With six children and three adults working on Abel's gift, they managed to get most of the animals glued together and the ones that had already been glued, painted shortly before supper. Adam looked at the progress that had been made and said, "We may just be able to do as you suggested Mark and make the trees look like had snowed a little. We've done as much as we can for now, so let's get everything cleaned up and ready to work on tomorrow."
They walked downstairs and Cat walked up to Ben and asked, "Pa, can I go and show Sampson to Jas and Mark? They've never met him."
Ben pulled her into his lap, hugged her and said, "Not tonight Sweetheart. It's already dark outside and supper will be ready soon. We'll go out to see him just before we go and get the tree in the morning."
"Oh, ok. I didn't know it was dark outside already. We were so busy I never looked out the window."
"I understand. That's what happens when you get busy. Adam, Hoss, Joe, will the three of you please bring the extra tables and chairs in? I'm sure Hop Sing will be telling us that supper is almost ready in just a few minutes."
Once the tables and chairs were inside, Joe walked back outside and returned with the crate of Cat's toys from the barn. "Here are Cat's toys from in the barn. It's too cold and dark to play outside but you can play in her room and mine. Cat, if you open the bottom drawer in my chest of drawers, you'll find my marbles and two sheets of paper that Mitch, our friends, and I used when we played marbles inside."
Cat hugged Joe tightly. "Gee thanks for bringing my toys inside Joe. That was really nice of you."
"You're welcome little sister. That's what older brothers are for."
As soon as the children were out of earshot, Victoria said, "Benjamin, why on Earth are you explaining to that child why she can't do something? Just tell her and if she doesn't like your answer, so be it. You can always deal with a temper tantrum."
Before Ben could reply, Matt said, "Victoria, you are forgetting that I raised Cat and I have always explained things to her. When I told her why she couldn't do something, she accepted it and there were no tantrums to deal with. When she skipped school and lied about it, I took her pony away for two weeks. She wasn't happy about it but understood it was part of her punishment and didn't have a tantrum. Ben, I'm happy to hear that you are also explaining why she can't do something to Cat. It prevents a lot of problems."
"I found that out purely by accident. She kept trying to go in with the bull without an adult present and kept insisting that he loves her and would never hurt her. Hoss and I explained that we knew the bull would never hurt her but an adult needed to be there in case he accidentally stepped on her and she began to understand. Once I put two bales of hay on her feet and explained how much more the bull weighed than those hay bales, and he could crush her feet, she stopped trying to go in the pasture without an adult present. The only thing explanations haven't worked with is her running in the house. Even after she ran into me when I had a hot cup of coffee in my hand, and was punished for it, she still continues to run in the house."
"Why do you think we pick her up and carry her?" asked Adam. "So far, that's the only thing we can think of to keep her from running and getting into trouble."
Before the conversation could continue, Hop Sing came into the great room and said, "Suppel almost leady. Set table."
"Alright Hop Sing," said Abel. "Benjamin, shall we?"
"There are six children in this house Abel," said Victoria. "They, not you should be setting and clearing the table."
"We take turns doing those things," replied Abel. "Catherine and her friends have been busy ever since we arrived home from town. It is my turn to set the table and since there are so many people, Benjamin offered to assist. Also, Catherine is not required to do any chores until after the new year so she is exempt from setting and clearing the table unless she wants to help, which she did at Thanksgiving."
No sooner had Abel finished speaking when all six children came downstairs. "We heard Hop Sing say to set the table, and figured we'd help since there are so many people and we're very hungry," said Jasper.
While the table was being set, Jarrod took his mother outside to talk to her. "What is your problem today Mother? All you have done is complain and criticize ever since we arrived in Virginia City. Ben graciously invited us to spend Christmas here even though he didn't have to. If you're ill, I'll take you into town to see the doctor after breakfast. If you're not ill, I hope a hot meal and a good night's sleep improves your disposition. If they don't, I will put you on the stage toward home tomorrow afternoon as I don't want you ruining Christmas for everybody else."
"I'm sorry Jarrod. Traveling, even just coming here takes more out of me than it used to. Maybe a hot meal and a good night's sleep will do me good. If it doesn't, I promise I'll go and see the doctor in the morning."
"Alright Mother, but you might want to consider apologizing to everyone after supper. Adam's grandfather never met you before today and I'm afraid he didn't form a very favorable opinion of you because of your complaining and criticizing everyone and everything."
When supper was served, Victoria was surprised that instead of filling the children's plates, the adults held the platters of food so they could help themselves. She was about to say something when she reminded herself that these children were nine and eleven years old and quite capable of serving themselves. She watched, surprised as all six children cleared their plates and asked for more. All of the adults were surprised when each child received a large piece of chocolate cake for dessert. "Little girls and little boys big help," said Hop Sing. "They make lots of cookies and big mess. They have fun cleaning batter from bowls with fingers. When all cookies made, they tell Hop Sing sit and relax and they clean up mess. I just have to tell them where to put everything. Little girls and little boys always welcome in Hop Sing's kitchen."
Once dessert was finished, Victoria surprised everyone and said, "Hop Sing, that meal was wonderful. We have a good cook at home but she's nowhere as good as you are. If my sons will help, I will gladly clear the table and help wash the dishes."
"Of course we'll help Mother," said Heath. "Won't we Jarrod?"
"Yes, we'll help. I'd set and clear the table by myself for meals like that. Hop Sing, I don't suppose there's any way we could persuade you to return to California with us, is there?"
"No Mr. Jarrod. Pondelosa is Hop Sing's home. Also, Hoss probably starve if I left and Missy Cat not get enough to eat either. She too skinny and need to eat more, get big like Numbel Two Son."
"I don't want to get as big as Hoss, Hop Sing. Girls aren't supposed to get that big."
"Hop Sing no cale. You eat mole and get big like Hoss."
After the table had been cleared and the dishes washed and put away, Victoria apologized to everyone and asked, "Ben, if I'm not feeling better in the morning, will you please take me to town so I can see the doctor? It only took us two days to get here and I shouldn't be this tired. Come to think of it, I've been tired a lot lately."
"Of course I'll take you to the doctor. Let's see how you feel after a good night's sleep and a hot breakfast. If you think it will help, I'll ask Hop Sing to heat water so you can take a hot bath before going to bed."
"Thank you. That would be very nice."
Adam got his guitar and everyone sang Christmas carols for a little while. When they got tired of singing, the children started playing games on the great room floor while Adam continued playing. About thirty minutes later, six children were sound asleep on the floor. Matt started to pick Cat up but Rip said, "Not this time brother. You got to do this for almost eight years so it's my turn for a little while."
Matt laughed and teased, "Ok Rip. You can have her for now but remember, she belongs to me."
Ben laughed and said, "Matt, you seem to have forgotten that you gave her to me."
"No," teased Rip. "We're only lending her to you until she's all grown up. Then we're going to take her back."
The rest of the family laughed, picked the rest of the children up and carried them upstairs. Adam, Hoss, and Joe looked at each other and Hoss asked, "Whose turn is it? I forgot?"
"It's Adam's or Pa's," replied Joe. "I got her ready for bed the last time she fell asleep downstairs so I'm pretty sure it's Adam's turn now."
"Don't tell me you boys get your sister ready for bed," said Kitty.
"Of course we do when she falls asleep downstairs," said Joe. "There aren't any women in the house. You and Aunt Victoria can get Laura and Mary ready for bed but Cat's ours."
"Sorry boys," said Rip. "She's mine tonight. I haven't been able to do this very much so I'm taking care of her tonight. Just show me where her night things are."
Once all three girls had been tucked in, Matt, Rip, Victoria, and Kitty watched in amazement as Lassie and Silver Chief jumped up on the bed and settled down at the girls' feet. "Cat's usually the middle of a puppy sandwich," said Ben, "but there isn't enough room for that with all three girls in the bed."
"Does Catherine fall asleep downstairs often?" asked Victoria.
"No she doesn't. Sometimes, if we don't have anything to do early on a Saturday morning, I'll let her stay up but she's usually asleep less than thirty minutes after her normal bedtime."
Early Thursday morning, Mike tapped quietly on Cat's bedroom door. Lassie woke her up and she answered the door. "Let's surprise the grownups and go set the tables while they're all sleeping. We can go back to bed and be asleep again before they wake up."
"Ok. Let me get my slippers and robe."
They crept down the stairs and began setting the tables as quietly as they could. Hop Sing heard the noise and got out of bed to see what was happening. He saw the two children setting the tables, decided not to give their secret away, smiled and went back to bed. When the adults came downstairs, they were surprised to see that the tables had been set. The children were still sleeping, observed Lucas, so they couldn't have done it. Ben asked Hop Sing and he replied that he did not know who had set the tables. When the children came downstairs, Ben asked Cat if she knew who had done the work. "I dunno. Maybe Lassie and Silver Chief did it. They're really smart. Don't forget, I taught them how to read and not every puppy can read."
"You're being silly this morning Cat," said Rip. "Puppies can't read."
"I did too teach them, didn't I Adam?"
"Yes, in your own way you did."
"You can't be serious Adam," said Jarrod. "Dogs can't read."
"Mine can," replied Cat. "I'll show you."
Cat started to run toward the stairs when Hoss picked her up and put her over his shoulder and said, "Like Adam and Joe said, doin' this keeps her from gettin' in trouble for running in the house." He waited while she got a book and asked, "Are ya gonna run or do I have ta carry you again?"
"I'll walk. I'm sorry Hoss but Uncle Rip and Jarrod made me mad when they said my puppies couldn't read."
"Don't forget Punkin, they don't live with us so they don't know what ya've done. Jarrod ain't never seen yore puppies before and the last time Rip saw Silver Chief he was just a little feller and now he's almost a year old."
"Oh that's right. I forgot. I think I'll get a harder book. Do you think Pa will be mad at me because I started to run in the house?"
"You go right ahead and get a harder book. That'll show them ya know what yore talkin'
about. Pa'll be ok once I explain why ya were startin' to run, but just be shore ya don't do it again. I know ya don't like standin' in the corner and ya shore ain't gonna like havin' ta do it with the family and yore friends here."
"Thanks big brother. I'll go and get a harder book and I promise I'll walk downstairs."
Hoss walked downstairs and Ben asked where Cat was and why she was running in the house. "She's gettin' a book. Well Pa, it's like this. Ya know how mad she gets when someone says somethin' she don't like. She didn't like it when Rip and Jarrod said they didn't believe them puppies of hers could read. So she got mad and plum forgot that Jarrod ain't never seen them pups before yesterday and Silver Chief was just a little feller the last time Rip saw him. So bein' little sister, she was upset and decided to show Jarrod and Rip she knew what she was talkin' about that she started to run without even thinking about it."
"Alright son. Thank you for telling me. She only ran a few steps before you picked her up so I won't punish her this time. Matt, you should have told me that Cat has a bad temper."
Matt and Kitty looked at each other and started laughing. "Cat, have a bad temper? No not my little Wild Cat," Matt teased. "She's a Cartwright, isn't she? You should have known she'd have Kate's temper." He looked at his brother and said, "Can you imagine that Rip, Ben is raising a Cartwright and didn't know she had a temper? I just don't know what's wrong with him."
"I don't know what's wrong with him either," teased Rip. "Kate was his sister and she had quite a temper. After all, it's not like our brother had one. I think he was eight or nine, when he broke his slate over another boy's head in school because that boy laughed at him for getting an arithmetic problem wrong on the board." Ben laughed at being teased by his brothers-in-law. From the way they were talking about their brother, it seemed that Cat was a combination of both her parents' personalities and he was definitely going to have his hands full for a long time to come.
Cat came downstairs, carrying a book she hadn't read yet and said, "I'll prove that Lassie and Silver Chief can read." She found a word she didn't know and showed it to Lassie. "What's that word Lassie?" The dog said, "Ruff". "See. Lassie says the word is ruff." She pointed to another word and asked, "Chief, what's that word?" The dog said "Woof". "Now do you believe me that my puppies can read? They're the smartest puppies in the whole world."
All of the visiting adults laughed. "I'm sorry for doubting you Cat," said Rip. "I should have known that if anyone could teach a dog to read, it would be you. Are you going to teach Fury to read also?"
"I don't know. I just wish I could teach all of them how to do arithmetic. I hate it. It's dumb and I shouldn't have to study it."
Before anyone could answer her, Hop Sing came out of the kitchen and said, "Bleakfast almost leady. Everybody sit down at tables." Kitty offered to help bring the food to the table and, even though she was still very tired, Victoria did too.
While everyone was eating, Victoria said, "Ben, I slept like a rock and didn't wake once, but I'm still very tired. Would you please drive me into town so I can see the doctor? I don't want to spend Christmas feeling poorly."
"Of course I will. Do you mind waiting until after we get the tree?"
"No. I don't mind at all. Going out and getting a Christmas tree is something you and I haven't done together in too many years and I'm looking forward to it. Cat, are you going to cut it down?"
"If it's as big as the ones I helped with the day Adam took me to the lumber camp, I'll need help because they're really, really big."
"Our tree is going to be very big," said Ben. "Don't you remember how big it was when you visited last Christmas? It was taller than if Adam and Joe were standing on Hoss' shoulders.
"Oh that's right. It will be too big for me to cut down by myself but maybe Jas, Mike, and Mark can help."
"You're not going to be cutting the tree down Kitten. That's Adam, Hoss, and Joe's job. Your job is going to be to pick it out and help decorate it. If you ask nicely, once it's cut down, I'm sure your brothers won't mind if you pick it up and put it on the sled."
"Paaaaa, that tree is going to be a million feet tall. I can't pick one up that big. Nobody can."
"Ben," teased Kitty. "I don't know why you're not feeding Cat more. One reason Matt and Rip let you adopt her was so you would feed her enough to be able to pick up a Christmas tree that big. From now on, Cat has to eat before Hoss does so she will get enough to eat. Otherwise she will never be strong enough to pick up a Christmas tree."
"I'm trying Kitty but Cat refuses to eat enough so she will grow bigger than Hoss. She keeps saying that girls aren't supposed to get as big as Hoss but Hop Sing and I keep trying. I'm afraid a good strong wind will carry her away and her brothers want to tie a rope around her waist so they can fly her like a kite if a big wind does try to carry her away."
"Cat's right Mr. Cartwright," said Mary. "Girls aren't supposed to get as big as Hoss. No boy will marry us if we do."
"Look at Miss Sullivan," added Laura. "She's really big and she's old and not married because she's so big. We don't want to be like her."
"Miss Sullivan was not always the way she is now," replied Ben. "She had a beau and they were going to be married but he was killed in the war with Mexico. She loved him so much that when he died, she vowed that she would never marry another man. That, not her size, is why she is not married. You children are still very young and have a lot to learn about people. Never assume you know why someone is the way they are. As you just learned, your assumptions could be very wrong."
"Oh, sorry," came six quiet voices.
"That's alright. You are young and just learning how things are. Just remember the lessons you learn and you will grow up to be fine adults. Now finish your breakfast so we can go, get our Christmas tree."
"Pa, can we please go and see Sampson before we get the tree?"
"I did promise, didn't I? So yes, we will go and see your bull before we get the tree."
While horses were being saddled and harnessed to the sled, Cat asked, "Adam, can I please ride Sport?"
"Which horse am I supposed to ride then?"
"There's a whole barn full of horses. Since Hoss is going to drive the sled, maybe he'll let you ride Chub."
Hoss heard the conversation and said, "Shore Adam. You can ride ol' Chubby ifn ya want to. He won't mind."
"Alright Squirt. You can ride Sport but you have to saddle him." He saddled Chub and led him outside to where everyone else was waiting and waited for Cat to come and ask for help.
Cat sighed. Sport was one of the tallest horses on the Ponderosa. She put his bridle and saddle blanket on him. Then she got four crates, stacked them in pairs, put the saddle on top of one set and climbed up on the other. The saddle was heavier than she was used to, so when she picked it up off the crates, she lost her balance and fell. Everyone heard the crash and ran into the barn where they found Cat lying in Sport's stall with two crates and a saddle on top of her. Hoss reached her first, picked her up, hugged her and asked, "Are you hurt? What were ya trying ta do Punkin? Ya could have been hurt bad."
"Adam said if I wanted to ride Sport, I had to saddle him so that's what I was trying to do."
"Why didn't you ask for help?" asked Joe. "Any one of us would have saddled Sport for you."
"She doesn't ask for help," answered Matt. "She's been like that for as long as I can remember. It doesn't matter if something is too difficult for her, Cat will try and do it herself first."
"Adam said I had to saddle him if I wanted to ride him so I was trying to saddle him."
"I expected you to come and ask me to help you Cat," said Adam. "I knew he was too big for you to saddle by yourself right now so I was waiting for you to ask for help. I never expected you to try and do what you did. You could have been seriously hurt. We keep trying to tell you that family members help each other and you need to ask for help when you need it instead of trying to do everything yourself. Hoss, please put little sister on my shoulders and hand her the saddle. Alright Cat, now put the saddle on Sport's back." Once Cat was back on the ground, he said, "Ok. The saddle is on him. Now you need to cinch it up." The visiting family members chuckled as Cat crawled under Sport's belly, grabbed the cinch strap and crawled back. After Cat cinched the saddle, Adam checked it and said, "You're getting much better at getting the cinch tight. It was only a little loose. Take him outside and mount up so I can adjust the stirrups for you and don't even think about trying to do it yourself while you're in the saddle. You almost fell off the last time you did that."
While they were on the way to the bull's pasture, Rip and Matt told Ben they would talk to Cat about asking for help when she needed it instead of trying to do everything herself. When they reached the pasture, Ben said, "You kids have fifteen minutes and then we need to go and get our Christmas tree." The Barkleys were amazed to see a four thousand pound bull cavort like a calf around the children. He enjoyed being brushed by them and took the offered carrots and lettuce as gentle as a lamb. "Alright children. Time is up. We need to go now." All of the children but Cat left the pasture. Matt started to call her but Ben said, "She'll be here in a minute. Watch and see what she does." Cat told Sampson she loved him. Then she hugged and kissed him before leaving the pasture.
Heath looked at his brother and said, "I've never seen anything like that before Jarrod. I'd swear that bull blushed when our little cousin kissed him."
"Anything is possible Heath. One thing is for sure, she's got Hoss' knack with animals. Fury follows her around like a puppy and a four thousand pound bull acts like a calf around her."
"Yes, but one thing she doesn't have is common sense. She could have been badly injured standing on those crates trying to saddle Adam's horse."
Jarrod laughed. "She's nine Heath. How much common sense did you have when you were nine? I'll have to ask Mother, but I don't think I had much and I know Nick, Eugene and Audra didn't have much either."
"You didn't have a lot of common sense when you were nine Jarrod," said Victoria, joining her sons. "I seem to remember almost having a heart attack when you tried to slide down the banister head first. You also tried saddling your father's horse while standing on your horse's back." Heath laughed at the descriptions of things Jarrod had done as a boy.
When they reached a good spot to cut down a tree, Ben said, "It has been a tradition that the youngest member in our family picks out the Christmas tree. Adam did it until Hoss was old enough to do it. He did it until Joe was old enough and now it's Cat's turn. Pick out a good one Sweetheart and remember, it has to be at least as tall as if all three of your brothers were standing on each other's shoulders."
Cat looked at her brothers and all of the trees and asked, "Hoss, would you please walk around with Adam and Joe on your shoulders so I know how big a tree to pick out?"
"Sorry Punkin. I ain't gonna do that, but if you pick out a tree, we'll tell ya ifn it's too tall or too short."
It took a while but Cat finally found the perfect tree. She wanted to help cut it down but Ben said no because she might get hurt. "Why not? I helped Mr. Will cut down a bigger tree when Adam took me to the lumber camp and I didn't get hurt. He even told you so." Ben sighed and realizing she was right, gave her permission to help.
Once again, Cat had trouble using the two person saw so Adam helped her. When the tree was nearly sawed through, he said, "Ok Cat. It's time for you to go over by the others."
After the tree had been loaded on the sled and everyone was on the way back to the house, Jarrod and Heath rode up to Adam and Heath said, "I'm surprised Cat didn't argue when you told her to come over by everyone else."
"I took her up to the lumber camp one day. Before we got there, I explained the rules for being in the camp and told her that they were for safety. Once she understood that the rules were meant to keep everyone safe, she did her best to follow them. I made her Bull of the Woods and she did a great job. She treated all of the men with respect, asked questions about things she didn't understand and asked permission before trying anything. She wanted to help cut down a tree, the foreman agreed and put her with his best man. She tried her best but the two person saw was too much for her so I helped her. I explained that once the tree was almost ready to fall, she would have to stand by the others because it could fall the wrong way and hurt or kill her. On the way home, I asked her to promise me that she would never go up there alone unless it was an emergency or one of us told her to. I explained it in terms of safety and she promised."
When everyone arrived back at the house, Cat watched in amazement as Joe cut a cross ways slit in the bottom of the tree. "Why are you doing that?"
"Because the tree needs to drink water so it won't dry out right away. It gets very hot in the house and without water, the tree would dry out and could catch fire. We have a special bucket Hoss made for us to use. We put the tree in it, clamp it so it won't move and fill the bucket with water."
With so many people helping, the tree was decorated in no time at all and Ben told Cat it was her job to put the angel on top of it. "Why didn't you tell me before we put all of the decorations on it Pa? I could have climbed it then. I don't know how I'm going to put the angel up there now. If I try to climb the tree, all of the decorations will fall off."
"Yore not gonna climb the tree Punkin," said Hoss. "We're gonna go up on the stairs and yore gonna stand on my shoulders and put the angel on that way."
"But I'll fall off and get in trouble for breaking the tree."
"No you won't. Adam and Joe are gonna help me hang onto ya so ya won't fall. And Pa will be right behind ya in case ya fall backwards."
"I'll be too high for anyone to hold onto me. Maybe I can get into the middle of the tree from underneath and climb it that way."
"It's alright Punkin. We've done this with Joe ever since he was little and he never fell. It's yore turn now. If it'll make ya feel better, Matt and Rip can help hold ya too."
"Did you really put the angel on the tree that way Joe?"
"Yes Cat. I even did it last year but as Hoss said, you're the youngest so it's your job now. I never fell and neither will you."
"Ok. If you're sure."
"I'm sure. Now go up on the stairs with Hoss. Climb on his shoulders and we'll help you stand on them. Don't worry. You'll be fine."
"Ok but next time, I'm going to climb the tree before we decorate it or maybe I'll put the angel on it before you stand it up." With five adults holding her, Cat put the angel on top of the tree and was hugged by all of the adults.
After dinner, Adam said, "Come on kids. We've got to leave for town now. Since Laura and Mary aren't used to riding, we'll take the surrey."
"Where are they going?" asked Victoria.
"They have to go to town and practice for the Christmas play tomorrow night," replied Ben.
"Why does Adam need to go and practice a children's play?"
"You'll find out why tomorrow night. Get your hat, coat, and gloves. I'll hitch up the buggy and take you to see Dr. Martin."
Paul was busy with another patient when they got to his office, so Ben and Victoria walked over to get the mail. Ben laughed when he was told that Cat had already picked it up. "I should have figured Cat would get the mail when they came to town. I don't want to interrupt the rehearsal so I'll just have to wait until she gets home before I get the mail."
"Why do you allow a nine year old to get your mail?"
"Cat had three jobs when she lived in Dodge and saved most of the money to buy birthday and Christmas gifts for Matt. We live too far from town for her to do anything here so I pay her to get the mail, weed the garden and help clean tack."
"What kind of jobs could a young child possibly have?"
"She took telegrams to the farms and ranches outside of Dodge, caught fish and sold them to the hotel restaurant and helped the blacksmith with unruly horses. As you saw with the bull this morning, she has quite a way with animals. When we were in Dodge last summer, one couple gave her a silver dollar, a piece of pie, ice cream, and fresh lemonade because the telegram she brought them contained good news."
"I suppose she spent the silver dollar."
"No. Actually, she was afraid Adam would take it away from her so she gave it to Matt to put in his safe. She said she wants to keep it forever. Let's go and see if Paul is ready for you yet."
Paul gave Victoria a thorough exam and looked at some of her blood under his microscope. "Mrs. Barkley, you have a condition called anemia. Basically, it is a lack of iron in your blood. That is why you are so tired all the time. I'm going to give you a list of foods that are high in iron and I want you to eat at least three items on that list twice a week or more. Also, you are very pale and need to spend at least ten minutes a day outside in the sunshine. Doing so will also help your fatigue. People, especially women, tend to spend too much time indoors at this time of year because of the cold and snow. Your body needs the sun just like it needs iron. Too much sun is not good for anybody but spending ten to fifteen minutes a day in it will do wonders for your health. If you follow my instructions, you will start feeling better in no time at all. I also want you to be rechecked by your doctor in three months to make sure you are continuing to improve."
On the way back to the Ponderosa, Ben said, "I hope you don't mind, but I need to stop at the children's houses to get their church clothes for tomorrow. The boys will go home with their families after church and the rest of the Ingalls family will be coming to the Ponderosa. The Kings, Devlins, Joshua, and Thaddeus will be joining us for Christmas dinner."
"That's a lot of people for dinner Ben. Will Hop Sing be able to cook that much food all at once?"
"He's going to make two turkeys, vegetables, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and gravy. Caroline Ingalls is making the pies. Betsy King is making a turkey and biscuits while Mary Devlin is making a turkey and sweet potatoes."
"Why are we having two kinds of potatoes?"
"Because Cat can't eat sweet potatoes. They make her sick to her stomach. Matt, Rip, and Kitty all told me the same thing and I witnessed it for myself shortly after bringing her home from Dodge. I would be a very poor parent if I forced one of my children to eat a food that made them sick."
Since Adam and the children arrived in town before the play rehearsal was supposed to begin, Cat ran over to the post office and got the mail and then went to the newspaper office and got a copy of it. She gave the newspaper and mail to Adam, keeping one envelope for herself. She showed it to Adam and said, "Look Adam. I got a letter from Uncle Sam and Aunt Julia. I wish they were here too."
"I know you do Cat but they have their own children and need to spend Christmas with them."
"I know, but I wish they could be here and there at the same time."
"You are silly. Nobody can be in two places at the same time. I think Mrs. Michaels is getting ready to start the rehearsal because Reverend and Mrs. Long just got here so you need to go up front with the other children. Mark, you may sit wherever you like. I need to sit in the front row."
Mark decided to sit with Adam and as the three of them walked up to the front, Reverend Long asked, "Cat, will your dogs listen to anyone besides you?"
"They will if I tell them to."
"Excellent. Jasper, Michael, and Mitchell are going to be the shepherds and I would like your dogs to be with them. I have arranged to borrow two sheep for tomorrow night and since even back in Biblical times, shepherds had dogs, I would like your dogs to be sheep dogs for our play." Adam made a funny face when Reverend Long said there were going to be sheep in the church for the play. "Yes Adam, I know how cattlemen feel about sheep, but we need them for the play. These are somebody's pets and their owner bathed them today so they won't smell." Adam wasn't convinced but didn't say anything.
"Ok. Lassie, Chief, stay with Mike and Jas and do what they say."
After the children sang Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Reverend Long said, "Adam, this is where I would like you and Cat to sing Angels We Have Heard On High." Adam walked up to the front of the church and Cat stood behind him, determined that nobody would laugh at her. "Cat, you have to stand next to Adam. Nobody can see you if you're behind him."
"I know. If nobody can see me, nobody will laugh at me."
"Nobody is going to laugh at you little sister," said Adam. "Pa and I already told you what Annabel, Billy, and Tommy's fathers said would happen if they misbehaved in church."
"Yeah, but someone else might laugh at me."
"Nobody will laugh at you," said Mrs. Long. "You have a very nice singing voice and I know you'll do well." Cat reluctantly stood next to Adam. Mrs. Long walked to the back of the church and said, "David, Cat needs to stand on a chair. Otherwise nobody will be able to see her."
"I can't climb up on a chair. I'll be wearing a dress."
"That's ok Cat," said Adam. "I'll pick you up and set you on the chair. You can put a hand on my shoulder to help keep you steady."
They practiced their song and Mrs. Long said, "That was beautiful. I love how you did each verse differently from the previous one and can't wait to hear what you are doing with O Holy Night."
After the last line in the play had been spoken, Reverend Long said, "Adam, Cat, this is where I would like you to sing O Holy Night." When they finished, he said, "That was very nice and I can't wait to hear how it sounds tomorrow night with a church full of people. Children, all of you did a great job. Thank you for coming here this afternoon and I'll see all of you tomorrow night."
a/n: The value of dietary iron has been known for centuries It is said that Persian physician Melampus in 4000 BC gave iron supplements to sailors who led in battle. In 1825, the red coloring matter of blood was reported to have an iron content of 0.35% a value very close to that calculated by modern methods. About the same time, anemia was recognized as being due to low levels of iron in the blood and as reduction in the number of red cells.