Mrs. Green's Peanut-Butter-Chocolate-Chip Cookies

Here is the recipe for Stephanie's mom's peanut-butter-chocolate-chip cookies. Becky, let me know if you decide to make these! They sound really good and I want to make them myself. These recipes can all be found in the Super Sleepover Guide. It's a fun book! There's recipes and tips for throwing your own sleepover.

Mrs. Green's Peanut-Butter-Chocolate-Chip Cookies

1/2 cup margarine or butter, left out to get soft
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter or margarine. Add the peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg and vanilla. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ones until everything is mixed together. Add the chocolate chips and mix them in with a spoon. Wash your hands. Then split the dough in two, and on a clean surface, roll each half with clean hands until it is a tube 1 1/2 inches in diameter. (It will look like a peanut-butter-chocolate-chip snake! Lauren) Wrap in waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator for at least three hours. Unwrap and cut into slices 1/4 inch thick. Place on a slightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Makes about 5 dozen medium-sized cookies.

#27 Where's Patti?

This recap is for Nikki (http://whatireadbackthen.blogspot.com/) who mentioned on one of my posts awhile ago that this is her favorite Sleepover Friends book. At the time, I didn't know which book she was talking about. Since I got this one recently and finally figured it out, I thought I'd do the recap now.

Lauren, Kate, Stephanie and Patti are going to Maine to visit Stephanie's grandma, Nana. Not to ruin the surprise, but Nana remarried in book #25.

The girls are flying to Crab Island on a seaplane, and Lauren is freaked out. The girls land safely and Nana is there to greet them. Patti brought along a book, Birds of the Northeast, and is all excited about seeing birds. According to Nana, there are several kids on the island who are around their age--twin boys and a girl named Mindy Sue. Nana and the girls head to see Dan (Nana's new husband) and his friend compete in a sloop race. She tells the girls about all the fun activities going on, like a sand castle contest and kite flying contest. The girls are all excited to participate. There's also a clambake and a dance.

After the race, the girls meet the Tyler twins, John and Fred. They don't look anything alike and Lauren describes them as "two short twerps with freckles and too much energy." The twins say they are hoping to win the most points in the contest so they can win a Sunfish, which is a boat. They already won a race earlier in the day, and are hoping to win both the kite-flying and sandcastle contests. The twins are not happy to find out that the Sleepover Friends, who are "off-islanders," are entered in those contests as well.

Just then, Mindy Sue shows up. She's about Lauren's height, with long straight hair parted in the middle and bangs. Lauren observes that she must take ballet because she has incredibly perfect posture. She's wearing a great-looking yellow wool cape with a hood and bright green sweats. As Mindy Sue introduces herself, they notice Patti has disappeared!

The girls meet the older Tyler brother, Robert, who is in high school. Stephanie thinks he is much better looking than the twins. He's tall, with reddish-brown hair brushed to one side, big brown eyes, a golden-brown tan and no freckles.

Nana, Stephanie, Kate and Lauren head back to the car, where Patti is sitting on the hood, looking at her bird book. When they ask her where she went, Patti makes up a lame story about seeing a fulmar and wanting to check in the book to make sure. They all head to the house, where the girls get to stay in the attic--apparently Nana and Dan had it remodeled just for them! As the girls are looking out the window, they see the Tyler twins, who smirk and give them a V for victory. The girls eat lunch--beef stew and Nana's homemade Boston brown bread. Then they get out their kite. It's a huge red box kite.

They head to the beach for the kite flying contest. Lauren is in charge of holding the spool of string and running, Patti will hold the kite up in the air, Stephanie will help Patti, and Kate will give directions. As they get the kite up in the air, Mindy Sue shows up and Patti disappears again. The girls are doing pretty well with their kite but it's really windy and next thing they know, their kite crashes into the Tyler twins' kite. They all watch as the kites land in the water. The Tyler boys are furious. The girls end up winning a trophy for having the largest kite.

As the girls head back to the car, they spot Patti sitting by a rock, bird watching again. However, Lauren observes that Patti doesn't really seem to be bird watching, she seems to be hiding. Patti claims that she saw a petrel and wanted to look in her book, which is why she ran off again. She also says she got sand in her eyes and that is why she left. Stephanie thinks Patti cares more about the birds than them, and acts all pissy about it.

For dinner, Nana makes chicken and dumplings and apple pandowdy. (I have no idea what apple pandowdy is and I'm too lazy to look it up). After dinner they all head upstairs and go to sleep. During the night, Lauren wakes up from a dream and notices Patti leaning out the window into the cold wind, which she thinks is odd.

The next morning, they have scrambled eggs and fresh cinnamon rolls. Then they talk strategy for their sand castle. They decide to build a big sandcastle and find all sorts of buckets and tools to use. They head to the beach and get started. As they are working on the sandcastle, Mindy Sue and her friend Jane show up, and Patti disappears again. The girls figure Patti is off chasing birds. However, Jane tells the girls that Patti can't possibly be looking for petrels or other shore birds, because it's the wrong time of year and the birds are all out at sea.

The girls have no idea what is up with Patti. Then Dan shows up. Nana drove Patti back to the house because she wasn't feeling well. They all drink some hot chocolate. When they go home for lunch, Patti is taking a nap. Nana says she has a bad headache and not to bother her. After lunch, the girls head back to the beach to work on their sandcastle some more.

That night is the dance, and they all talk about what they are going to wear. Kate: denim skirt and purple tights. Lauren: new turquoise sweatshirt with pink & yellow splotches on it. Stephanie: red and black striped wool pants. Mindy Sue asks if Patti will be going since she hasn't even met her yet, but they don't know if she'll be feeling up to it. However, Patti ends up going because if she stayed home, Nana would have to stay home with her, and she doesn't want to ruin her fun.

They head inside and there's lots going on. There's a refreshment table in the corner with two types of punch, and all kinds of cake, cookies and other snacks. There's a band and everyone is dancing. An old guy asks Kate to dance, a 7th grade boy asks Stephanie to dance, and a short 5th grader named Josh asks Lauren to dance. She recognizes him from the kite flying contest, where he won first place along with his sister. He points out his sister, Becky, who is dancing with Robert Tyler, the older Tyler boy who Stephanie thought was cute. Becky is a small, dainty girl with pink cheeks and curly dark hair. She had on a hot pink blazer, black jeans and black sneakers with lime green laces. Josh tells Lauren that his sister and Robert are going steady.

Lauren decides to go talk to Stephanie about Patti disappearing again. They get Kate and all head outside, where they find Patti waiting in the car again. They tell Patti they know why she keeps running off--it's because of the Tyler twins. Patti says no, she isn't upset about them... it's Mindy Sue. The girls are confused since Patti never even met Mindy Sue. Turns out, Patti and Mindy Sue were in the same 3rd grade class together. Mindy Sue used to make fun of Patti . She said Patti was too tall and too skinny, a bookworm and a baby, and that no one would like her because she's such a geek. Patti says she was afraid to tell them because she was worried they'd think it over and agree with Mindy Sue!

Didn't we just go over this in the last book?! Patti was all nervous about telling her friends that she was in the Quarks Club, because she thought they'd think she was a geek and not want to be her friend. And of course they don't care, and are still friends. Hasn't Patti learned anything?

Stephanie thinks maybe Mindy Sue was jealous of Patti and that is why she made fun of her. They assure Patti that 3rd grade was a long time ago (it was only 2 years ago--they are in 5th grade now!) and that Mindy Sue has changed. They all head back into the dance. However, Patti still refuses to see Mindy Sue.

During the night, there is a really bad thunderstorm. The next morning it's beautiful out, but it's too late--because of the storm, the tide wiped out most of the sandcastles. They grab some cranberry muffins and then head to the beach. Their sandcastle is gone and the girls are pretty bummed.

Mindy Sue shows up. Patti is actually there--she decided to stay and help with the sandcastle. At first, Mindy Sue doesn't even remember Patti. But Patti reminds her that they were in 3rd grade together. Mindy Sue is all "I was so jealous of this girl! She was the smartest kid in the whole school, she was tall--I was a total shrimp--our teacher loved her. She had everything!" Mindy Sue seems genuinely excited to see Patti again, and Patti is pleased and surprised, and realizes she overreacted.

The girls, including Mindy Sue and Jane, decide to join forces with the Tyler twins and build one really big castle since they don't have much time. The girls know how badly the Tylers want to win the boat. They end up building a sandcastle on a planet in outer space. (huh?!) In case you are wondering what that might look like: It was about Lauren's height, and twice as long as it was tall. Ramps crisscrossed the castle from one arched doorway to another. It had 15 towers of all sizes, and lots of round windows. It even had a flat launching pad for spaceships, like the one in a movie called Altair Three. Fred and Patti made a flying saucer from the big pottery plate on which Nana had brought their lunch (ham sandwiches).

A real architect goes around to judge the sandcastles. They end up winning first place! They are praised for their imagination and originality.

That night is the clambake. I've never been to a clambake but it sounds fun! The grown-ups dug a big pit in the sand, and the kids lined it with rocks and collected driftwood. They let the fire burn for awhile and then piled in clams, potatoes, apples, chicken, hamburgers, mussels, crabs, lobsters, hot dogs and sausages. They they packed the seaweed over and around all the food to steam it. As they waited for the food to cook, they sang songs and told ghost stories (maybe the Sleepover Friends told the story about the big white hand!) They all eat dinner together.

The next morning, Mindy Sue and the Tyler boys come over to see the girls off. Nana and Dan decided to drive the girls to the Portland airport so they don't have to take the seaplane again. Mindy Sue and Patti agree to stay in touch, and the boys tell the Sleepover Friends they'll teach them how to sail next time they come.

"Nothing's quite as good as the Sleepover Friends!" - Lauren.

Next up: Should I do #14 Lauren Takes Charge, or should I go back and recap all the books I didn't have before? I still need to do #1 Patti's Luck, #3 Kate's Surprise, #8 Lauren's Treasure, and #9 No More Sleepovers, Patti? Let me know what you'd like!

#13 Patti's Secret Wish

I’ve never said much about the covers of the Sleepover Friends books, but I have to mention this one. If you look at the books on the shelf, there is a Sleepover Friends book! How is that possible? ha. There’s also The Gymnasts and The Babysitters Club. Nevermind that these books would never be found in a college bookstore. It’s pretty cool though.

Lauren, Kate, Patti and Stephanie are getting back some papers they wrote for class. They had to either write about being an insect or a kitchen appliance. Of course, Lauren writes about a refrigerator. Stephanie also writes about a refrigerator. Kate writes about a praying mantis and Patti writes about a ladybug. They all do pretty well on their papers but their teacher, Mrs. Mead, asks to see Karla and Patti after school. Karla got an A+ on her paper, but the girls are worried Patti didn’t do so well and is in trouble. They wait til Patti gets out, and she tells them she has to redo her paper. They all want to help her, but Patti says she’ll work on it by herself and heads home. Stephanie, Lauren and Kate head to Stephanie’s house.

There’s a lot of construction going on at Stephanie’s house. They are having an addition built onto their house for the baby. Plus, there is something being built in the backyard (hmm… wonder what that could be.) Stephanie’s parents told her it was an office for her dad (but we all know it’s the "apartment" they give Stephanie for her birthday! This is the book where she gets it).

Stephanie tells them she is worried her parents have forgotten her birthday. They haven’t said a single word about a party or a present. Well, she’s getting the "apartment" for her present, and the Sleepover Friends are in on the surprise party—Stephanie’s dad is renting out the Pizza Palace and inviting all her friends.

As the girls are heading to the mall, they pass by the university and see Patti’s bike. The girls are wondering what is going on, since Patti told them she was going straight home to work on her paper. Then they see Patti, talking to an older guy. He’s in his 20s, with straight reddish-brown hair combed to one side, dark eyes, and a light tan. He’s wearing a bright-green cable sweater, old khakis, and white sneakers.

Later, at the Pizza Palace, they talk about Patti and the guy they saw her with. They figure that Patti has a crush on the college guy and are too embarrassed to tell them.

The next day at school, they try to get Patti to talk about the college guy, but she doesn’t get their hints and acts all jumpy. They feel bad, so they suggest going to the mall that night. Kate says they saw "a blue-and-yellow plaid sweater with matching denim pegged pants" that would look great on Patti. Patti gets flustered again and says she has to watch her brother after school.

Lauren, Stephanie and Kate decide to follow Patti after school. They decide to go inside the Bookloft, the university bookstore, and spy on Patti. They have to check their backpacks at the door, and are each given a plastic number. They head to the window and sure enough, the Mystery Man shows up! This time he is wearing a navy-blue sweater, a pink shirt, gray pleated pants and brown moccasins. The girls think he is so cute.

However, a tall, lanky girl with blonde hair runs up to Mystery Man and calls out his name—Jeff. She is wearing a long, dark-purple paisley dress, tights and ankle boots. Stephanie says she is stunning and looks like a model. Jeff and the girl hug and kiss right there on the sidewalk. The girls are so upset for Patti, because it turns out her college crush has a girlfriend! Then they spot Patti. They quickly grab books and put them up to hide their faces. Patti walks by the bookstore and takes out a small mirror and comb, and begins to comb her hair.

That evening, Kate’s mom takes Lauren, Stephanie, Kate and Kate’s little sister to get Chinese take-out. They order spring rolls, egg rolls, spare ribs in black bean sauce, sweet and sour shrimp, pork-fried rice, steamed dumplings and more (Lauren can’t remember). They take all that food, plus two giant size Dr Peppers and a platter of Kate’s super fudge upstairs. The girls decide to play Truth or Dare once Patti gets there, so she’ll hopefully tell them about her crush. When Patti arrives, Lauren notices that she smells funny, like she’s been at a hospital. The other girls don’t notice. They eat the Chinese food and Stephanie complains about her birthday some more. Kate says they’ll make her a cake for the next sleepover, but Patti says she can’t help because she’s busy.

The girls think Patti doesn’t want to hang out with them because she’d rather go to the university and see her crush. They decide to listen to the radio to hear the requests. During a break in music, there’s some announcements about various activities in town, and one of them is that the meeting of the Quarks is postponed. The dj makes fun of the club, saying maybe it’s for ducks—"quark, quark, quark!" The girls wonder what that word means, but Patti just murmurs that she doesn’t know.

Then it’s time for Truth or Dare. Stephanie gets dared to call Donald Foster. She pretends to be Wendy Rodwin, a snobby 6th grader from the video club, but the call gets disconnected. Turns out Kate’s sister unplugged the phone. Then Patti picks truth. Stephanie asks her who she thinks is the cutest guy she knows—of any age. Patti says Donald Foster! Then as Lauren sits down, something in her pocket pokes her. It’s the plastic number she got at the bookstore when she had her backpack checked. She tries to hide it, but Patti sees it. They watch a movie and then go to bed.

There’s a subplot about how the girls have to pick which guys to invite to Stephanie’s party, and they keep changing their mind. They finalize the list on Monday. On Tuesday, they go to Charlie’s Soda Fountain and order their regulars. I could go for a Coke float right now. They decide to go to Russell’s after school to order an ice cream cake for Stephanie’s birthday. Patti says she can’t go, and Kate is sick of her excuses. They are all getting tired of Patti’s secret life.

They go to Russell’s and order a red, black and white ice cream cake (strawberry, chocolate fudge and vanilla ice cream, with white frosting and chocolate sprinkles). Then Stephanie treats them all to raspberry turnovers, and they buy Dr Peppers at a deli across the street. They decide to go to the Wildlife Refuge to eat. While they’re there, they spot Patti and Jeff! Patti sees them and runs off, so the girls leave because they are pissed off at how secretive Patti is acting.

The next day, Patti doesn’t show up to ride bikes to school with them. Turns out she is sick. After school, Lauren and Kate go to Stephanie’s house. They see Stephanie’s annoying neighbor Walter. He tells them he saw them yesterday at the Refuge. They ask him why he was there, and it turns out Jeff is actually Mr. Murdock, a teacher for the Quarks Club. It’s a science club and it just started last week. They’ve been having a bunch of meetings to get organized. He lists off the people in the group—including Patti.

The girls head right to Patti’s house. They tell her they know about the Quarks Club. Patti admits that she didn’t tell them about it because she was worried they’d think she was a total geek, and not right for a Sleepover Friend. The girls tell her they know she is one of the smartest kids in school, and it doesn’t have anything to do with being a geek. Stephanie, Kate and Lauren admit that because Patti didn’t tell them about the Quarks, they thought Patti had a crush on Jeff/Mr. Murdock, and would rather chase him around than spend time with them. Patti starts laughing. I mean really, do they not know Patti very well?!

Everything is back to normal on Friday. They go to Stephanie’s house that night and have a little party. They eat the ice cream cake and give Stephanie her gift—a red-and-black corduroy jumper. Then they watch some scary movies and go to bed. The next morning, Stephanie’s parents make them blueberry pancakes for breakfast. There’s a tiny silver package tied with red ribbon sitting next to Stephanie’s plate. She opens it and inside is a key. Her parents tell her it’s a key to the little house in the backyard—it’s not her father’s office after all, it’s a playhouse for Stephanie! Her parents felt that with the baby coming, she’d like a place to get away from it all once in awhile. She’s not allowed to live out there, but she can hang out and have sleepovers there. Stephanie calls it her apartment and is already thinking of ways to decorate it in red, black and white. That afternoon is Stephanie’s surprise party at the Pizza Palace and Stephanie is definitely surprised.

Sleepover Friends forever!

#12 Kate's Sleepover Disaster

My computer sucks, so I wasn’t able to post this last night.

It’s Wednesday after school, and the Sleepover Friends are at Stephanie’s house, discussing their upcoming trip to Walden. It’s time for the Riverhurst students to go visit the kids in Walden. The girls are eating peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and trying to decide what to pack. Stephanie is bringing lots of red, white and black clothes of course, including a black and white sweatshirt and red stretchpants. Kate complains that she tried packing the night before, but her little sister Melissa (aka Melissa the Monster) messed up everything and put on her clothes. Stephanie thinks Kate is too hard on Melissa, and that she should be flattered.

Molly Jones, who stayed with Stephanie when the Walden kids visited, calls to tell Stephanie where they’ll each be staying in Walden. Stephanie is staying with Annette, Lauren is staying with Rebecca, Patti is staying with Molly, and Kate is staying with a girl named Wanda. Wanda didn’t go to Riverhurst because it was during lambing time—her family raises sheep. Unfortunately for Kate, Wanda has 4 siblings. She is not thrilled about this, since she can barely put up with her own sister. Stephanie claims to have some great child-managing ideas but Kate is not impressed.

Stephanie gets a call from a stable, where their donkey, Sleepover, has been staying. Remember how Lauren entered all those contests when they thought Stephanie’s dad was going to lose his job, and they ended up with a burro instead? Well, they were able to find a stable to keep him at, but it turns out the donkey escaped and caused all kinds of damage to the owner’s house. He wants the burro out—now. The girls are worried, but luckily Rebecca calls and says her family can take the donkey since they live on a farm. Then she invites the girls to come a day earlier for a big sleepover.

The girls leave for Walden on Saturday morning. Kate wears a blue and yellow striped shirt, denim overalls and her blue leather sneakers. Lauren wears her favorite jeans, a blue-and-green rugby shirt, and silver hightops. I love Lauren’s silver hightops! Stephanie is wearing a red-and-black checked jumpsuit and short black boots. Stephanie’s dad is driving them to Walden, with Sleepover the donkey in a trailer. Donald, the kid who lives in the house between Kate and Lauren, jokes that the girls are joining a traveling circus.

The drive to Walden is 217 miles and should take at least 5 ½ hours. Lauren is hungry already, of course. Luckily, Stephanie brought along some snacks: caramel popcorn, mixed nuts and chocolate covered raisins, plus Patti brought some sugar cookies. It’s 9:10 in the morning! Lauren ends up falling asleep in the car for awhile, and dreams that she eats a huge farm dinner all by herself and gets fatter & fatter with each bite, so she ends up looking like the Goodyear blimp. (warning: there is a lot of food in this book!)

They decide to make a stop since Kate is feeling carsick (I would guess it’s more from eating all that junk food at 9am, but whatever). They stop at a gas station and go inside to get Dr Peppers and a double-dip fudge ripple ice cream cone for Patti. While they are in the store, Sleepover gets out. Patti uses her ice cream cone to get him back into the trailer, but they end up locking her in the trailer with him.

The rest of the drive is uneventful. They get to Rebecca’s house and take Sleepover to a barn. They meet Rebecca’s family, including her cute cousin Reggie, aka The Hunk.

Reggie has spiky blond hair, pale blue eyes, and a great smile. He’s the kind of guy everybody agrees is terrific-looking. That day he was wearing an electric-blue sweater, faded jeans, and work boots.

Wanda and her family show up, and the bratty kids cause all kinds of trouble. Unfortunately, Wanda’s mom is at the hospital with Wanda’s sick grandmother. Wanda’s mom is the one who usually keeps the family in line.

That night, they all sit down to dinner. There’s ham, a pot roast, a huge platter of fried chicken, 4 kinds of vegetables, fresh French fries, and 3 kinds of home-baked bread. Plus, coconut cake and lemon pie for dessert. After dinner, Rebecca’s family says the girls don’t have to help clean up, so they can get started on their slumber party. Oops, it’s a sleepover. Get it right!

The girls head to the house for their sleepover. Remember when the Walden girls visited and Rebecca told the scary story about the big white hand? Kate brings that up, and Rebecca tells them that the house burned down, but the shed is still standing on the property nearby. The girls know they have to be quiet at their sleepover because they are on a farm. Rebecca’s family has to go to bed early and wake up early. The girls head to the kitchen to get some snacks: Dr Pepper, Cheetos, Cheese Doodles and sour-cream potato chips. Then Lauren asks if she can raid the fridge! Lauren takes a little of everything: barbecued spare ribs, stuffed sweet potatoes, macaroni salad and more. Seriously, how does this girl eat so much?!

They head upstairs to eat, play Mad Libs and play Truth or Dare. Stephanie dares Lauren to go to the spooky old shed. They all go and are scared. They hear a tapping noise. Turns out—it’s Sleepover! As they are heading back to the barn, Stephanie thinks she sees wolves, freaks out, and runs away. It was actually Rebecca’s dogs. Stephanie falls into a pond and screams, waking everyone up.

The next morning, they have a big pancake breakfast. They discuss the problem with Sleepover and decide he’s bored.

The next morning, they all go to school together. Kate complains that Wanda’s father is too busy with the sheep and lets the kids get away with murder. Wanda is too nice, and Wanda’s older brother is too cool and grown-up to be bothered. Stephanie still thinks she can handle them, but Kate doubts her. On the way home from school, the bus stops suddenly—Sleepover got out again!

Rebecca and Lauren have some peach ice cream and then head over to Wanda’s house to support Kate. The house is a disaster. They all try to help clean up. Before they leave, Lauren decides to weigh herself on Wanda’s brother’s scale. Turns out, she has gained 6 pounds in the past 3 days! She decides—no more farm food!

The next morning, Lauren wakes up at 6am to go jogging. She skips the delicious blueberry muffins and sausage, and instead has half a grapefruit for breakfast. That day at school, Carol invites them all to a sleepover at her house, and says her dad will take them all to the circus. Lauren notices that Angela, Jenny Carlin’s best friend, is actually smiling and being nice. Kate finally caves in and asks Stephanie for help dealing with Wanda’s bratty siblings. She goes over to the house after school, while Rebecca and Lauren go to a cattle auction with Rebecca’s dad.
Kate is shocked to find out that whatever Stephanie did, worked! The kids are actually cleaning and helping out around the house!

That night for dinner, Lauren has a salad and one pork chop, skipping the potatoes, cornbread and cake. The next morning she goes jogging and is joined by Reggie, which she thinks is excellent. The next morning, 2 more boys join her. If only Jenny Carlin could see her now!

Thursday afternoon, the girls go for jelly doughnuts at the Doughnut Hole and Lauren has a diet Dr Pepper. Then they go to Star Confectionery for hot butterscotch sundaes and Lauren has some lemon yogurt. I’m sorry, but you’re on vacation!! It’s ok to indulge a little on vacation!

Friday morning on the bus, they notice that Wanda’s sister is wearing Stephanie’s black and white sweatshirt. Turns out, Stephanie bribed the kids to be good! However, Wanda’s brother Will disappears. He turns up at the circus, along with Sleepover the donkey, who escaped yet again. Turns out, Will wanted Stephanie to buy him a canoe and she said no. So Stephanie’s plan didn’t work out perfectly, but the kids are better behaved.

That night they all go to the circus. When the vendor comes around selling peanuts and popcorn, Lauren says no and admits that she gained 6 pounds. Turns out, Wanda’s brother fiddled with the scale! Lauren promptly orders a big bag of peanuts AND a big bag of popcorn, along with an extra-large Dr Pepper.

The circus starts and guess who has joined? Sleepover!

I promise a recap of #12 Kate's Sleepover Disaster tonight. Sorry for the delay! I was in Philly last week, visiting some friends. I also went to the New Kids on the Block concert! It was awesome. But the main reason for my lack of updates is the 2nd job. It is killing me. I was hired to work 3 days a week, and I've been getting scheduled for 4-5 days a week. I already have a full-time job and I write for a newspaper about once a month, so I never have any free time anymore! I tried to quit on Sunday but they wouldn't let me. ha. They agreed to put me down for only 3 days a week from now on, so I'm going to stay.

I have tonight off from the 2nd job, so I promise I will post a recap. In the meantime, please vote on my poll! Part of the reason I got the 2nd job was so I could save up to go on a really great trip next year. I need some motivation when I'm mopping the store at night. ha. Thanks!

A few of you asked about the French foreign exchange student disaster, so I figured I'd write about that. Hopefully I'll be able to do the next recap tomorrow night. I never seem to have time anymore thanks to my new 2nd job, season 1 of Dexter on dvd, and taking naps when I can. ha.

When I was in 6th grade, I convinced my parents to let me participate in French Back to Back. They wouldn't let me go to France because they said I was too young, but we hosted a French student for 3 weeks. Since I didn't go to France, I was one of the last ones paired up. There were more French boys than girls participating in the program, so I got stuck with a boy. Back then, my friends and I were just starting to get interested in boys. I had my first crush in 6th grade. But I wasn't interested in having a French boy stay at our house. I wanted a girl, because I was convinced we would become best friends.

Well, we got Phillipe. He was probably the worst match possible for our family. He was into sports (soccer) while my family is all about studying. He refused to even try to talk to us. The French kids knew some English, and we were trying to learn French, but this kid would not even try to talk to me. He was weird. He refused to let my mom wash his clothes, he wouldn't eat the food she made (she once served corn with dinner & apparently that was a huge insult. I don't know, I love corn) and he would stare at my friends in class. Also, since we got stuck with a boy instead of a girl, we tried to get him and my brother to be friends, but they didn't get along at all. If I remember correctly, I think Phillipe hit my brother or something. I think my brother hated me for years for that!

One weekend, my family got to host one of the French girls, Sandrine, because her host family was going out of town and couldn't take her with them. We got along great! I only wish we had been paired together (we probably would have, if my parents had let me go to France!)

I think my family tried to keep in touch with Phillipe's family for about a year or so, but that was it. However, we do still keep in touch with some of the other families here that hosted French kids. It's funny that we still remember that, even though it was so long ago. I kinda even remember the French song we had to learn for the show we put on for the French kids. It was about a suitcase (valise) and listed all the things inside of it.

Oh, but one cool thing... Philippe brought us a bunch of French souvenirs when he came. One of the things he gave me was a bright colored sticker from the Eiffel Tower. Even though my French Back to Back experience wasn't what I hoped for, I was still hooked on France. I was so excited to learn French in high school and always dreamed of the day I would finally get to go to France. Well, I finally did--exactly 10 years later, in 1999. And, I got myself a colorful sticker from the Eiffel Tower, that is similar to the one Phillipe gave me.

Back to the Sleepover Friends... I bought a bunch more books on ebay. I am close to completing my collection!

#8 Lauren's Treasure
#14 Lauren Takes Charge
#17 Patti Gets Even
#18 Stephanie and the Magician
#26 The New Kate
#27 Where's Patti?
#33 Lauren's Double Disaster

#11 Stephanie's Family Secret

It's Friday afternoon and school is almost over. Mrs. Mead, the girls' teacher, is taking down names of students who want to participate in the school's 5th grade talent show. Karla, who the girls think is the dullest girl in class, says she'd like to do a ballet routine. Lauren, who is busy hiding the magazine she is reading, wonders if Karla will wear a brown ballet outfit. Jenny Carlin, the girls' enemy, says she will play a clarinet solo. A few other people raise their hands. Then, Stephanie says she, Kate, Lauren and Patti will do something in the talent show! Lauren, Kate and Patti are not thrilled about this, but she talks them into it. After class, Stephanie comes up with an idea--they'll lip synch to a record, do a few dance steps and call themselves The Four Aces.

The sleepover that night is at Kate's house. Kate's dad takes them for Mexican take-out from a new restaurant, Pancho's Villa. Stephanie shows up late because she decides to have dinner with her parents since they've been acting weird. When she finally gets there, the girls try to guess what could be going on. Patti thinks Stephanie might be moving. Kate thinks Stephanie might be getting a present, like the time Stephanie's parents surprised her with a VCR. Stephanie recalls a movie they saw recently, where a guy loses his job and assumes that her father must have lost his job at the law firm. She said her dad mentioned a big meeting with his boss and figures that it was bad news. In the movie, the guy didn't want to upset his family so he'd get ready for work in the morning, hang out at the library all day and then come home at the regular time, so they'd think he was at work. Stephanie decides that they should all follow her dad on their bikes on Monday morning, and see where he goes. Kate is mad that they'll be late for school, but they all agree to do it.

Once all that is taken care of, they stuff themselves with Mexican food and then practice their routine for the talent show. They choose the song "I Wanna Be Your Girl" by the Polka Dots. Later on, they head downstairs for food. Lauren takes a bite of some mashed potatoes when Kate's little sister Melissa catches her. Turns out the mashed potatoes were really Melissa's map of the United States for a class project, and Lauren ate several states!

The girls listen to some dedications on the radio and they think their enemy Jenny Carlin might have called in one to Steven G. "from a secret admirer." They decide to call Jenny and pretend to be Steven's little sister to see if it was in fact Jenny. They make Lauren call, and Stephanie says she'll let Lauren wear her black jacket. Lauren bursts out laughing though, and Jenny figures out it's them. She vows to get even.

Monday morning, the girls go to Stephanie's house and wait for Mr. Green to leave the house. When he pulls out of the drieway, the girls follow behind him on their bikes. Unfortunately for them, they have to ride right past their school and Jenny sees them as they ride by. They continue to follow Stephanie's dad but since he's going pretty fast, only Patti and Lauren are able to keep up. They follow him all the way to a bank. Lauren goes inside but can't see the writing on the door where Mr. Green went. The other girls show up and Stephanie decides they have to go back in and try to find out what is going on. She asks a bank employee about opening up an account for a club at school. Kate asks about Mr. Stufano, whose office Mr. Green went into. Turns out, Mr. Stufano is a loan officer. The girls rush out of the bank. Stephanie is convinced her dad needs a loan because he's been unemployed for weeks already. The girls try to think of ways to earn money, such as a yard sale and entering contests in magazines.

I have to admit something here. When I reread this book a couple months ago, I decided to enter some contests as well! I could use the extra money and it sounded like a good idea. Most of the contests don't offer cash prizes, but there's some pretty cool stuff you can win. And the best part is that you can just enter contests online--no need to waste a stamp! I entered a ton of contests. Unfortunately I didn't win anything, but I'm going to continue looking for cool contests to enter. All thanks to the Sleepover Friends. ;) ha.

Anyway, the girls head to school and they are very late. They have to check in with the principal and their punishment is spending lunch in the principal's office. They also have to write a one page paper on why it's bad to be late for school.

The next day after school, Kate and Stephanie spend the afternoon getting stuff together for the yard sale while Lauren and Patti go through Lauren's mom's magazines to find contests to enter. They collect about 50 different contest entry forms, and Lauren says she will fill them out and mail them. The next afternoon, the girls go to Stephanie's house to see what she has decided to sell. Lauren is shocked to see what Stephanie is going to sell:

I couldn't believe what Stephanie had decided to sell! Her newest red sweatshirt with the big black squares; her red-and-white striped turtleneck sweater from a boutique in the city...and the black leather jacket, the one I was supposed to be wearing for calling Jenny Carlin on the phone!

She is also selling her black western belt, her beaded moccasins and her red leather pocketbook. Lauren offers to buy the jacket for $20 so "it'll stay in the family." Patti buys the belt and Kate buys a sweatshirt. The girls take the rest of the clothes and stuff to Kate's house, where they will be having the yard sale on Saturday. The girls are contributing some of their own stuff to sell. Then they make some posters. They stick star and rainbow stickers on the posters to brighten them up. Cute. Obviously they aren't too worried about money though, since they then go to Charlie's Soda Fountain for some double-dip pistachio cones, to Sweet Stuff for some chocolate-covered almonds and to the Pizza Palace for a slice of pepperoni pizza. At the Pizza Palace they run into some guys from their class and tell them about the yard sale. The guys ask if they can come over with their own stuff to sell, and the girls say yes.

At their Friday night sleepover, the girls go through their stuff and price it. They eat taco chips and bean dip, and a strawberry ice-cream chocolate-cookie pie. Yum! What are taco chips, though? They eat them a lot and I don't think I've ever had taco flavored chips. They sound good.

The yard sale is a huge success. However, when Lauren's and Kate's moms check out what the girls have for sale, they see all of the brand-new clothes Stephanie is trying to get rid of, and they call Stephanie's mom. Her mom comes right over and asks Stephanie why she is selling all of her new clothes. Stephanie's mom is very mad, and Stephanie ends up telling her that she knows her dad was borrowing money.

Turns out, Mr. Green didn't lose his job. The big news is--Mrs. Green is pregnant! The loan is to build an addition on the house.

The girls end up making $102.38 at the yard sale. Since Stephanie's family doesn't need the money after all, they decide to donate it to the Riverhurst Children's Hospital.

The 5th grade talent show is on Friday.

We were wearing denim minis, tights, crop-tops, and lots of bangles, and we'd pulled the top of our hair over in side ponytails, just like the Polka Dots.

Karla does, in fact, wear a brown leotard and tutu.

When it's Jenny's turn to perform, nothing happens. She tries to play her clarinet, but nothing comes out. She finally manages to squeak out a few notes, but it's pretty awful. Turns out, someone put a scarf from Henry and Larry's magic act, inside the clarinet. She assumes the Sleepover Friends did it. So when it's time for the Sleepover Friends to perform, Jenny switches the tape and instead of "I Wanna Be Your Girl," the tape plays Karla's ballet music!

Stephanie says to just do the dance steps they had practiced: spreading their arms out wide, hopping forward on one foot, hopping back and doing the moonwalk. Awesome. ha. The audience thinks they did it on purpose as a joke. Finally Larry and Henry stop the tape and they take their bows. Thanks to Jenny, they are the stars of Amateur Night.

That night, the sleepover is at Stephanie's house. Her parents take them all to Mimi's, an Italian restaurant. Lauren makes a pig of herself--stuffed clams, salad, pizza with everything except anchovies, and a butterscotch sundae.

The next morning, the girls are awakened by a strange noise. They go outside and find out that the Greens won a prize from a contest Lauren entered. Their prize is a DONKEY! Turns out Lauren filled out a form for Friends of the Burro, and now the Greens have adopted a donkey. If they give him back, the truck driver says the donkey will be killed. That is so sad! Mr. Green throws up his hands and says they'll keep him until they find a better place for him. The girls decide to name him Sleepover.

Next up (and I promise to not be such a slacker!) - #12 Kate's Sleepover Disaster. It's time for the Riverhurst students to go visit their new friends in Walden. It's my other favorite book. For some reason, I just love the idea of doing exchanges. Probably why I convinced my parents to let me do French Back to Back in 6th grade. Unfortunately they didn't let me go to France (they said I was too young) but we hosted a French boy for 3 weeks. It was definitely a disaster!