All Aboard Andi's Dream Ch. 06

"Why did we do this?" Sandy was confused.

"Oh, the yeast guys aren't done burping. We just want the last ones they do. Those are the good ones," said Sandy. It was close enough to the truth.

Yi then divided the dough into twelve portions. She tried to teach the twins how to fold the dough into a ball, but their little hands couldn't grasp the dough quite right. Yi made ten balls and helped the twins with theirs, which came out close to round. Yi cut an X in the top of each ball, then the twins painted the top of the balls with egg wash. After the balls rose for another 45 minutes, they went in the oven.

By this time, Lucy, Macy, and John came down from upstairs and Macy let Lucy explain what was going on. "Macy thought she lost a baby. I did as thorough an examination as I could, and it appears that she missed a period and had a false pregnancy. She needs vitamins, iron, calcium, and our support."

"Oh baby," said Andi as she hugged Macy. It was odd to see a woman hug another woman who was a foot and a half taller than her and nearly 10 years older and call her baby. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I did not want to tell you because you would want to help medically, and we both know you can't work on family."

Andi hugged Macy and said, "Mom always said you were the smart one."

"I would trade some brains for some of zees boobs," kidded Macy as she poked Andi.

"I suppose Yi and I should find an OB/GYN now that we're here," said Andi. That caused Yi to roll her eyes and sigh. She hates going to the gynecologist.

"Did you bring Uncle Gus?" asked Sandy. She and Madeline were not sure what all the commotion was about, but seeing Lucy without Gus was something to be concerned about.

"No, he has to work. He also plows snow, so he's going to be busy," said Lucy.

Shrugging, the twins went back to their art. His loss, they figured.

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The twins were suddenly attacked with Cabin Fever. They were fully dressed in their cold weather gear (without hats or mittens) and heading for the door when Andi and Yi caught them. "Where are you going?" Andi demanded.

"We want to build a snowman."

"Not in this weather, you're not," said Andi. "It's way too cold."

"No, it's not," the twins said in unison.

Yi opened the door and said, "Fine, go." It was dark and gloomy outside. The wind was blowing past, and the temperature was painfully cold. The arctic winds felt like a knife trying to carve off all exposed skin. Sandy and Madeline were shocked to see how cold it was outside, and they were back in the warm cabin quickly.

"This is an Alberta Clipper," said Andi. "It's very, very dangerous. This is what Great Grandpa Ole always talks about." Sandy and Madeline took another step outside, then without a word, they turned around and trooped back upstairs to put their nighties on.

"Great Grandpa Ole?" asked Yi.

"My mom's father," answered Andi. "They live in Bismark."

As the twins stomped their way upstairs, Paul and John both came in the back door, each carrying an armload of firewood. They stacked the wood up under the stairs and went back outside for another armload. "What's this for?" asked Andi.

"Just in case," shuddered John. When they were done with that, John filled several 5 gallon containers full of water while Paul went out to the barn and set up a kerosene heater in the henhouse. To Yi it felt like cold was radiating off of the wood that John and Paul stacked up.

"Do you think it's wise to gather everyone in a tiny cabin in the middle of nowhere in a horrible storm?" asked Yi.

"I don't see why not," said John. "If the power goes out, we can't heat our houses in town, unless you have a fireplace. This cabin is completely self-sustainable if the power goes out. It's small, so it's easy to heat. We have wood to heat us until spring and all the eggs you could want. If the power goes out, we just light a kerosene lamp and continue on. You will be warmer in here than in a big house in town."

"So, we just sit and wait?"

"It's like a hurricane party," said Lucy.

"Without the flying debris," added Macy as Paul brought in a small kerosene heater for the second cabin.

"Come here, Yi, I want to show you something," said Paul, and he led Yi (followed by the twins) to the loft area in the second cabin. Up there was a large open area, but a quarter was taken up by a large plastic tank. "This is our drinking and flushing water. If the power goes out, we use this sparingly, because the tank is filled with an electric pump. This rarely freezes because we have electric heaters preventing that, and I'm not worried if the power goes out for a couple of days, but when we're done here, we'll drain the water lines and I'll show you how that's done."

"Can we play up here?" said Sandy, looking at all the wide open area.

"Yes, but if you leave toys scattered all over, then I'll lock the door."

"We won't," said the twins in unison. Yi and Paul gave each other doubting side eyes, then Paul continued.

"During the summer, make sure this vent is open," and he showed her a vent at the peak of the wall. "These cabins can become ovens..." He looked and pondered it for a bit and said, "It really should be connected to a thermostat..."

"I have a few ideas," said Yi. "Let me put something together for you."

"You're hired."

The roaring of a motor let them know that someone had arrived on a snowmobile. When they got down to the living area, they found a tall slim figure in a helmet, gloves, and one-piece cold weather suit. He pulled off his helmet, and it was Kenny and Yi felt excitement rush through her. "You're late. We needed you to tow us on our cross-country skis."

"Sorry, I almost didn't find the place until I saw the floodlights on the barn."

The twins were of a different opinion. "Oh, it's you," said Sandy.

"That wasn't nice," said Yi. "Why would you say something like that to Mister Kenny?"

"It's supposed to be Uncle Gus!" insisted Madeline.

"Aunty Lucy needs kissing!" Sandy informed everyone, which caused Aunty Lucy to blush.

"I suppose that if somebody needs kissing, I can give it a go," started Kenny, but Yi grabbed his scarf and glared at him. "...or not."

"Take that gear off, you're not going anywhere," said Paul.

"I didn't intend to crash your party," said Kenny, "but I just had to say hi to Yi."

"Well, you're here. Take that gear off because you're stuck until the wind drops and the temperature rises a bit," said John.

"We have plenty for dinner," said Yi.

"We're having yeast for dinner," said Sandy.

"Yeast? I haven't had a fried yeast in ages," said Kenny.

"Baked yeast," said Yi. "You can help set up the tables."

As Kenny and Paul set up folding chairs, Sandy and Madeline headed upstairs. "Come on Wonka! Nap time is over!" Wonka slowly rose from his place in front of the wood stove and followed the girls into the kitchen. Disappointed that there was no snack being offered, he followed them upstairs. "Come on, boy!" they chimed.

Yi started the broccoli cheese soup quickly, hoping that no one would see that she was using an instant mix. "I thought you were a scratch cook," said Kenny.

She lifted a tea towel to show off a couple of the bread balls that were cooling. "I'm a scratch baker. For cooking, I will do whatever it takes to get a quality meal on the table. I can make broccoli cheese soup from scratch, but this mix is incredible and affordable. We'll just tweak it a little bit." She handed Kenny a box grater and a large chunk of cheddar. "Now we add a bit of ourselves..." As Kenny grated the cheese, Yi took some broccoli fleurettes out of the fridge and cut those up as they stood side by side. As they worked there came the squealing and laughter of the twins and barking of Wonka from upstairs as they played.

There was a flash and Yi looked up and saw Paul, Andi, Lucy, John, and Macy crowding at the door. They were watching her and Kenny and Macy was showing off the picture she took. "Bonheur domestique," she said.

"Domestic bliss," John translated.

"Ok, enough, get out!" roared Yi.

"It's really the sound of the kids and the dog that sells the scene," said Lucy. Kenny put his arm around Yi, more to keep her from killing the lot of them than anything else.

Yi and Kenny worked together to prepare the soup. The mix was real dehydrated cheese and dehydrated broccoli and the additional cheese, milk, and fresh broccoli fleurettes, along with just a dash of chili pepper powder, made their soup incredibly delicious. "Sandy? Madeline? Do you want to make the bread bowls?" Immediately, the sound of running above their heads stopped, and the twins dashed down the stairs from the loft.

"YES!"

Yi placed each bread ball in a large, low sided bowl and placed them on the table. "Ok, watch this. I'll cut the circle, you pull out the cap and pluck out the bread and put it all in the bowl." Soon the twins were gutting the bread bowls.

"This is such a great idea!" said Kenny. "And you made the bread bowls all by yourself."

Now Yi was getting self-conscious. "The girls helped; they like to work with yeast."

"Yeasty Guys!" cried Sandy accompanied by a burp from Madeline, which caused them to giggle.

"I've got about a dozen drawings of Yeasty Guys now," said Yi, desperately wishing she couldn't blush.

"It's amazing. I've never met anyone so creative like you. You could probably take a plate full of leftovers and turn them into a four-star meal."

"Not really," muttered Yi. "I came in second on Chopped." She turned and found that the twins put their own little twist on the meal. They put the bread ball in a large soup bowl, pulled the bread out of the bread ball, and piled it up around the bread ball like Yi showed them, but they carefully put the cap back in the hole like a Halloween pumpkin.

"We're gonna fool 'em!" giggled Madeline.

"I bet you do. You guys put your bread bowls at your chairs." The twins carried their misshapen bread bowls into the dining area while Yi and Kenny brought out the rest and set the table.

"Who wants to say grace?" said Pastor John as he looked at the twins.

Sandy thought about it for a moment, then said, "Oh, yeah. I do! I do!"

"Ok, let's hear it," said Macy.

Then in unison the twins recited, "Rub a dub dub. Thanks for the grub. Yay God!"

"Is that the grace Aunt Macy taught you?" said Andi, as they sat down.

Madeline shrugged, but Sandy said, "I think Uncle Gus taught us."

"Once," said Paul. "Gus mentioned it once when he talked about going to camp as a kid."

The dinner was fantastic, and the twins beamed with pride when anyone mentioned the bread. They were surprised that the bread ball held the soup and delighted that you eat it, but Sandy started pulling it apart before she ate all the soup inside, causing minor soup flooding downstream.

After dinner, Paul helped Yi clean dishes while Kenny helped John put the extra tables away. The twins put their feet jammies on because it was going to be a frigid night and Kenny picked up a guitar that had been sitting in the corner and tuned it up. "Can you play Baby Shark?" asked Madeline and Sandy.

"Baby park? Like a park you take babies to?" asked Kenny.

"NO! Baby SHARK!" they squealed.

"Oh! Maybe Shark... maybe goldfish, right?"

"NOOO!" they shrieked. "BABY SHARK!"

"Crazy Ark? Like Noah and the..."

"NOOOOOOOO!" they squealed. "BABY SHARK!!!"

"Why don't you sing some of it for me and see if I know it," said Kenny. Soon the girls were singing and making the hand gestures that go along with the song, and Kenny rolled his eyes. "Oh! Baby Shark. Why didn't you say so?" The twins squealed with anxiety but Kenny played Baby Shark so they could sing along.

As he played, Yi sat next to him and smiled. "You know the song I take it?" she asked.

"I have five nieces and nephews their age. Of course I know it."

"And you tease them like that every time they ask you to play it?"

"Every time."

"That's evil!"

"That's right," he said with a grin. "But they enjoy the game."

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During the night, the snowfall lightened up, and the temperatures plummeted. Upstairs in the loft, the cots were separated by curtains like hospital beds. John and Macy got the big full size bed, which meant that everyone else got a single cot. Yi and Kenny put two cots side by side and opened a sleeping bag and put it over them to share their warmth. That didn't matter because the heat from the wood stove kept the upstairs much warmer than downstairs.

It was a frigid night but up in the loft in their little curtained off rooms John and Macy snuggled on the full size bed and slept relieved that they didn't lose a baby, Lucy lay warm in her cot, wishing she was warmer with Gus, and Yi and Kenny lay awake all night searching each other's eyes and whispering softly. Downstairs, Andi and Paul desperately wanted to make love. But the twins were sleeping at the foot of the bed and would say, "Are you being kissy?" with every kiss. They wouldn't go to sleep, so they took a warm family sauna around midnight, which helped settle down the twins.

The next day, as Yi made a large breakfast casserole, Paul and Andi fired up both tractors and started plowing the driveway. John broke out the snow blower and cleared out around the cabins and barn while Kenny used a shovel to help around doorways and behind the cabin.

Temperatures rose above zero, and after a delicious breakfast, folks got out to enjoy the winter. Lucy taught Andi and Yi how to use cross-country skis, and John and Macy clipped on their snowshoes and went for a walk hand in hand in the winter woods. Even though Springville is far away from being a big, bustling city, it still felt good to go outdoors and enjoy life.

Hearing a snowmobile, the twins stopped throwing snowballs for Wonka to catch and ran to the barn to see Poppa exit, pulling the little snow coach trailer. "Want to join us Yi?" asked Paul as he placed the bouncing twins into the trailer and put a bike helmet on their heads.

"I'm going to ride with Kenny," said Yi, as she took off her skis and pulled on a helmet. Soon they were off. They headed west through the small forest behind the cabin and Paul led them up a steep hill that separated his property from the neighbors, then dashed across the neighbors' lot onto Hirsh's property. Paul was going faster than he would if Andi were with them, but not a lot more. Kenny and Yi rode alongside on Kenny's Polaris 550 Voyageur Adventure. It was almost as big as Paul's sled, with wide placed front skis for better handling. Occasionally, Kenny would zip ahead and circle around and end up next to the little trailer with the twins.

They pulled up to Hirsh's farm and swapped out empty bottles for full bottles of fresh milk before returning to the cabins. Of course, Gerry and Irma Hirsh recognized Kenny from the feed store, and teased him about finally putting a pretty girl on that pretty sled of his.

Andi and Lucy skied back to the shooting range, where Lucy got her first shots out of her new rifle. "Oh man! This is sweet!"

Andi had Paul's air rifle, and she was so winded from the ski from the cabin that she couldn't hit anything. "How do you do it?" gasped Andi, as she saw another limb drop from a tree because of her erratic shooting.

"Practice, practice, practice... at high altitudes," said Lucy. She did a lot of training in Colorado. It increased her lung functions tremendously.

That afternoon the county plowed out Trevette road and Lucy, John and Macy went back to town. Lucy had a shift to pull and Pastor John had a sermon to prepare.

"Can you stay? Or do you have to go back?" Yi asked Kenny at dinner that night.

"If it's ok with Paul and Andi."

"It's not a problem," said Andi as Yi served up smothered pork chops they got from Clemmons' farm earlier. "What do you have planned for tomorrow?"

"More snow 'biling!" cried Sandy, who was addicted to riding behind Paul's snowmobile.

"We have to clean up and head back in, tomorrow is Friday, and your momma and I are going to go back to work on Monday," said Paul.

"Aww," huffed the twins. Work ruins a lot of fun.

The next afternoon, they were going on one more sled ride before heading home and doing laundry and stuff. They were trekking cross their property paralleling the road, Andi was behind Paul and Yi was driving Kenny's new sled, with Kenny holding on behind her. Soon another sled pulled up alongside them, a blue and silver Yamaha Sidewinder. It, too, had two passengers. Paul gestured, and the three turned and headed to the cabin. There they stopped and shut off their motors. The Driver of the Yamaha pulled off his helmet. And it was Josh Gravely, the fellow that owns the cabin across the street. "Y'all finally got off that rowboat of yours."

"We've been back for over a week, we've been up here playing in the snow."

"I been stuck at work the whole time. But I guess you were right, you told me a month ago that there was someone out there for me." When he said that, Josh's passenger pulled her helmet off.

"Veronica?" gasped Andi as she hopped off Paul's sled and hugged her neighbor. Veronica only lives a couple of blocks away.

"Well, when he started I gave him the HR in-briefing and we've been chatting and having lunch together ever since."

"That was a year ago," said Paul.

Josh shrugged. "I'm shy."

"We got snowed in together at the office and that kind of forced us to face our feelings," said Veronica.

"Well... come inside, we'll make coffee," gushed Andi. "I'm sure we have a lot to talk about."

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Thank you for hanging with us. I originally wrote this back in 2018 when I became disabled and then forgot about it and wandered off working on other stories, which is why the timeline is so flaky. I'm working to correct that. Check out Amorous Goods: Black Pearls, which is Yi and Kenny's story. The timeline has been corrected in that story; I need to work on StormWatch next.

If there's any conflict you see in the timeline, please keep in mind that Andi's Dream, and We're a Wonderful Wife, are canon. If you find a problem, let me know and I'll put it in my big stack of corrections to make.

But this is far from the end. Andi and Yi's first Western New York summer is coming up! I think we'll start with one last blizzard for the year, then head to Niagara Falls in Chapter 7