Together

30.

30.

The weekend had arrived and today Lizzie had something fun planned. Mary-Kate had a horse riding competition today and Lizzie, Maeve and Jane were invited to watch.

It was a very big event and there were a lot of people. Luckily, Lizzie didn't have to babysit the kids alone because Trent and Ashley were also there to cheer on Mary-Kate. Trent was Lizzie's older brother. She had a good relationship with him, but because of the long distance they did not see each other often. Trent lived with his girlfriend in Los Angeles. Now that all his younger sisters (except Taylor) lived in New York, he thought it would be a nice idea to visit them.

"Aunt Ashley!" Maeve discovered Ashley first and she happily ran to her aunt. "Hi Eve." Ashley picked the girl up. "How can you tell the difference from so far away?" Trent looked at Ashley in surprise. 'If you know them well you can see the difference quite easily. Jane would never just run to me."

'Hey! Good to see you again.' Lizzie and Jane had joined us in the meantime. Lizzie hugged her brother and sister. 'Likewise. Are you coping without Chris?' Trent asked. 'I do miss him, but it all works out fine. The girls help out a lot around the house.' Lizzie smiled.

'Good thing, too. Should we just find a spot in the stands? The match is about to start.' Ashley said looking at her watch. 'Good idea. If we pick a nice spot we can get a good look at Mary-Kate.'

The family found a spot in the stands and the match soon started. It was a very big, important match. Many international show jumping riders participated and the girls were amazed. All obstacles were above one meter and the horses jumped over them effortlessly. It was a lot of fun to watch and it didn't go well with every combination.

Jane thought it was fantastic to see and the toddler was amazed, but Maeve saw it after twenty minutes. She had fallen asleep on Lizzie's lap.

"Now it's Mary-Kate's turn." Ashley said. "Look, there she is." Trent pointed to a horse and rider at the entrance to the roadway. The horse was held by a friend of Mary-Kate. It was a beautiful brown horse with a black mane. 'Where?' Jane looked around the track searching. 'Over there.' Ashley took Jane on her lap and she pointed to Mary-Kate. 'I see!' Jane waved enthusiastically, but Mary-Kate didn't see it. She looked ahead with concentration.

Mary-Kate took off. Trent, Ashley, Jane and Lizzie were on the edge of their seats. Mary-Kate got off to a good start and her horse jumped the first jump flawlessly. Mary-Kate and her horse Dunotaire completed the course flawlessly and the Olsen family was as proud as a peacock. For now, Mary-Kate was second, but there were still eleven participants left, so we had to wait and see.

"Mommy, I want to ride a horse too." Jane said. Lizzie smiled. She was happy that Jane liked it so much. Finally, Jane had really found something she liked. "I know, honey. When dad is back home we will look for horse riding lessons.' She promised her daughter. "When's daddy coming home?"

"In four weeks." Lizzie replied. She was already counting down the days. She missed Chris very much. His presence, his smile, his enthusiasm, his wise words. She missed him. Lizzie didn't want to let the children know too much that she was having a hard time with it. It was already hard for Maeve and Jane without their father. Every night before going to sleep they were allowed to call Chris and tell him what they had experienced that day. Lizzie was happy that Chris was so involved and enjoyed listening to the children's stories. It was no small feat to take care of the girls alone.

"That will take so long." Jane replied glumly. "I know, baby." Lizzie looked at her daughter sitting on Ashley's lap. Jane had two pigtails in and she was wearing a pink pantsuit that Lizzie had bought a few weeks ago. Lizzie loved old-fashioned clothes. It didn't have to be too old-fashioned, but she loved clothes from the nineties.

Lizzie noticed that more and more children were dressed in the nineties style. Lizzie and Chris always tried to avoid the journalists, but photos were regularly taken of their daughters and they have been real trendsetters ever since.

Maeve wore a completely different outfit today. She was wearing dark blue pants with a checked blouse above them. Maeve also only had one tail. This way it was a lot easier for Lizzie to tell the twins apart. They looked so much alike.

The competition was over and Mary-Kate ultimately came third. A really great performance and Trent, Ashley, Jane and Lizzie clapped proudly during the lap of honor. Maeve had woken up from the music and the girl looked around her in confusion.

After the lap of honor, Ashley and Trent left. Ashley had another meeting for work and Trent was flying back home tonight. Ashley was going to drop Trent off at the airport. Lizzie, Maeve and Jane went looking for Mary-Kate and found her at her horse trailer. She stood next to her horse and the group enthusiastically walked towards her.

"Mary-Kate, you did so well!" Jane ran to Mary-Kate and gave her a hug. 'Yes? Did you like it?' Mary-Kate asked. 'You did great. Third is a really beautiful place.' Lizzie complimented her sister. Mary-Kate smiled. 'Thank you.'

"Did you like it too Eve?" Mary-Kate looked at her niece questioningly. Maeve shook her head. 'Maeve isn't really into horses.' Lizzie laughed. 'But I do. I also want to ride horses.' Jane said. 'Really and truly? Would you like to pet the horse?' Mary-Kate asked. Jane nodded and Mary-Kate took her niece with her. Jane loved it and was not afraid of the horse at all.

After half an hour of chatting and petting the horses, Lizzie left for home with a good feeling. Maeve and Jane were so tired from the long day that they fell asleep in the car.