Karen's Lemonade Stand Read online

  The author gratefully acknowledges

  Stephanie Calmenson

  for her help

  with this book.

  Contents

  Title Page

  Dedication

  1 Weather Report

  2 Two Houses

  3 Karen’s Lemonade Stand

  4 Waiting

  5 Kristy’s Advice

  6 Ice Cold Lemonade

  7 Be Back Soon

  8 Bobby’s Stand

  9 Melody’s Pool

  10 Kristy’s Question

  11 Clunk! Thunk. Zap.

  12 Making Plans

  13 Helping Hannie

  14 Storm Warnings

  15 The Storm

  16 A Party

  17 What a Mess

  18 Good News

  19 The Fair

  20 The World Series

  About the Author

  Also Available

  Copyright

  Weather Report

  “We are in the middle of a major heat wave, Connecticut. The temperature is ninety-two degrees and climbing. The humidity is high at eighty-three percent.”

  It was a Monday afternoon in early August. I was in the TV room at the big house. (I have two houses — a big house and a little house. I will tell you about them later.) My little brother, Andrew, came in and sat down next to me. (Andrew is four going on five.)

  “Why are you watching the weather channel?” he asked. “We already know it is hot outside.”

  “I am watching Margie Simon, the weather reporter,” I replied. “I may want to be a weather reporter some day.”

  Hi. I am Karen Brewer. I am seven years old. I have blonde hair, blue eyes, and some freckles. Oh, yes. I wear glasses. I even have two pairs. I wear my blue pair for reading. I wear my pink pair the rest of the time.

  Nannie poked her head into the TV room. (Nannie is my stepgrandmother. She helps take care of everyone at the big house. I love her a lot.)

  “I am going to the supermarket to pick up a few things for dinner. Would either of you like to come along?” she asked.

  “No, thank you,” said Andrew.

  “Is Kristy going to stay and watch us?” I asked.

  Kristy is my big stepsister. She is thirteen and the best stepsister in the whole world. She is also an excellent baby-sitter. She is even president of a baby-sitting club she runs with her friends. If Kristy was staying home, so was I.

  “Yes, Kristy is staying here. She is in the living room with Emily Michelle,” replied Nannie.

  Emily Michelle is my adopted sister. She is two and a half. She is very sweet.

  “I am going to stay home, too,” I said.

  Maybe I would practice my weather reporting. I found my sisters in the living room. Kristy was reading Emily a book. The book was called Animal Sleepyheads. It is a counting book.

  “Hi, Karen,” said Kristy. “Would you like a turn reading to Emily?”

  “Sure,” I replied.

  I read the pages about elephants, kangaroos, and tigers. Just as we finished the book, David Michael walked in. He is my stepbrother. He is seven.

  “Hi,” I said. “You are just in time for my weather report.”

  “I know what the weather is,” said David Michael. “It is hot. It is too hot to be outside.”

  “You need the full weather picture,” I said. “Later in the week cool breezes may swoop in from the north.”

  Then again, they might not, I thought.

  “I wish it would cool off by tomorrow,” said Kristy. “I want to have softball practice in the afternoon.”

  Kristy is the coach of a softball team. It is called Kristy’s Krushers. I am on the team. So are Andrew, David Michael, and some of my friends.

  “Hello, everybody! We are home,” called Daddy.

  Daddy was home from a business meeting. (He works at home, though.) And Elizabeth had come home from her job. (She is my stepmother.) Sam and Charlie walked in behind them. (They are my big stepbrothers. They are so old they are in high school.)

  Goody. Now I had a big audience for my weather update.

  Two Houses

  Remember I told you I have two houses? Now I will tell you why.

  When I was really little, I lived at the big house here in Stoneybrook, Connecticut, with Mommy, Daddy, and Andrew. Then Mommy and Daddy started fighting a lot. They told Andrew and me they loved us very much. But they could not get along with each other anymore. So Mommy and Daddy got divorced.

  Mommy moved with my brother and me into a little house not too far away. Then she met Seth. Mommy and Seth got married. So Seth is our stepfather. That means the people in our little-house family are Mommy, Seth, Andrew, and me. We have pets, too. They are Midgie, Seth’s dog; Rocky, Seth’s cat; Emily Junior, my pet rat (she is named after Emily Michelle); and Bob, Andrew’s hermit crab.

  Daddy stayed at the big house after the divorce. (It is the house he grew up in.) Then he met Elizabeth and they got married. So Elizabeth is my stepmother. Elizabeth was married once before, and she had four kids — David Michael, Kristy, Sam, and Charlie.

  I already told you that Emily was adopted. But I did not tell you where she was adopted from. She came from a faraway country called Vietnam.

  After Emily was adopted, Nannie came to live at the big house to help out.

  That means there are ten people at the big house whenever Andrew and I are there. (We switch houses every month.) There are pets, too. They are Shannon, David Michael’s big Bernese mountain dog puppy; Boo-Boo, Daddy’s cranky old cat; Crystal Light the Second, my goldfish; and Goldfishie, Andrew’s elephant. (Ha! I bet you know what Goldfishie really is.) Wait. I forgot to tell you that Emily Junior and Bob live at the big house whenever Andrew and I are there.

  I have a special name for Andrew and me. I call us Andrew Two-Two and Karen Two-Two. (I got that name from a book my teacher read to my class. It is called Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang.) I call us those names because we have two houses and two families, two mommies and two daddies, two cats and two dogs. We have two of many other things, one at each house. (That makes moving back and forth between our houses a lot easier.) We have two sets of toys and clothes and books. I have two bicycles. Andrew has two tricycles. I have two stuffed cats. Goosie lives at the little house. Moosie lives at the big house. I even have two best friends. Nancy Dawes lives next door to the little house. Hannie Papadakis lives across the street and one house down from the big house. (Nancy and Hannie and I are in the same class at school. We call ourselves the Three Musketeers.)

  Now you know why I have two houses. Sometimes I miss the people in one house when I am at the other. But most of the time I am too busy having fun. So if you are wondering if I like having two houses, the answer is Y-E-S!

  Karen’s Lemonade Stand

  “Do you want to come out and play?” asked Hannie.

  It was Tuesday morning. Hannie was standing at the front door with a jump rope in her hand.

  “Sure,” I replied. “I will get my jump rope, too.”

  We started jumping in the backyard. First we sang, “Cinderella, dressed in yellow.” Then we sang “Ballerina in a show, ballerina point your toe.”

  Next we acted out, “Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, turn around. Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, touch the ground!”

  I touched the ground. Then I sprawled out on the steamy grass. So did Hannie.

  “It is too hot to jump rope,” I said. “We need to go inside.”

  What a relief! The big house has central air conditioning. It felt great.

  “Let’s have a Lovely Ladies tea party,” said Hannie.

  This sounded like a good idea to me. We set up the tea party in the playroom. We invited several of my dolls. We ask
ed the dolls how they were. They were fine. We took a few sips of make-believe tea. It was make-believe tasty. But we were not having a very good time.

  “It is summer,” I said. “We should be outside.”

  “You are right,” said Hannie. “Dolls, would you like to go outside with us?”

  They said yes. We took them to a shady spot in the yard. But it was hot even in the shade. Too hot.

  “I am afraid my dolls are going to melt,” I said.

  “Inside is better,” agreed Hannie.

  We moved inside. Then outside. Then inside. And outside. Inside we were bored. Outside we were hot. Finally it was time for Hannie to go home. After she left, Charlie walked in.

  “I am so thirsty,” he said. “It is ninety-nine degrees outside.”

  “It feels like a million degrees,” I said.

  That gave me an idea. Whoever was outside was going to be thirsty because it was so hot. What do thirsty people like to drink? Lemonade! Where were they going to get this lemonade? From me! I decided to open up my very own lemonade stand. This would be gigundoly fun.

  I told Nannie my idea. She liked it a lot.

  “Do we have any lemonade mix?” I asked.

  “It is in the cupboard near the refrigerator,” Nannie replied. “Let me know if you need any help.”

  I found the can of lemonade and a pitcher in the cupboard. The directions on the can were for making one glass, one quart, or one gallon of lemonade. I was not sure how much a quart or a gallon was. So I made the lemonade one glass at a time and poured it into the pitcher. I made sure to leave room for lots of ice.

  Next I went upstairs and made a beautiful sign with great big letters in different colors. I drew a border of lemons around the letters. The sign said, Karen’s Lemonade, 10¢ a cup. (I did not care much about making money. I just wanted to have fun.)

  There were only a few things left to do. I dragged a card table outside.

  “Are you okay down there?” called Nannie.

  (I had bumped into a few walls on the way out. I guess Nannie thought the house was falling down.)

  “I am okay,” I replied.

  I carried out a chair. I brought out napkins and cups. (I put a rock on top of the napkins so they would not fly away if a breeze came along.) I taped my beautiful sign to the table. Finally I carried out my ice cold pitcher of lemonade.

  I sat down to wait for my first customer. This was my grand opening.

  Waiting

  I had been outside for about half an hour when Nannie brought me a peanut butter sandwich.

  “I did not think you wanted to leave your business for lunch. So I brought lunch to you,” said Nannie.

  Then she handed me ten cents for a cup of lemonade. This was my very first sale.

  “How does it taste?” I asked.

  “This lemonade is delicious!” Nannie replied. “And I love the sign you made.”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  After Nannie went inside two cars passed by. But they did not stop. I guess they did not see me.

  I was sure my second customer would come along soon. My second customer would tell a third customer about my delicious lemonade. The third customer would tell a fourth customer. The fourth customer would tell a fifth customer. I could see the line forming now.

  But I did not get a second customer very soon. The neighborhood was practically a ghost town. I had been outside for an hour and only two people had passed by. I knew it was because it was so hot. People were in their houses with their fans or air conditioners.

  I waited and waited. Then Nannie came outside again.

  “That lemonade was the best I ever tasted,” she said. “I would like to buy another cup.”

  Nannie handed me a dime. That made her my first and my second customer.

  A few minutes later, Hannie and her brother, Linny, ran across the street. (Linny is nine going on ten.)

  “How is business?” asked Linny.

  “It is a little quiet. But I am sure it will pick up soon,” I replied.

  “I would like to buy two cups,” said Hannie.

  Hannie and Linny drank their lemonade. Then they had to leave. Their parents were taking them and their little sister, Sari, to the library. (Sari is Emily’s age.) A trip to the library sounded like fun. It would be nice and cool there. Hannie could read a book about igloos.

  I sat by myself thinking about cool things. I waited and waited. No one came for a long, long time.

  Beep, beep! I jumped to my feet. Charlie and Sam were pulling into the driveway in Charlie’s Junk Bucket. (That is what we call his rattly old car.)

  “That is a cool sign,” said Sam. “Have you been selling lots of lemonade?”

  “Well, Nannie bought two cups. And Hannie and Linny each bought one,” I replied. Hmm. Business was not booming.

  “How about a couple of cups for your big brothers?” said Charlie.

  He handed me two dimes. I knew they were buying my lemonade because they felt sorry for me. I made sure to fill their cups to the very top.

  “If you like my lemonade, do not forget to tell your friends,” I said.

  A little while later a car pulled up to the curb. A man and a woman were sitting in front. Three kids were in back. The woman got out and asked for five cups of lemonade. She handed me fifty cents. Yes!!!

  Two people walked by after that. They each bought a cup. Then I began waiting again. And waiting. It was hot. I was bored. Finally around four o’clock Kristy came outside with David Michael. They were wearing Krushers’ uniforms and carrying lots of softball equipment.

  “It is time for practice,” said Kristy.

  “Would you like to buy some lemonade before I put it away? It is really delicious,” I said.

  Kristy handed me two dimes. I had earned one dollar and fifty cents — in three whole hours. Boo and bullfrogs.

  I ran into the house and put on my uniform. I was not sorry it was time to leave.

  Kristy’s Advice

  “Batter up!” called Kristy.

  We were on the grounds of Stoneybrook Elementary School. Kristy had divided the Krushers into two teams for practice. That made ten kids on each side.

  Jamie Newton was first at bat. He is four years old.

  The pitcher was David Michael. (He is one of the main pitchers for the Krushers. Nicky Pike, who is eight, is the other.) David Michael pulled back his arm, then threw the ball. It headed toward home plate.

  Jamie jumped back. That is because he is afraid of the ball. On the second pitch, he ducked. On the third pitch, he practically ran away.

  “Nice try,” said Kristy. (Kristy is a very understanding coach.)

  “You are up next, Karen,” said Kristy.

  I walked to home plate and picked up the bat.

  “Go, Karen!” called Hannie and Nancy.

  (Nancy does not like to play softball. But she comes to the games sometimes to help Kristy with the equipment.)

  I stood waiting for the ball. I was tired of waiting. I had been waiting all day. I had been waiting for people to come buy my lemonade. Now I was waiting for the ball.

  Whoosh! The ball passed right by me.

  “Strike one!” called Kristy.

  I had to stop thinking and start watching.

  Whoosh! I missed the ball again.

  When the third ball came, I was ready for it. I watched it come sailing toward me.

  Whack! I hit it! I ran like the wind to first base.

  But I tripped on the way. Luckily for me, the outfielders kept dropping the ball. I reached first base just in time.

  “Way to go!” called Kristy.

  Hannie was up next. I wanted her to hit the ball. If she did, I could run to second base.

  Hannie swung and missed three times in a row. That strike out made three outs. I could not run to second base.

  I put on my glove and took my place in the outfield. Not one ball came my way. There I was, waiting again. And thinking. I was thinking about my lemo
nade stand. I was wondering why hardly anyone had come.

  I did not hit another ball for the rest of the practice. I dropped the two balls that finally came my way in the outfield because I was daydreaming. By the time practice was over I was in a gigundoly bad mood. I threw down my glove.

  “Is something wrong?” asked Hannie.

  “No, nothing is wrong. But you could have tried harder to hit the ball when I was on first base,” I said.

  I knew right away I should not have said that. Hannie had tried her best.

  “That was mean,” said Hannie. She stomped off.

  Then Andrew ran to me. “Karen, would you tie my shoelace?” he asked.

  “You know very well how to tie your shoelace. You are just being lazy,” I snapped. Andrew looked hurt.

  “Um, Karen. May I talk to you?” said Kristy. Kristy took me off to the side.

  “What is wrong? You are snapping at everyone,” she said.

  “I am having a very bad day,” I replied. “I am mad that hardly any customers came to my lemonade stand.”

  “That does not give you the right to be mean to Hannie and Andrew. You should tell them you are sorry,” said Kristy. “Now I will give you some advice about selling lemonade. If the customers do not come to you, then you must go to the customers.”

  Hmm. This sounded like a good idea. All I had to do was think about where the customers would be.

  First I had some apologizing to do.

  Ice Cold Lemonade

  I was happy because Hannie and Andrew forgave me right away. I did not want them to be mad at me.

  When I got home, I went to my room to have a talk with Moosie.

  “Kristy says that if I want to sell lemonade, I have to go where the customers are,” I explained. “Do you have any ideas?”

  Moosie just sat there. I could tell he thought this was a very hard question. After all, who would want to be outside when it was a zillion degrees?

  “Come on, Moosie. Help me think,” I said.

  Where had I seen a lot of people lately? People needed a reason to be outside when it was so hot. Where would they be going? What would they be doing?

  Suddenly I had the answer. I had seen lots of people outside today. They were all at the school grounds. They were Kristy’s Krushers!