Family Matters: 3rd family (Robehouse)

[robehouse]

Lacey nodded.

She took his hand and walked out to the car with Scott and her mother. She waited for Scott to open the door.

[Ishigreensa]

He helped her into the car, and then he felt her pants once to make sure she wasn't wet.

"What do you do, if we are in public and you start leaking in your pants?" he asked her to remind  her how to handle it.  "And what if you think you can make it without being wet at all?" he followed up once she responded to the first question, if she got it right.  If she got it wrong, then he would explain both answers to her.

[robehouse]

"Don't draw attention to myself." Lacey answered.

"I don't know." Lacey admitted.

[Ishigreensa]

Uncle Scott smiled and patted her on the back as he got in back with her so he could teacher what he expected.  He let Amanda get in front by herself to start driving.

"If you are sure you can get to the bathroom in time, you whisper up at me that you have to go.  If we are in a safe enough place, I'll let mommy take you, but we are not in a good place, then I will say no, and you wait until we get somewhere else to ask again.  If you can't wait, then just go in your pants, baby."

He hugged her.

"No begging or crying or drawing attention to it.  You don't want people to watch you pee your pants, do you?"

[robehouse]

"Okay." Lacey said.

Lacey hugged Scott back.

"I won't." Lacey said.

"Which restaurant are we going to?" Amanda asked.

[Ishigreensa]

"Good girl," he whispered to her and patted her back.

"Well, what do you feel like eating?" he asked Amanda.  "I'm more counting on you for this at the moment.  I haven't really taken care of Lacey yet, so whatever we are doing, it's still sort of by your graces.  Once I start pulling my weight with dealing with Lacey's problems and keeping your house clean and meals for you, then I'll be more an equal."

He brushed Lacey's hair from her eye.

"Honey, you do understand that mommy is getting tired, don't you?  She tries to run everything herself, and that's causing her some trouble.  Trouble you don't need to worry about, but you can help her by being a good girl for your uncle and doing what I tell you, alright?"

He kept rubbing her back.

[robehouse]

"Well did you want fast food or a regular restaurant? We can just to McDonald's, or something like Olive Garden. And you are a part of the family. Your Lacey's uncle." Amanda suggested.

"Yes sir, I'll do my best." Lacey answered.

 

[Ishigreensa]

Scott appreciated her feelings, but he also thought at this point, it was more important to be considerate of what she wanted.  She was the one that worked hard all day.

"Well, I do either one, Amanda.  I think we should go where you want since you are the one that put in a full day of work and with trouble besides."

He patted his little niece's leg.

"Good girl," he said when she said 'yes sir.'

"Do you want to eat somewhere special?" he asked Lacey.

 

[robehouse]

"Then I guess I would choose McDonald's or Wendy's." Amanda said.

"I pick McDonald's." Lacey answered.

[Ishigreensa]

"If you are okay with it, then, Lacey would like to go to McDonalds," Scott said.  "Is that okay?"

He smiled at Lacey.

"She's been trying to be a good little girl since I met her, right?  I must say, other than the little wetting incident and some miscommunication between the two of us earlier, I think your Lacey is very well behaved."

[robehouse]

"Alright, let's go to McDonald's. I'm glad she's been behaving." Amanda said.

Amanda drove to McDonald's and parked the car.

[Ishigreensa]

When they got there, Scott got out and then reached in to take Lacey's hand.

"You don't want Uncle Scott to carry you in public, do you honey?" he asked her.  "Will you hold my hand at least until we get across the parking lot?  You are kind of short, and someone in a big truck might not see you, but if you are holding my hand, they will see me, and know I'm holding someone's hand by looking at my body posture, honey."

[robehouse]

"Yes sir." Lacey said.

Lacey took Scott's hand as she got out of the car. Amanda got out and waited for them.

[Ishigreensa]

Scott smile and walked his little niece over to the safe area, and then he smiled down to her.

"We are safe now," he told her.  "You can still hold my hand if you want, but I won't insist on it until we come back outside, okay?"

He then led her into the McDonalds and stirred her towards the bathroom.

"You need to wash your hands," he told her.  "I'll wait outside for you, or if you want, I can take you in the boys', but you don't want to go in there, do you?"

[robehouse]

Lacey walked into McDonald's with Scott, and then to the bathroom. She let go of Scott's hand.

"No sir. I can go in the girls bathroom by myself." Lacey said.

She went in the bathroom and washed her hands. She came out to where Scott was.

[Ishigreensa]

Scott smile and patter her head.

"Wait here so I can wash mine, honey.  Then we'll go find a table.  Mommy is going to go order for us."

He went into the boys' room and washed his hands after peeing.

Then he came out and took her by the hand to go tell Amanda what he wanted and then to find a table for them.

[robehouse]

Amanda went over near the counter, but waited for Scott and Lacey to come back. 

Lacey waited near the bathrooms for Scott to finish, then took his hand. 

[Ishigreensa]

Scott took Lacey to where Amanda was waiting for them.

"I'll take a big mac meal, if that's alright and a cola."

He looked at Lacey to order.

"I'll take her to find us a table.  You don't need a child underfoot while you are trying to order."

[robehouse]

"Yes that's fine." Amanda said.

"I want chicken nuggets, fries and a cola." Lacey informed.

Amanda went up to the counter to put the order in.

[Ishigreensa]

Scott took Lacey to find a table, and then wait for Amanda.

"So, did you have fun at school today?" he finally got around to asking her.  "What was the most interesting thing that happened today at school?"

He was not used to how kids behaved, and because he had seen her pants wet once, he started to wonder if she was playing around by kicking her legs, or if she was needing to use the bathroom, but was somehow too shy to ask.  He didn't want to embarrass her in public, so decided to keep quiet about it for now, but he was afraid she might be wetting her pants without telling anyone, and he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do about that.  If he brought it to her attention he knew she had to go potty, she might get real embarrassed and make the situation worse, but if he didn't, would she just sit there and pee all the way in her clothes?

He kept nervously watching her as she seemed to be kicking her legs.  He couldn't tell if she was playing or not.

[robehouse]

"I guess I had fun. The most interesting thing that happened was playing at recess, I guess." Lacey answered.

Lacey sat there kicking her legs, not having anything else to do.

Amanda waited for the food, and when it came she brought it over to the table and set the tray on the table before sitting down.

[Ishigreensa]

Scott smiled and got Lacey's food for her and put in front of her.

"There you go, baby," he whispered to her.  He looked around for her toy.  "Don't you get her happy meals anymore?" Scott asked Amanda.

Then he took his own, and started to eat letting Amanda get her own.

Scott thought that in many ways, Lacey was rather immature, but in other ways, perhaps Amanda expected too much from her.  He wasn't sure if it was his place to tell her that, nor how he would address it if he even dared, but he did plan on treating Lacey more like the child she was.

[robehouse]

"Thank you uncle Scott." Lacey said.

"No, not anymore." Amanda said.

Amanda and Lacey started eating.

[Ishigreensa]

Scott frowned.

"Why not, Amanda?  She's still ten, right?  Still a child?"

He thought his little niece would eat them until at least she was in the middle of middle school, at least?

He shrugged.

"You don't like happy meals?" he asked Lacey.

[robehouse]

"I don't know. I just haven't been getting her happy meals." Amanda said.

"Yeah, they're okay." Lacey replied.