A New Schedule for Jean-Luc

Sunday
I am 18 years old and I am going to live with my Aunt Helen and her children Danny, 14 and Edith, 9.
My mother warned me that at Aunt Helen's the discipline was a lot stricter than at home but that it would be necessary to obey since I was a guest. I was going to share my cousin’s room.
My mother and my young sister Gabby accompany me to my Aunt’s for Sunday lunch. After the meal, Helen asks Danny to show me the school that I will attend the following day.
“Have a nice walk but don’t be too long. You know that you must go to bed early on Sundays,” she says to her son.
We are back one hour later.
“Well. Danny, take your cousin into your bedroom and help him to get settled. Then, put yourselves to bed immediately.”
Danny protests that it is not even four o’clock and that he hadn’t eaten yet. I am rather stunned and explain that I am not tired. Aunty Helen reminds Danny that as it is a Sunday he must go to bed earlier than during the week Since I am to share Danny’s bedroom I must got to bed at the same time, 18 years or not!
“No arguments off to bed!”

Mum tells me to do as I am told and not to argue. Meanwhile Edith has a large smile on her lips and my sister Gabby looks pleasantly surprised that I have to go to bed early.
“I will come with Gabby to say goodbye and good night after we eat,” adds mum.
I follow my cousin to our room. While I unpack, Danny folds back the sheets of his bed. I am taken aback to see him putting on a pink full length flannelette girls nightdress, he explains that Aunt Helen would not buy him pyjamas and that she insist he wear nighties. During the week he must go to bed after dinner, but because this Sunday it is already past dinner time he must go straight to bed as he has school in the morning.
I put my own rather babyish pale blue rocket ship pyjamas on and am astonished to discover we must deposit our daytime clothes in another room before sleeping. Danny explains it is to prevent him and now me from being tempted to get up once we are in bed.
Aunt Helen and my mother enter the room with Edith and Gabby giggling behind them. I am embarrassed at being seen by them dressed only in my rocket ship pyjamas and blush.
“You will use your potty if you need to go tinkle during the night”. Aunt Helen tells me.
I look bewildered as Danny thrusts what appears to be a baby’s potty into my hand. It is made of pink plastic. His, I now notice stands at the foot of his bed. It is like mine only pale blue.

Danny also confirms to me that Edith is not subject to the same bedtime rules that he is. She is allowed to stay up until after ten.
I can hardly believe we are in our beds at five o’clock of the afternoon. After half an hour I am wide awake, the sunlight prevents any chance of sleep. Then Edith and Gabby enter the room carrying trays of cereal. They place the trays across us as we are told to sit up in bed. Laughing, they attach bibs around our necks. I watch with stupefaction as my young cousin places a baby bottle on my nightstand.
“It is milk with honey and melatonin to help you sleep well, you must drink it all up like good little boys.
For Edith, this routine appears to be normal. I realise she is often put in charge of supervising her big brothers bedtime.
For Gabby, it is a new experience humiliating me this way. The girls watch as we eat our cereal and drink the milk from the baby bottle. Danny acts as if all this is quite normal. At first I refuse to drink from the bottle but Gabby threatens to tell mum and Aunt Helen and having been brought up to obey grown ups, I meekly comply.
Mum appears and announces that she and Gabby are leaving. I watch as Gabby closes the shutters and pulls the curtains shut.
“Goodbye, my poppets. Gabby and I are going to leave you now. Promise me you will obey your aunt and work hard at school. This baby monitor will let your Aunt Helen know if you and Danny talk in bed so you better behave. Now, go straight to sleep. You will find an early night will refresh you come tomorrow morning.
She kisses me tenderly and says goodnight to us both. They leave, locking the door behind them.
Monday
I am playing table tennis with Danny in the garden when, at about half past five, Aunt Helen orders us to prepare for dinner at six o’clock. I again don’t know what she means but I am appalled as Danny explains we must be dressed ready for bed before we can eat. Danny goes upstairs to put on his nightie. I challenge my Aunt about this ridiculous rule.
“Aunt Helen, Danny says I must put my pyjamas on before I can eat. That can’t be correct surely.
“Is Danny getting ready for bed?” She asked.
“Yes,” I replied, “he is putting his nightie on.”

“Then, you should do the same as him! Your mother and I have already told you.  You must obey the same rules as your cousin; even though you seem to think you are too old to do as you are told. Now go and put your pyjamas on at once.”
I reluctantly obey and find myself coming downstairs to dinner at six o’clock dressed in my pyjamas alongside Danny in his girl’s nightie.
I am surprised to find myself eating with another young girl. It is Astrid, a neighbour and friend of Edith’s. Edith explains to her that Danny and I will be going to bed as soon as we finish eating. Embarrassed, I quickly finish and start to leave the table. To my dismay Aunt Helen reprimands me for my bad manners and makes me return to kiss her and the two girls goodnight!
Tonight, it is Edith who supervises our bedtime. She arrives accompanied by Astrid. The two girls close shutters and curtains, switch on the monitor and turn of the ceiling light before locking us in.
“Sleep, big babies,” Edith shouts to us sarcastically. To be eighteen years old and to be put to bed at quarter past six by two nine year olds is frustrating and very embarrassing, especially when one can then hear them playing outside and laughing whereas one is already in bed for the night.
I find that I am sleepy. Me, who usually goes to bed at midnight, Milk, honey and melatonin seem efficient for making one sleep.

The following Sunday, it is Jenny; the girlfriend of Danny, who helps put us into bed immediately after our baths and  dinner. Not having any clean pyjamas, Aunt Helen made me put on a pink floral pair of hers! Aunt Helen says she prefers boys to wear soft feminine nightclothes as this makes us less boisterous and soothes us and that I must wear feminine pyjamas henceforth.  We hear Aunt Helen, Jenny and Edith go downstairs. Danny, acting out of character, quietly opens the shutters to watch by the window.  A neighbour noticed us and spoke of it to Aunt Helen who announces the following day to us that we will be punished
“Since you did not go straight to sleep last evening you both will go to bed immediately after school.” She announced on Monday morning.
“You will also, as a further punishment spend Wednesday afternoon in bed.”
Wednesday, we eat lunch in our nighthings, Danny in a long yellow flannelette nightie, myself in a pair of ludicrous blue floral girls pyjamas, then we are sent straight to bed. The most embarrassing thing occurs. Danny receives a visit from two girls from his class at school. It is not the first time they have found him tucked up in bed, but they are surprised that I am also bed punished. (And in feminine night attire!) They remain until Edith brings us our milk and tells them it’s lights out at four o’clock.
During the New Year’s Eve holiday, my mother and Gabby have come to visit. Much to my surprise my girlfriend Nadine was with them.
One particular afternoon Danny and Jenny plus Nadine and I were watching television. Edith and her friend Astrid were also hanging about.
Aunt Helen appeared and announced to the girls that it was our bedtime and she thought it would be a good idea if Danny and I were put to bed by themselves.
Danny protests, and I am more than upset to be put to bed at four o’clock in the afternoon by Nadine, my girlfriend. At least Jenny allows Danny some privacy to undress and to get himself into bed.
Nadine however, takes great delight in putting me to bed. She folds down my bed and takes my pyjamas from beneath the pillow. She insists on undressing me and slips my pink pyjama top around my shoulders and watches me step nervously into my pyjama bottom before tucking me into bed.
Jenny declares that she has better thing to do than baby-sit “two big babies in bed” and declares that she wants to return to watch television. Nadine agrees with her and kisses me night-night and tells me to go to sleep before we are once again left locked in our darkened room.
My worst punishment was inflicted on me because of my actions one Friday evening. I had been allowed to drive Aunt Helen's car to take the four of us to the movies. I dropped Danny and Jenny off and then Nadine and I went for a little drive around, just the two of us. Afterwards we picked them up and I drove back as if nothing had happened. Of course, once again a nosy neighbour of Aunt Helen’s had spotted us.
Aunt Helen was furious and decided to punish both of us even though Danny was blameless. She said he should have told her what happened when we returned.
Before lunch on Saturday, she made us go up to undress then to come down naked!
This time aunty handed us both very childish little girl nighties, I was given the pale lemon one and Danny the pink one. Once we had put them on aunty had to turn us around and fasten the little buttons at the back of the nighties meaning we could not take them off unaided. We then had to raise our nighties and were spanked on our bare bottoms!
For Danny, it was not the first time he had been punished this way but for me it was a new experience. We were made to stay in the corner our hands on our heads and with the hem of our nighties tucked into the collar exposing out poor red and sore bottoms for everyone to see.
Then at lunchtime we were sent to bed with a bottle of warm milk to drink in bed like babies. Before we were tucked in for the long night Aunt Helen informs us of further punishments.
Danny will be sent to bed early for a week and must stay in bed the whole weekend and the weekend after.
For me, it will be sterner. I will be sent to bed early for four full weeks.
That means straight to bed immediately after school. Bed punished the whole of Wednesday afternoon and the entire weekend from Friday afternoon to Monday morning. Usually I am allowed up until half ten or eleven pm on Friday and Saturday night so I am not happy. Sunday is not so bad because I usually am already in bed by four o’clock in the afternoon.
Danny and I have both been bed punished after disputes with Edith because we either monopolised the table tennis table one Saturday morning (She says!)  For that we were put to bed until Monday morning

Year-end holidays:
Christmas day, just before lunch, Danny refuses to lend his new electronic game to Edith. She cried of course and Aunt Helen tells him to go to bed. He protests vehemently up to the point that Aunt Helen pulls him by the ear to our room.  She makes him come down again shortly in his nightie and spanks his bottom in front of the whole family then sends him to bed.
At tea time Aunt Helen says I must take Danny his baby bottle up and one for myself, as I must also go to bed, at four o’clock on Christmas day! I put on my new Christmas pyjamas, they are white with Teddy Bears on them and I am so ashamed to be wearing them and drink my milk in the bedroom out of view. It is only three twenty-five when we bring back our empty bottles, wearing nightie and pyjamas respectively. Before going to sleep for the night, we must kiss and hug our guests, Aunt Helen, mum, Gabby and Edith goodnight!
They wish us “good night, little babies” sarcastically and we go to bed amid the laughter and the jibes of the women.
Aunt Helen reminds us again that we must brush our teeth and take our potties up for the night. She orders lights out immediately and prohibits us from chatting. She will supervise us thanks to the baby monitor. For us, Christmas ends at four o’clock.
Various:
At the start of the summer holidays we are sitting having a meal in the middle of the afternoon. Aunt Helen tells me that on Sunday’s our bedtime is as early as when we are at school and to go with Danny and put our nighties on.
Even though I promised mum to obey and respect Aunt Helen’s rules I protest that it is too early to go to bed in the summer and that I am not at all sleepy. However she becomes annoyed and threatens to spank me if I do not obey. Danny and I go upstairs to put our nightie and pyjamas on
He tells me this always happens during the summer months. I learn it is Aunt Helen’s usual bedtime timetable that must remain valid during summer time. Danny reminds me that we must still put our day clothes in another room and of the monitor that enables Aunt Helen to ensure our obedience. We are not allowed out of bed, to talk or even listen to the radio without her knowing. I am now well used to Edith and my sister Gabby making sure we take our potties to bed with us. Used to the girls closing the curtains and locking us in our room.
Often, Edith will shout down to her friends, leaning out of the window, looking at a beautiful clear blue sky, she will confide to her young friends that her brother is being put to bed and then tell them that her cousin is also being put to bed early even though he is eighteen and it is the summer holidays. She boasts that she and my sister are both younger than us but that they are allowed to play out in the sunshine.
“ Oh they must go to bed like babies,” she tells them as the girls all laugh. We can hear this conversation as we lie tucked up in bed.
“It is three thirty, time the babies were asleep and we can come and play until late.”
Cheekily she and Gabby will kiss us goodnight on the forehead. Gabby doesn’t fail to humiliate me.
“Good night, big brother, you really look so young and babyish in your little girls pyjamas, you deserve to go to bed so early! Holidays are great for playing outside for us, I hope that the noise we make won’t stop you from sleeping!”
I am too ashamed to retort. I turn my back without answering. Edith extinguishes my night-light and I hear the key turn in the lock. Danny and I exchange a whispered “Good night.” It is only half past three. Before sleeping, I can hear the girls playing outside.

On Tuesday morning, we annoyed the girls while they were playing. My Aunt reacted to Edith’s protests.
“Is that all that you two can find to do? To bother girls younger than you! Go and get your nightclothes on at once I'm sending you to bed, immediately!”
It was only ten o’clock in the morning. We went upstairs with bowed heads. Once we are tucked into bed I ask.
“ Aunty, is it necessary to close our shutters?” The answer is categorical.
“You are being bed punished! Therefore, you lie down immediately and go to sleep!
We remain silent and somnolent until lunchtime, then, our small sisters bring us trays in bed with obvious satisfaction! We must bring down our trays before going back to bed for the rest of the day.
The same thing happens when we monopolise the table tennis table. Before getting into bed for the day, I notice Edith, Gabby and the other kids leaving by bicycle!
Seeing me, Gabby shouts. “Go to sleep, nighty-night boy’s!”
Edith adds “Yes, with you in bed we don’t need the table anymore!”
The other little girls wave “goodnight” and move away laughing.
In fact, in the afternoon, in my dreams, I hear mingled with the laughter of our sisters and their girlfriends, the ping-pong sound of a table tennis ball.
The following morning, we simply watch the girls playing. I am content with observing whereas Danny, always vexed at having being bed punished because of his sister, applauds every point she loses. That irritates Edith, of course she complains to Aunty and we are sent back to bed. Although for my part I was innocent I did not protest because I know that it is useless. As we had already been punished the previous day, Aunty gave us a spanking in our room, in our nighties. The open window allows the girls to hear everything and the applause of the girls clearly indicate that they can discern the noise of a naked palm on naked behinds!
One rainy afternoon, so as we do not antagonise the girls, Aunty puts us to bed after eating lunch. We had in this case permission to read in bed until our tea. Then, it was bed for the night.
Aunt Helen put us to bed early when there was guests in the house.
When Edith had some of her friends around one afternoon. She even invited them to accompany her when she bought us our trays in bed and to tuck us in!
Danny was especially upset for he had planned an afternoon out with his girlfriend.
Instead he was lying in bed wearing his nightie. The window was, for a change open, I read a detective novel while Danny listened to the radio.  Edith entered our room in the company of two of her friends. She demanded the radio. Of course he didn’t want to lend it to her.
“You have a lot of cheek.” He shouted at her. “ It’s because of you I am in bed, you could at least allow me to listen to the radio!”
Of course she stormed off to complain to her mother who, as usual, immediately intervened in her favour. Aunt Helen came up with two baby bottles of milk.
She spanked us then said.
“If you are asleep, you won’t need a radio! Drink your milk, brush your teeth and I don’t want to hear a squeak out of the pair of you until tomorrow morning!”
She informs us also that we would be bed punished the following afternoon.
It poured with rain as we ate lunch at the kitchen table. We were already in our night things Aunt Helen decided our punishment was not sufficient, since we could not have left the house anyway due to the storm. To compensate, she consigned us to bed all afternoon the following day, this time with neither books nor radio!
I was 19 years old in August. It was a sunny Sunday and my mum and sister had come to celebrate my birthday. I hoped that on this occasion, I would not be obliged to go to bed in the middle of the afternoon.
I was wrong.

The birthday meal having been copious, Aunt Helen judged that no one would be hungry before the evening. After blowing out the candles on my cake. Aunt Helen ordered Danny and me to bed. Mum approved her decision immediately.
Among the gifts I had received was new pyjamas from my sister. Mum told me to go and fetch them so I could put them on in front of everyone and then wish my guest’s goodnight.
My new pyjamas were extremely feminine than even the ones Aunt Helen made me wear, and infinitely more childish. They were covered in motifs of Teddy Bears and Bunny Rabbits in a light pale pink colour and made from soft flannel. There was light elastic in the cuffs that were frilled and the pyjama top had a little Peter Pan collar that was also frilled.
Laughter and mock admiration of my pyjamas greeted me when I came to put them on and say goodnight. Edith bounded forward and said she also wanted to give me a present. It was a teddy bear to match my pyjamas! Mum laughed and made me hug the teddy bear as if I was a baby.
I had to kiss my small sister and my cousin to thank them and tell them how lovely and how pleased I was with my new pyjamas. Everybody was anxious to kiss me and to wish me “Happy Birthday” at the same time as “good night” at a quarter to two in the afternoon!”
Some of the women wanted to feel how soft the flannel of my new pyjamas was and I stood while they caressed the pyjamas feeling terribly embarrassed until Jenny, girlfriend of Danny, decided it was time we were in bed. She tucked us into bed before closing the shutters and curtains. Before leaving she kissed me again and wished me, “Happy Birthday and good night.”
I complained that Aunt Helen should have allowed me to stay up later on my birthday.
Jenny answered me severely by saying it was because, “You had beautiful gifts. You have been spoiled enough. Now, go to sleep in your lovely new pyjamas! Obey and show that you are a big boy!”