AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sally woke Jessica up just as the sky was starting to turn pink with the sunrise. Jessica changed the baby, talking to her soothingly. Then she carried her downstairs and warmed up a bottle for her.
Thankfully, Sally could hold her own bottle when she wanted to, and she sat in her highchair drinking her bottle while Jessica put breakfast on the stove. In addition to the ham, eggs, and potatoes, she made some biscuits and a bit of country gravy to eat over them. Her mother had been raised in the south, and it wasn’t unusual for her to serve country gravy with biscuits for breakfast.
She heard the other children waking, and they slowly went downstairs. When she spotted Nancy, she asked, “Would you please pull all of the sheets and blankets off the beds? We need to get them nice and clean for winter.”
Nancy reluctantly went upstairs to do as she was asked. Jessica would have given the boys the task, as she had no problem with boys doing women’s work, but they were a bit too young to be helpful.
Instead, she gave Bertie the task of setting the table, and Joe the task of watching his baby sister while she drank her bottle.
George came in as she was putting breakfast on the table, and he looked surprised to see Nancy come down the stairs with an armful of bedding. “Good,” was all he said, but Jessica understood that he agreed that Nancy should be doing chores to help the family.
Before they ate, all of them bowed their heads, and George gave a simple blessing over their meal. Jessica was thrilled that he’d done it without even being asked.
“What are you going to do today?” Jessica asked.
George gave her a look that seemed almost frightened. “I did the morning milking already. I’ll head over to Kaltenberg’s today to make a deal with them for some of their corn to feed the cows for the winter. I need to sell the steer we have, so I’ll ride into town to see when they’re doing the next cattle auction. Lots to do. We need to let the cows graze for as long as they can because they’ll be in the barn all winter.”
It was a veritable speech coming from George, and Jessica treasured each word. “I’m planning on getting the laundry done today and baking enough bread for two days, so I will be able to clean most of the day tomorrow.”
He nodded, saying nothing else.
Soon, he was off to work, and she was fixing lunches for the children, giving them ham sandwiches on biscuits instead of bread. She really needed to get that baking done, but laundry had to come first.
When the children headed off to school, she went through all the bedrooms upstairs and found every bit of dirty laundry that was hidden. Apparently, his mother had taken care of the children and maybe cooked from time to time, but she hadn’t bothered with any housework. She promised herself that if any of her children were ever in the same position George had been in, she would make a point of keeping everything clean.
Jessica ran around like a chicken with her head cut off most of the day. She beat out every mattress and washed all the laundry. She was counting on Nancy helping her with remaking the beds after school, but she knew the child wouldn’t be thrilled.
Shortly before noon, Mary Sue drove up in her husband’s wagon. “I brought you a couple of chickens for supper. I know the house is in bad shape, and I thought it would help a little.”
“Thank you!” Jessica said as she finished hanging a diaper on the line. “We will be very happy to have chicken for supper.”
Mary Sue got down from the wagon, seeming to have nothing she had to hurry to do. Instead, she picked up one of the diapers from the basket of clean laundry and hung it on the line. “I love the warm months when we can hang the clothes outside and don’t have to hang them in the basement. Don’t you?”
Jessica nodded, thrilled someone was willing to help. She had put Joe and Sally on a blanket together, and Joe was building with blocks while Sally tried her hardest to get up on her hands and knees. “The little one will be crawling soon.”
“Do you feel like you’re racing time to clean everything before that happens?”
“I do. I wasn’t expecting everything to be in such bad shape when I arrived, I’m afraid.”
“I didn’t realize how bad it was until we were here yesterday. I wish Mother Fleming would have asked for help, at least when she knew you were coming.”
Jessica nodded. “I certainly understand she couldn’t do it all at her age, but the children have been living in filth. If naptime were just a little longer, I could get so much more done!”
Mary Sue looked at her. “I’ll help you get everything hung, and then, if you don’t mind, I’ll take care of the children this afternoon while you do the cooking and cleaning.”
“What about your cooking?” Jessica asked.
Mary Sue shrugged. “Maynard will understand if I tell him I’ve been helping you all day. I’ll talk him into taking me to the new diner in Deforest. Every time I’ve asked, he tells me I can cook, but if I haven’t had time to cook, he’ll take me.”
Jessica smiled. “I didn’t realize there was a diner so close.”
“They just opened last year, and I haven’t had a chance to eat there yet at all. Thanks for giving me an excuse that Maynard won’t reject.”
Jessica laughed. “I think we’re going to be friends.”
Mary Sue nodded. “I had six children but all were boys. I think I’ll adopt you as my daughter and help where I can. My daughters-in-law don’t like me sticking my nose in.”
“I will be thrilled for the help. I know I can keep up once everything is in its place, but coming into this mess with children to mind as well is a bit overwhelming.”
