Summary:  A glimpse into the future with grandchildren on the Ponderosa. Ben gets more than he bargained for when he offers to keep Joe’s twins while their parents are away.  (Part of the Jacob’s Ladder series, links below.)

Rating: G  WC: 520

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The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and a gentle breeze stirred the scent of lilacs from the bush next to the porch where Ben Cartwright sipped his coffee in glorious solitude. It was a splendid summer morning, and it seemed as if nothing could go wrong.

But he knew appearances could be deceiving. There were unpredictable and irresistible forces at work on the Ponderosa that lately managed to undermine his best laid plans, and he could no more withstand them than fly to the moon. Small but mighty, disarmingly cunning, and nearly indistinguishable, Alec and Max were the spitting image of their father Joe and more than double the trouble.

Obviously they were still asleep.

Joe and his wife Jane were on a long overdue holiday in San Francisco, having left the six year old twins and three year old Molly Frances in the capable hands of Grandpa Ben and his happily obliging wife Sarah, affectionately known as Grammy.

“It will wonderful having them here,” she had assured the wary parents,

“Have a good time and don’t worry about a thing,” he’d said. “We’ll be just fine.”

Famous last words.

The first day went so well Ben was feeling a little smug. The second day when he took them fishing, he realized he’d been a little overconfident. At least when Joe was little, he’d had Adam and Hoss to help. Now it was two against one. And he wasn’t as young as he used to be.

They weren’t bad boys, just curious and oh so quick. Hard of hearing, too, apparently. At least no one drowned. No one caught a fish, either. They had beef stew for supper that night. Ben had a headache along with it.

The next day it rained. Cooped up in the house, they soon tired of checkers and their father’s tin soldiers and decided it would be more fun to slide down the banister. There was one minor injury before the activity was called to a halt. At least then Ben could tell them apart at a glance.

Yesterday Hoss and Lulu came with their boys, Jake, Jeff, Josh, Judd, and Jess, ranging in age from eleven to six. Playmates for the twins and a respite for Ben, so he thought. It wasn’t clear at first how the outhouse got knocked over, but Judd and Jess quickly confessed under their father’s threat of a worse punishment if found out, and they immediately implicated their cousins as the ringleaders. Of course, they hadn’t meant to do it. No one ever does. Playtime abruptly ended as the repairs got underway, with all hands on deck.

Joe and Jane wouldn’t be back for another ten days. Ben drained his cup and leaned back in the rocking chair, eyes closed, bracing himself for the inevitable. Only moments later, he heard the door creak open behind him.

Grandchildren. It’s what you always wanted, remember?

Molly Frances, still in her nightgown, tugged at his sleeve, looking hopeful. “Can I sit in your lap, Grandpa?”

He smiled and lifted her up. “Of course you can.”

Exactly what he always wanted.

 

END

 

For more fun with grandchildren on the Ponderosa, see how Ben wrangles eleven single-handedly in Story Time

And if you’re wondering how Ben and Sara got together, read The Last Gift of Christmas