Was it because you ate eight quesadillias on top of five tacos, six burritos, and three fried ice creams? But who�s counting?� she remarked airily with a smirk.

�Maybe I shouldn�t have had that diet soda,� Baloo reflected, opening the door. A broad smile spread across his face. �Becky, would ya take a look-see at that?�

In the red easy chair, Molly and Kit sat side-by-side; Molly�s head was on the boy�s shoulder. Kit�s head was propped on the top of Molly�s. Both were fast asleep with a gurgling Cassie - swaddled in a blanket - stretched across their laps.

�Looks like Cassie won this round,� Rebecca commented, lovingly bending over her three children. She picked up Cassie, smooched her soft little cheek, and put her in the bassinet.

�You take Molly, an� I�ll get Kit,� Baloo whispered, scooping the boy up in his arms and starting up the stairs behind his wife.

Kit was jostled awake. �About time you�re home,� he murmured through a gaping yawn.

�How�d it go with Cassie?� Baloo asked, putting his son on the bed.

�Er...she wasn�t bad after she stopped crying.� Kit crawled underneath the blankets.

�Glad ta hear it, �cause I�m thinkin� of takin� yer mama out dancin� next weekend.�

An involuntary �No!� escaped from Kit�s lips.

Baloo chuckled at his son�s apprehensive expression. �But if ya can�t handle it...�

�I can handle anything,� Kit said emphatically, but still looking frightened at the prospect of babysitting.

�Yeah, I know ya can. �Night, Li�l Britches. Love ya.� He gently scratched behind Kit�s ear and smiled warmly down at the boy.

�I love you too, Papa Bear.�

Baloo flipped out the light. Before he closed the door, he said, �Oh, before I forget, Becky an� me ran inta an old friend of mine in Picante City - George Townsen.�

�George Townsen! The test pilot?�

�Yeah, I told him that I had a son who loved flyin�, an� was fascinated by autogyros an�,� Kit held his breath when his father said, �he told me he�d swing by the next time he was in Cape Suzette.�

�Wahoo!� Kit whooped, his eyes shining with excitement. �Gee, thanks, Papa Bear.� Recklessly, he offered, �I�ll babysit anytime you want me to.�

Baloo winked. �Night, kiddo.� He shut the door.

Into the darkness, Kit whispered, �I get to meet George Townsen? Wow!�

Higher for Hire
September 1939
Tuesday Afternoon

�No, you can�t take Cassie to Louie�s, Baloo,� Rebecca said firmly. �She�s too young to fly.�

�She�s gotta start sometime. The younger, the better.�

�NO! And that�s my final word!� she said with a petulant stomp of her foot.

�Aw, c�mon, Becky. Louie wants ta take a peek at her. Guess his interest was piqued after I bragged �bout her an� showed him all them pictures.�

�He can come here to see her. Just watch her for a while. I need to do some errands in town.�

�You can count on me, Beckers,� he said as Rebecca picked up her purse and headed to the door.

�Stay!�

�Woof, woof,� Baloo mumbled under his breath.

Rebecca stuck her head in through the door. �Watch your smart mouth, mister!�

Baloo gathered the two-month-old in his arms and gently bounced her up and down. She giggled and squealed at this amusement. He�d never been alone with Cassie before and he wasn�t sure exactly how to take care of her. It was a little frightening, being in charge of a baby. Of course, he would never admit his fear to his wife.

�Just you an� me, kiddo. Whattaya wanna do?� As if on cue, his stomach growled. �Uh-oh, the Big Guy�s complainin�. Let�s you an� me grab a snack. What yer mama doesn�t know won�t hurt her.� He chuckled, tickling the little girl under the chin, prompting a fit of giggles. �Promise not ta tell, Cupcake? Ya promise?�

In response, Cassie�s lips parted in a toothless grin.

�Yeah, ya promise. Yeah, ya do. Yer gonna be Daddy�s little friend an� not snitch on me for eatin� a little bite. A snack never hurt nobody.�

They stepped over to the refrigerator, opened the door, and stood before it, gazing at its contents. �Hm...hope Becky remembers ta get more olives.�

An unpleasant aroma wafted to Baloo�s nose. It drove all thoughts of food away. �You smell somethin�, Cassie?� He sniffed inside the refrigerator, sniffed his shirt, and then he tentatively sniffed Cassie. �Oh, baby, it�s you, baby!�

Cassie�s chin quivered as she began to whimper. Tears beaded in her eyes.

Baloo began to panic. �No, no, oh-ho, no! Don�t start with the waterworks. It�s not your fault, sweetheart. Daddy�ll get ya cleaned up in a jiffy.�

He carried Cassie upstairs to her room and laid her gently on the changing table. He rummaged through the drawers. �Where�s the diapers? Diapers, diapers...a-ha! Let�s get this icky thing offa ya.�

He removed the safety pin, unwrapped the diaper and... �Ugh!�

Cassie smiled, squealing happily.

The dirty diaper was tossed into the diaper pail as if it was a boa constrictor. He shot an askance look at the clean diaper, turning it this way and that, examining its rectangular shape. �Now, how do I get this thing on you? Babies should come with instruction manuals, like planes. What�s next? Oh, yeah!� He wiped her bottom with a baby wipe, making sure that his fingers were nowhere near the excrement, and sprinkled talcum powder on her derriere.

Baloo folded the diaper in half and fitted it around her. Taking a step back, he could see that that wasn�t right. �Nope, must be defective.� He tossed the diaper in the corner of the changing table.

He picked up another clean diaper, this time folding one corner to the opposite corner. He tried it on her, wrinkled up his nose, and scratched his neck. �That ain�t right neither.� That diaper joined the first diaper.

Taking a third diaper, he folded all three corners together so that they met in the middle. �Yeah, now we�re gettin� somewheres.� He slid her legs through the openings and it fell apart. �Doggone it! Another defective diaper. Becky needs ta buy a different brand.� That diaper was thrown on the pile with the rest.

Diaper number four. He folded the corners together and fastened them with a safety pin. Then he fitted it to Cassie. �There we go.� Grinning, he picked her up. Baloo frowned as the diaper fell to the floor.

Cassie shivered. Pee trickled down the big bear�s shirt.

�Aww...� he groaned. �Don�t go anywheres, Cassie.� He shed his shirt and tossed it into the bathroom hamper. �Still here? Good. Let�s try this dang diaper thing again,� he muttered angrily. He slammed diaper number four on the pile.

The fifth diaper! Swiftly, he folded the corners together, pinned it, and deftly wriggled Cassie into it. Baloo searched the room, pulling drawers open and turning out their contents, for a means of securing the diaper to her.

He reached into his pocket and found a ball of fishing string. He threaded the string through the safety pin and around Cassie�s waist, tied a knot, and snapped the excess off with his teeth. Carefully, he picked the baby up. Victory - the diaper stayed on! Just for good measure, he tugged on it. It still stayed on! �Who says Daddy can�t take care of ya?� He smooched Cassie�s cheek and gently pinched her nose. Stepping over a pile of clothes on the floor, he walked out the door. �Now for that snack.�

An hour later, Rebecca, laden with grocery sacks, walked into Higher for Hire. �Baloo, help me with these sacks. There�s more in...the...car...oh, my!� Everything dropped - her jaw and the sacks she was carrying.

Her office was completely and totally trashed. Toys, baby clothes, diapers, bottles, books, records, pillows and blankets were strewn around the room. She couldn�t take a step without treading on something. �BAAAAAALLOOOO!� she screamed, kicking a squeaky giraffe out of her way.

�Baa baa black sheep, have ya any wool?� Baloo looked up from the book he was reading to Cassie with a sheepish grin on his face. �What?� he asked innocently.

�Wha...what happened to my office?� Fury was etched on her face.

�Becky, ya broke the eggs.� Yellow goo seeped out of one of the paper sacks onto the floor.

�Don�t you dare change the subject, Baloo.� Picking her way through the room, she charged over to the easy chair and grabbed his ear. �I was gone forone hour. Sixty minutes and I come home to this!� She made a sweeping motion with her arm at the clutter.

�Well, honey, I...�

�And I want the truth, mister!�

Baloo sighed, facing the inevitable. �The truth is after ya left I changed Cassie an� came downstairs. She spit up all over her clothes. So, I went back upstairs ta change her outfit. I kinda, um, spilled Tabasco sauce on her gettin� a snack. The bottle slipped outta my hands. Don�t look in the kitchen, Becky. Still haven�t cleaned up that mess. If you think this is bad...�

Feeling a migraine coming on, Rebecca groaned.

�Back upstairs to change her again. We came downstairs an� I ate a snack. Just a little sandwich. Seein� me eat musta made her hungry. I fed her a bottle. She spit up again. I changed her clothes again. Ten minutes later, she wet her pants.� Baloo sighed. �Back upstairs an� I changed her diaper. Is she always this messy, Becky?�

Rebecca�s eyes sparkled with silent laughter. She nodded. �Go on.�

�She got kinda fussy. I thought she might be gettin� tired, an� I tried to get her down for her nap. Guess she wasn�t tired. Never closed her little

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