Peri drags herself out of bed an hour before work the following day. Kai mentioned her retiring when he asked her to move in. Now seems like as good a time as any to go ahead and say goodbye to her career. She reached the top a long time ago. There is nothing left to prove. So she calls her higher-ups to tell them she’s not coming back.
I step outside and head to the orchard, happy to see that the gardener, Evan, is still showing up and completing his daily tasks. If it weren’t for him, there’s no way I’d have so much success running this farm. But as I look around at the trees and crops, I realize that there’s nothing for me to do. I haven’t harvested as much as one lemon all week.
Meanwhile, inside – Me-Me gets a call from her sister Lia, who is thrilled to announce that today is the grand opening of her new restaurant. Since Me-Me finally has the day off, she promises her sister that she and Kai will make it a point to stop by and try the place out.
I re-enter the house and walk over to Me-Me.
Kai: Am I still considered a farmer if I have someone else doing all the work?
Melisa: *confused* What?
I don’t expect Me-Me to answer that, so I let it go.
Ma enters the kitchen and grabs breakfast as I sit down with mine. She has a big announcement to make.
Prosperity: I’ve decided to retire.
Kai: That’s a good thing. Now you’ll have plenty of time to spend the day relaxing.
Prosperity: I don’t know about that.
Kai: What do you mean?
Prosperity: I don’t plan on sitting around all day doing old people stuff, Kai!
Kai: That’s not what I meant.
Prosperity: I know, but Wild and Kimmie are helping me renovate my old house into something beneficial to the community.
I thought ma was selling her house. I’m curious and wondering why she never mentioned this before.
Kai: …For the community? What do you have in mind?
Ma gets up to clean her breakfast dish instead of telling me what it is.
Prosperity: You’ll see soon enough. I’m going upstairs to get my grandson.
Ma is entitled to her secrets, and she obviously wants this to be a surprise. So I’m just glad to see that her spirits are up.
I change out of my work clothes and turn my attention to Me-Me.
Kai: Wow, Me – this baby has grown a lot.
Melisa: And kicking a lot too. Put your hands here –
Me-Me points out a spot on her belly where the baby is most active. I place my hands there and, within moments, feel a slight movement under her dress.
Kai: What will we name this little one?
Melisa: This one is a lot tougher. I haven’t come up with anything.
So we’re back to the familiar dilemma of figuring out what to name the baby.
Ma jumps at the chance to care for Dub today when she finds out Me-Me has a day off. She insists that we take advantage of it. Luckily, Me-Me already has an idea of how we should spend it.
Melisa: I want to take another cooking class.
Kai: I thought those were only on Mondays.
Melisa: I checked and found out that they have classes every day. There’s one starting at two.
Kai: Let’s do it!
Melisa: Oh, and one more thing. I spoke to Lia, and she finally opened a restaurant – in Tartosa with her new boyfriend. I told her that we’d attend her grand opening. We can eat there after our class.
I’m down for anything, so we leave ma and Dub with plenty of hugs and kisses and head out.
Peri also has plans for her first day alone with her grandson. She wants to paint his portrait – if she can get him to sit long enough for a sketch. So Peri pulls out one of the hay bales and makes a game out of him sitting there until they finish singing Old Macdonald all the way through two times. He’s more than excited to fill in the sounds the animals make until she completes a rough sketch.
I get a text from Uncle Merit, who asks to be a part of our culinary club. Of course, I tell him that he’s welcome to join us. We meet him outside of the cooking school about 30 minutes later.
Kai: Hey, Uncle M. Congrats on getting married!
Merit: Thank you! Attending these classes is like my wedding gift to myself because your Aunt Roni doesn’t cook. One of us has to, or we’ll all starve to death.
Kai: Or go broke eating out every day.
Merit: Exactly!
We enter the kitchen, and Chef Hailey gives us our assignment for the class.
Chef Hailey: Today, we’ll be making Beef Wellington. I hope those who haven’t been here for a while have been practicing at home because this meal won’t be easy!
I feel like she’s talking directly to Me-Me and me. But we have been practicing, and if Me-Me is anything like me – she’ll be looking to impress today.
Me-Me follows Chef Hailey’s directions and is off to a good start. Chef Hailey examines my dough and tells me I’m also off to a good start. But, poor Uncle M looks completely lost.
Merit: Um, did I miss the beginners class or something?
Kai: Don’t worry, Unc, I’ll help you out.
Me-Me places her Beef Wellington in the oven and hurries to the restroom.
Unfortunately, Me-Me ends up in the restroom too long and her Beef Wellington is too dry for Chef Hailey’s standards. I help her clean up the mess while she pulls out some more beef to start the process over. I’m back on bread duty, so I once again give it my best shot.
(Generation 3 Chapter Summaries)
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