"Back to School" (Conclusion)
The sun rose the next morning promising a beautiful day. Kitty walked to Ruby's bedroom and knelt down next to her bed. She gently shook Ruby's shoulder. "Rise 'n shine Miss First Grader. It's time to get up and get ready for your first day of school."
Ruby stretched, rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, and rolled over to face her momma. She started to panic when she didn't see her daddy. He had made a promise the other day that he would be there for her first day of school. "Where's daddy? He promised he wouldn't miss my first day."
"Calm down," Kitty soothed. "He's in the kitchen waiting for us to join him for breakfast. Let's get you ready for school, so we can join him."
"Oh good." Ruby was relieved. "I thought he forgot about my first day of school."
It did not take long for Kitty to get Ruby ready for school. When she was finished, Kitty escorted Ruby through the parlor. "Wait here," she instructed. Kitty opened the door that led to the kitchen and stepped inside. "Matt, I'd like to introduce you to our little first grader." Kitty motioned for Ruby to come into the kitchen. Ruby stepped into the kitchen.
A huge smile practically split Matt's face. His little girl was beautiful. "I don't think I've ever seen such a beautiful little first grader."
Matt lifted Ruby up and placed her on her chair. The trio ate a breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast, and a side meat. Kitty tucked a napkin down the front neckline of Ruby's dress. The last thing she wanted was for Ruby to stain her clothes before she even left for school. The family took their time eating. They didn't have to leave until half past eight. Right now it was a quarter until eight o'clock. When they finished eating, Kitty gathered the dishes and brought them to the basin. Before returning to the table, Kitty took Ruby's lunch pail off the counter and brought it with her.
"I packed your lunch for you this morning," Kitty told Ruby. "There's a ham and cheese sandwich and some carrot sticks. And because it's your first day of school, I packed you a cookie."
"Oh boy! A cookie!" Ruby excitedly exclaimed. "I wish everyday was my first day of school."
"It's almost time to leave," said Matt. "Let's get you washed up. After that you can use the bathroom and grab your knapsack, lunch pail, and water bottle."
At half past eight, the Dillons were in their wagon and traveling towards town. Buck was tethered to the back. The plan was for Kitty to take the wagon back home. As she usually did, Ruby sat between her parents. Her knapsack, lunch pail, and water bottle were in the back. Ruby had been quiet during their trip. Matt and Kitty chalked it up to the first day of school nerves.
"Are you gonna come get me after I eat my lunch?" asked Ruby.
"Now that you're in first grade, you stay at school after you eat lunch," Kitty explained.
Ruby looked at her momma with wide eyes. She had forgotten that small fact. "What if I'm done eating and I miss you?"
"You might miss me, but then you'll remember how much fun you're having learning and you'll feel better," said Kitty, trying to calm her daughter's uneasiness.
"Are you gonna miss me?" Ruby inquired.
"I most certainly will," Kitty replied.
"Then maybe I should stay home, or you should get me after lunch" Ruby offered. "That way you won't miss me."
"I'm sure your momma is gonna miss you," Matt spoke up. "But she also wants you to go to school and learn all sorts of things. We both do."
"Your daddy's right," said Kitty. "You have nothing to worry about. You are going to have so much fun in school that the day will fly by."
Approaching town, Matt saw Doc, Festus, and Newly standing in front of Delmonico's. "Look up there," he pointed out. "It looks like your grandpa and uncles are waiting to greet you. They probably want to wish you good luck on your first day of school." Ruby smiled at the three men and waved. When Matt pulled up next to Delmonico's, he tugged back on the reins and brought the horses to a halt.
"Hello, gentlemen," Ruby acknowledged.
Doc tugged at his ear, swiped at his upper lip, and glanced over at Festus. "Are you sure you're talking to all three of us?"
Festus knew Doc's question was referring to him. "Why you ol' scudder you. I'm jest as much a gentleman as you 'n Newly."
"The day you're as much of a gentleman as…" Doc started to say.
Sensing a classic Doc and Festus bickering session about to start, Newly spoke up. "Miss Ruby, you look so pretty. I hope you have a great first day of school."
Doc and Festus quickly remembered why they were standing there. "You most certainly do, darlin'. I also hope you have a great first day of school," said Doc.
"Yup, tater bug. I reckon you's gonna be the purdiest girl at school," Festus added.
Doc reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small box and handed it to Ruby. "Here, darlin'. We got you a little something to celebrate your first day of school."
Ruby accepted the box. "Can I open it now?"
"Yes you may," Kitty permitted.
Ruby carefully lifted the top of the box off and revealed two satin ribbons inside. "Ooooh. Look at the pretty ribbons and there's two of them. Thank you!"
"Here, let momma tie them around your pigtails." Kitty took the ribbons out of the box and tied each one in a bow around each of Ruby's pigtails. "Those look so pretty in your hair." The others agreed.
"We don't want you to be late," said Matt. "We need ta get going."
Everyone bid their farewells and the Dillons continued on their way to the schoolhouse. Up ahead they spotted Mrs. Stollman and Toby. Ruby mumbled something, but Matt and Kitty weren't quite sure what was said. They both decided it would be best not to make a big deal out of it. Ruby's attitude changed when she saw Mary and Rosie Ronniger being dropped off with their older siblings.
"Today is Rosie's first day of kindergarten," Ruby stated. "Do you think she has butterflies in her tummy?"
"She might," Kitty replied. "But I'm sure you and Mary will help her."
"Here we are," Matt announced. He set the brake and hopped down. "I'll get your things, while you give your momma a hug 'n kiss goodbye."
Ruby turned to her momma and gave her a big hug and a kiss on her cheek. "Bye, momma. Don't forget to pick me up."
Kitty returned the hug and kiss. "I won't forget. If you have a good day, we can have some ice cream at Delmonico's after school."
Ruby perked up. "Can daddy come too?"
"I'm sorry, but I won't be able to," Matt apologized. "I have to ride out to Fort Dodge this afternoon, but you can tell me all about your first day at supper tonight. Let's get you down, so you can go to school." Matt lifted Ruby off the seat and gave her a hug and a kiss. After receiving a hug and kiss from Ruby, Matt set her down on the ground and handed her the knapsack, lunch pail, and water bottle.
"Ruby!" Mary called. "Come on!"
"Bye daddy and momma!" Ruby called as she ran towards Mary and Rosie.
Before leaving the school yard, Matt and Kitty watched Ruby scamper off towards Mary and Rosie. They were hopeful the way Ruby ran towards the Ronniger girls was a good indication that she would have a good first day. For the first minute after leaving the school, Matt and Kitty rode in silence. It was Kitty who broke the silence that enveloped them.
"I think this first day of school was harder than last year," said Kitty as she stared straight ahead.
"I suppose, but she'll be fine," Matt assured his wife.
"I was talking about me," Kitty quietly admitted.
Matt turned and looked at Kitty, his eyebrows knitted in confusion. "You?"
Kitty took a deep breath before giving Matt an explanation. "When Ruby was in school last year, it was hard because our baby was starting school, but knowing she'd be home in the afternoon made things better. Now she's in school full time, and I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I know I can work more in the office at the Long Branch and do some deep cleaning at home, but there's only so much cleaning that needs to be done. To be honest, I guess I never really planned for this. If we would've had more kids, I would be busy with them." Matt turned the wagon down a side street. "Where are you going? Town is that way."
"I know where town is," said Matt. He drove the wagon a short ways down the side street and stopped. "But I think we need to talk. Do you regret not adopting? If you want to adopt a baby, we can. We're in our thirties, still fairly young."
"True," Kitty confirmed. "But I don't know if I want an infant. It's been over five years since midnight feedings and four years since diaper changes. I don't think I want to do that again. Plus the age difference between a baby and Ruby would be over six years."
"If we still could have our own babies and you found out you were pregnant, would you feel the same way?" asked Matt.
"Of course not." Kitty quickly answered. "If we still could have babies, there wouldn't be six years between them. When I was pregnant with Ruby, I was already planning on having the next baby two or three years from then."
Matt's heart was breaking for Kitty. He didn't realize how much she had planned out their family. "Kitty, we do have a wonderful, little family."
"Oh Matt, I know that," Kitty emphasized. "You and Ruby are my everything."
"If you don't want to adopt an infant, maybe we can adopt a young child a few years younger than Ruby," Matt suggested. "You said you planned on having kids a few years apart."
"We can't go and adopt a child just because I don't have a plan of what I'm going to do set in stone," Kitty pointed out. "Besides I wouldn't want Ruby to think we're adopting a child to replace her while she's at school."
"Do you think she would think that?" asked Matt.
"You'd be surprised what children think," Kitty replied. "I'm glad we had this talk. Maybe adoption is in our future, but not now. It's getting late. I'm sure Festus is wondering where you are."
"Yeah," said Matt as he steered the wagon back to the main road and headed towards town. Five minutes later they were in front of the jail. Matt handed Kitty the reins, climbed down, and untied Buck from the back. "Are you going over to the Long Branch?"
"Yes. I do need to put an order in for more whiskey. Hannah said we were getting low. Taking inventory and placing an order will take close to an hour. I'll do that this morning and then go home. There are breakfast dishes waiting in the sink. I could always take up dealing again at the Long Branch." Kitty waited for Matt's response.
"Kitty, don't even think about it," Matt warned. "You know I don't want you dealing. You made a promise not to."
"Matt, I'm just teasing. I won't ever deal again," Kitty vowed.
"Mmmhmmm," said Matt. "But for old time's sake, we could meet every now and then for a drink at the Long Branch, maybe even relive the magic in your old room."
"You know, Cowboy. Ruby being in school all day might not be a bad thing after all," Kitty smiled.
Matt returned the smile. "I'll see ya later, Kitty."
Kitty shook her head. "Too bad you're going to Fort Dodge."
"Dang," Matt mumbled. "Tonight."
"Tonight," Kitty agreed.
They said their goodbyes and parted ways. Kitty did her business at the Long Branch and visited with Sam and Hannah for a bit before heading home. She unhitched the team of horses and set them loose in the corral. There was no need to keep them hitched to the wagon. Kitty planned on using the buggy to retrieve Ruby from school. Using her key, Kitty unlocked the back door and immediately set to work cleaning the dishes. Her next task was making the beds.
Walking through the parlor, Kitty saw Ruby's memory book sitting on the desk. Bed making could wait. Kitty wanted to start her entry on Ruby's first day of first grade. She wouldn't be able to write the entire entry. Kitty would have to wait and ask Ruby what kind of day she had and write that down. Kitty wrote as much as she could, and then went to make the beds.
Before Kitty knew it, the time had come to pick up Ruby. School was dismissed at two o'clock and it was already half past one. Kitty went outside and hitched Buttercup to the buggy. With Buttercup all set, Kitty drove the buggy to the school. When she arrived, there were a few wagons with mothers waiting for their children. One wagon had the eldest Ronniger child. Bess must've sent her to pick up the Ronniger children.
Several minutes later the doors burst open and kids came running out of school. Ruby was running with Mary and Rosie. Kitty got out of the buggy and waited for Ruby. Ruby's eyes lit up when she saw her momma. She said goodbye to Mary and Rosie and hurried over to Kitty. Ruby couldn't wait to tell her momma about her day.
"Momma! I had the best first day of school!" Ruby excitedly exclaimed.
"Oh I'm so glad!" Kitty's enthusiasm matched her daughters. "That means we can have ice cream at Delmonico's."
"Momma, if I didn't have a good day, we still could've had ice cream. It would have made me feel better," Ruby pointed out.
"I can't argue with that," said Kitty.
She took Ruby's knapsack, lunch pail, and water bottle and put them on the floor of the buggy, while Ruby climbed in and sat down. Kitty joined Ruby and drove the buggy to Delmonico's. At Delmonico's Kitty ordered a scoop of ice cream for each of them and lovingly listened to her daughter's first day of school. Kitty was barely able to get a word in.
"I sit in the second row, behind the kindergartners. I sit behind a girl named Natalie. Miss Grey said first graders learn how to read and write and do 'rithetic. That's figuring. Maybe I can help you do figuring in your books," Ruby happily chatted.
"It's pronounced arithmetic, and we'll see about the figuring in my books," said Kitty.
Later that evening, the Dillons were seated around the supper table. Ruby was telling her daddy all about her day. Kitty had already heard the story, but that didn't matter. Hearing the joy in her daughter's voice was worth it. Just like Kitty at Delmonico's, Matt was barely able to get a word in. Also like Kitty, Matt lovingly listened to every word his daughter had to say.
The end of this story.