Growing Up in Lancaster County (18 page)

“At her house?” Rachel asked.

Mom nodded.

“Couldn’t Audra come over here? I don’t want to leave Cuddles.”

“Why not?”

Rachel reached for a piece of toast and slathered it with creamy peanut butter. “What if she has her
bopplin
[babies] while I’m gone? I should be here for that.”

Jacob, who sat beside Rachel, grunted and nudged her arm. “The cat doesn’t need you. She’ll do just fine on her own.”

“I understand why Rachel would want to be with Cuddles,” Grandpa said. “I remember when I was a boy and my dog was expecting pups.” He had a faraway look in his eyes. “I made sure I was there when Cindy’s pups were born.”

Mom patted Rachel’s hand. “If it’s all right with Audra’s mamm, Audra can spend the night here.”

“Oh good. Can I walk over there after breakfast and ask her?” Rachel asked.

“Jah, but not until all your chores are done,” Pap said.

Rachel nodded.

“This is so exciting!” Audra said as she and Rachel entered the tent Pap set up for them in the backyard on Friday evening. “It’s just like going camping; only we’re not in the woods.”

Rachel nodded. “It should be lots of fun.”

Rachel was about to crawl into her sleeping bag when Audra hollered, “Wait! You’d better not get in!”

“Look! There’s a big lump in there!”

Rachel studied her sleeping bag. Something was at the bottom of it! “Maybe it’s a
maus
[mouse],” she said.

Audra covered her mouth and squealed. “Ach, I hope not! I don’t like mice!”

“If it is a maus, I’d better let it out.” Rachel unzipped the sleeping bag and pulled it open. “
Was in der welt
[What in all the world]
?
” She slowly shook her head.

“Wh–what is it?” Audra’s voice trembled as she darted for the tent door.

“Look, it’s Cuddles. She had her busslin inside my sleeping bag!”

Audra crept back in and peered inside the sleeping bag. “You’re right!” Her eyes widened. “How many kittens do you think she has?”

Rachel studied the kittens. “I think I see six, but it’s hard to tell for sure.” She touched Audra’s arm. “Aren’t they tiny?”

Audra nodded. “Are you gonna leave them in the sleeping bag?”

“I don’t know. I think I’d better get Pap.” Rachel jumped up. “He’ll know what to do!”

Rachel and Audra scurried out of the tent. “Pap, come quick!” Rachel shouted as they ran into the house.

Pap, who was sitting beside Mom on the living room sofa, looked up from the newspaper he was reading and frowned. “What are you yelling about, Rachel? I thought you and Audra had gone to bed.”

“Cuddles had her busslin inside my sleeping bag!” Rachel dashed to the sofa. “Should I move them to the barn, Pap? Or leave them in the bag?”

“I’ll see about moving them tomorrow,” Pap said. “For tonight, I think it’s best that you and Audra sleep in your nice clean bed and let Cuddles alone with her kittens.”

“But what about our campout?” Rachel was glad the kittens had been born, but she was disappointed that she and Audra couldn’t sleep in the tent. “Audra and I were going to pretend we were camping in the woods. It was gonna be lots of fun.”

“You can have your backyard campout some other time,” Mom said. “Since your cat chose your sleeping bag to have her kittens in, you won’t be able to sleep in it until it’s been washed.”

“Okay, Mom.” Rachel grabbed Audra’s hand. “Let’s go to my room. We can pretend we’re camping there.”

Audra followed Rachel up the stairs. “I don’t see how we can pretend we’re camping when we have no tent,” she said when they entered Rachel’s room.

Rachel pointed to her bed. “We can sleep under there.”

Audra frowned. “You want to sleep on the floor under your bed?”

Rachel nodded. “One time, before my cousin Mary moved to Indiana, she and I slept under my bed because a bat got into the room and we were scared.”

Audra shivered. “I hope no bat gets in your room tonight. I’d really be scared!”

Rachel shook her head. “That won’t happen, because the window’s closed.” She grabbed a quilt and two pillows, shoved them under the bed, and crawled in behind them. “Are you coming?” she called to Audra.

Audra finally crawled in beside Rachel.

Rachel pulled the quilt around them and laid her head on a pillow.

“I didn’t get as good a look at the busslin as I wanted to,” Audra said, “but they looked like cute little things. Didn’t you think so?”

“Jah, but I think all baby animals are cute.” Rachel looked over at Audra. “Would you like to have a kitten when they’re old enough to leave their mamm?”

“That would be nice. I’ll have to ask my folks first, though.” Audra yawned. “I’m awful sleepy all of a sudden.
Gut nacht
[Good night], Rachel.”

“Gut nacht, Audra.” Rachel closed her eyes. Soon she was fast asleep, dreaming of campfires, toasted marshmallows, and cuddly kittens.

When Rachel awoke the following day, she forgot where she was, and—
whack!
—she bumped her head on the bed when she tried to sit up. “Ouch, that hurt!” Then she remembered that she and Audra had pretended they were camping last night and slept under her bed.

Rachel glanced at Audra. “Wake up sleepyhead,” she said, poking Audra’s arm.

Audra yawned and stretched her arms across the floor. “What time is it?”

“I don’t know, but there’s a ray of sun streaming through a hole in my window shade,” Rachel said. “Don’t sit up straight or you might bump your head like I did.”

“I’ll be careful. Now let’s hurry and get dressed so we can go see the kittens,” Audra said as the girls crawled out from under the bed.

“That’s a good idea.” Rachel rubbed her lower back. “That floor was sure hard. I think we should have slept in the bed instead of under it.”

Audra nodded. “My back feels sore, too.”

“I’m sure we’ll feel better when we move around,” Rachel said. “At least that’s what Grandpa always says after he’s been sitting awhile.”

Audra laughed. “When my daed comes home after working at the blacksmith shop all day, he says he feels better after he lies down.”

“Pap says that after he’s worked in the fields, too.” Rachel went to her closet and took out a clean dress. “If Mom hasn’t started breakfast yet, we can go outside and check on the kittens right away.”

“I still can’t believe Cuddles had her busslin inside your sleeping bag,” Audra said.

“I guess she was looking for a place that was nice and soft.” Rachel grabbed Audra’s hand. “Let’s hurry downstairs,
schnell
[quickly]!”

When they entered the kitchen, Rachel was glad to see that Mom wasn’t there. If she had been, she would have expected Rachel to help with breakfast.

Rachel opened the back door and stepped onto the porch. Audra followed. They entered the tent, and Rachel pulled her sleeping bag open. She was surprised to see that it was empty.

Audra frowned. “What happened to Cuddles and her kittens?”

“I don’t know. She might have moved them, or maybe Pap took them to the barn.”

“Let’s go see!”

The girls raced across the yard and into the barn. Pap and Henry were there, feeding the horses.

“Cuddles and her busslin aren’t in my sleeping bag!” Rachel said as she stepped up to Pap. “Do you know where they are?”

He motioned to the wooden box Rachel had made for Cuddles. “I put them in there.”

Rachel and Audra dashed across the room and skidded to a stop in front of the box.

“Oh, just look at them! There’s six busslin, just like I thought.” Rachel grinned at Audra. “Aren’t they the cutest little things you’ve ever seen?”

“They sure are.” Audra pointed to a gray and white one that looked just like Cuddles. “If my mamm says it’s all right, I’d like to have that one when it’s big enough.”

Rachel nodded. “If you get to have one of Cuddles’ kittens, whenever we get together to play, our cats can play, too.”

“My birthday’s in six weeks,” Audra said. “Do you think the kitten will be ready to leave Cuddles by then?”

“I’m sure it will, and it would make a great birthday present.” Rachel squeezed Audra’s arm. “Speaking of birthdays, my birthday’s next Friday, and Pap said he might take our family out for supper that night. Maybe he’ll let you go along.”

“I’d like that very much,” Audra said with a nod.

“I’ll be right back!” Rachel raced over to Pap. “Can Audra go with us when we eat out for my birthday?”

Pap smiled. “I don’t see why not. Of course, she’ll have to get her parents’ permission.”

“All right!” Rachel clapped her hands, spun around in a circle, and raced back to Audra. “Pap said you can join us!”

Audra smiled. “Would you like anything special for your birthday?”

“You don’t have to bring me a present,” Rachel said.

“I want to.” Audra hugged Rachel. “You’re my best friend, and best friends always give each other something for their birthday.”

“I’m sure I’ll like whatever you give me.” Rachel could hardly wait until Friday!

W
hen Rachel woke on Friday morning, one week later, she threw back the covers, leaped out of bed, and quickly dressed. Today was her eleventh birthday! She could hardly wait to see what surprises waited for her downstairs!

When Rachel entered the kitchen there was no sign of Mom. None of the usual good smells came from the kitchen, either. That was strange.

She glanced around. No birthday presents waited on the counter or the table. That wasn’t a good sign.

She looked at the clock above the refrigerator. It was 7:00 a.m. Surely Mom must be up by now.

Rachel hurried to her parents’ bedroom and nearly bumped into Grandpa as he stepped out of his room. “I’m glad to see you’re up, Rachel,” he said. “Your mamm asked me to give you a message.”

“What?”

“She’s in labor, and your daed hired a driver to take them to the hospital.” Grandpa squeezed Rachel’s shoulder. “Soon you’ll be a big sister. Isn’t that exciting?”

Rachel’s mouth dropped open. “Mom’s having the boppli today?”

Grandpa nodded. “It seems so.”

“B–but she can’t have it today.” Rachel’s lip quivered. “Today’s my birthday. Pap’s supposed to take us out for supper tonight. Audra’s planning to go with us.”

“Babies don’t wait, Rachel, and your mamm certainly won’t go anywhere this evening. We’ll have to celebrate your birthday some other night. Oh, and I ordered a birthday present for you, but it hasn’t come in yet.” Grandpa hugged Rachel.
“Hallich gebottsdaag
[Happy birthday], Rachel. What a great birthday present you’ll get! Your baby schweschder or bruder.”

Rachel swallowed around the lump that had formed in her throat. She wasn’t sure she wanted a baby sister or brother. And she sure didn’t want the baby to be born on her birthday!

“I’m going out to the phone shed to check the answering machine,” Grandpa said. “When your daed calls to tell us the boppli’s been born, we’ll go to the hospital to meet the new baby.” He patted Rachel’s head. “Would you like that?”

She nodded slowly. “I—I guess so.”

“While I’m in the phone shed, would you like me to phone the Burkholders and let Audra know we won’t go to supper tonight?”

“I—I guess she does need to know.” The lump in Rachel’s throat tightened. What a disappointing day!

“I haven’t had breakfast yet, and neither has Jacob or Henry,” Grandpa said. “Would you fix us all something to eat?”

“Okay, Grandpa.” Rachel trudged off to the kitchen. She would fix breakfast for Grandpa and her brothers, but she didn’t think she’d be able to eat. Her birthday was ruined, and the only surprise was that Mom was at the hospital having a baby.

“Why don’t you eat your oatmeal?” Jacob asked Rachel as they sat at the table with Grandpa and Henry.

Rachel shrugged. “I’m not hungry.”

“You’d better eat or you won’t have the strength to do your chores,” Henry said.

Grandpa looked at Rachel and raised his eyebrows. “Your bruder’s right; you do need to eat.”

“Maybe I’ll have a piece of toast,” she mumbled.

“Have you checked the answering machine?” Jacob asked Grandpa.

He nodded. “I went to the phone shed right before breakfast, but there wasn’t a message from your daed yet. I’ll check again after we eat.”

Jacob nudged Rachel. “How come my oatmeal doesn’t have any raisins? Mom always fixes it with raisins.”

Rachel glared at him. “You should be glad I fixed your breakfast at all—especially since today’s my birthday!”

“Oh, that’s right,” Henry said. “Hallich gebottsdaag, Rachel.”

“Jah, happy birthday,” Jacob mumbled, oatmeal filling his mouth.

Rachel frowned. Was that all she would get—a mumbled happy birthday?
I wonder how Jacob would like it if today was his birthday and no one cared
.

She pushed away from the table, biting her bottom lip so she wouldn’t cry. “I’ll get you some raisins!”

“Danki,” Jacob said.

Rachel opened the cupboard where Mom kept her baking supplies. She didn’t see any raisins. She opened another cupboard. Still no raisins.

“Can’t you find the box of raisins?” Jacob called over his shoulder.