The next morning Jackie got up and poured herself a cup of orange juice and then got out her checkbook and wrote Jasmine, Houston, and Johnna a check for their lunch money. She then sat down and drank her juice and read the paper.

Awhile later Jasmine and Johnna came downstairs for breakfast, Houston was upstairs looking for his shoes.

"Girls put this in your backpack, it's your lunch money." Jackie told them as she handed them their checks and then she went upstairs to help Houston.

Soon everyone was at school.

When lunch rolled around Houston walked to the lunchroom with his class.

"Houston little buddy did you bring lunch money today? Your sisters did." The nice lunch lady asked him.

"No, my mommy didn't give me any money." Houston said.

"Are you sure, is it in your backpack?"

"No." He insisted.

"Houston did you give me lunch money and I forgot to put it in the lunch account envelope this morning?" Chelsea Hanson, Houston's favorite guest teacher asked, sounding mortified by that possibility.

"No"

"Well, I'll just take some out of one of your sister's accounts." The lunch lady said.

"It's ok, I like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches." Houston assured her, sounding not at all phased by this.

"Here Houston, I'll buy you lunch." Chelsea said as she dug in her pocket and pulled out a five dollar bill.

"It's ok, Miss Hanson, I like peanut butter sandwiches." He insisted.

"Are you sure?" Chelsea asked.

"Yeah, sometimes when my mommy makes them she makes a smiley face with the jelly, the last time she did it she made the smiley face have teeth, it was funny."

"It was huh?" Chelsea said.

"Yeah." Houston said with a giggle as he moved through the line and grabbed a peanut butter sandwich and a carton of chocolate milk.

Chelsea looked at the lunch lady and shrugged, the lunch lady shrugged back at her.

Pretty soon it was the end of the day. Jackie had had a great day, the kids had been really good, and she had gotten a break at the end of the day because her students had music.

She was just about ready to shut the lights off and leave her room when she remembered something. "Oh god, I forgot to give Houston lunch money, the girls got theirs but I never gave Houston's his. What kind of mother am I?"

Tears started to well in Jackie's eyes.

When she got home all the kids ran at her.

"Houston, I am so sorry sweetheart, I forgot to give you your check for lunch, I'm so sorry."

"It's ok mama, I like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, it was yummy. But it didn't have a face in the jelly." He added, sounding somewhat disappointed.

Jackie smiled at him, he really was such a sweet little boy, and very forgiving too.

"Well I'm still sorry, and to make it up to you, you get to pick what we have for dinner tonight. What would you like?"

"Hamburger and French fries." He said happily.

"Alright then that's what we'll have!" Jackie told him.

Jackie picked up her purse so she could go get dinner.

"I'll go hon." Nick offered.

"It's alright, I'll go."

"Well I was going to stop and put gas in my truck after I left the lab and I forgot so I'll go get gas and then buy dinner."

"Ok thanks Nicky." Jackie told him.

Nick left the house and then came back with dinner a short time later.

The family had a nice dinner and Jackie was grateful Houston wasn't at all mad at her for her stupid mistake, and Jackie made sure Houston's lunch check was in his backpack before he even went to bed that night!

The End!