Being an only child has its advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage was that I did not have brothers and sisters to play with. I had to find ways to amuse myself. The advantage was that my parents provided me with many toys and games with which to do this. I had everything: from Barbies to baseballs, from bikes to mini-cars. My parents were more than happy to provide me with anything that would keep them from hearing, "I'm bored...!" Even with all of their toys, my favorite moments from my childhood were the times I spent in Bayberry with other children.
Bayberry was where my baby-sitter lived. It was a perfect location because on 3 sides of her house, there were children my age. To the right were the O'Brian's (this is where I met Katie), to the front were the Spooners (Katherine adn Elizabeth lived there), and to the left a little ways around the road was the Bertz family (Bonnie, Nathan, Jeremy, and Sean). These people became my friends adn we spent endless hours occupying ourselves with make-believe.
Katie was especially great when it came to thinking up unique games. I remember many Saturday afternoons and begging my parents to take me to her house. They would finally give in, and I would grab my Caboodle and Barbies and make the ever-familiar 15-minute drive to Bayberry. Katie and I had many fashion shows, which consisted of dressing up our dolls and then rating them on their fashion success. This game almost always ended in a tie because inevitably I would vote for my doll and she would vote for hers. When Katie and I tired of this game, we would play fairies. This is where the caboodle would come in. Inside the make-up case were various sample perfumes, lipsticks, and anything that my mom had discarded that I thought would make an excellent potion or mystic symbol. Katie adn I would run around pretending for hours on end or until the Spooners called.
Our activities at the Spooner household varied slightly from our activities at the O'Brian's. The Spooners had a large backyard where there was a tire swing and a swing set and lots of trees to climb. After we tired of making obstacle courses, we would go inside and watch movies, bake, play board games, or play Barbies. The Spooners had a trapeze in their playroom. It was the source of much amusement during those long rainy days.
In the winter, at Diane's house, we would construct large snow creatures. We made every animal imaginable and they were large enough to sit on and take pictures. The largest was a dinosaur, which was featured in the newspaper. This was my moment of fame and I loved it.
When I wasn't in Bayberry, I had other friends. My "cousin" Michael, was younger than I, but our parents were good friends. We played together constantly. I was the boss. During the Super Bowl, I remember many times dressing Michael up and pretending there was a stage, I would send MIchael, in tutus to dance in front of my parents and his who were screaming at him to move from in front of the tv. What can I say? I was a natural entertainer.
I was also a very manipulative child. I think perhaps I was kin to Tom Sawyer because if there was a chore I didn't want to do, I could find a way to make it appealing to someone else. Bonnie was often the target of these games. I remember, often, that my mother would tell me I couldn't go to a friend's house until I had straightened my room. My solution to this conflict was to invite friends to my house. After I tired of the dreary, familiar atmosphere of my own residence, I would decide I needed to buckle down and get the job done. Most children would straighten their rooms themselves, but I was smarter than most children. I was the Tom Sawyer of the early 1990's. I invited Bonnie over to my house. We did not play dolls, as we were accustomed to. I introduced a new game. It was called "Maid." The basis of this game was that I was a princess and Bonnie was my maid. I would sit on my bed and watch her clean my room for me. I would occasionally say something snooty in true princess fashion. This was my greatest scam!
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