feel special when we are out shopping."

He ordered her what she wanted and a Root beer and lemon ice cream for himself.

 

Bao nodded and walked, for the first time since before getting off of the plane, in complete comfort.  It was nice not worrying about itching and burning for once.

She looked over at a store that looked like it stocked the American dolls, at least, it looked like the doll that Lexi had showed her, but there were two problems.  One, is that this doll was definitely not one of the American dolls.  It may have been a cheap copy cat, but Erica would recognize it at once as not being one, since she had been buying Lexi those dolls for a long time now.  And secondly, this store was in the mall, which was sure to mean that it had jacked up prices on the doll even though it was cheaply made.

"Can we go look at those?" Bao asked.  "They look like Lexi's dolls."

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi smiled and carried her big lemonade. She climbed up to the table in the food court and made her doll stand up in an empty chair at the table. She smiled at her daddy very happily. “Thank you daddy!” She said cheerfully. The ice cream really hit the spot for Lexi. She’d been craving sweets a lot lately over the past few months, but Erica didn’t like her having too much. 

She swung her legs back and forth, happily eating her ice cream and sucking down her lemonade, both pretty quickly. 

Erica could see that the dolls did look similar to Lexi’s Wellie Wisher dolls, but could tell they weren’t real. “We can if you’d like, but they’re not quite the same as Lexi’s.” She said gently. 

“If you’d like, we could go to the store where they sell the dolls Lexi has at home. We can’t go today because it’s farther away, but we can go next weekend if you’d like.” She offered, knowing Lexi had been dying to go anyways. 

[Ishigreensa]

"I like that too much," she said.  

She looked on towards a clothing store.

"I look in there?"

Bao wasn't really interested unless it was the American dolls or something specifically culture to the USA or to the area they were in.  

She smiled over at Erica and walked happily.

 

Robert thought it was cute, and when she wasn't paying attention to him, he took out his phone and snapped a picture of her eating ice cream while swinging her legs.

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica nodded and smiled. She walked with Bao to the clothing store. She would have to remember to tell Robert that Bao was interested in going to the American Girl store too. Lexi had been dying to go since her birthday since she saved all her money and gift cards, and Erica and Robert had agreed to get her a doll at the store next time they went, since Lexi liked getting them from the store rather than online. 

She walked into the store and followed Bao, but not too closely, wanting to give the girl a little freedom. She was interested in seeing what Bao liked. 

Lexi kept smiling and eating her ice cream. When she was done, she smiled up at Robert, some melted ice cream on her face. “Thank you for the ice cream daddy!” She said cheerfully. 

She tried to remember what Robert had said they needed. “Are we gonna go get my dance stuff now daddy?”

[Ishigreensa]

"Yes, we are, but first, we need to get some clothes for school."

He wiped her face off and then picked her up and wiped her hands off.

"Now, I gave you extra sweets, so you be extra sweet for daddy and don't interrupt too much while we are shopping for things.  I want to get things done so mommy won't have a third thing to kill daddy over, okay?"

He tweaked her nose and smiled.

Then he started to carry her back to the children's store that he always shopped at because it had cute things for little girls in it for Lexi.

 

Bao looked around not really thinking about getting anything yet.  She new she had limited money for the month, and that her parents were supposed to wire her account with money every month rather than putting it all in at once.  For one, it was a way to avoid paying a big tax, and for two, it would keep the teenager from spending all it too quickly and not having any the rest of her stay there.

She saw a pair of short-alls that looked a little stylish.  She remembered one of her friends really like to wear things like that in the summer, and this one had hearts on the back pockets and a simple yellow kitty face on the front.

She held it up and looked it over.  It was probably her size, but after holding it up to her, she sighed and put it back.  She wanted to see the America doll store before getting anything.

Then she looked around and saw some Disney shirts with Mickey Mouse and Donald on them.  The liked those kinds of things, too, and compared them for a while before putting all the shirts back.

Then she looked over at Erica.

"I come back here another time," she said with a smile.  "America has nice clothes to choose."

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi nodded. She let Robert carry her after she grabbed her doll. She wanted to be very good for Robert. “I’m gonna be the best for you daddy! Gonna be very good!” She said cheerfully. 

She looked around the door with Robert for a while, but she was getting worn out pretty soon. She’d been getting tired easily lately, even doing things that normally didn’t ware her out. She stayed close to Robert, holding his hand. 

Erica nodded and smiled. “We should probably go meet up with Robert and Lexi now. I’m sure they’re almost done.” She said nicely. “We can come back to the mall another time if you’d like.”

She headed to the clothing store they usually shopped for Lexi at, assuming they’d still be there at this point. 

[Ishigreensa]

Robert had just arrived at the door as Erica came with Bao.

He looked sheepishly as though he had been caught slacking off or something.

"Oh, um... hi," he said as they met at the entrance.  "I was just about to buy her school clothes...."

The only things that they had bags for at the moment, were the back packs and the shoes.  Erica could see that he must have done something else that was not shopping, then, he really wasn't much into shopping except for watching Lexi trying on different clothes because he thought his baby was cute when she was trying stuff on.

 

Bao smiled upon seeing them, and she waved at Lexi.

Just then, her stomach rumbled a little telling her that she was a bit hungry.

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica smiled at Robert. She didn’t really think too much about them not having much. She figured Lexi had gotten impatient and made things difficult at some of the stores. 

“Has Lexi been doing alright? I hope she hasn’t been whining a bunch.” She said, feeling bad that they had left Lexi and Robert. 

Lexi waved at Bao and smiled after giving Erica a hug. She might’ve been a daddy’s girl, but she still loved her mommy a lot too. 

She stayed close to Robert’s side for the most part, holding his hand and her doll. She let out a yawn and rubbed her eyes a bit. She was starting to get tired. “Are we going home soon?” She asked softly. 

[Ishigreensa]

"She's been a little angel," Robert said to Erica.  "I mean, she is just nine years old, so she's been trying really hard.  I got her shoes without any trouble at all, and then we got the bags...."

He trailed off on purpose not wanting to talk about the ice cream just yet.

When she asked if they were going home soon, he picked her up and starting carrying her.

Bao thought he was babying her a lot more than she had ever seen a nine year old babied before, but she didn't say anything about it.  It was actually kind of cute the way the little girl always seemed to beg for attention, and it seemed Robert gave in with almost no thought about it at all.

"We have to get your dance stuff," he reminded Lexi.  "And we still have to go to Target to get the rest of your school stuff like your markers and some food for the week."

 

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica nodded and smiled. She frowned a little when she saw how tired Lexi was. “Maybe we should just get her dance stuff next week or something. Her current stuff still fits, she’s just getting a little big for it.” She stroked Lexi’s hair a bit. She was a little stricter and harder on Lexi, but she still didn’t like seeing her so tired. 

“This has been a lot of excitement for her today. We can get the groceries while you get her supplies with her when we go to target.” She offered. “I don’t want her to end up crying and upset if we stay too long. I have a feeling we’re already pushing it.” She said with a sigh. She didn’t want Lexi to start crying and throwing a fit like she sometimes did if she overly tired. 

Lexi rested her head on Robert’s shoulder. “I wanna get my markers.” She said smiling. She always got the same Crayola markers every year, most of them normal, but would always come with a handful of scented ones. Those were her favorite. 

[Ishigreensa]

"Alright," Robert agreed.  "We have to get Bao's stuff for school, too, and I don't think the junior high will be as understanding about her not having her supplies as the elementary school will be."

He started to carry Lexi towards the exit.

"For now, just get her a shirt or two and a pair of pants.  If she needs any more, we can get them later.  I'm sure we'll have to come back to the mall anyway before school starts, right?"

 

He smiled and then started to walk her to the car.

 

Bao waved at Lexi, but she wanted to stay with Erica.  It was easier to tell Erica if she had to pee than it was to tell Robert.  And she felt that Erica was trying really nice to help her.

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica nodded. “I’m sure Bao and I can get the necessities and her supplies pretty quickly.” She said. “We can hold off on getting Lexi her clothes. She already has her first day of school outfit picked out and has new clothes from her birthday, so I think she’ll be fine even if we can’t go to the mall again. But I’m sure we will.” 

She walked out towards the exit with Bao. “Just meet us at the checkout at Target.” She said after giving Robert the keys. She figured Robert was just going to the car with Lexi to drop off her doll since she wasn’t supposed to take it to target where they sold the doll. 

Hearing Target, Lexi remembered something. “I wanna show Bao the Wellie Wishers!” She said, trying to rub the sleep away. “She wanted to see them and I wanna show her!” She said, trying to hide a yawn. 

[Ishigreensa]

Robert smiled.

"You can show her, honey, later on.  If you fall asleep on the way home, then just show her when you wake up, okay?  We won't be long in Target anyway if we can help it."

He put a hand on her back.

 

Bao smiled and walked with Erica towards wherever they were going next.  She felt like despite all the problems that she had starting off, Erica and Robert were really going to let her stay the year anyway, and that made her happy.

[Shy-Diapers]

“But I wanna snow Bao the display at target!” Lexi whined a little, trying to hide her yawn. She was really getting tired, but she didn’t want to miss out on exciting things. She didn’t know that Bao might stay for a few months, so she wanted to make the most of the time she had with her foreign big sister. 

Erica walked with Bao to target and first headed to the school supplies section. “If you’re going to be going to school here, you’ll need some supplies. We don’t know exactly what you need yet, so just get a few notebooks and pencils and binders and folders.” She said smiling. She figured she’d have Bao get the necessities and then they’d find out later exactly what she needs. 

[Ishigreensa]

"I think we are going to make a trip next weekend to your favorite store to look at all those American dolls of yours, so you can show her there, honey," Robert kissed Lexi's head.  "You've had a bit too much excitement for one day, and it's made you tired and fussy, honey.  Just be a good girl and we'll take you both next weekend to look.  She wants to buy some for her friends in China anyway, I think."

He chucked.

 

Bao nodded at Erica and looked through the supplies and got exactly what Erica told her to get.  She wasn't sure what else she would need either because she figured American school life might be a bit different from Chinese school life.

Her stomach rumbled again, and she held it afraid to ask for lunch.  It was probably too early, and besides, they might want to feed them at home where it's cheaper.

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi’s eyes widened. “We are?!” She squealed excitedly. She was so excited to be going to the American Girl store. It was probably one of if not her favorite place ever. She squealed and smiled. She was thrilled. 

After the initial excitement of knowing she’ll be going to the store, she calmed down and rested her head on Robert’s shoulder. She felt better about being tired now that she knew she’d go to the bigger store. 

“Are you hungry honey?” Erica asked Bao. “We can get a snack here if you’d like, or we can wait until we get home to have some real lunch.” She said smiling. 

[Ishigreensa]

Robert smiled and patted her bottom as he held her.

He walked her back into Target, and looked around for Erica.

 

Bao looked up at Erica for a minute, and then shook her head.

"I am big girl.  I wait at lunch.  No worry I can wait lunch."

She smiled up at her.

 

"That girl talks like a baby," a boy said from not far away.  He was maybe in sixth grade or so.

[Shy-Diapers]

Erica was in the school supply section with Bao when Robert and Lexi came in. 

Erica shook her head at the boy. “Don’t worry hon. You don’t talk like a baby. I know it must be hard learning a new language.” She said smiling at Bao. “We won’t be here long. Then we can go home and get some lunch. I’m sure Lexi’s getting hungry too.”

Lexi perked up a bit as they passed the snack bar. “Daddy can I get a snack? Pretty please? I’m hungry!” She said, doing her best not to whine. 

[Ishigreensa]

"I'm sorry, honey, but you had enough snacks today.  Mommy will make you some lunch when we get home, baby."

He kept carrying her through and set her down next to Bao.

"Lexi is hungry, so how close are we to finishing the shopping?" he asked her forgetting about the food they had to get.

 

Bao walked along quietly after she had picked out some notebooks and pencils for school.  She rubbed her stomach a bit, but she didn't say anything especially after that other boy said she talked like a baby.  Even if Erica was nice about it, she didn't want to embarrass her homestay parents by talking like a baby in public.

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi whined quietly. She felt starving. She had just eaten maybe 45 minutes to an hour ago, but she felt so hungry again. “But daddy I’m so hungry!” She said with a small pout. She wasn’t trying to be difficult, but she really wanted something to eat. 

“We just have to grab the basics, like bread and milk. Then we can go checkout.” Erica said. She shook her head at Lexi’s whining. “I don’t know what’s gotten into her. Why is she so whiney lately?” She said, feeling frazzled from the chaotic day. 

She pushed the cart over to the grocery area and got the basic foods they needed to get through the next few days.

[Ishigreensa]

Robert shook his head at his baby.

"Well, you heard mommy.  We'll be done soon, honey."

He kissed the top of her head.

Bao looked up at him when he did that.  She didn't remember her parents doing that with her.

As they walked through the store, Bao suddenly drew in a breath like she was in pain, and she bent over holding her left side.  The doctor said it was probably just the fungus, but why did her side hurt so much?  She rubbed her legs together.  It didn't feel like she had to pee, and she wasn't really sure it itched, but something was bothering her that she couldn't quite understand....

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi whimpered and hugged Robert tight. She felt guilty whining and asking for food, but she genuinely felt starving. She sniffled and rested her head on his shoulder, doing her best not to cry. 

Erica was just tossing the last of the groceries in the cart when she heard Bao. “Are you okay honey?” She asked concerned, unsure why the girl sounded like she was in pain. 

[Ishigreensa]

Robert rubbed her back and smiled at her.

"We'll be done soon, Lexi, baby.  Then we can get home and get you some lunch, sweetie."

He reached down and found some chips.

"Maybe we can buy you girls some cheap chips to tie you over."

He looked over at Erica hoping that would be okay.

 

Bao looked up at Erica and tried to straighten up, but after only a moment, she bent back down to almost touching the floor and gasped in pain while holding her stomach and side.  She was really hurting.

[Shy-Diapers]

Lexi rubbed her eyes and stayed quiet. She didn’t want to get in trouble for whining, so she just decided to try and ignore her stomach. She didn’t want to be in trouble and not be allowed to play with her new friend when they got back home. 

Erica didn’t hear what Robert was saying, too focused on Bao. “Honey what’s wrong?” She asked, squatting down to the girl’s level while she was almost on the floor. She offered her hand out so Bao could stand. “Honey, can you tell us what’s wrong? If we know what’s wrong then we can try and fix it.” She said gently.