Georgia On My Mind-Book Four

Chapter 2 - Boys Are Mean

After Uncle Sef and John Luke leave, I walk over to sit down next to Daddy. "What are you doing, Daddy?"

"Watching TV, sweetie." He replies as he reaches out to pull me close to him. I sit there with him for a little while as he sneaks potato chips to me before I hear a noise coming from the front door. I glance over to find Momma standing in the doorway with her hands full. Her name is Mariah, but Daddy calls her Ri.

"Momma!" I yell as she comes in the entry, carrying a bag and Benny in his car seat.

Benny is my little brother. His name is Bentley, but we call him Benny for short. I run towards her, "Hi, baby! Ummmpphhh..." she snickers as she sets Benny and the bag down on the floor, catching me as I run into her arms excitedly. 

I can hear Daddy chuckling from the sofa. He jumps up and walks over to remove Benny from his car seat. Daddy leans down and kisses Momma while holding Benny in his arms. "Hey baby, did you have a good day with Brie and Harper?"

"Yes, I did. We went shopping and then had lunch. It was nice, and the kids were good for us. No major meltdowns." She responds.

Daddy kisses Benny on the forehead. "Did you buy anything good?"

Momma flashes him a sly grin and walks past him. "Guess you will find out later tonight, Mr. Hudson."

"Hmmm... can't wait," Daddy hints.

I squeeze Momma's neck as she carries me to the kitchen. She looks down at me. "Do you want some juice, angel?"

I nod my head excitedly. "Yep!"

Momma grabs a juice box from the refrigerator and sets it on the table in front of me. She punctures the straw opening, and I pick it up to take a sip.

I can hear Benny begin to fuss in Daddy's arms; he holds him over his shoulder and gently pats his back, rocking back and forth, attempting to soothe him. Momma walks over, grabs Benny from Daddy, and sits criss-cross applesauce on the sofa as she lifts her shirt just enough to feed Benny. Momma always knows when Benny is hungry even though he can't talk.

I sit at the table quietly, drinking my juice before Momma's red bag near the front door catches my eye, so I sneak over to see what is inside. I rummage through the bag to find a pretty pink dress with matching underwear; I hurriedly throw the dress on over my clothes and waltz into the living room to showcase it, "Momma, I look pretty in your dress," Momma places her hand over her mouth to prevent the laughter from escaping. Daddy covers his eyes, chuckling aloud.

Daddy pushes up from the chair, walks over to where I'm standing, and pulls the dress off me." Maybe in about twenty years, you can wear that baby."

"Daddy, I want to wear it now. I want to play dress-up with it." I plead with him.

He snickers and tosses the dress back in the bag. "No, that's not for dress-up, baby."

Feeling embarrassed, tears well up in my eyes due to their reaction, "Don't laugh at me!" I cry out.

Momma wipes the tears that escape from her eyes with her index finger. "Aww, baby, we aren't laughing at you. We're laughing at something else."

Daddy reaches his arms out for me, "Come in here with me and cuddle, would ya?"

Before I can respond, he swoops down and picks me up. I giggle excitedly, feeling butterflies in my tummy as he spins me around in circles. "Ahhh, Daddy!" He playfully throws me down on the sofa. "Ahhh!" I sit up to give Daddy room to sit next to me.

When he plops down on the sofa, I cuddle up next to him, watching television. Momma is burping Benny now and switches him to the other side to continue feeding him.

Later, Momma gets dinner ready for us while Benny is asleep in his pack and play. She makes my favorite dinner, spaghetti. Aunt Maggie and Uncle Dominic come over to visit and eat dinner with us. Uncle Dominic is a giant! He is even taller than my Daddy. I gaze up at him as he kneels in front of me, "How are you, sweet Georgia?"

"I'm good," I respond.

He reaches out his arms for me, "Can Uncle Dominic have a hug?" I nod and run into his arms. He picks me up, carries me over to the sofa, and plops down with me. He gently pats my head as I nuzzle close to his chest. He is so warm and comfortable. I begin to feel very sleepy, and before I know it, I close my eyes and drift off to sleep.

I wake up later in Momma's arms, squirming as I attempt to reorient myself, "Shh, baby. Momma will take you to bed." She says quietly.

I look past her to find Aunt Maggie and Uncle Dominic at the front door preparing to leave, so I wave at them. "Bye-bye,"

"Bye, Gigi. Love you." Aunt Maggie calls out.

"Goodnight, Bell 'Angelo. (beautiful angel)." Uncle Dominic waves. I don't know what a  Bell 'Angelo is, but that's what he calls me.

I smile warmly and squeeze Momma's neck as she carries me to the bathroom. I use the potty and brush my teeth before Momma helps me dress into my pajamas and tucks me into bed. "Momma, will you read me a story?" I ask.

She nods and gently pats my arm, tucking the blanket around me. "Yep, just one Gigi, then you gotta go to bed, little girl." She walks over to my bookshelf to pick out a book. "How about Madeline in London?" she asks as she selects the book and holds it up for me to see the front cover.

"My favorite." I yawn.

She returns, snuggling up in bed next to me, and begins to read. After a few pages, I struggle to keep my eyes open. Momma stops reading and gently kisses my forehead. I turn over and snuggle up to my bear. "Goodnight, Gigi; I love you." She whispers.

"Goodnight, Momma. I love you too," I whisper back.

She quietly pulls the door shut, leaving it open just enough for the hall light to shine in my room. I close my eyes and slowly drift off to sleep.

Later in the night, I am awakened to the sound of Benny crying. I climb out of bed and walk down the hallway to his room to investigate. Momma is standing at Benny's crib, reaching down to pick him up. "Momma, are you playing dress-up?"

She jumps with Benny in her arms. "Oh gosh, Gigi, you scared me, baby!"

"Sorry, Momma," I mutter as I walk over to Benny's crib and reach out to feel the silky material of her dress with my fingertips. "This is Momma's nightgown. It's not for dress-up." She chuckles.

I gaze up at her in awe. "Wow, pretty!"

"Did bubby wake you up?" she asks as she sits down in the rocking chair in his room, holding him in her arms.

"Yeah, but I need to potty," I tell her.

Momma pulls her strap down to her nightgown and holds Benny up to feed him. "Okay, sweetie. Goodnight."

I walk out of Benny's room to the bathroom. Once I'm finished, I hurriedly climb back into bed before the monster hiding underneath reaches up to grab me.

I lay in bed, gazing out my window, watching the trees swaying in the breeze. I press my hand up against the cold windowpane and think about John Luke. He's been so mean lately, and I don't understand the reason. Daddy tells me all the time that boys are just mean. I guess he is right, but I wonder if Benny will be mean too when he gets bigger? Daddy is not mean to me, and neither is Uncle Sef or Uncle Dominic. I lay there until my eyes get heavy, and I slowly drift off to sleep once more.

The next morning, I wake up to the sound of Momma opening the door to my room. "Good morning, love bug!"

I stretch my arms up over my head, "Morning, Momma."

"It's time to get ready for school." She calls out as she walks over, sits down on the bed, and gently pats my hip. As I sit up at the bedside, Momma jumps up and walks over to my closet to pick out my clothes.

"I want to wear a dress, please," I request.

She laughs. "Ahhh, my Gigi, already a little diva." She begins to rummage through my closet.

"Dresses are pretty, Momma," I tell her.

She glances over at me and smiles warmly, "I agree. You look beautiful in dresses, baby." She pulls out my blue dress with the peaches on it and chuckles. "My little Georgia Peach." She lays out the dress on the bed next to me. "Time to get in the bathtub." 

I quickly jump down off the bed before she leads me into the bathroom. First, I use the potty and brush my teeth while she runs my bathwater. She makes it bubbly, just like how I like it. I hop in and play in the bubbles—splish- splash – splish – splash – splish- splash. I am like a fish inside the tub. Momma begins laughing aloud, "You are letting all the water out, little one." She scoops the bubbles with her finger and taps my nose. I giggle excitedly and wipe it away, leaving more bubbles across my face. Momma and I shriek with laughter.

She lets me play for a few minutes in the bathtub before she helps me out and dries me off. She follows me to my room, where I scurry to get dressed. Afterward, we walk back to the bathroom, and Momma brushes and dries my hair, which is the least favorite part of my morning. She braids my hair and clips pretty bows at the top and bottom of my braid. I slip my sandals on and skip into the kitchen.

I sit at the kitchen table while Momma pours a bowl of cereal out for me. As soon as I have finished eating my cereal, Momma grabs my bowl and places it into the dishwasher. She bends down and buckles Benny in his car seat before looking back at me, "Okay, baby, time for school."

I run over and grab my backpack off the coat hanger before following Momma outside to the Jeep. I climb in the back with Benny and sit in my big girl car seat, watching as Momma places Benny's pacifier in his mouth. "Sorry, buddy, I'll feed you when I get back." I curiously watch as he vigorously sucks on his pacifier and whimpers.

Momma gets in behind the wheel and takes off down the road. "Momma, where's Daddy?" I ask curiously.

She looks at me in the rearview mirror. "Daddy's at work, love bug."

I sit in silence for a moment, listening to the sound that Benny makes as he sucks on his pacifier. "Hey Momma, why is John Luke so mean to me?" I blurt out.

Her eyes grow wide, "Aww, baby, boys are just mean sometimes. They eventually grow out of that."

"Well, Daddy isn't mean to me. Neither is Uncle Sef or Uncle Dominic." I imply.

"Yeah, they grow out of their meanness. When boys are little, they are mean to little girls. It's just how they are." She answers.

Knowing that I'll ask more questions, Momma continues. "You know Uncle Drew?"

"Yes," I nod my head.

"Well, Uncle Drew was so mean to Momma when we were little, but he was much nicer to me as he got older." She explains.

Frustrated, I place my hand on my forehead, "I have to wait until John Luke is older for him to be nice to me?"

She chuckles. "I'm afraid so, baby."

I turn away to gaze out the window to watch the scenery while Momma drives down the road. Once we arrive at my school, Momma jumps out and grabs Benny's car seat from the car. "Alright, baby, we are here. Let me walk you to class." I climb out as she comes around and takes my hand, leading me up the sidewalk. 

As we walk through the front doors of my school and down the hallway, I excitedly dash into my classroom, hang my backpack up in my cubby before walking over to the sink, and lining up behind my classmates to wash my hands. I turn and wave goodbye to Momma as she heads for the door. When I finish washing my hands, I sit quietly on the carpet and wait for the teacher to start.