My Helper

My six and a half year old-the and a half is very important-niece came over today to help me and Husband pack. We are moving in a week, and we have a two-bedroom townhouse worth of stuff to organize, sort, and pack. I tapped my niece to be my helper because her older sister had her tonsils removed yesterday, and I figured Older Niece could use some quiet this afternoon. And I could use the help. So Younger Niece came over.
Husband and I picked up Younger Niece and drove her to our house. In the car she gave us updates on Baby, like "He's still crying," or "He has one eye open all the way, but the other eye is only open half way," and wowed us with her mad math skills. She was able to tell us the answer to: 1000 1/2-2. I was impressed. When we got to the house, she read us The Monster at the End of This Book, and then we got to work. Since I had to feed Baby, who'd only slept 20 minutes since 8 a.m., my job was more of a supervisory one. Husband decided Younger Neice and I should go through my closet and decide what to keep and what to give away, a daunting task for any female. We initially had three groups. The first was for clothes I'd use this summer. The second was a crate for clothes I wouldn't need for awhile. The third was a trashbag for Goodwill. Husband was very encouraging of me putting clothes in the trashbag.
I sat in the rocker and fed Baby while Younger Niece held up items of clothing from my closet. I told her that if she wanted anything that I designated for the trashbag, she could have it. Since I dress like a frumpy troll, I figured she'd go home with a skirt and maybe a pair of heels. Oh no. I misunderestimated Younger Niece. She put the first two trashbag items in a box we set aside for her and said something to me that no one's ever said before. She breathed, "I love your clothes." Then, with a brisk businesslike tone, she said, "I think I'll put all the trashbag clothes in my box." Husband and I reminded Younger Niece that she didn't have to take all the trashbag clothes; she could really just claim the ones she really liked. Younger Niece reiterated that she loved my clothes.
Then she started hinting. She wasn't subtle. She'd hold up a dress and say, "I LOVE this dress, Aunt Grace." I'd say, "Me too. That's why I bought it." Once she held up a pair of sparkly, high-heeled flip flops and said, "I really like these sparkly high-heeled flip flops." I said, "Me too." She replied, "I really wish I had a pair of sparkly high-heeled flip flops." I asked, "Just like those?" She said, "Yep, just like those." Then I asked her to please put them in the crate. By the time we finished with my closet, she had something like thirty items of clothing and four pairs of shoes including my favorite red boots that I feel like I can no longer justify owning since I am a teacher, and it's a pain in the ass to wear boots when teaching. Husband and I hung our heads in shame over having let a six and a half year old have almost free reign in my closet, and called her mom to explain the situation. We have so much to learn. Her mom told her to limit her choices to ten items of clothing and two pairs of shoes.
After the closet, we decided to take a bit of a break. During this break, Younger Niece read the book Pat the Bunny. Several times. She's a really expressive reader, so she'd emphasize all the places she was supposed to emphasize. I loved it. She got to the page where the book informs the reader that they can look in the mirror. She paused and said disparagingly, "Everyone can look in the mirror." Pause. "Well, not blind people. They can't see to look in the mirror." She's right.
We paid her $5 for her efforts; she really was a great help. When I gave her the money, she was excited because she said she'd never had a $5 bill before. Then she remembered that she had. She tried to get me to give her another dollar that she could give to Older Niece, but she settled for one of Husband's old socks instead. I am not lying. Once she had her money in her hands, she stuck it in the waistband of her skort. I hope she doesn't have a future in Vegas.
I don't know about Husband and Younger Niece, but I had a great time this afternoon. She was funny, helpful, and productive, and I'd hire her anytime.