Notes: Thanks to Mari for bouncing. Everything still crossed, Sammy!
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Hope you enjoy!
Angie's No Good, Very Bad Day (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
3:27am
"Waaaaaah!" Angie's cry through the baby monitor woke Steve, Catherine, and Cammie at the same time. She normally slept until after six and didn't have problems soothing herself back to sleep so all three were immediately concerned when her cries increased.
"I'll check on her," Steve said, already out of bed.
Cammie followed him out of the room while Catherine waited, propped up on her elbows in bed, her brow knit in concern.
"Hey, Angie," Steve said softly as he stepped into the nursery.
"Dada!" she cried when she saw him. She stood in her crib, grasping the slats while tears ran down her cheeks. "Dada!"
"Hey, hey, it's okay," he said, reaching the crib and immediately picking her up. "I'm here." He quickly scanned her and felt her forehead but saw no obvious cause for her distress.
"Waah waah," she whimpered against him, her breath catching between cries.
"Shhh shhhh shhh it's okay." He spoke quietly, rubbing her back in soothing circles and swaying in place. "Did you have a bad dream? Huh?" He glanced over and saw Catherine in the doorway, unable to wait.
She approached, her eyes trained on their daughter whose cries, now muffled against his neck, were starting to ease.
"She doesn't feel warm," he told her, nodding for her to double check.
Catherine put a gentle hand on Angie's back. "Hey, honey, what's wrong?" she asked quietly, causing Angie to turn toward her voice.
"Mama," she murmured plaintively, reaching toward her.
"You're okay," Catherine said soothingly even as she put a hand to her forehead. She nodded to Steve. "She feels fine."
When Angie continued to reach for her mother, Steve passed her over. Catherine kissed her and held her close. "You're okay," she said again, leaning her cheek on Angie's head. "Just a bad dream."
They waited together, Cammie at their feet offering her own form of silent support, for Angie's cries to cease completely. She let out a little yawn against Catherine's shoulder.
"Okay, let's try for a little more sleep," Catherine said, stepping back to the crib. Before placing her back on her mattress, both she and Steve kissed her head, murmuring softly. They paused to see if she'd call or reach out for them again, but she let her eyes drift shut with another little yawn. They waited another minute before Catherine slid her arm around Steve's waist, gently tugging him toward the door. After Cammie exited as well, Steve partially shut the door. Waiting another minute to be sure, they finally made their way back to their own bed.
"Let's see if we can't get a little more sleep, too," Catherine said, crawling under the sheet.
"Mm," Steve agreed, settling back on his pillow. "And hope that's not a sign of the day to come."
7:09am
"Angie," Steve said with a touch of exasperation in his voice as she continued to kick her legs out of the pale blue shorts he was trying to put on her.
"No!" she yelled, trying to roll onto her stomach on top of her changing table.
"Hey, hey," he said, stopping her. "There's not enough room up here for rolling. That's not safe."
"Ah dee jee nah!" she cried out as she squirmed in his grasp. "Bah me!"
"Come on, let's get your shorts on and finish getting dressed so we can have breakfast. We're running a little late this morning."
"No!" Angie grabbed the shirt Steve had laid out and went to fling it on the floor. He snatched it out of the air and sighed, looking at her.
"Okay, is this you wanting to pick out your own clothes or not wanting to wear any clothes at all?"
"Ah dat!" She reached for her sleep set that he'd removed and draped over the edge of the changing table before a more contentious than usual diaper change.
"You wanna put your pajamas back on?"
"No!" she said, this time succeeding in throwing them to the floor.
He sighed. "Come on, Angie, aren't you hungry? I'm hungry. Let's get you dressed so we can eat."
She continued to kick, but he managed to get both legs into the shorts and pulled them up over her diaper. He pulled her up into a sitting position.
"There, that wasn't so bad, was it?"
She frowned at him.
He sighed again. "All right, I get it, you're not happy. I think you're still tired from waking up early and not getting your usual sleep. But you know what might help with that? Getting dressed and eating breakfast." He tried to put the t-shirt on over her head but she pushed it away.
"No!"
"Come on, you like this t-shirt. It's got a dog on it," he said, pointing to the outline on the front of the shirt. "See? Like Cammie."
"Caa-mee," she said, softening.
Steve sensed an opportunity and quickly slid the shirt over her head and pulled each arm through as she squawked in annoyance. "There, all dressed." He waited a beat to see how she would react. Relieved when she left it on, he picked up her small hairbrush. "Now let's see what we can do with that hair."
"No!" she said, pushing his hand away when he moved to run the brush through her hair.
"Come on, it's looking a little crazy this morning."
"No!" she said, again pushing at his hand.
He sighed, putting the brush down. "You know, I think this is one of those 'choose your battle' moments and I'm not choosing this one. We got you dressed and that qualifies as a win." He picked her up. "Now let's go see about breakfast."
7:45am
"Uh oh, did someone wake up on the wrong side of the crib this morning?" Esther asked when she saw Angie's pouting face.
"We think she had a bad dream so her sleep was a little interrupted. Having a bit of a cranky morning," Catherine told her, looking at the toddler in her arms.
"Well, we'll try to turn that cranky morning around," Esther promised, holding her hands out for Angie who went willingly, but without her usual bright smile.
"She might need a snack in little while," Catherine said, straightening her shirt. "She only had about a half a banana and smashed the rest of it into her highchair tray, and most of her cereal puffs ended up on the floor for Cammie."
Esther nodded. "Okay."
Steve came into the living room and handed Catherine her briefcase and an umbrella. "Morning, Esther."
"Good morning," she returned with an easy smile. "You'll definitely need that." She nodded to the umbrella. "It's really starting to come down out there."
"Hopefully it clears up later so you can get outside," Catherine said.
"Fingers crossed."
"Okay, honey, we've gotta get going," Catherine said, leaning over to kiss Angie goodbye. Angie turned her face into Esther's shoulder and Catherine sighed, sharing a rueful smile with Steve.
He ran a hand over Angie's hair and kissed the top of her head. "Love you, baby girl."
"Have a good day, honey."
They said their goodbyes to Cammie and Esther, and with parting smiles, headed out the front door.
As soon as the door closed, Angie looked at it tearfully. "Mama! Dada!" she cried.
Esther cuddled her comfortingly. "Ohh, I know. You miss them even when you're a little cranky. But they'll be home before you know it, and in the meantime, you and Cammie and I are going to have a fun day, right?" She bounced Angie on her hip.
"No!" Angie said, pushing away from her shoulder and straining toward the door.
Esther sighed. "Yep. Fun day."
12:50pm
"Go!" Angie yelled, banging both hands against the back door. "Esha! Ah sie!"
"I'm sorry, sweetie, but it's raining too hard right now to go outside," Esther said apologetically.
"Ah sie!" Angie looked at her, frustrated. "Jee ma bah!"
Esther sighed. Time in the playroom had served as a nice distraction, but Angie's morning nap had not gone well and now the rain preventing them from going outside brought a full-blown return of Angie's crankiness after lunch.
"Ah sie!" Angie said again, reaching up futilely for the doorknob above her.
"I know you want to go outside, but I don't think it's going to happen today. How about we look at some books?"
"No!" Angie cried, hitting the door emphatically. She lost her footing and plopped onto the floor. Once there, she let herself fall back, now kicking at the door in a display of frustration as she cried.
"Okay," Esther said calmly, knowing Angie needed to let her emotions out. "It's okay to be upset."
After a minute, her cries quieted to softer whimpers and she stopped kicking at the door. Cammie approached and laid down beside her. Sniffling, Angie turned toward her and clutched a small handful of hair, pressing her face into Cammie's side.
Esther smiled softly at the scene. "Good girl," she whispered to Cammie. "Good girl."
2:03pm
"Angie, we just put those away," Esther said when Angie dumped out the basket of balls in the playroom.
"No! Baah!" Angie grabbed a purple ball defiantly, throwing it across the room.
"Yes, that is a ball, and that was a good throw, but it's naptime and I know you're tired."
"No!"
"Yes," Esther insisted, righting the basket and starting to put the balls back inside. "Can you help me clean up, please?"
"Noooo!" Angie took off running toward the hall. She looked back at Esther and Cammie just as she reached the doorway and ran right into it, falling to the floor. She put a hand to her head, crying.
Esther was at her side immediately, picking her up. "Let me see, honey." She gently moved Angie's hand to look at the injury. There was no cut or blood, but there would probably be a small bump and a bruise later. "Ohh, poor Angie," she soothed, rubbing her back. "You have to look where you're going, honey." Angie lay against her shoulder, crying. "Let's get you a cold pack and then it is definitely time for a nap." She made her way toward the kitchen, Cammie right at her side looking up at Angie. "She's okay, Cammie," Esther assured the concerned dog. "Just a little bump. Nothing a boo-boo bunny and a nice long nap won't cure."
6:13pm
Steve arrived home while Catherine was trying, unsuccessfully to coax Angie to eat some cut up green beans.
"No!" was the first thing he heard when he stepped into the kitchen.
"Still the word of the day, huh?" Steve asked.
"Apparently it's been a day," Catherine said, stopping Angie before she could throw the green bean she'd spit out to the floor. "Okay, no throwing food." She sighed and looked up at Steve. "Hi."
He gave her a small smile. "Hi."
"Dada!" Angie said, lifting her arms. "Up!"
He glanced at Catherine who nodded.
"She ate some mac and cheese and a couple bites of chicken," she told him as he set aside Angie's plate and sippy cup so he could remove the tray and lift her up.
"What happened here?" he asked, brow furrowing as he examined the small bump on her forehead.
"Ran full tilt into the playroom doorway earlier when she didn't want to clean up with Esther."
He winced and kissed the other side of Angie's head. "I bet that hurt, didn't it?" he said sympathetically.
She pushed away from him, squirming to get down, but he held her firmly so Catherine could wipe her face and hands clean.
"I thought maybe a bath would be a good idea," Catherine said. "Esther said she didn't sleep more than a half hour for each nap and has been cranky most of the day because she's overtired. Plus the rain kept her inside which did not improve her mood."
"It has been a day, huh, baby girl?" Steve said, brushing her hair back.
She pushed at his hand, frowning. "No!"
"So maybe a nice warm bath before bed and put this day behind her," Catherine said.
"What do you say, Angie?" Steve asked. "Bathtime?"
"No!" she cried, arching her back and leaning away.
"How did I know you were gonna say that?"
6:49pm
"What happened?" Catherine asked, popping her head into the bathroom doorway at Angie's cries.
Steve was holding a towel-wrapped Angie in one arm, using the other hand to wipe at her eye with a cottonball.
"She jerked away mid-pour and got soapy water in her eyes and mouth," he said.
"So much for 'no-tears,' " Catherine said, stepping over for a closer look.
"I think she was more surprised than anything. Couldn't have been more than a couple suds." Though his words were matter-of-fact, he still looked obviously pained at his daughter's distress.
"Bet those green beans wouldn't taste so bad now, would they?" Catherine said wryly as Angie reached for her. She rubbed her back soothingly. "Yeah, it's been a no good, very bad day, huh, sweetheart?"
Steve looked at her. "Why does that sound familiar?"
"It's a book. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day," she said. "I think Angie had her own version of that today."
She continued rubbing Angie's back as they made their way to the nursery. Cammie, who had come with Catherine at the sound of Angie's cries, followed.
Steve got out a fresh sleeper set while Catherine put a new diaper on Angie, who was so visibly tired and worn out that she didn't fight the diaper or the clothes as she had that morning. She curled against her mother when Catherine picked her up again. Sitting down in the spindle chair, Catherine rocked slowly. Steve pulled a stool up beside them and sat, placing a reassuring hand on the back of Angie's head. With both parents there to provide comfort, and Cammie close by as always, Angie calmed, wrapped in their unconditional love.
"Sleep, Angie," Catherine said softly. "Tomorrow will be a better day."
"And even if it's not," Steve said in an equally quiet tone, leaning down to press a kiss to her head. "We'll be there. No matter what."
Hope you enjoyed!
Book mentioned:
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Ray Cruz (Atheneum, 1972)
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