Cleaning The House (For My Darling)
Based on the "Live Your Life As A Musical" scenes from Ready, Steady, Wiggle! Season 8
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Me: (walking into the living room, noticing Lachy with a vacuum cleaner and a bucket of cleaning supplies) Hey Lachy! Whatcha doin'?
Lachy: (pausing mid-sweep, turning around with a warm but slightly tired smile) Oh, hello there Helen! Well, since Emma will be coming home for a break from her Jungle Picnic tour until she gets back on the road on August 30th, I'm cleaning the whole house so that everything is nice and neat when she gets home.
Me: (tilting my head, crossing my arms with a knowing look) Uh, Lach? I really hate to be that type of person, but between you and me, it kinda looks like you're not having any fun.
Lachy: (setting down the broom, placing a hand over his heart with a gentle chuckle) Oh, but Helen. If you live your life as a musical, even cleaning the house can be fun! (He reaches over to the side table and picks up a purple hairbrush, holding it like a microphone. He clears his throat dramatically, gesturing toward the messy living room with his free hand.) Observe!
(Lachy closes his eyes for a moment, takes a breath, and when his eyes open again, there's a spark of something soulful and tender in them. A soft, warm instrumental begins to play — piano chords with a gentle soul groove underneath. Lachy brings the hairbrush to his lips and begins to sing.)
(Lachy stands in the center of the living room, surveying the scattered toys, cushions on the floor, and general toddler chaos. He sings with a smooth, raspy warmth, swaying gently as he picks up toys and places them in a basket.)
Lachy: (singing)
There's a mess in every corner, toys scattered on the ground,
Little fingerprints on windows, chaos all around.
But my darling's coming home soon, and I want her to see,
That I've made this house a haven, just for her and me.
(He picks up a stuffed toy, holds it tenderly for a moment, then places it gently in the toy basket. He moves toward the living room piano, running his fingers lightly across the keys before polishing it with a cloth.)
[Verse 2 — Living Room Piano]
These ivory keys have missed her, they're longing for her touch,
I polish every surface 'cause I love her oh so much.
The sheet music on the stand here, it's a ballad that I wrote,
Every single word I'm singing catches in my throat.
(He pauses, looking at the sheet music — a love ballad dedicated to Emma. He smiles softly, then tucks the hairbrush under his arm to properly dust the piano bench before continuing.)
(Lachy's harmony vocals swell gently in the background as he moves across the room, his voice building with soulful conviction.)
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Every room shines with my love.
I'm sweeping and scrubbing and dusting,
She's all that I'm dreaming of.
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Making everything just right.
'Cause when she walks through that front door,
I want her heart to feel light.
(He spins the hairbrush microphone in his hand and heads toward the kitchen with renewed energy.)
(The kitchen is cluttered with breakfast dishes, sippy cups, and a half-eaten plate of heart-shaped pancakes from this morning. Lachy rolls up his purple sleeves and gets to work, scrubbing dishes in the sink while singing.)
Lachy: (singing)
There's dishes in the sink here from the pancakes that I made,
Little sippy cups and spoons from all the games the quads have played.
I'll wash each plate with tenderness, dry every fork and knife,
'Cause keeping house for Emma is the sweetest part of life.
(He wipes down the counters, organizes the fruit bowl, and pauses to look at a photo of Emma on the fridge — her in her yellow bow, smiling. He touches the photo gently before moving on.)
[Verse 4 — Kitchen, continued]
The fridge has got her photo, yellow bow and sunshine smile,
I stop to look and wonder how I got so blessed meanwhile.
The stovetop needs a polish, and the floors could use a mop,
But for my darling Emma, I will never, ever stop.
(He mops the kitchen floor with dramatic flair, sliding slightly on the wet tiles as he moves toward the stairs.)
(He climbs the stairs, hairbrush microphone in hand, harmony vocals echoing softly behind him.)
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Every room shines with my love.
I'm sweeping and scrubbing and dusting,
She's all that I'm dreaming of.
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Making everything just right.
'Cause when she walks through that front door,
I want her heart to feel light.
(Lachy enters Emma's personal room — the one she uses when she needs quiet space. It's decorated with ballet memorabilia, photos of the quads, and her pink bead-covered music box sits on the dresser. He approaches it reverently, dusting around it with care.)
Lachy: (singing, softly now, almost tenderly)
This is Emma's quiet corner, where her music box resides,
Where the ballerina twirls around and all her dreams reside.
I won't move a single treasure, I just dust around with care,
'Cause this room holds all the pieces of the woman beyond compare.
(He picks up a framed photo of Emma in her Wiggles yellow, presses it briefly to his chest, then places it back exactly where it was.)
[Verse 6 — Emma's Room, continued]
Her ballet shoes are resting by the mirror on the wall,
I remember how she'd practice, graceful, beautiful, and tall.
I'll leave fresh yellow flowers in the vase beside her bed,
So when she sees them waiting there, she'll know just what I said.
(He places a small bunch of yellow flowers — clearly picked earlier — into a vase on her bedside table, then backs out of the room quietly.)
(Lachy enters his own room — simpler, decorated in shades of purple, with sheet music scattered across a small desk and a guitar in the corner. He tidies the papers, stacking them neatly.)
Lachy: (singing)
My room's a little simpler, purple curtains, purple sheets,
Scattered notes and half-formed lyrics, melodies and beats.
I'll organize my papers, put my journal in its place,
So when she peeks inside this room, she'll see my heart's own space.
(He picks up his faux-fur lyric journal and holds it for a moment, running his thumb over the three purple Z's on the cover. He sets it carefully on the nightstand.)
[Verse 8 — Lachy's Room, continued]
This journal holds the ballads that I've written just for her,
Every word a declaration, every line a loving blur.
She made this book with her own hands, the cover soft and true,
And every song inside these pages says, "My darling, I love you."
(He straightens the guitar in its stand, then moves to the hallway with purpose.)
[Verse 9 — The Quads' Room]
(The quads' room is colorful chaos — toys everywhere, tiny clothes scattered, four little beds in a row. Lachy enters with an amused but loving sigh, beginning to pick up the mess.)
Lachy: (singing, with playful exasperation)
Now the quads' room is a story of its own wild kind of mess,
Olive's dolls and Maci's blocks are scattered, I confess.
Bridget's ribbons on the floor and Ryker's trucks galore,
How four tiny little humans make a mess I can't ignore.
(He picks up dolls, blocks, ribbons, and toy trucks, placing them in their respective bins — color-coded, naturally.)
[Verse 10 — The Quads' Room, continued]
But I tidy with a smile because these children are our own,
Every toy's a little memory of how much love has grown.
I'll make their beds up neatly with their blankets tucked just so,
So Emma sees her babies' room all ready, soft, and aglow.
(He smooths down the four little beds — olive, aqua, light purple, and orange blankets — and blows a kiss toward the room as he leaves.)
(Lachy walks down the hall toward the master bedroom, harmony vocals surrounding him warmly.)
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Every room shines with my love.
I'm sweeping and scrubbing and dusting,
She's all that I'm dreaming of.
I'm cleaning the house for my darling,
Making everything just right.
'Cause when she walks through that front door,
I want her heart to feel light.
[Verse 11 — Master Bedroom]
(The master bedroom is warm and cozy — the shared space where Lachy's home recording studio sits in the corner. He tidies the bed, fluffs the pillows, and dusts around his keyboard and microphone setup.)
Lachy: (singing, voice deepening with emotion)
This is where we lay together, where I hold her every night,
Where I whisper that I love her 'til the early morning light.
I'll change the sheets to fresh ones, make the pillows soft and new,
So when she rests her head tonight, she'll feel my love shine through.
(He carefully adjusts the compact keyboard, making sure the wallet-sized photo of Emma taped to it is perfectly positioned.)
[Verse 12 — Master Bedroom, continued]
My little studio is nestled in the corner that she chose,
She said the best songs come from comfort, and that's something Emma knows.
I'll tidy up my cables, wipe the microphone down clean,
So when I play for her tomorrow, it'll be the best she's seen.
(He looks around the room one more time, satisfied, then heads back downstairs.)
(The bathroom is small but in need of attention — toothbrushes askew, towels crumpled, splashes on the mirror from the quads' enthusiastic teeth-brushing. Lachy gets to work.)
Lachy: (singing)
Even in the bathroom, there's a job that must be done,
Four little toothbrushes standing crooked — one by one by one.
I'll wipe the mirror spotless so her reflection shines so bright,
And hang fresh towels on the rack in yellow, purple, white.
(He scrubs the sink, polishes the mirror, and hangs up fresh towels — including one distinctly yellow one and one distinctly purple one side by side.)
[Verse 14 — Bathroom, continued]
The bathtub needs a scrubbing and the floor could use a sweep,
But I'll do it all for Emma, 'cause my love for her runs deep.
She deserves a home that sparkles, every corner, every tile,
So when she's soaking in this tub, she'll close her eyes and smile.
(He finishes the bathroom with a flourish, tosses the cleaning cloth over his shoulder, and heads back to the living room.)
[Final Verse — Living Room]
(Lachy returns to the living room where he started. It's transformed — spotless, organized, warm. He stands in the center, hairbrush microphone in hand, looking around with deep satisfaction.)
Lachy: (singing, voice rich and full)
Now I'm standing in the living room, the place where we began,
Everything is clean and ready, carried out just as I planned.
Tomorrow when she walks through that door, yellow bow in her hair,
She'll know that every corner of this house was cleaned with care.
(He walks over to the front door and touches the yellow bow mounted on it, his voice softening.)
This house is more than walls and floors, it's where our family grows,
It's where I play my ballads and where Emma's music flows.
So I've cleaned it all for my darling, every inch from floor to ceiling,
'Cause giving her a beautiful home is the greatest kind of feeling.
(Lachy stands in the center of the now-gleaming living room, arms outstretched, voice soaring with soulful conviction. His harmony vocals ring out behind him in warm, layered tones.)
I've cleaned the house for my darling,
Every room shines with my love.
I've been sweeping and scrubbing and dusting,
She's all that I'm dreaming of.
I've cleaned the house for my darling,
Everything is just right.
And when she walks through that front door tomorrow...
(He pauses, bringing the hairbrush microphone to his chest and closing his eyes.)
...I'll hold her so, so tight.
(The music fades softly. Lachy opens his eyes, looks around at the spotless house, and smiles — a warm, contented, deeply-in-love smile. He sets down the hairbrush on the side table and whispers:)
Lachy: (spoken, softly) Welcome home, my darling.
