Second episode, with less drama than the pilot, some funny moments (like Bailey's imaginary baseball player) and more information of the family. Bailey has a crush on the nanny but she is 8 years older than him. In the first scene, he even skips one day of school to stay in the house and be available in case she needs something while she takes care of baby Owen. Then, Bailey asks his older brother advice of how to connect with an older woman, and he answers that he needs to establish a common interest, so she won't think he is young and without experience. Anyway, a little bit after sunset, in the night, Kirsten is looking her keys in the backyard, that Owen lost while playing, and Charlie helps her. He offers her his sweater as she starts shivering after a cold breeze, talks about the time he lost one of his front teeth in a fight, and while smiling (and she praising his smile), he casually finds the keys stamping with his shoe. That single moment was like "love at first sight" for both of them, and then they left happily wishing a good night, she with his sweater to her place and he to watch TV along Bailey and Claudia. I could say that after meeting Kirsten, Charlie dumped his mistress (that he was seeing in the house he was doing some carpentry), realizing they didn't had anything in common (as the architectonical places he likes of the city, and she doesn't) and he wanted to start something with Owen's nanny. The next day, Bailey trying to impress Kirsten who was reading a bedtime tale to Owen, invents a story about his imaginary friend "Lloyd W Loomis" and how he took care of him to pretend he is interested in Psychology. He feels weird about the story, but she says that is ok, as it means he is a sensitive and caring person. Later, he prepares spaghetti and meatballs and she joins a family dinner for the first time. She sits next to Charlie and Julia, and inadvertently reveals to the rest about Bailey's imaginary friend, causing laughs. She and Charlie connect about their "hard work" and common interest in the natural views of houses in Sea Ranch, so later, while throwing garbage in containers, they share their first kiss, and surely set a date to spend time together. The next day, she says sorry to Bailey about the imaginary friend, and just when he is about to express his feelings/crush, Charlie calls and she attends. She is surprised he got up early and seems that she got tickets to a recital of gregorian chants. Bailey realizes and then tells him to back off and that after sleeping with Kirsten he'd forget about her like if she was just a name in Charlie's list, so the older brother, knowing that he doesn't want that, angered says "screw you". After moving back to the house and getting the job at the restaurant, Charlie proved that he wants to change, so obviously he'd be looking for something serious with Kirsten, but also he wanted to take care of his siblings. And that's why he felt in crossroads. Although he was hurt by Bailey's words, finally he canceled the date, prioritizing his brother. She seemed disappointed in the restaurant and he said he had to work. But not to worry, Charlie and Kirsten will be together a couple of episodes later. Also about this, there is a little mistake in the script. In the first scene, after Bailey's fantasies, Kirsten says it's been over two and a half weeks since she started babysitting Owen. But much later, in the episode Stand by me (season 5), she says the events in this episode happened just in the first week of her employment. And considering the "love at first sight" Charlie and Kirsten had when he found her looking her keys in the backyard, it's very doubtful that he would let pass three weeks until making a move. So, according to this, let's say this episode occurred in the same week Kirsten was hired, the same week of the Pilot episode.
On the other hand, Julia and her friend Libby start partying despite being good students. After getting an F in class, Libby regrets going out but Julia, still affected by her parents death, doesn't care anymore about failing in school. However, she cares enough the family to prioritize helping Bailey at homework instead of going out a night. Breaking up her friendship with Libby, she finds another one in Nina, by looking the company she wants.
And for the last, Claudia searches their only surviving grandparent, Jack Gordon, who abandoned Diana when she was 10 years old. She calls a private investigator but as his service is expensive, he is kind enough to offer her a free tip, to look In Veterans Administration. Turns out that grandpa Jack served in military and left his family in Seattle more than 30 years ago. The siblings doesn't want Claudia to be hopeful of finding grandpa, because the man abandoned their mother, but she won't change her mind and gets upset with them. In probably the best scene of the episode, she talks to Owen, proving their bond as the youngest in the family, sharing thoughts, the two need someone else in the family, someone to take care of them, because she knows that Bailey and Julia will want to live their own lives (college or whatever), and Charlie might not want them (he just moved back into the house). Claudia finds an old man in the docks, who lives in a boat, and she questions him about his life posing as a girl scout selling chocolates. He was married, had a child and likes violin music, as Diana did. But results that the Jack Gordon Claudia found, is not their grandfather, so Bailey comforts her, assuring that the five will be fine. Then, in a family dinner, Claudia is surprised that Charlie and Kirsten almost had a date, and then orders steak, telling her siblings that they should go to sail, asking Charlie that he needs to be with them as the adult. He accepts, so seems that the Salingers will have some sailing trips off screen. Once again, Lacey was amazing here, she is the sunshine of the series so far. And well, we discover why this family is so small, no grandparents, no cousins, no one else, just one uncle, Kurt (surely Nick's brother) who chased his 2nd wife to France, who "couldn't really deal" with the orphans. Bailey also revealed while talking to Claudia that their paternal grandparents died, both being 70 something, Nana in 1986 and Papa in 1989. And grandma Jane, Diana's mother, died in 1986. To finish, there's one detail to add, Will was introduced as Bailey's best friend with a short scene, but he will appear in this first two seasons regularly and until the last season.
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