Christmas for Daddy
This is a first chapter of DukeFan1982's 2017 Fan Fic Christmas Gift Exchange story. It deals with the Booth children's gift shopping for their father and family.
Chapter 1
Dr. Temperance Brennan could handle a classroom filled with curious, yet impatient university freshmen, a whole lab full of competitive summer interns vying for the few available positions as her doctoral advisees, and a laboratory table covered with bones from this century or any other. But managing a group of over-excited little girls in a huge Michaels' craft store was something else again.
The numerous aisles of the Congressional North location offered distractions galore for the six Daisy Scouts she was chaperoning. They scattered like dry autumn leaves despite her careful instructions to stick together before they'd left the car. Christine and Kennedy were staying the closest, but even they had strayed toward the sparkling Christmas trees display two aisles over. And wandering kindergartners wasn't her only problem this afternoon.
Hank had outgrown her Infantino child carrier, despite its advertised 40-pound capacity. Being married to Seeley Booth meant having tall offspring. Christine had been comfortable in the baby carrier much longer, even past that weight. Purchasing a new carrier was on this weekend's errand list. Thankful she had transferred the umbrella stroller from Booth's SUV that morning, Brennan leaned over and tightened the straps around her squirming little boy.
She wouldn't have been surprised if he'd stood up in it and taken off. Despite being only three months past his first birthday, Hank Booth seemed determined to conquer every baby development milestone early. He'd taken his first steps at nine months, and by now, was gleefully lurching around their house, constantly practicing his new-found mobility.
At present, the youngest Booth child was vociferously protesting his stroller incarceration, only too eager to follow the big sister he adored. Retrieving a small box of organic animal crackers from her diaper bag/backpack, Brennan tore it open and handed it to Hank.
"Kiki!" he chortled, grabbing a treat in his chubby fist.
"Christine! Kennedy! Will you kindly stay by the stroller as I asked you to?"
"Sorry, Momma."
"Okay, Missus Booth."
At that moment, Brennan cell phone beeped. She pulled it out and peered at the screen.
"Meet me at the Christmas tree display, Dr. Brennan."
"Christine, can you and Kennedy push Hank's stroller for me, please? Each of you take a handle, and let's meet Mrs. Fuller by the Christmas trees," Brennan said.
"Ohh, goody, they're so sparkly!" Kennedy enthused.
"Sure, Momma, we're good pushers," Christine announced.
"Cree!" Hank crowed. Christine was his favorite person in the entire world.
The frazzled Scout leader smiled tiredly at Brennan as they approached.
"I didn't think they'd be quite this wired already," she muttered above the girls' heads.
Then she assumed her best Sunday School teacher persona and spoke to the scouts.
"Girls, have you decided not to give your parents any gifts this holiday season?"
Ten puzzled young faces turned toward her. "Huh?"
"Unless we get our craft supplies purchased today, we won't have time during troop meetings to complete your gift project. And if you young ladies can't stay right with us leaders, we will be leaving this store very soon. Just because Lilly's mother couldn't join us today with baby Joe being sick, is no reason for you to be running amok!"
"Your parents will be at school to pick you up at our regular closing time, and we can't keep them waiting. If you can't stay together, we'll just have to return to school right now! Can you do that? Which will it be? We must shop efficiently and a wandering flock of geese can't accomplish that! Am I clear?"
"Yes, Mrs. Fuller….we're sorry!" the kindergartners chorused.
"Good, I'm glad that's settled!"
"Now we're going to walk to the fabric and notions section. We need several colors of felt, and gold cording. The items we're buying are all on the same aisle, so I don't expect you girls to scatter!"
"Hannah, Sylvie, and Amanda, you three go find the black felt. Neisha, Brooke, and Heather, you girls locate the pink felt. Monique and Tran, please ask where the spools of metallic cord are stocked. "
"Kennedy and Christine, could you please push Hank's stroller to the cutting counter for Christine's mother as you were doing? That's a big help for her."
"You girls take five minutes to locate the materials we need, and meet us back at the fabric counter over there."
Brennan smiled at the leader. "My husband would be impressed. You're almost as good as his Lead Agent Aubrey at gaining cooperation from unruly subjects."
"I try," Helen Fuller sighed. "Scouting imparts life skills learning, when it works right. Last week we calculated the yardage we'd need for the phone book covers, looked at the Michaels' website to see what colors of felt were on clearance, and how much we'd save buying that way.
She lowed her voice, and continued, "I meant to tell you; at our last meeting when I was coaching the girls on calculating what supplies we needed, Christine realized, from looking at her ruler, that since each phone cord is six inches long, we could make two cords per foot. That's pretty advanced thinking for a kindergartner, Dr. Brennan."
"My dad babysits our children two afternoons a week. He was a high school science teacher, and loves to play educational games with Christine. Her mathematical reasoning skills have increased rather strongly since he's been working with her. She's already a bright child, but each lesson disguised as fun or play forms additional neural connections in the brain."
Helen Fuller chuckled inwardly. She had become accustomed to hearing the scientist's academic mini-lectures in everyday conversation, and realized how dedicated Brennan was to enriching all the girls' lives. She was the most active parent volunteer in the troop, despite her busy schedule.
The fabric department occupied two long aisles of the store, with its counter located between them, so the adults could easily keep an eye on their charges as the girls carried out their tasks. A slim dark-haired teenager manning the counter smiled at the pair.
"You ladies have your kids well in hand. Some of the shoppers I see exercise no control over their children, and they run all over the place. I was a Girl Scout until high school, and I miss making those holiday gifts with my friends. I still use some of the craft ideas I learned in scouting when I need a gift on my budget!"
The girls walked quietly back to the counter and waited until the clerk had stopped talking.
"We found the felt, Mrs. Fuller! The pink and black are right next to each other."
"We found the cord on that aisle too. The gold color is right next to the silver."
"Well done, Daisies! Chelsea here is going to cut the felt and cord for us, since these scissors are very sharp."
Chelsea gathered the two bolts of felt and two spools of cording from the aisle behind her counter.
How many yards do you need of each?" she asked.
Each cover is 9" by 12", and the felt is 54" wide. We could get by with ¾ yard, but I'd like to buy one yard of pink felt to be safe. Each telephone requires a 4-inch square, but we'll buy some extra black felt in case someone cuts wrong. I believe one-fourth yard of black felt will be plenty for our project."
"Each phone cord is 6 inches long, so for 10 we'll need 5 feet of cord, but I want 6 feet just to be sure, please, Chelsea. Three feet of silver, and three of gold cord," Mrs. Fuller said, consulting her shopping list.
Once the fabric and cord were cut, coiled, and folded, Chelsea reached for a white plastic Michael's bag, but the girls stopped her.
"We have a reusable shopping bag, Miss Chelsea," Christine told her, pulling a handled cotton tote from Hank's stroller carry-all.
"Good for you," Chelsea commented as she filled the tote with their purchases as she scanned each one. "Have fun making your holiday gifts! I was a Girl Scout when I was your age, and I still remember all the fun my troop had doing those projects!"
"Oh, we will! Thank you for your help! We're having a sleepover to make them! Happy Thanksgiving, and enjoy whatever holidays you celebrate!" the girls told her.
"You too, guys. Thanks for shopping at Michaels'."
Once the scouts, Hank, and moms were belted back into their cars, the troop headed back to Jefferson Elementary where they lined up on a bench to wait for their parents, as they enjoyed apple juice boxes and graham crackers.
"Kiki, mamamama," Hank said happily between mouthfuls.
"I can't believe he can talk!" Hannah remarked. "My little cousin is bigger than your brother, and barely says a word."
"Don't worry about your cousin, Hanny. He will. Babies talk at their own rate, you know," Christine told her.
Helen Fuller grinned at Brennan, who chuckled at her daughter's mimicry.
"Put your trash in the barrel and get your backpacks, girls! Your parents are here," Mrs. Fuller said. "Next week we'll cut out our book covers, so Mrs. Morris can sew them for us."
Brooke smiled at her leader. "Since my gramma's sick, Mom has to stay home, but she sews really good!"
"Really well, Brooke, and yes, your mom will really be helping us by sewing them up! You can take home the bag to her next week. You and Monique buckle up in Mrs. Foster's car, okay?"
"Next week!" Monique said happily as her mother drove up.
As Brennan buckled a sticky Hank back into his car seat and wiped his face and hands, Mrs. Fuller said,
Thanks, Temperance, I couldn't have pulled off that shopping expedition without you!"
Brennan turned to smile at the leader. "It was more complex than the digs I've been on!"