Karen's County Fair

  “You want to enter Ollie in the livestock contest?” Kristy asked.

  I nodded. “That can be my project.”

  Mrs. Stone and Kristy did not seem too happy about my idea. “Karen,” Mrs. Stone said. “Ollie is a wonderful lamb, but he is not a show lamb. He has never been properly trained.”

  “I can train him,” I insisted.

  “It is not that simple,” Mrs. Stone said. “You do not have much experience working with lambs. And Ollie is already three months old. Most animals begin training as soon as they are born. Entering an animal in a contest is a serious project, Karen. It takes a lot of time and effort.”

  Kristy agreed with Mrs. Stone. She reminded me about the livestock contest we saw on TV. “The kids you saw spent hours every day with their animals. They fed them, groomed them, and taught them how to behave.”

  “I can spend hours each day with Ollie,” I said.

  “Well, all right, Karen,” Mrs. Stone finally said. “I see you are determined. But this means you will be in a group by yourself.”

  “That is all right,” I said. I was thrilled. I ran outside to give Ollie a hug. “Ollie,” I whispered. “We are going to win the blue ribbon.”

  At Camp

  “I think we should grow tomatoes for the fair,” said Charlotte.

  “But the lettuce is growing better,” Hannie pointed out.

  “That is true,” I said. “The lettuce looks better.”

  “Karen,” Chris said. “You are not in the produce group. Hannie, Charlotte, and I can decide — without you.”

  I walked away in a huff. At least I had Ollie to keep me company. (And he was a lot nicer than Chris Lamar.)

  I had already given Ollie his morning bottle. (Mrs. Stone had said I could feed him from now on.) Ollie gulped down his milk in no time. I thought about feeding him more. I want him to look big and healthy for the fair.

  Next, Ollie and I played follow-the-leader. I was the leader, and Ollie followed me everywhere. He even wanted to follow me into the house when I visited the other groups. But I did not let him.

  First, I went to the sewing room to see Nancy. She sat at a big table with Sophie, Gemma, Gregg, and Kristy. (Kristy was not going to sew. She was just helping them get started.) Guess what. Everyone wanted to make something different. Sophie and Gemma wanted to sew a pillow in the shape of a rabbit. Gregg wanted to make a beanbag cat. Nancy wanted to sew a baby quilt.

  I liked the idea of a baby quilt the best. Especially if it had a lamb on it. But no one asked me what I thought.

  Kristy wanted to know if I had practiced putting a halter on Ollie.

  “Why would I do that?” I asked.

  “To see if he will let you lead him,” Kristy explained. “At the fair, you will probably have to lead him around a ring on a leash.”

  “Oh,” I said. I was busy looking at a book of baby quilts.

  I pointed to a pattern called Lambie Pie. It showed a lamb surrounded by tulips and butterflies. “I like this one,” I said.

  “I like the one with the teddy bear,” said Nancy.

  “There’s one with a train,” said Gregg. Soon Gemma and Sophie wanted to see the book, too. “These quilts are cuter than the rabbit pillows,” said Gemma.

  “Especially the one with the lamb on it,” I repeated. But no one heard me. I decided to see what the kitchen group was doing. I could probably help them. (I am a very good cook.)

  I found Bobby, Ricky, Pamela, and Cordelia making brownies with Mallory. They were putting a big tray of them in the oven. “We are going to win the contest with this recipe,” said Bobby.

  “Your brownies are not baked yet,” I said. “How do you know how they will taste?”

  “I just know,” said Bobby. “They have a lot of chocolate in them.”

  “And nuts,” Cordelia added.

  They did sound good. I put my finger in the bowl and tasted the chocolate frosting. “Mmmm,” I said.

  “Hey, Karen!” Bobby exclaimed. He grabbed the bowl. “Only people in the cooking group can taste the frosting.”

  “The judges are not in your group,” I said. “And if you want my honest opinion, I think you need to add more sugar.” (“If you want my honest opinion” was something Charlie and his friends said. I thought it sounded very grown up.)

  Bobby was not impressed. “Karen, leave us alone,” he said.

  Ricky and Cordelia thanked me. They are much more polite than Bobby.

  As soon as I walked outside, Ollie trotted over to me. I spent the rest of the morning brushing him. (I promised him I would brush him every day.) His coat looked soft and fluffy when I was done.

  “Ollie, I want you to look perfect for the fair,” I said. Ollie did not answer. Instead, he butted me.

  “Oh, Ollie, are you hungry?”

  Ollie butted me again. So I gave him another bottle. I did not want Ollie to starve. I hoped Mrs. Stone didn’t mind.

  A Trip to the Airport

  The next morning, I woke up very early. I did not want to keep Tia waiting.

  “Daddy,” I said at breakfast. “Should we leave for the airport now?”

  “Karen,” Daddy answered. “We do not have to leave for two hours.”

  “Two hours.” I groaned. “What will I do for two hours?”

  Nannie and Elizabeth had a lot of ideas about what I could do. First I cleaned my room. That was Elizabeth’s idea. Then Nannie and I made cupcakes for Tia. I decorated them with pink and white icing and sprinkles. Finally it was time to leave for the airport.

  Kristy, Andrew, and David Michael decided to go with us. I was happy David Michael came. Andrew is not such a pest when David Michael is with him.

  We arrived half an hour before Tia’s plane.

  “Let’s look around the airport,” I suggested. I had been to the airport many times. I knew there was a lot to see. First, we looked in a toy store. Then, we watched the planes take off and land. Soon, we heard Tia’s flight announced over the intercom.

  Daddy and Kristy sat in plastic chairs to wait. But Andrew, David Michael, and I were too excited. We walked around the aisles and looked out the window. We saw Tia’s plane land. Then we saw a girl with very short dark hair walk off the plane. She was with a stewardess.

  “She’s here!” I cried. I rushed over to the gate.

  “Tia!” I shouted.

  “Karen,” Tia called back. We ran into each other’s arms and hugged. Then I introduced Tia to Daddy, Kristy, and David Michael. (Tia had met Andrew before.) She knew all about my two families. And they knew all about her.

  Tia and I sat in the backseat and talked all the way home. I told her about Farm Camp and Ollie. Tia looked out the window a lot. She started at all the stores and restaurants we passed. She loved downtown Stoneybrook. “Oh, Karen, there are so many neat-looking stores here.”

  “This is the town part of Stoneybrook,” I explained. “The country part where we go to camp is nicer.” Tia did not answer. She was too busy looking out the window.

  When we arrived at the big house, Elizabeth, Nannie, Sam, and Shannon were there to meet us. Shannon bounded up to Tia. She licked her hand.

  Elizabeth and Nannie hugged Tia and welcomed her to Stoneybrook. Sam carried her suitcase upstairs. Tia was going to sleep in the guest room near my room.

  Tia started to unpack. But I stopped her. I wanted to show her around the house before lunch. I knew that would take a long time because Daddy’s house is very big. It has three floors and nine bedrooms. Tia loved the whole house.

  “Oh, Karen, you have a TV and a VCR,” she exclaimed. “And air-conditioning.”

  “Well, yes.” I said. (Tia does not have those things on her farm in Nebraska.)

  “Karen, Tia,” Kristy called. “Lunch-time!”

  For lunch, we had tuna fish sandwiches, potato chips, pickles, fresh strawberries, and the special cupcakes.

  Tia said they were the prettiest cupcakes she had ever seen. She also loved the potato chips. “We never
have these at home,” she said, munching happily.

  “You know, Tia, these are fresh strawberries. We bought them at a farm in Stoneybrook.”

  Tia nodded and reached for another chip.

  After lunch, I took Tia around the neighborhood. “Could we walk to the stores from here?” Tia asked.

  “Well, no,” I said. “Besides, it is too nice a day to spend inside a store.” Instead I showed Tia our backyard and Daddy’s big garden. “Daddy lets me help him with his roses,” I said proudly. “We can both help him while you are here.”

  Tia did not answer. Next we walked to a nearby park. We sat on a bench and looked at the people walking their dogs. (Most of the dogs were poodles.) I told Tia about Mrs. Stone’s animals.

  “You have to meet Ollie,” I said. “He is the best lamb.” Instead of answering, Tia yawned. She was probably tired after her trip.

  Strawberries, Peaches, and Plums

  Tia really was tired. She went to bed right after dinner. She said that was her regular bedtime.

  But guess what? Tia woke up before any of us and fed Shannon and Boo-Boo. So Shannon and Boo-Boo did not wake us up as they usually do. Daddy and Elizabeth were very happy. So was I.

  Today was Tia’s first full day in Stoneybrook. I wanted to make it special. I even had a plan. I had already talked it over with Daddy.

  And at breakfast, I told it to Tia. “Tia,” I said, “we are going to have a picnic — just you, me, Hannie, and Nancy. We are going to spend the whole day outside.” It was a clear sunny day with puffy white clouds and a blue sky.

  Tia smiled. But she did not seem too excited. Maybe she was tired from getting up so early.

  After breakfast, Tia and I packed lunch.

  “I know a wonderful place where we can have a picnic,” I told Tia. “The backyard.”

  We sat under the big tree and spread out our blanket. Andrew and David Michael were in the backyard, too. They were playing catch. But they did not bother us, thank goodness.

  I bit into a strawberry. “If I could be a fruit, I would be a strawberry,” I said. “They are my favorite.”

  “I would be a plum,” said Nancy. “I love the color.”

  “I would be a peach,” said Hannie.

  Tia was giving us a funny look. I think she was trying not to laugh. “What fruit would you be?” I asked her.

  “I don’t know,” she answered. “Maybe a banana.” She did not seem too interested in fruit.

  After we had cleaned up our picnic, Hannie wanted to go wading. I wanted to take a walk. Nancy wanted to play Frisbee. Tia was the only one who wanted to go indoors.

  “There is nothing to do inside,” I said.

  “Couldn’t we watch TV or rent a video?” Tia suggested. “It is so hot out here.”

  “Well, if you are hot, maybe we should go wading.” I said.

  “Yes!” Hannie said. She could not wait to go splashing in the brook near Daddy’s house. The water only comes up to our knees.

  “Let’s change into our bathing suits,” I said.

  Hannie went home to get her suit. Nancy borrowed my ruffled peach suit. “Now you look like a peach,” I said.

  Nancy giggled.

  We spent the rest of the afternoon wading in the brook. The water was warm and clear. We could see sand and pebbles underneath the water. Tia saw a frog. (It hopped away when the rest of us looked.)

  I found a ladybug with ten dots on her back. “That means she is ten years old,” I told the others. “Did you know a ladybug grows a new spot every year?”

  They nodded.

  We rode our bikes back to Daddy’s house. (Tia had borrowed David Michael’s bike and Nancy had borrowed Linny’s. Linny is Hannie’s brother.) Then we played hide-and-seek in the backyard. It was easy for me to find everyone, maybe because I know my backyard so well.

  I was sad when Tia and I had to go inside for dinner. And Hannie and Nancy had to go home. But it had been a perfect day.

  Tia on the Farm

  On Monday, Charlie drove Kristy, Tia, Hannie, and me to camp. We arrived a little early. I wanted to show Tia around the farm. Mrs. Stone met us in the driveway. So did Ollie.

  I threw my arms around him. “Oh, Ollie, I missed you,” I said.

  Mrs. Stone held out her hand for Tia to shake. “Welcome to Farm Camp, Tia.”

  Tia smiled. “Thank you,” she said.

  Mrs. Stone told Tia about the county fair and the groups she could join. (I had already told Tia not to join the cooking group, mostly because of Mr. Pest.) Then we took Tia on a tour of the farm. Ollie followed me everywhere. He butted me, then Tia.

  “He is doing that because he is hungry,” I explained to Tia.

  “I know,” said Tia.

  “We have to give him a bottle,” I said. Tia watched while I fed Ollie. Then Tia and I watched the other groups so Tia could decide which one to join. (That was Mrs. Stone’s idea.)

  The sewing group had decided to make a baby quilt. They were busy cutting scraps of material into squares.

  “Are you making the Lambie Pie quilt?” I asked Nancy.

  “No, we are making the one with the baby bear on it,” she said.

  “Oh.” I was disappointed.

  Tia knew a lot about sewing. She taught the group how to make a bear. “All you need is to cut one large shape,” she said. “Then you can make the muzzle, paws, and feet separately and sew them on the body.” I could tell the sewing group really wanted Tia in their group. But she had not seen the other groups yet.

  The cooking group let us taste their new batch of brownies. Yuck. I made a face. The brownies had too much salt in them.

  “We are still working on this recipe, Karen,” Ricky said.

  “You need to,” I said.

  Bobby stuck his tongue out at me.

  “I told you he was a pest,” I said later. Tia nodded. We were sitting outside with Ollie. I was sneaking him a second bottle. We watched the produce group water their tomato plants.

  Tia liked the produce group. “There are only three people in it,” she said. “There would be room for me.”

  “Wait a minute,” I said. “You know a lot about livestock, don’t you?” Tia smiled. Her parents raise lambs and pigs on their farm. “Tia,” I continued. “Why don’t you help me with Ollie? We could enter him together.” (Why had I not thought of this before?)

  “I don’t know, Karen,” Tia said. She sounded just like Mrs. Stone and Kristy. She told me Ollie was not built like a market lamb. (That is the category the judges would put him in.) He was not long enough. His lower legs were not thick enough.

  I was not listening too closely. How could I when Ollie was nuzzling my arm?

  “Oh, Tia, please,” I said. “We would have so much fun training Ollie together.”

  Tia was quiet for a moment. I could tell she was thinking. Finally, she said, “Okay, Karen, I will help you.” Tia is a good friend.

  I could tell the sewing and produce groups were disappointed not to have her. But I did not care. With Tia in my group, I was sure Ollie would win.

  Downtown

  “I think food tastes much better outside,” I said. I popped another marshmallow in my mouth. Tia shrugged. But she reached for another marshmallow, too.

  Camp was over for the day. Tia and I were pretending to camp out in my backyard. Charlie had even let us borrow his tent. The two of us had collected enough twigs to build a pretend bonfire. And Nannie had brought out a bag of marshmallows we could pretend to toast. (We were eating them raw instead.)

  “Do you want to go wading in the brook again?” I asked.

  Tia shrugged. “If you want to,” she answered.

  I sighed a little. Tia seemed so quiet. She never became excited about anything. She was not like this in Nebraska. I hoped she was not homesick.

  “Karen, Tia!” Nannie called from the kitchen door.

  “Yes,” I answered.

  “Would you like to go downtown with me? I have to pick up some milk
.”

  “Downtown? Is that where the stores are?” Tia asked. She jumped up and almost knocked over the bag of marshmallows.

  “Yes,” I answered. “Would you like to go?”

  “Sure!”

  “We’re coming!” I called to Nannie.

  A few minutes later, we met Nannie in the driveway and climbed into her old pink car. (She calls it the Pink Clinker.)

  I could not figure Tia out at all. Here we were in a hot stuffy car. And Tia seemed so happy.

  “Karen,” she asked, “what does ‘cinema’ mean?” We were driving through down-town Stoneybrook.

  “Oh, that is just Stoneybrook’s movie theater,” I answered.

  “They are playing something called Coppélia.”

  “I have seen that movie already,” I said. “It is very sad.”

  “Oh.” Tia sounded a little disappointed. “Karen,” Tia said again. (She did not even turn in her seat to look at me. Her eyes seemed glued to the window.) “What is Pizza Express like?”

  “It is just a place where you can eat pizza,” I said. I could not believe Tia would be interested in fast food. But she was. She wanted to know if you could see the cooks making the pizza. And what kind of toppings they had.

  “Pizza! Pizza!” Emily screamed at the top of her lungs, only it sounded more like pia, pia.

  “Not today, Emily,” Nannie answered.

  When we drove by the department store, I thought Tia would jump out of her seat.

  “Karen,” she said. “What a huge store! What do they sell there?”

  “Clothes,” I answered. “And toys. And boring grown-up stuff like dishes and furniture.”

  “I love the clothes in the window,” Tia exclaimed.

  I looked at the store windows, too. I saw mannequins of little kids dressed in blue-and-white-striped dresses and pant suits. They wore straw hats with blue ribbons. Big deal.

  Nannie drove into the grocery store parking lot. Tia loved the grocery store. She looked in all the aisles. “Karen, there is so much food here. You can even buy chocolate from Switzerland!” she exclaimed.