Notes: Mari and Sammy - Thanks as always for your friendship and support. Special thanks to Mari for again bouncing ideas with me. We seem to do that pretty well even when we're both sleepy :-)
Readers and REAL McRollers - Thank you for your support!
Hope you enjoy!
All Angie (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
While Steve finished cleaning up after dinner, Catherine set Angie down in the living room, letting her decide what she wanted to do in the time before bed.
"Do you want to go to your playroom, honey?" Catherine asked. "Or how about outside?"
Angie looked around only briefly before walking decidedly, if unsteadily, toward the front door. After a few steps she pitched forward, catching herself with both hands, and pushed herself back up to walk the remaining distance. When she reached the door she banged on it with one hand and looked back at Catherine. "Ah bah buh!"
Steve came out of the kitchen, done with the dishes, and stood beside Catherine.
"What's up?" he asked, his hand going to his hips.
Catherine smiled, her arms crossed. "I think she wants to go outside."
"All right, we can do that. Let's go out back." He motioned toward the back door and took a step in that direction, looking at Angie. "Do you want to play in your water?"
"Ah bah!" Angie replied, banging on the door again.
Cammie trotted over to her, and Angie put a hand on the dog's side for balance. Both looked at Catherine and Steve expectantly.
Steve glanced at Catherine. "You know, even though we're not technically outnumbered, it sort of feels like we are."
Catherine chuckled, nodding her agreement.
"Okay, out front it is," Steve said, dropping his arms.
"How about a walk?" Catherine suggested.
Cammie chuffed happily in response.
"Sounds like Cammie's in," Steve said. "What about you, Angie? Do you want to go for a walk?"
"Bah ma!" Angie said, bouncing in place.
"How about we use your carrier instead of the stroller?" Catherine said.
When Steve retrieved it from the closet, Angie grew visibly excited at the sight, clapping and pointing. "Dada! Buh bah!"
Steve, now a pro with the carrier, quickly put it around his waist and then reached down for Angie, lifting her up. Catherine stepped over to help him settle Angie into the carrier facing him, but she squirmed and squawked unhappily, pushing at his chest and trying to turn. "No!"
"Ah, I bet you want to face out so you can look around, don't you, baby girl?" Catherine said, smiling knowingly.
"Should've known," Steve agreed. As Catherine held Angie, he made the necessary adjustments to the carrier and they settled a much happier toddler in it now facing outward.
Catherine quickly grabbed a small bag of things they might need and got Cammie situated with her leash. "Ready?" she asked.
Angie flapped her arms excitedly as Catherine opened the front door. "Mmm eee! Bah bah!"
"Okay, just a short walk, honey, you need a bath before bedtime," Catherine said.
As they headed down the walk toward the street, Angie looked around constantly, taking everything in.
Catherine grinned. "Look at her. Checking out her surrounding, just like her daddy."
"And her mommy," Steve added with a pointed look. "Some habits never go away."
They came across their next door neighbor walking down her own drive toward the street.
"Hi, Mrs. Norton," Catherine said, smiling warmly in greeting at the middle-aged woman.
"Well, hello, there!" Mrs. Norton smiled back at the family.
"Can you say 'hi,' Angie?" Steve asked.
"Say 'hi,' " Catherine coaxed. She looked at Steve and Mrs. Norton. "Esther swears she's said it. Can you say 'hi'?"
Angie smiled broadly, the fingers of one hand in her mouth. She pulled them out and flapped her hand at Mrs. Norton in greeting.
"Hi there, you little angel. You get bigger every time I see you. And cuter, too." She smiled down at Cammie. "And hello, Cammie. I haven't forgotten you." She gave the ever-patient dog an affectionate rub on the head. "You've caught me on my evening walk," she continued, looking back at Steve and Catherine. "I've started walking in the mornings and the evenings and feeling great. You know, I think I'm sleeping so much better because of it."
"That's great," Catherine said genuinely.
"Absolutely," Steve agreed. "Regular exercise is very important."
"We won't keep you," Catherine said. "We're just doing a quick walk ourselves." She grinned, looking at her daughter. "At Angie's insistence."
"Sounds like she knows her own mind," Mrs. Norton said, smiling.
"That's for sure," Steve agreed.
"Hi!" Angie said suddenly, waving her hand again.
All three adults laughed.
"And does things when she wants to," Mrs. Norton adds. She waved back. "Hi, Angie!"
"Hi!"
Steve took her little hand and kissed it, chuckling. "How about 'bye' now?"
"Hi!" Angie repeated, grinning.
Still chuckling lightly, Catherine looked at Mrs. Norton and said, "Have a nice walk."
"You, too." She waved again at Angie. "Bye bye!"
"Hi!"
They parted ways, walking in opposite directions.
Catherine tickled Angie's feet. "Silly girl."
A few houses down, a couple was sitting on their lanai while their son played in the front yard with a small remote-controlled drone. Spotting them, the eight-year-old landed his toy and put down the remote. "Cammie!" he cried, running toward them. He pulled up, remembering what he'd often been told. "Hi, Lieutenant. Hi, Commander. Can I pet Cammie?"
"Sure, Nathan," Catherine said.
As he patted Cammie's back, his parents Grant and Theresa joined them.
"Beautiful evening," Grant said.
"Sure is," Steve agreed.
"Would you like some lemonade?" Theresa offered. "I can get a couple more glasses. It's no trouble."
"Oh, thank you, but we're fine," Catherine said with a smile.
Angie was watching Nathan chat away with Cammie. She stretched a hand in his direction and said, "Hi!"
Her parents beamed, and Theresa said, "Nathan, Angie's talking to you."
Nathan looked up as if remembering there were others around besides Cammie. "Hi!"
"That's a nice looking drone you've got, Nathan," Steve said.
"Yeah! Wanna see?" He ran back to pick up the remote and flew the drone up in the air toward them.
"Carefully, Nathan," his father said. "Not too close."
"I'm real good," Nathan said. "Watch." He made it go higher and then dip down. When he looked over at them and grinned proudly, the drone crashed to the grass. "Oops."
"Sturdiest model we could find," Grant said to Steve and Catherine.
"Smart," Steve said, cracking a smile.
"Ah bah!" Angie said, pointing at the drone. "Mama! Ma bah!"
"You've got a couple years before flying one of those, sweetheart," Catherine said, smiling at her.
The adults chatted for another minute while Nathan went back to petting Cammie before parting ways, Angie calling "Hi!" as they walked away.
After passing a few more houses, they were getting ready to turn around and head back when two girls on bicycles road over to meet them.
"Hi, Yuko. Hi, Emma," Catherine said, smiling at the ten-year-old best friends.
"Hi, Lieutenant. Hi, Commander," they chorused.
"Hi!" Angie said, unprompted, flapping her hand at them in greeting.
Yuko giggled. "Hi, Angie!" She reached over and tickled one of the toddler's bare feet.
Angie squealed happily and kicked in response.
Emma scratched Cammie under the chin. "Hi, Cammie."
"Nice night for a bike ride," Catherine said.
Yuko smiled from beneath her helmet. "Yeah, we love riding around the neighborhood."
"Yeah," her friend agreed.
"Do you have any cookies left, Commander?" Yuko asked.
Steve grinned, still unashamed of his massive Girl Scout cookie order from earlier in the year. "There are a few boxes left in the freezer."
Catherine chuckled, shaking her head. She smiled at the girls. "Are you thinking ahead to next year already?"
"Yeah, we're going to try and earn enough points for the breakfast adventure at the zoo!" Yuko said excitedly.
"Well, you know which house to come to first," Catherine teased, glancing at Steve.
"We'll be there!" Yuko said.
"Have fun, girls," Catherine said, waving as the two pushed off on their bikes.
"Hi!" Angie called after them.
As they resumed their walk, Steve said, "I regret nothing."
Catherine grinned wryly. "I know you don't. I just don't know where we'd put a third freezer if you outdo your order from last year."
He grinned back.
When they reached their drive, they saw Frank and Kathy Kayama parking their car next door. Catherine raised a hand in greeting and the older couple met them between the two houses.
"Evening," Frank said in greeting.
"Hi!" Angie said, holding both hands out toward them and smiling broadly.
"Hello, Angie!" Kathy gushed. "Listen to you saying 'hi'! Just like a big girl!"
"Hi!"
"You may get a few more," Catherine said, smiling. "Seems to be her new favorite word."
"That's adorable," Kathy said.
"We're just back from dinner with friends," Frank said. "We tried that new sushi place downtown, it was excellent."
"I think I know where we're going our next night out," Steve said, grinning knowingly at Catherine.
"You had me at 'sushi,' " she said.
"Hi!" Angie said. She pointed at Cammie. "Caa eee!"
"Yep, that's Cammie," Steve said.
Frank rubbed Cammie's head. "Nice night for a walk, huh, Cammie?"
Cammie woofed softly, leaning into the head rub.
"We'll let you go," Kathy said, "I'm sure it's getting close to Angie's bedtime."
"It is," Catherine acknowledged. "And we need to get in a quick bath first."
"And baths for Angie are never very quick," Steve added, smiling down at his daughter who had a hold of one of his fingers.
"Let's get together soon," Kathy said. She grinned. "Maybe for sushi."
Catherine smiled. "That sounds great. Maybe next week?"
"Just give me a call," Kathy said.
They said their goodnights, or "Hi"s in Angie's case, and headed for their respective houses.
"That was a nice walk," Catherine said as they made their way to the front door. "We should do that more often." She smiled at Angie who was still looking around, not showing any signs of losing interest in her surroundings. "I love how alert she is, wanting to see everything. Just like her daddy."
He smiled. "And I love how she's comfortable around people. Engages with them like her mommy."
"You're not so bad at that yourself, Commander," Catherine said.
"If you say so," he replied.
Catherine opened the door to the empty living room and Angie immediately said, "Hi!"
Her parents chuckled.
"Alert and engaged like us," Steve said, "but all Angie."
Hope you enjoyed!
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