Moose
Lisa skipped down the steps with her favorite stuff moose Molly tucked in her arms. She stopped at the doorframe of the living room watching her oldest sister sitting in front of their baby sister Lauren. "Say Tina" Christina repeated slowly wanting nothing more than the one-year-old's first word to be her name. "come on we are birthday twins" The nine-year-old huffed earning a giggle from Lauren.
Lauren giggled clapping her hands not having a clue about what her sister wanted her to do. "if you say Tina I will give you a cookie" Christina tried to negotiate with the toddler. Lauren's big brown eyes lit up seeing the cookie. Her little hands reached out for it. "no" Christina shook her head pulling it away. "you have to say Tina first"
Lauren's lip quivered from not getting the cookie. Seeing the sad look on her baby sister's face made Lisa join them on the rug. She didn't say a word snatching the cookie from her older sister's hands. "here you go Laurie" Lisa handed the chocolate chip cookie to her.
"Oose" Lauren cooed taking the cookie.
"Moose?" Lisa repeated not sure if she heard right.
"Oose" Lauren smiled at Lisa conforming that her first word was Moose.
"I lost to Moose?" Christina pushed herself up. Christina shook her head going off to find their mother to tell her.
"you like Moose?" Lisa sat down in front of Lauren with Molly the moose on her lap. "her name is Molly" she showed her the stuffed animal. The curious toddler reached out trying to grab the toy. "no touch" she pulled back but quickly changed her mind when she saw the lip quiver. "don't get no stinky baby drool on it" Lisa scrunched up her face handing the toy to her baby sister.
"oose" Lauren said amazed by her new word. She pushed herself up stumbling over to her Moose Lisa. She plopped down on her lap.
"I'm not Moose I'm Lisa" Lisa shook her head looking down at her sister. This didn't stop the toddler from calling her Moose for years.
Lynne stood at the doorframe amazed watching Lisa with Lauren. Lisa was not big on sharing her stuff and when it came to her Molly Lisa would yell if someone so much as looked at the stuffed moose the wrong way.
Ladybug
Almost two-year-old Lauren stumbled across the yard trying to keep up with her older siblings. "Oose" she called out as they played tag in the yard. Lisa stopped hearing her little sister call out for her risking the chance of getting tagged by Katherine.
"time out" Lisa yelled holding her hands outs.
"there is no time out in tag" Christina called out.
"is too. You don't make the tag rules. You're not the tag police" Lisa sassed Christina before turning her attention back to Lauren. Lauren stopped in her tracks feeling something on her nose. A small ladybug had landed on her nose startling the toddler. "it's a ladybug" Lisa removed the bug from Lauren's nose placing it in her hand to show her sister. "see it can't hurt you" The ladybug crawled around her hand. "can you say ladybug?"
"wady ug" Lauren said proudly smiling up at her sister. They both watched in awe as the Ladybug spread its wings taking off.
"Mommy is home" Christina yelled from the sliding doors. "its time to meet our little sister"
"Come on Ladybug" Lisa said taking Lauren's hand. "that is a good nickname for you. You are my Ladybug" She had been trying to come up with a nickname for Lauren that no one else calls her since that Lauren has a special nickname for her.
Lisa helped her up the steps making sure she didn't fall. She wasn't too thrilled, about have another sibling see she already has six. Lauren was to young to understand that that her whole world was about to change that she would no longer be the baby of the family.
