But that all changed more than a month ago when Heather Brown, 28, a single mother, volunteered to help watch her friend's two children while he was deployed overseas with the Army. Now that the four-bedroom, two-bathroom house is occupied by seven people, it is feeling a lot smaller than it used to, but everyone is adjusting, Brown says.

Brown met Andrew Schofield, 47, at a singles Bible study group at Central Christian Church in Willow Glen two years ago. Since then the two have become good friends. Schofield's 15-year-old daughter, Victoria, frequently babysat Brown's children. Victoria and her sister, Valerie, 19, both Willow Glen High School students, visited Brown's house to eat dinner, watch movies and hang out.

In February Schofield—who has been in the Army Reserves for 2¹/2 years—got his orders to spend one year in military service. He was deployed to Fort Lewis in Seattle, Wash., where he is a specialist in a transportation unit. He teaches new recruits how to drive military vehicles and how to be aware of their surroundings. He was assigned there for two months, but on April 18 he will be deployed to Kuwait, where he is scheduled to spend the remainder of his year in active service.

Because he has been raising his daughters on his own in a Willow Glen apartment for the past four years—their mother lives in Grass Valley—he needed to have someone sign a power of attorney agreement after he enlisted in the National Guard in case he became injured. The first person he asked took on the commitment but then decided the responsibilities were too great, so Brown stepped up to the plate.

Brown says when she first volunteered she thought the power of attorney was "just a precaution" and "just something on a piece of paper," not something that would actually come to fruition.

Andrew's family lives in Philadelphia, where he was born and raised, and his daughters also have family in Seattle and Grass Valley.

"My dad would prefer if we stayed with blood relatives, but our comfort zone has always been with Heather because we have stayed with her on weekends," Victoria says. "Our relatives have never been part of our lives. I consider the Browns my family more than someone who just has my last name."

Photograph by Sean Penello Caring and Sharing: Heather Brown (left), who has four children of her own, also takes care of Valerie and Victoria Schofield, since their father was deployed overseas. Victoria helps care for Brown's youngest child, Isabella.

"It didn't seem like a big deal," says Brown, a student at De Anza College in Cupertino. "It's not like I sat down to think about it. It came up in conversation that he needed someone that he was able to trust with his children. There was already enough for them to deal with, with their father going to war. It would be too much of an adjustment to be uprooted because of this."

In the beginning of February, Andrew was in routine training that was supposed to last two weeks, but he was sent home early. A few days later he was given 72 hours to be at home before being deployed to Seattle.

"My dad was more prepared than the rest of us," Victoria says. "He had suspicions about the war starting because he was given equipment reservists don't usually get."

He left so quickly his mother didn't get a chance to visit him before he was deployed.

His daughters were also left in a whirlwind, with a lot to do in a short amount of time. To help pack up their apartment, they accepted help from church members that they didn't know who were friends of their father. Now those church members send food to the Brown family.

And life will be in limbo when their father returns. The family's Willow Glen apartment is up for rent, which means the family will probably have to find another place to live. And the girls' father lost his job right when he left. The tow truck company that he worked for as a driver had closed.

"I'd like to go back to that apartment because there are a ton of memories there," Valerie says. "I cried for a whole week after he left because my dad is always there for me."

The toughest part for Victoria was getting rid of her dad's most prized possession in their apartment—the plants. Because Andrew loves plants, he had ivy growing along the wall in one room. Victoria was sad to see it cut down.

It was also hard for Valerie to get used to her new living situation. While her sister loves children and had babysat the Browns—Ronald, 9, Carmela, 6, Michaela, 5, and Isabella, 2—Valerie doesn't share the same fondness for children.

Now they act as older sisters to the Brown children. Valerie says they serve as role models and pay more attention to their own behavior, which wasn't typical for them prior to moving in with the Brown family.

Everyone agrees it's a tight squeeze in the San Jose house, with the Schofields sharing a room with Ronald. He gets the top of the bunk bed, Victoria gets the bottom, and Valerie sleeps on a pull-out bed.

The house rules are also stricter than at their father's house—while Valerie and Victoria used to have until 7 p.m. to finish chores, Brown picks the children up from school and they have to complete chores earlier.

But the Schofields have become a part of the household. To help out around the house they take out the trash, make their beds and do the laundry and dishes.

They also have an earlier curfew.

"It is harder on Valerie now that there's someone who wants to know where we are and what we're doing," Victoria says.

Brown says she is taking care of them in the way her parents raised her. She lets them go out with friends if she knows where they are, and they call to check in with her.

Their grades have not fallen since their father left, either, Brown says. She receives their report cards and helps them with their homework.

She is also teaching them to cook—with mixed results. They have both messed up macaroni and cheese. Victoria burned it and Valerie put the butter in the water while it was boiling instead of after it was drained, Brown says with a laugh.

"Their father is an excellent cook and good at barbecuing," Brown says. " So they don't always like my cooking."

The morning routine was also chaotic when the girls first moved in. All the children had to get out of bed, eat breakfast, get ready and get out the door before 6:30 a.m. because Brown had to get to college by 8:30 a.m.

But now her friend from church drives Valerie and Victoria to Willow Glen High School, so the schedule is more flexible. But the sisters still help wake up the younger children in the morning.

The Brown children don't mind sharing their house or room, though Ronald had to adjust to having more "girl stuff" in his bathroom, Brown said.

To enable the Schofields to escape the children and enjoy some privacy, Brown has sacrificed her garage. She now parks on the street so the Schofields can use the garage as their own room.

The garage has been converted into a teenagers' hangout, complete with a couple of couches, carpet, a television, a DVD player and a stereo. The walls are covered with posters of sports teams and male singers.

The girls don't sleep there because it is cold and not secure. But it is a place where their friends are welcome, and it is off-limits to the Brown children.

"I don't bother them in there unless I have to do the laundry," Brown says.

Photograph by Sean Penello Personal Space: Valerie and Victoria Schofield spend some time alone with their friends in Brown's garage. It's a chance to get away from the hectic pace of the main house.

And even though they have bad habits like leaving things lying around the house, Brown accepts their teenage behavior.

"I asked my mom, and she said I acted like that as a teenager, too," Brown says.

Away from their new home the girls are also getting support from their classmates and staff at Willow Glen High School, who often ask how their dad is doing. Teachers go easy on them if they're having a bad day, Valerie says.

To show support for the troops, the girls' church hands out yellow ribbons with the name of the church member fighting in the war so people can pray for them. Valerie often wears the ribbon bearing her dad's name on her sweater or backpack.

"A lot of our friends say they wish him luck," Valerie says. "The high school has a yellow ribbon on the tree in the quad."

The girls have been fortunate to hear from their father a few times per week. They also have a 23-year-old brother in the military—he lives in Sacramento with his wife and child—but he has not been deployed.

Andrew's deployment has sparked communication with the girls' East Coast relatives. Valerie and Victoria have flown back East and visited their father's side of the family for the first time. On that trip they traveled to Philadelphia and met their aunt, uncle and cousin, who offered Valerie a place to stay when she graduates in two months. She plans to take them up on their offer.

But Victoria plans to stay with the Browns until her father returns. She considers them so much a part of her life that she had her new boyfriend over for a "family dinner."

And although seven people are now sharing a house that now seems a lot smaller, Brown says, "I think we're all getting along just fine."