Buster

Today, when I got on the bus to go to school, I felt grumpy. Allie and Sophie weren't on the bus. I started to shove my backpack under the seat in front of me. Mreerer! I heard. I know that sound, I thought, it's an annoyed cat! I looked under the seat, and a tiny brown kitten was there. He is really cute! I pulled him out. "Gosh," I said. Madison looked over the back of my seat. "Ms. Smith! Ms. Smith! Joan found a kitten under a seat!" she shouted to our bus aide. "What?" Ms. Smith asked. "I did. I found him under the seat in front of me," I replied, holding him up. "Here," said Ms. Smith, passing back a lunch box from the lost-and-found box, "You can keep him in there until we get to the school."

At school, I took the kitten, who I had named Buster, into the principal's office. We settled on an agreement. I could keep the kitten in the janitor room as long as I would clean up after it and feed it. And if no one came to pick it up by friday, it would have to go to the shelter. Mom came and picked me up after school and brought some kitten chow. I took and old cardboard box and filled it with sand from the playground to make a litter box. A photographer for the newspaper was there to take pictures of the 1st grade outdoor clean up day, and she took a picture of Buster. I hope Buster won't have to go to the shelter.

The Food Processor Movie

Last night Mom and I watched the Cuisinart DVD for her food processor (she got it ages ago). At first they just told you how to use your food processor. Zen dis famoos chef wiz a outragous franch acsent showed you 'ow tu make differant foodz using your Cuisinart food processuer. 'E said zat everyzing smelled aand tasted magnificant. He didn't measure anything! He also didn't let the pizza dough rise. And he thought that pita bread, not tortilla chips, went with salsa. But most of the foods did look good.

News, news, news,

I am finally going to write about the talent show rehearsal that happened a week ago Friday. Most people have an idea of what they are going to do. For people who can't think of anything at all, the teacher will have a play for them.

We have a good system for how much time you get. You get two minutes if you're preforming alone, and if you aren't, you get and extra minute for every other person. So, in my gymnastics act, I just get two minutes. Allie and Madison get three minutes. Sophie, Amy, and I only get three minutes because I am already in another thing.

I don't know what music I should use, but I've got an idea of what the routine is. Amy and I are getting along well with the background tumbling for the Odyssey Rap.

Now, I have something very important to tell you. Yesterday after church I was in the basement doing gymnastics when Mom came down.

"You know those relatives up in Canada?" Mom said.

"Yeah, the ones we send a Christmas letter to every year and they send us one. So?" I said, getting ready for a handstand.

"We're having a family reunion with them this summer at Aunt Sue and Uncle George's farm." she said, as I kicked up for the handstand. Whumph! That had surprised me so much that I flipped over from the handstand and forgot to roll out.

"What?!?" I yelled. I had scared Goldilocks, so I went over to her hutch and cuddled her.

"From about the 23rd to the 26th of July," she replied.

I said to her "Fine, I believe you now," and put Goldilocks back in her hutch.

Saturday Chores

Saturday is pet care day for me. I had just gotten used to taking care of Goldilocks, when BAM! Grizabella had her kittens. Now I have a very long list of pet care chores on Saturday. Here's the list:

1. Add more straw to Mary's shed

2. Lug water for Mary

3. Add an armful of hay to Mary's manger

4. Let the geese out

5. Feed and water the geese

6. Clean out the smelly goose droppings

7. Walk Blackie

8. Feed and water Blackie

9. Feed Forty-Niner

10. Feed Shimmer

11. Feed and water Grizabella

12. Change the towels in Grizabella's box

13. Change the litter in the litter box

14. Clean out Shimmer's bowl

15. Walk Blackie

16. Feed and water Goldilocks

17. Replace the newspaper under Goldilocks' cage

18. Walk Blackie as needed

19. Feed all pets in evening

Get the picture? I have a lot of chores on Saturday. And don't you forget that I have to do my non-pet care chores, which are washing the dishes (we don't have a dishwasher), and, since it's Saturday, cleaning my room. Oh, it's time for dinner, I guess I'd better tell about the school talent show rehearsal later.

Kittens

Grizabella had her kittens!!!!!!!!!! They are really cute. We had been hoping she would have them all spring break, and she finally had them at 3AM monday morning. I woke up hearing a weird animal-like sound. I took a peek under the bed, and saw that Grizabella was having her kittens. I woke up Mom and Dad. Grizabella had four tiny kittens, two boys and two girls. I named them after characters in the musical Cats. The little black kitten is Mistoffilies, the brown kitten is Mungojerrie, the gray kitten is Rumpleteazer, and the orange kitten is Macavity. I've been really busy. Well, I guess I'd better start my homework.

Everything that's been happening

Yesterday was my first day back at school. I wasn't too far behind because I had done some of the work at home. I think I learned more while I was sick than while I was at school these last two days. We're learning how to find out what a percent of a number is. As always, I already know all of the vocabulary words. We apparently got a book report assignment on monday. We each have to read a piece of classic literature (abridged is fine), and we have to pretend we are selling the book. We get to pick whatever book we want. I chose "The Picture of Dorian Gray". I asked Mrs. Brown and she said it would be all right. There wasn't anyone who had picked it. I asked Sophie and Allie if they would help me, and they said they would.

While I was sick, I started training Grizabella. She is a fast learner. She can already come when I call her, give me a high five, and wait on a stool while Mom or I cook.

There's going to be an end-of-the-year talent show for the fifth-graders (we're going to middle school next year). I want to do a gymnastics act. Sophie is doing a performance of the Odyssey rap with Amy and I tumbling in the background. Allie is doing some dancing with Madison, the girl who takes tap dancing. Their plan is to do the same thing, but in tap or ballet dancing. I think I'll practice some gymnastics now.

Long Post!

There has been a lot going on, but today I'm only going to write about my birthday party. I had it at 2:00 on the seventh. Aunt Sue and Uncle George came. They brought me a rabbit! She is the perfect goldie-brown color. She has rather floppy ears, so I named her Goldilocks. Allie and Sophie both thought she was sweet. Mom kind of flipped out when I got the rabbit. She was worried that I wouldn't be able to handle yet another pet. But I can. I've had her for more than a week and I am managing fine. I am a little busy, but I can handle it.

Back to the party. Dad had built me a balance beam. It was just like the beams they have at school. I really like it. Allie got me a cat training kit. I'm going to use it on Grizabella. Sophie gave me The Girl's book: How To Be the Best at Everything. It has how to deal with bullies, act like a celebrity, make your own bubble bath, how to ice skate, how to bake your own bread, pet a wild horse, survive in a horror movie, and a lot more.

We fenced and fenced and fenced. If one of us got hit too hard with a sword, we would go off to the side and put an ice pack on the hurt part, then join back in. It took a long time for anyone to win. Allie won. To win, you have to get the other people on the ground and take their swords. NO THROWING THE GAME!

My birthday cake was chocolate with chocolate frosting. Mom had made flowers on the top using almonds and maraschino cherries. She also put white chocolate chips around the edge of the cake. It was delicious.

You may be wondering about why I am writing about this now, more than a week after I turned 11. Well, I've been busy. So how come I have time now? The answer-- I'm sick. I got the flu. The doctor said that I should rest and not stay outdoors for very long. So I can't walk Blackie or feed, water, clean up after, and spread new bedding for Mary, Lacy, and Marshmallow. Wonderful. And I can't do gymnastics. But I can write. It's the most interesting thing I can do.

<:-(