The next day, we got up to get ready for church.

My cell phone after I got dressed as I answered.

"Hello," I said.

"Hi, we're going to have pizza before I leave for the Arnolds. Want to join us?" asked Kayla.

"Sure, I can go to your house after mass," I said.

"Okay. I'll order it and it will be ready before 11:30 am," said Kayla.

"Alright. They know I can't join them for lunch," I said.

Then, I finished getting ready and we left for church.

After mass, Dad said, "You have a little time to eat with us."

"It's only 11:00 am," said Dawn.

"I would like to, but you can go without me. Kayla called me this morning and we're having pizza in 30 minutes before she leaves for the Arnolds," I said.

"That's fine by me," said Dad. "I'll bring you to their house now then."

"Sounds good," I said.

"Want to get your house keys in case we're not home?" asked Dad.

"I'll be home after 5:00 pm," I replied.

"Okay," said Dad.

"But I might as well get them just in case," I said.

At home, Dad let me borrow his keys so I can get inside to get mine after I gave back them the keys.

"Thanks," I said.

"No problem, we'll see you later," said Dad as they left.

I went to get keys and left for next door after locking our front door. Pizza had just arrived.

"Perfect timing," said Kayla.

"Sweet," I said.

"Mom left us money for any orders," said Kayla.

"We can do this more often," I said.

"Yeah," said Kaylee.

"That would be fun," said Kayla. "Stacey knew I was giving her a break from the boys. She said she needed a break, she didn't mind you replacing her for the time being."

"Guys, pizza's here!" Kaylee called the crew.

They all came and sat down. The boys were fighting over a chair. I solved that issue.

"I'll sit there and separate both of you," I said.

I sat in the middle between them.

"No fair," said D.J.

"Yes, it is fair. You'll learn not to fight over a sit. Either sit or don't eat," I said. "Take your pick."

That made him listen. Mario listened better than D.J.

"That's right," said Kayla.

"Mom expects you both to be your best behavior or she will not let you come to New York City with us. She said so," said Kaylee. "We'll make you stay over at one of our sitter's houses. It won't be Mary Anne because she's coming with us. She fixes you both good."

"We're all in charge," I added. "Always remember that. You can make them stay with Kristy."

"That's a good idea if they don't behave by the time our parents come home," said Kayla.

"She can easily put you both on time out," I told the boys. "She doesn't put up with any fights, either."

After lunch, Kayla looked at her watch.

"Perfect timing, I might as well leave now," said Kayla.

"Good luck," I said.

"Thanks," said Kayla.

"In case you get lost, I'll give you the Arnolds' number," I said.

"Can you put it with the directions you gave me?" asked Kayla.

"Sure," I said.

Kayla gave me the paper and I put the number in the back.

"Thanks," said Kayla.

"Mallory is good with directions," I said. "She might be gone by now."

That was when she came over while the other kids helped Kaylee clean the table and the kitchen.

"Hi, Mal," I said.

"Hi, I'm here to get Kayla," said Mallory. "I came early."

"Oh, good," said Kayla.

"You can leave the directions here until you're done training," I suggested.

"That's a great idea. I don't want to lose them. Can you or Kaylee put in our room?" asked Kayla.

"Sure," I replied.

Then, she and Mallory left by 12:30 pm. When Kaylee was done, we went to her room to put the directions in a file organizer that they got in their room.

"We have names on there. We can both use it," said Kaylee. "We have a copy machine."

"That sounds like a good idea," I said.

She did it on both sides and put in their separate folders.

"Kayla won't mind in case I baby-sit for the Arnolds," said Kaylee. "I find it easier when we go with the other sitter."

"I know," I agreed.

"Oh, one more thing Kayla forgot to tell you, the boys are being punished while our parents are gone," said Kaylee.

"Is it for fighting?" I asked.

"Yes. They were fighting at their new school," replied Kaylee. "Well, they got punished for being suspended from school. They can't go back to school until Monday."

"Wow," I said.

"That's why she warned them about no trip," said Kaylee.

"That would teach them," I said. "What are the rules?"

"No TV, go to bed one hour early, no phone calls, and no leaving the house including outside. They don't have to be in their room unless they break a punishment rule," said Kaylee.

"Got it," I said. "What's the earliest bedtime on punishments?"

"8:00 pm," said Kaylee. "All that started Friday, I believe. They're grounded for a week unless they behave for us when our parents get back."

"They should get separate bedrooms," I said.

"I know, but they didn't have an issue sharing one like we mentioned before. Plus, the triplets and Mary Jane don't want to share a room with any of them. They're tired of hearing them," said Kaylee.

"I don't blame them," I said.

"It's funny that you mentioned it. Mom tried to get one of us to give up our room. We told her we'd think about it, but after a long of thinking and used pros and cons about sharing vs separate, Kayla and I choose not to separate at all. Pros on sharing is that: we love doing that too much," said Kaylee. "We don't want the boys, either. Plus, their rooms are messy. That's the cons about us if we ended up separate room. We told Mom we don't want the boys to trash our room and leave the mess. She knew why and she didn't blame us for that big reason."

"They should at least talk things out," I said.

"I agree with you. They tired us out," said Kaylee.

"I'm glad Kayla gave Stacey a break," I said.

"We're all glad when we told Stacey," said Kaylee.

"She doesn't need stress because of her diabetes," I said.

"She doesn't think she'd want to watch them anytime soon," said Kaylee.

"No one would," I said.

"Mario is willing to work things out, but D.J. don't want to bother," said Kaylee.

I heard the TV turned on.

"I'll go spy to make sure it's not the boys breaking the rule," I whispered.

"Good idea. If you do, shut it off," said Kaylee. "Mom said you can unplug if they broke the rule."

I went out. It was D.J. watching TV. I went there to shut it off and unplugged it from the back.

"Hey," said D.J.

"No hey about it. You know better. No TV and Kaylee said so. That would teach you not to fight in school," I said. "Your new school won't want either of you. They can kick you both out."

I took the remote.

"If you break another rule, you'll be on time-out," I warned him.

Kaylee came out from her room. "I'll take the crew outside and you can stay with the boys."

"Good idea," I said.

She gathered her other siblings and went outside with them. Mario came out and wanted to talk to D.J., but he won't listen.

"Give D.J. space. He's crabby," I said.

Mario obeys his rules more than D.J.

"If your space is messy, you can go clean it up," I said.

"Okay," said Mario.

An hour later, I saw D.J. on the phone. I took the phone and told someone he was talking to that he's being punished and he's not supposed to use the phone and hung up.

"Sit in that chair," I said. "You're on time out for the rest of the afternoon."

"No," said D.J.

"I said yes," I said. "I warned you. No more chances. I can tell your mom if she calls here and asked me."

That's what he finally listened.

"You don't hear Mario pouting," I said. "Take lessons from him. He listens to me."

Kaylee was still out with the crew when Kayla came home a few hours later.

"D.J. is on time out," I said. "He broke two rules. I gave him a warning. Since they share a room, I think him on time out is the best way to separate the boys when they fight."

"Good choice," said Kayla. "Thank you for handling them."

"Kaylee made a copy and she saved the directions and phone for herself," I said.

"I don't mind," said Kayla.

"She and the others are outside," I said. "She suggested I stay in here with the boys."

"Oh, good," said Kayla. "Mom said she'll pay you when she gets back."

"No rush," I said. "I unplugged the TV. Kaylee said your mom said it's okay to do it if the boys disobeyed no TV rule."

"Okay," said Kayla. "Mom said we can put the plug back in when they go bed. Kaylee and I have our own TV anyway in our room, but we don't let the boys use it when they're grounded."

"That's good," I said.

"Sorry if I forgot to tell you earlier," said Kayla.

"That's okay. I knew you were in a hurry. Kaylee took care of that," I said.

"Alright," said Kayla.

"How did you made out with Mallory?" I asked.

"Very good," said Kayla. "Mallory's mom called her at the Arnolds came home. She has to baby-sit her siblings tonight and she asked me if I can help her out. I said I would, so you can stay here while I'm gone until I get back."

"That's fine," I said. "What time?"

"In an hour until 9:00 pm. She spoke to her mom who will bring me home. It was a last minute plan," said Kayla. "Her parents are going out to a comedy and her mom realized that she forgot to call the club."

"That's okay," I said.

"I figured I'd come to tell you instead of calling you. She gave the directions to her house," said Kayla.

"I'll have to call home to tell Dad," I said. "Grandma Verna's visit can wait. She's here for a few days."

"Okay," said Kayla.

"I'll go call him on my cell in your room," I said.

"Go ahead while I go tell Kaylee," said Kayla.

"Deal," I said.

I went to her room and called home.

"Hello," said Dad who answered.

"Hi, Dad," I said.

"Hi, honey, what's up?" asked Dad.

"Kayla asked me to stay because she just found out about helping Mallory with her siblings. I won't be home for dinner and I won't be home until after 9:00 pm when she comes home," I said. "She'll be leaving in an hour, so I might as well instead of going back and forth."

"Okay, that's fine," said Dad. "I'll let the others know."

"The boys got suspended from their new school for fighting and are punished for a week. Mario is good for me, but D.J. disobeyed twice, so I put him on time out. I didn't want him in the room because they share a room."

"That's the best thing. If you need my help, I can come over," said Dad.

"I'll be all set," I said.

"Okay. Call me if you do," said Dad.

"Thanks for the offer," I said. "I hate to do it while Grandma's down, but I have no choice. She's only here for a few days."

"That's true. Helping Kaylee is important," said Dad.

"Should I bring my keys back home since you'll be around?" I asked.

"Sure. I can come by to get them," said Dad.

"Sounds good," I said.

"We'll be home for dinner anyway," said Dad.

After we finished talking, I went back out.

"All set," I said.

"Oh, good," said Kayla. "Kaylee doesn't mind you staying here."

"Especially for the boys," I said.

"Exactly," said Kayla.

"Dad's coming over so I can give him back my keys," I said.

I saw him as I grabbed my keys to give it back to him.

"I told Mary Anne if she needs me, she can call me," Dad told Kayla.

"Okay," said Kayla. "She fixes the boys good."

"Like they were fighting over a chair, so I sat in the middle to separate them," I said.

"Good," said Dad.

"I'll see you tonight," I said as I kissed him.

"Bye, sweetie," said Dad as he went back home.

"There, that's done," I said.

"That saved you a trip," said Kayla.

"I know," I said.

"Kaylee said pizza from lunch is in the fridge. You guys can finish it for dinner," said Kayla.

"I find Mario don't give me trouble like D.J. does," I said.

"He's like that with us, too," said Kayla.

Then, I heard a noise. Mario came running to us crying.

"What happened?" I asked him.

"D.J. just hit me," said Mario.

Kayla saw a bruise on his arm.

"I didn't do anything to him," said Mario.

"Was he still on time out?" I asked.

"No. He randomly came in our room while I was cleaning my part of my room and slapped me for getting him in trouble," said Mario.

"Fighting got you both in trouble, not just him," I said.

"Derek James, come here right now," said Kayla in her angry voice.

D.J. came over.

"Why did you hit your brother? You know better," said Kayla. "You don't hit anyone."

"And, who told you to get out of time out? Go sit back in that chair and I'm going to tell your mom what you did," I said.

He did while he was stomping. Kayla went to get an icepack for Mario to put it on his arm.

"You can go finish cleaning your room after dinner," I said.

"I'm going to leave early. She told me she and Stacey are neighbors," said Kayla.

"Yes," I said.

Kayla left. Kaylee came back in with the others.

"What happened?" asked Kaylee.

"D.J. left his time out space and went to hit Mario," I said. "Kayla fixed him good. So did I since he knows I didn't tell him he can leave."

"Wow," said Kaylee.

"I already told him I'm telling his mom, too," I said.

"She'll have a long talk with him. When our parents are working, I wait until they get home to give them any details. But we tell them on the phone while they're on vacation," said Kaylee. "I'll let you tell her about what happen if she calls."

"Good thought," I said.

The phone rang.

"That's probably her," said Kaylee as she went to answer. "Hello."

"Hi, hon," said Mrs. Willis.

"Hi, Mom," said Kayla.

"Is Mary Anne still with you?" asked Mrs. Willis.

"Yes, Kayla had just left. She was asked to help Mallory with her siblings. Mrs. Pike forgot to call the club to tell us she and her husband are going to a comedy show," said Kaylee. "She'll be back after 9:00 pm."

"Okay. We just came back from the wake," said Mrs. Willis. "Are the boys behaving?"

"Want to talk to Mary Anne?" asked Kaylee. "I told her I'd let her tell you."

"Okay," said Mrs. Willis.

Kaylee gave me the phone.

"I'll have the others help set the table while you talk to Mom and keep D.J. with you," said Kaylee.

"Okay," I said.

That was when I told her mom about what happened.

"I told D.J. who asked him to get out of time out," I said.

"That's right," said Mrs. Willis.

"So I sent him back on that chair. I didn't dare to put the boys together," I said.

"I don't blame you for not taking that risk. Putting him on chair is fine," said Mrs. Willis. "Thank you for telling me. Tell him he's not coming to New York with us when we go for hitting Mario. We'll take Mario with us."

"I will," I said. "Kayla gave him an icepack before she left."

"Oh, good. You girls handled the situation very well," said Mrs. Willis.

"Dad knew I would be here. He told me I can call him if I need him," I said.

"That was nice of him to offer if you needed him," said Mrs. Willis.

"I had a sitter in mind for D.J. Kristy can handle those problems and puts the fighters on time out, too," I said.

"Oh, good, you can give me her number when I see you when I get home tomorrow," said Mrs. Willis.

"Sounds good," I said.

After we talked, I went to D.J.

"Your mom is very mad at you for what you did and she said you're not going to New York. That's your punishment," I said.

"But..," started D.J.

"No buts," I cut him off. "You shouldn't have done that in the first place."

"Mary Anne, D.J., pizza's ready," said Kaylee.

"I'm not hungry," said D.J.

"Fine, go get ready for bed then," said Kaylee.

He took off while we went to eat.

"D.J. is cranky because he's not going to New York for what he did according to your mom," I said.

"Good," said Kaylee.

"I told your mom about Kristy and asked me to give me her number when she sees me when she gets home tomorrow," I said.

"Since she and Dad might be home late tomorrow, write out Kristy's number," said Kaylee.

Why didn't I think of that?

"Remind me to do that before I leave for home," I said.

"Okay," said Kaylee.

"As matter of fact, I'll do that after dinner," I said.

"Sounds good," said Kaylee.

After dinner, Mario helped clean up.

"Why don't you get ready for bed now?" I asked.

"I'm scared to go near D.J. while doing that," said Mario.

Then, Kaylee came up with an idea.

"I'll go get your pjs and you can change up in my room," said Kaylee as she went to get them.

"Can I stay in your room tonight?" asked Mario.

"Sure, I'll get your sleeping bag," said Kaylee. "I'll let Kayla know when she comes home."

Kaylee left to get his pjs.

"I would like to move my bed to the girls' room. Even though we have no issues sharing my room, I'm unhappy about it because of D.J.," said Mario.

"Which room is bigger?" I asked.

"Mine, theirs is too small," said Mario.

"Talk to your mom and see what she says," I said.

"Can you help tell her?" asked Mario.

"Sure," I said. "How about I call her now and you can talk to her on the phone? She'll make a rule an exception. I'll talk to Kaylee first."

"Okay," said Mario.

Kaylee came back out with his things.

"Here you go," said Kaylee.

"Thanks," said Mario.

Mario left to put his pjs on.

"Mario wants to move in your room because of D.J., but he knows your room is a bit small," I said.

"Well, it is big enough for a bunk bed," said Kaylee.

"He wants to be happy about his decision. He keeps his side cleaner than D.J.," I said.

"If that's the case, it's fine with me if he wants to move in our room. Kayla probably won't mind," said Kaylee. "Your suggestion is better than Mom's."

"It's better than separating you girls since you enjoy that," I said.

"I know," said Kaylee.

"Should we call your mom? Mario wants to talk to her about it. I said she'll make that rule an exceptional," I said.

"Okay," said Kaylee.

She went to the phone to call her mom who answered.

"Sorry about bothering you, but Mario wants to talk to you about something," said Kaylee.

"That's okay. Where is he?" asked her mom.

"He's changing in my room. He requested to sleep with me and Kayla in our room. He was scared to go near D.J.," said Kaylee.

"I understand," said Mrs. Willis.

"I'll go bring the phone to him," said Kaylee as she went to give Mario the phone and came back out. "Sharing that room is no issue. We can use a bunk bed and Mario can have our bed with his other comforter."

"How about for his clothes?" I asked.

"It's a walk in closet," said Kaylee. "Kayla and I can work out on a plan."

Mario came out.

"Mom said it's fine for me to move in your room," said Mario. "She didn't blame me for leaving D.J."

"I don't either," said Kaylee. "Kayla and I can talk about where you can put your clothes."

"Okay. She just took off my punishment early for good behavior, but she said D.J. will still be punished for hitting me," said Mario. "I can go back to my regular bedtime."

"Good. I have no problem with you," I said. "You can set a good example for him."

At 8:00 pm, Mario made off he went to bed in the girls' room until I told D.J. it was time for bed.

"How about Mario?" asked D.J.

"Never mind him. And, he wants nothing to do with you because of what you did," I said.

I didn't tell him Mario got off punishment early because he might get jealous. Kaylee noticed that and thought I made the right move. When D.J. went to bed, Kaylee gave Mario to watch TV in the living room.

"Mom said I can do that, too, anyway," said Mario.

"Good, I'll go plug it back in. You can go watch it until bedtime," said Kaylee as she went to do that.

"Okay," said Mario.

"What time does he go to bed on school nights?" I asked.

"9:00 pm," replied Kaylee.

At 8:50 pm, Mario went to get ready for bed ten minutes early. 30 minutes later, Kayla came home.

"Honey, I'm home," teased Kayla.

We giggled.

"How's Mario?" asked Kayla.

"Better, but he's afraid to go near D.J.," I said.

"I would be, too," said Kayla.

"I told your mom after you left and he's not coming to New York with us," I said.

"That would teach him not to hit people," said Kayla.

Kaylee came out and said, "Mario requested to move in with our room. Mom said it's fine with her."

"I don't mind. He's making the right choice," said Kayla.

"Oh, D.J. has no idea that Mario got off from punishment for being good," I whispered.

"Okay," said Kayla.

"But D.J. is still punished though for what he did," I said.

"Good," said Kayla. "Thank you for staying."

"No problem," I said. "Oh, I'm going to write down Kristy's number before I forget. I was focused on the boys more than anything."

"That's alright," said Kayla. "I'm going to call Mom to tell her I'm home now."

"Okay," I said.

Kayla went to the phone while I wrote Kristy's number. I left it near the phone. She had just gotten off the phone with her mom.

"All set," said Kayla. "I didn't want her think I didn't call her."

"I'll see you tomorrow," I said.

"Bye, and thanks again," said Kayla.

"Yeah, double thanks," said Kaylee.

I laughed and went home.

"Hi," said Dad.

"Hi, I'm going to change up and I'll be right down in a minute," I said.

"Take your time," said Dad.

I went to put my nightgown before I came back down to Dad.

"I bet you're tired out," said Dad.

"Not really," I said. "D.J. was getting in bigger trouble. He got out of his time out and hit Mario not long after you left and before Kayla did. I sent him back on the chair."

"Good," said Dad.

"Mrs. Willis is not letting him come to New York City when we go, he'll be staying with Kristy," I said.

"That would give you a weekend break," said Dad.

"I know. She talked to me on the phone when she called to see if the boys behaved," I said. "Mario got excused from his punishment tonight while D.J. didn't."

"That would teach him," said Dad.

"And, since they share a room, Mario is moving out of there and will be moving in the girls' room. The girls didn't mind at all," I said. "In fact, that was my idea. Mario agreed with me. He wants to be happy."

"Good," said Dad.

"Your father told me you wouldn't be around until now," said Grandma Verna.

"Yeah, Kayla asked me to stay with Kaylee while she's helping Mallory with her siblings. Mrs. Pike forgot to tell her daughter about a show they were going to," I said.

"That's okay. It happens," said Dad.

"I have no trouble with Mario at all. He wanted to talk things out with D.J., who is not interested to do so," I said.

"D.J. should've done that," said Dad.

"I know, after what happen, Mario was too scared to go near his twin," I said.

"I bet," said Dad.

After a long talk, I said, "I think I'll go bed especially for school. I'm getting tired after a long day."

"Okay. Good night, honey," said Dad.

"Night," said Grandma Verna. "I'll be up soon."

"I'll probably be sleeping when you come up," I said.

I gone off to bed after I brushed my teeth. Grandma Verna came to bed at 11:30 pm while I was sleeping.