Five minutes earlier, Lynn’s parents had finally left. My uncle Russ practically had to shove my aunt Peaches out the door. “What if she starts running a fever?” Peaches asked, clutching Lynn as if she couldn’t bear to turn her over to me. “What if she falls out of her crib?”

“Claudia knows what to do,” said my mother soothingly, putting an arm around Peaches. (They’re sisters.) “She can handle any situation that comes up. Remember, she’s a professional baby-sitter.”

I nodded. “That’s right,” I said. “Lynn will be in the care of a full-fledged founding member of the BSC.” I grinned proudly. I didn’t have to explain to Peaches and Russ about the BSC. They know those initials stand for Babysitters Club, and they know what the club is all about. You can’t find better, more experienced sitters anywhere.

“Not to mention the BSC member’s sibling and parents,” added my older sister, Janine. “Well be here too.”

Thank you, Janine, for remembering that someone besides Claudia has the capacity to take care of a baby. Did John and Rioko forget that they successfully reared two children to adolescence? Or were they just trying to give Claudia something to feel good about? This passage in Claudia and the Terrible Truth has always annoyed me. So often, the BSC were treated as if they knew more about children than actual parents. Sorry, but just because you organize carnivals doesn’t mean you know everything there is to know about children and are the most expert at childrearing in the world.