"We shouldn't be too long," Barbara said to the girls as they worked in the kitchen, "but John's lunch is in the orange container in the fridge. You'll have to put him in his high chair because if he sits on a regular seat, he'll just want to climb down and wander around the room."

Barbara pulled on a jacket just as she saw Ian. She made one final check that the girls understood everything and were content, then took Ian's hand and walked with him out the door.