Reagan Siblings 2.0

The Zoo

Seven your old Danny Reagan was excited to spend the day at the zoo with his Dad and Mom. Of course, his annoying little brother and sister had to come along, but he didn't really mind. As long as they didn't bug him, he was okay.

"Mama! I wanna look at the monkeys!" Four and a half year old Joey said loudly in the car. "And the lions and tigers and bears!"

"Oh my," Danny added as the family chuckled.

"I wanna see the peguins!" Five year old Erin mispronounced the word.

"Penguins, sweetie," Mary corrected from the front seat.

"Can we eat first?" Danny asked as the stopped at a stoplight. "I'm hungry."

"Hungry? But we had pancakes!" Erin practically protested.

"Three hours ago!" He complained as if three hours was the longest time in the world. If he was this hungry at seven, Mary dreaded what he'd be like in his teenage years.

"Whaddaya say, kids? Lunch first, and maybe we can get some snacks while walking around." Frank suggested, wanting nothing but a peaceful day. He had enough yelling and shouting being the Sargent at his precinct, he didn't need his kids yelling and shouting angrily at each other on his day off.

"Yay!" The kids clapped enthusiastically.

Frank smiled and made the turn to the zoo, silently praying the day wouldn't end like snow days- Erin in hysterical tears and Danny angry than a junkyard dog.

************

They ate at a cute little diner across the street, decked in 1950s' nostalgia. At seven, five, and four the Reagan siblings had very limited taste. They all ordered the same thing: chicken tenders and French fries, with chocolate shakes.

"What do you want to see first, Joey?" Mary helped Joe break his chicken strips into bite sized pieces.

"The monkeys!" Joe shouted, then quickly got scolded by his Dad.

"Inside voices, Joseph." Frank put his finger to his lips, Joe mirroring him and nodding.

"Will there be heffalumps? And Elly-phants?" Erin questioned, picking up a few of her fries.

"You can say a big word like heffalump, but not elephant?" Danny looked to his sister who only ignored him.

"Will there be?"

"If you remember, sweetie, heffalumps are scary things," Mary wiped her hands on her napkin. "So there won't be any at the zoo. But there will be elephants and monkeys and penguins."

"Elly-phants are kinda smelly, though..." Erin wrinkled her nose, prompting Danny to roll his eyes to the ceiling.

"And they be huge!" Joe spread his arms out wide, knocking over Erin's milkshake straight into Mary's purse. "Oops..."

"Look what you did!" Erin shouted as Frank quickly stood the glass upright. He frowned at the sticky drink in Mary's favorite purse.

Joe looked apologetically at his mother. "I sorry, Mommy."

"It's okay, Joey, you didn't meant to."

But Erin, never one to leave well enough alone, hissed at her brother. "That's mommy's bestest purse!"

That only sent Joe into a crying mess, who was certain the zoo trip would be cancelled now that he had messed up something so valuable.

"Erin Naomi!" Mary gave her daughter a stern look, which sent her to tears as well.

Why was it funny when siblings got in trouble? Danny bit his lip from laughing at the whole scene; he handed Frank a ton of napkins, hoping to stay out of trouble. A little shakily, he managed to ask, "can I get you somethin', Mama?"

"You just stay here with your brother and sister." She stood up, grabbed the keys from Frank, and walked outside, presumably to salvage what was left of her purse.

Back inside, Joe sighed as he slumped against his chair. His crying was done, and he was suddenly tired. He frowned as Frank tried to get Erin to stop crying. When he heard a glass clink against another, he looked to his brother, who was pouring half his chocolate shake into Joe's glass. "Danny?"

"Enjoy this, Joe. Looks like the zoo won't happen today."

He pouted as Frank instructed them to stay seated while he steered Erin out of the restaurant. "No zoo?"

"No zoo," Danny responded with equal sadness in his voice.

"Boo." He sipped his milkshake anyways, happy he still had chicken and fries.

**********

"How's the purse?" Frank looked to Mary as they drove home. Erin was too tired to go to the zoo, and had insisted on going home. Both parents thought that it might be best to try the zoo another day.

"Ruined," she sighed quietly, not wanting to wake her sleeping children in the backseat.

"I'm sorry. I'll buy you a new one." He leaned over and kissed her temple as they waited at a stop light.

"At least we got a decently nice lunch."

"I wonder what's wrong with Erin, though?"

"She's a five year old, Frank. She's going to throw tantrums. She shouldn't though."

"At least they're tired now. And they'll be some peace."

The peace lasted only about ten minutes before Erin started complaining about nausea. Her complaining woke Joe who nearly immediately asked the question all parents hated, "are we there yet?"

"Can we get snacks?" Danny asked, rubbing his eyes.

"You just ate!" Erin frowned at him. "And I feel sick!"

"I don't care! I want a snack!"

"I wanna go home!"

Mary sighed, "it was nice while it lasted."