Astrid plopped down on the porch swing. She looked up as her Uncle Tim came up the porch steps. "Hi, Astrid," he said. "Do I see a frown on this beautiful day? What's up?" Astrid sighed. "My friend Ella's rich grandpa paid for a vacation in Florida for her whole family. I heard all the details at least a hundred times! Why can't I have a rich grandpa too, instead of just paper ones?" "Paper grandpas? What do you mean?" asked Uncle Tim. "Well, Grandpa Jerry's picture has been standing on the...

Rain pelted against Jack's face as he tried to ride his bike. Three more blocks and he would be home. However, it seemed like he wasn't getting anywhere with the wind pressing against him. He peddled hard but wasn't moving fast. It's even hard to see, Jack thought and finally pulled to the side of the road. There was a big tree on the corner of the street, and he parked his bike under it so he'd be out of the rain. Jack shivered as he stood there, his T-shirt and jeans soaked. If only he had...

"Hey, you want a monkey for a pet?" asked Anthony's friend Obi one day. "Sure, but how would I catch one?" asked Anthony. He and his parents had recently arrived in Africa as missionaries. "It's easy. You trap him," said Obi, handing Anthony a gourd. "First, make a hole in this gourd--make it just big enough for a monkey to put his paw through." He supervised while Anthony worked. "Okay," Obi said, "that's big enough. The gourd is hollow, so now we'll put some fruit in it. Then we'll fasten...

Gwen did a belly flop on her bed and began to sob uncontrollably. After a couple minutes, there was a light knocking on her door. "Come in," Gwen said into her pillow. Mom sat down on the side of Gwen's bed. "I take it you didn't have a good day at school today?" "It was the worst day ever!" Gwen said as she sat up in bed and tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. "What happened? Does it have to do with the spelling bee?" Mom asked gently. Gwen sniffed and nodded. "I got so nervous when...

"How does she sleep like that?" Lennon asked, staring at her baby sister. Lennon had been having nightmares that just wouldn't stop. "How is she so peaceful?" Mom smiled. "I think Lyric feels safe. I think she's pretty comfortable here with us." She shifted the baby in her arms. "If I put her down, then we might have issues." Lennon wished she could sleep in her mom's arms. She would feel a lot safer then. "Do you know who holds you when you sleep?" Mom asked, as if reading her thoughts....

"It's a nice sunny day," said Mom. "Want to help me plant seeds in the garden? We can plant the flower seeds we found at Grandma's house." "Okay!" said Leo. "I'll get them." He ran to fetch the brightly colored packets, and soon he and Mom were burying tiny brown seeds in the rich, dark earth. "I wonder if there will be flowers in heaven," said Leo suddenly. His grandma had recently died, and Leo knew she was now in heaven. Mom smiled. "I hope so!" "It's hard to understand what heaven is...

Bruno frowned and kicked at a stone as he walked home from school. As he approached Mr. Burk's house, he saw his Sunday school teacher working in the yard. "Hi there, Bruno," said Mr. Burk. "How are you today?" "Not great," muttered Bruno. He shuffled his toe in the dirt. "I'm always getting into trouble at school." He sighed. "Since I've been coming to your Sunday school class, I've been trying to change and be good--but I just can't seem to do it. Today I had to stay in at recess because I...

As the curtain dropped at the end of her school play, Hazel's dad and brother made their way backstage. "You remembered every line perfectly," Dad said, giving her a hug. Hazel smiled. "Before the curtain rose at the beginning, I was so scared! I didn't see how I was going to get through it without my script in front of me. But when I had to start talking, the words just came back." "What's a script?" asked Hazel's little brother, Tommy. "It's a copy of the play," said Hazel. "On my copy, I...

Where's Pippi? wondered Monica when she got home from school. She always meets me at the door. Then she saw it--a trail of tissue paper from the bathroom down the hall. "Oh, you naughty puppy! Come here, Pippi!" A brown ball of fur came slinking out from under Monica's bed, tail tucked between its legs. Monica laughed. "You know you're guilty, don't you?" she said, picking up the puppy and rubbing her fur. "But I love you anyway, and I forgive you. Let's get this mess cleaned up." That night,...

"What a great day!" Colby told his dad as they said goodbye to their friends at the park. They'd joined other families to hang out and have fun. Colby's two best friends, Asher and Arlo, had been there too. As Colby and his father turned toward the sidewalk, they spotted an ice cream truck parked there. "Please, Dad!" Colby cried. "Just this once!" Dad smiled. "Sure, just this once." He handed Colby some money. Colby rushed to the truck and requested his favorite sweet treat--the strawberry...

Plink! Plink! Plink! One by one, Abbie slowly picked out the notes of the music for her piano recital. This is so hard, she thought. I'm not sure I'll ever get it good enough to play in front of a bunch of people! Abbie struggled on for a few minutes, then tossed the music book on the floor and began to play a song from memory. This is much more fun, she told herself. Later that day, Abbie helped Mom plant seeds in the garden. "You always have such pretty flowers, Mom," said Abbie. "Grandma...

"Hey, Dad!" Eleanor said as she bounced into the den. "What are you doing?" Dad looked up from the papers on his desk and smiled at Eleanor. "Just going through some paperwork. How was school?" "All right," Eleanor replied. "I got a B on my science test today." She paused, and after a moment, frowned. "Is your paperwork for that insurance stuff you were talking about with Mom? I overheard you talking about it when I was studying yesterday, but I don't understand what it means." Dad shifted in...

As Jeremiah looked out the window at the falling rain, he felt like his life was as dismal as the day. Dad left home, and we don't even know where he is, he thought. Now Mom is sick, and it's up to me to look after her and my two little sisters. But how can I do all that plus run my lawnmowing business and go to school? I sure can't do it all alone. Just then the city bus pulled up to the corner and an elderly woman got off. It was Granny Gresham, a nearby neighbor, and she had a big...

Stroking the hen's feathers, Rowan grinned as the chicks tugged at his pants, then scuttled under their mother. "Hi, girls." His sisters Opal and Sylvie joined him, peering under the hen at the chicks, but they knew better than to touch. "They're so cute!" Five-year-old Rosalind tried to grab a chick, but the chick's mother puffed up and jumped at her defensively. "Rosie, you have to be gentle, or else Luna will do that again," Mom said as she walked up and peeled off her gardening gloves....

"Did you see my hit, Dad?" Caden asked as he climbed into the pick-up. "My first of the season!" Dad nodded. "You know, it could have been a double if you had stepped into the swing." "I know, but..." Caden quieted. Mom opened the front door as they drove up to the house. "How was the game, guys?" "I got a hit," said Caden softly as Dad shuffled away to weed the flower beds. "Great!" said Mom. "I'm sorry I couldn't be--" But Caden was already inside. He surveyed the kitchen for a snack as Mom...

"Mom, look at this!" Sari pointed to the TV. "This woman has been hoarding junk for more than twenty years, and now her house is so full she can't even move around in it! It's a huge health hazard, and she's going to be forced to leave her home if she doesn't clean it out. The team of people who make this show came to help. Just look at all that stuff!" Mom shook her head sadly. "That poor woman. It's so hard to let go of things sometimes." Sari rolled her eyes. "It's her own fault for...

Mario and his dad were on a fishing trip when Mario made a discovery--an eagle's nest way up near the top of a tall tree. And up in the sky, they saw a large bird soaring high over the river. Mario let out a long breath. "Wow! I wish I could fly like that!" "Well, that eagle didn't always have such great flying skills," said Dad. "I've read that baby eagles are afraid of flying. In fact, it takes a great deal of their mother's prodding to get them out of their soft, warm nest." "I know. We...

Grace took her treasure box out from under the bed and opened it to look over the contents inside. She took a couple of items out and inspected them. A special note from Grandma. A ballet ticket stub. A birthstone ring. A picture book. She smiled as she returned them to her box. She often did this before going to bed. Seeing her treasures brought memories that gave her happy, warm feelings. One morning, Grace's little sister greeted her eagerly. "I had a dream last night," said Everly. "It...

"I'm going for a walk." Mel's attention shot up at Owen's announcement as he entered the kitchen. He still had his hoodie on, but he was actually wearing jeans, not sweatpants. "You want to join?" Mel nodded and jumped to her feet, and within a minute they were out the door. Mel loved walking in their neighborhood downtown. She liked the scrunched-up houses and how close they lived to their neighbors. As she and Owen walked in silence, Mom's words from a couple weeks ago telling her that Owen...

Mel peeked out of her room to see if Owen's door was still shut. It was. All she saw was the array of homemade stickers plastered over it. The door was closed a lot lately. Mel sighed. She wished Owen would play with her and tease her for the silly-looking people she drew. "Dinner's ready!" Mom's voice startled Mel, but she grinned when she smelled her favorite chicken and pasta. At dinner Mel glanced over at Owen's empty chair. "Mom, Owen's been acting strange. He rarely eats with us, and he...

Poppy walked into the kitchen just as her mom was coming in from outside. It was a hot day, and her mom's face was bright red and dripping with sweat. "Mom!" Poppy laughed. "What have you been doing?" Her mom was breathing heavily, but she smiled. "I went outside a couple hours ago to clean up the lilac bushes. Well, they were in much worse shape than I thought. I just came in for a drink, but there's still lots for me to do." "I'll help!" Poppy said, grabbing her gardening gloves. As the two...

As Macy walked with her mom to the barn, she began to pick a bouquet of wildflowers. She was so excited to see flowers again. Winter was over, and spring was budding everywhere. "After we finish helping Dad and Jake with the chores in the barn, we can get those pretty flowers in a vase," Mom said. Macy set the flowers down in the feed room and got some hay to give to the horses. "Good morning, Cinnamon!" Macy said as she pitched some hay into Cinnamon's stall. She gave all the horses hay,...

It was a chilly afternoon in early October, and Ben and Grandpa were out on the deck planting bulbs in flowerpots. Grandpa showed Ben how to bury the bulbs deep beneath heaps of soft, powdery compost. A week later, when Ben came to visit Grandpa again, he ran straight to the back door and looked eagerly for his daffodils and tulips. But all he saw was soil. "Why haven't my flowers grown, Grandpa?" he asked. Grandpa chuckled. "Don't worry. They'll be here in the spring! You just have to be...

Kayleigh looked out the window as the familiar countryside whizzed past on the way to her grandparents' house. "We're here!" she exclaimed when she spotted it. "I see Grandpa in the backyard with his bees." She got out of the car and ran to the hives out back. As she approached, she saw her grandpa pull out a frame full of hundreds of bees. "Looks like they're working hard!" said Kayleigh as she watched the busy bees scurry around the frame. "Oh yes," said Grandpa. "The nurse bees are feeding...