Ugly Brother perks up. “Ruff, ruff!” he barks.
I bring my cards to the table. They are so cute! All the lollipops have heart-shaped cards on them.
“Be careful,” Momma says. “Ugly Brother might try to eat those.”
Ugly Brother puts his paws over his face. He knows we’re talking about him. I pet him on the head. “You’ll be a good boy, right?” I ask.
That perks him right up. “Ruff, ruff!” he barks in agreement.
Momma gives me a pen so I can start to write names on my cards. I choose the ones that say, “For My Best Friend” for Lucy, Cara, and Paula. Then I pick out cards for the rest of my classmates.
With my valentines done, I go back to helping Momma. I start to lick the envelopes for the invitations while she finishes addressing them. Lick, lick.
Momma smiles at me while I work. “Sweet Pea, you’re the sweetest girl in the world,” she says. “I just hate to lick envelopes!”
“Ahh ooh,” I reply. That means “I know” but my mouth is so sticky from licking envelopes that it comes out funny.
Just then T.J. brings me the phone. “It’s for you.”
I take the phone, but my mouth is so sticky I can’t get any words out. On the other end I hear Randall Jeremiah Johnson. He says, “Kylie Jean, you remind me of a stinkbug.”
Ick! I try to tell him that stinkbugs are gross, but my tongue is so sticky from licking all those envelopes I can’t even say a thing.
“I love bugs!” Randall Jeremiah says. Then he just hangs up.
“Who was that?” Momma asks.
I take a big drink of water so I can answer. “Randall Jeremiah Johnson,” I say. “He’s in my class.”
“Is that the boy who pulled your hair when we got ice cream the other day?” Momma asks.
I nod my head.
“You know, sugar, when I was in third grade, a boy named Frank liked me,” Momma says. “He was always acting silly like that.”
Suddenly I remember the gift on my desk the other day. I bet those chocolates were from Randall Jeremiah!
“Oh, no! Does that mean Randall Jeremiah Johnson likes me?” I ask. “What did you do about Frank?”
“Nothing,” Momma tells me. “He decided he liked a girl named Jane better.”
I ask, “Do you think Randall Jeremiah will find another girl and leave me alone?”
Momma smiles. “Sooner or later,” she says. “But in the meantime, just treat him like a regular friend. Remember, pretty is as pretty does. You might be his first true love, so you don’t want to go breaking his heart or hurting his feelings.”
I sigh. It’s a good thing it’s time to get ready for bed, because I don’t want to think about being nice to Randall Jeremiah any more today. Tomorrow I will try to be his friend, but secretly I am hoping he decides to like someone else better than me — and soon!
11. Lick envelopes for Momma
The next day after school, Lucy comes over to help make some extra-special valentines for our friends at Oak Manor. We also have to make a banner for Nanny and Pa’s party.
We gather up all of our art supplies and magazines and spread out all over the kitchen floor. The only problem with working on the floor is that our helper Ugly Brother gets into everything. He has a heart doily stuck on his tail and red glitter on his face!
“You are just as pretty as a picture,” I tell him. “You could be Miss Rose’s valentine!”
“Ruff, ruff!” Ugly Brother barks happily.
He looks so excited that I feel bad telling him I was just kidding. “Sorry, brother,” I say. “But you can come visit Miss Rose anyway.”
Ugly Brother seems a little sad, but I let him help me make some more cards, and he forgets all about it. I make Miss Rose’s card using pictures of roses that Momma let me cut out of her gardening magazine. They look so pretty stuck on the pink heart-shaped doily.
Soon the kitchen floor is completely covered with glitter, scraps of paper, pots of paint, bottles of glue, and one-of-a-kind valentine cards waiting for their decorations to dry.
When Momma comes in, she takes a look at the mess and says, “It’s a good thing you girls are doing all of your art projects at the same time. It looks to me like two projects are going to equal one super-huge mess!”
“Sorry, Momma!” I say. “We’ll clean up when we’re done. We promise!”
While our special cards are drying, Lucy and I get to work on a banner for Nanny and Pa’s party. We roll out a long piece of white paper.
“Do you think we should put red roses on it?” Lucy suggests.
“No, they’re going to have vases of them on the tables,” I reply.
We are quiet while we try to think of something else. Finally Lucy says, “Do you remember where you got the idea for the words?”
“I sure do!” I reply. “Are you thinking we should use conversation hearts to decorate the banner, too?”
“Sure am!” Lucy says.
Now that we have our design decided, it’s time to make the banner! First we write, “Love is Sweet” in giant red letters. Then we draw conversation hearts all around the outside. Next we add a swirly red border along the top and bottom of the banner.
When we’re finished, Lucy and I clean up our gigantic mess. I wish that my best cousin could stay all night, but it’s time for her to go home now. Besides, I’ll be seeing lots of her since Valentine’s Day is on Friday. And the next day is Nanny and Pa’s surprise party!
12. Make valentines for our new friends
Today is finally Valentine’s Day! Yippee!
“Happy Valentine’s Day!” Momma says when I come downstairs. To celebrate, she makes heart-shaped pancakes with chocolate chips in them. They taste like a candy bar. Yum!
I give her a big squeezy hug and say, “I love you, Momma, more than bees love honey.”
Just then, Daddy comes in with a little red velvet box for Momma. “Happy Valentine’s Day, darlin’!” he says.
“For me?” Momma asks. She opens the box. Inside are heart-shaped diamond earrings. “Ohhh, I love them!” she says as she hugs Daddy.
Daddy kisses me on the cheek and gives me a pretty pink card. On the front it has glitter and a girl who looks like a little princess.
“Thank you, Daddy,” I say. “I love you more than bears love honey.”
After breakfast, I get all my things together. I have my backpack, lunchbox, cupcakes with conversation heart decorations for the class party, and a shoebox to collect my valentines.
When we get to school, everyone is so excited about the party! All my classmates brought shoeboxes to put their valentines in, too. We decorate them in the morning — I draw pink hearts all over mine.
“Your box turned out so cute!” Lucy tells me.
After lunch, we put our boxes on top of our desks so everyone can deliver their valentines. All around the room, kids are sorting out their cards and delivering them to boxes.
I see Randall Jeremiah Johnson across the room. His box is decorated with a gigantic green dinosaur eating a red heart.
Once all of our cards are passed out, the party begins. Some kids are at the party table getting treats, but Lucy, Cara, Paula, and I decide to look at our cards first.
The first valentine I grab is so big I can hardly get it out of my box. It is a card made out of notebook paper folded in half with a poem on it. It says: “Roses are red, you like pink, some dogs stink.”
“Who gave you that?” Cara asks.
Lucy peers over my shoulder. “No one signed it,” she says.
Even though it’s not signed, I recognize the handwriting. It’s from Randall Jeremiah Johnson. Just then I see him walking toward me with a big cupcake. Oh, no! “Let’s go get our treats from the party table,” I say quickly.
My friends and I head across the room. I look over just in time to see Randall Jeremiah take a humongous bite of cupcake. I guess he changed his mind about coming over to us.
When I get home from school that a
fternoon, I show Momma all of my cards. I save the biggest one for last. “This is the card that Randall Jeremiah Johnson gave me.”
“Well, isn’t that nice?” Momma says. “He even wrote you a little poem. Why don’t you call him and see if he would like come to the party tomorrow?”
I’m not sure I like that idea, but Momma did say I should try to be his friend. “Okay, I guess so,” I say. “But do you think I could I ask two people to come tomorrow? Randall Jeremiah and someone else?”
“Who else are you thinking of inviting?” Momma asks. “We’ve already invited everyone we know.”
“We didn’t invite Miss Rose to the party!” I say.
Momma smiles. “What a sweet idea. You go right ahead and call her.”
First, I call Randall Jeremiah Johnson. “This is Kylie Jean Carter,” I say when his momma answers. “May I please speak to Randall Jeremiah?”
“I’m sorry, he’s not home right now,” Randall Jeremiah’s momma replies. “May I take a message?”
“I am his friend from school,” I tell her, “and he is invited to a party tomorrow.”
“I’m sure he’ll want to come to the party,” she says. “Thank you for inviting him.”
Next I call Miss Rose. “Hi, Miss Rose!” I say when she answers. “This is Kylie Jean. I am calling to invite you to Nanny and Pa’s anniversary party tomorrow. It’s a surprise!”
Miss Rose says, “I would love to come to the party!”
“Did you get the special valentine I sent you?” I ask.
“I sure did! And it is just lovely!” she exclaims.
We chat for a few minutes, and before we hang up, Miss Rose says, “Thank you again for inviting me to the party, Kylie Jean. You are just the queen of kindness!”
13. Invite Miss Rose and Randall Jeremiah to the party
Cock-a-doodle-doo! The next morning we are up when the rooster crows. Today is the day of Nanny and Pa’s party.
Momma, Daddy, T.J., Ugly Brother, and I all pile into the van. We are off to the Party Barn, but first we stop at the Gas and Go for donuts. This works out perfectly because Lucy and I decided to give our grandparents a special present, and I can buy it here. I will give you an itty-bitty hint: It has something to do with candy.
When we get to the Party Barn, T.J. gets a ladder from Miss Pam and starts hanging the banner Lucy and I made. “Is it straight?” he asks.
I say, “Yup!”
“It looks wonderful,” Momma agrees.
A few minutes later, the florist arrives to put flowers on the tables. Some of the vases are tall and have grand-looking flowers and some are short with sweet, petite ones. The room smells heavenly with so many roses and daisies everywhere.
Just then, Daddy hollers, “Hey, y’all, I’m bringing in the cake!”
It’s a huge cake decorated with lovebirds, ribbons, and gold rings. I run to hold the door open for him and bump right into Lucy. We laugh!
More helpers have arrived. Lucy and I are in charge of the candy bar. Momma brought glass jars and candy to fill them. It’s like a salad bar but better because it’s filled with candy instead.
“What kind of candy do we have?” Lucy asks.
I point to the different bags of candy. “We have jelly beans, chocolate kisses, lemon drops, and conversation hearts,” I tell her.
“Pretty please, may I fill the conversation hearts?” Lucy asks.
I nod. “Sure! I want to do jellybeans anyway. They’re my daddy’s favorite.”
Momma brought measuring cups for us to use as scoops. The candies sound like raindrops falling as we pour them into the jars.
Lucy finishes filling the heart candy jar and starts on the sunny lemon drops. They make a lot more noise going into the jar. It sounds like tap dancers tapping away.
The last jar gets filled with chocolate kisses. Momma got the ones in the gold wrappers since it is a golden anniversary party.
When we are all finished, we stand back to admire our work. “It’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen,” I say.
Lucy and I sit down to eat a few pieces of candy we saved for ourselves, but just then my big cousin Lilly walks by carrying some presents.
“Who told y’all it’s break time?” Lilly says. “You’d better go see what they want you to do next. We’ve got a party to get ready for.”
Lilly is right! Lucy and I spend the next hour blowing up balloons and setting out food trays, plates, and napkins. Finally everything is ready except for us!
My whole family jumps into the van and dashes home to change for the party. Momma and I put on our matching dresses with pink flowers on them. I tie a pink bow around Ugly Brother’s neck so he can look fancy for the party, too.
Soon we are back at the Party Barn. We have to greet all the guests as they arrive.
Randall Jeremiah Johnson’s momma drops him off. He follows Lucy and me everywhere. I see Miss Rose there, too, visiting with Granny and Pappy.
Right before one o’clock, we all get quiet as mice. Then Nanny and Pa walk in.
“SURPRISE!” everyone shouts.
Nanny and Pa smile and laugh. Nanny is so happy she even cries a little! I see Momma hug her and hand her a hanky.
“How did you keep this a secret?” Pa asks.
“It wasn’t easy, but we wanted it to be special,” Momma tells him. “You two deserve it!”
14. Fill candy jars and set the tables
15. Throw a surprise party!
When it’s time to cut the cake, Lilly, Lucy, and I get to be servers and pass out cake to the guests. It’s fun at first, but I get tired of asking people if they want chocolate or vanilla cake.
When everyone has cake, Pa stands up to make a speech. “Fifty years is a long time to be hitched to one gal,” he starts.
Everyone laughs, and Pa continues. “But I am still married to the prettiest girl in town! She’s my best friend and my wife.”
“If we get mad at each other, we never stay mad,” Nanny adds. “And we laugh together all the time. We like each other and love each other a lot! We want to thank y’all for this fabulous surprise party.”
“Nanny, tell us the story of how you met,” Lucy and I beg.
“Okay,” Nanny agrees. “I remember it like it was yesterday. Your pa was a football star, and I was the new girl in town. I didn’t know a single soul, and that made me feel nervous.”
Nanny smiles at Pa. “On my first day, I got mixed up and went to the wrong classroom. Your pa was in his science class when I walked in wearing my pink poodle skirt. It was love at first sight.”
Pa leans over and kisses Nanny sweetly on her cheek. Then she continues, “When the teacher realized I was in the wrong place, your pa offered to walk me to my English class. When we got to the door, I looked into his big brown and eyes, and I fell in love, too.”
When she finishes her story, Nanny has tears in her eyes again. But this time she’s not alone — Momma and Aunt Susie are crying happy tears, too.
Pa gives Nanny another sweet kiss. Then he says, “Let’s open some presents!”
Nanny and Pa have lots of gifts to open. They get gold picture frames, plates that say “Happy 50th Anniversary” in gold letters, and cards full of well wishes.
Lucy and I are getting nervous. Nanny and Pa are getting some really nice gifts. I sure hope they like ours.
Finally we can’t wait anymore, so we take Nanny and Pa the special gift we got them. It is wrapped in a pretty little box with two bows on top. I picked the pink bow, and Lucy picked a white one.
“Can you open our present next?” I ask.
Lucy hands it to Pa, but he hands it over to Nanny. “Why don’t you open this one, darlin’?” he says. “It looks extra special.”
Nanny takes her time opening our gift, being careful not to rip the pretty paper. Finally she opens the lid and looks inside. Pa leans over to see, too. They both smile. Inside are two giant diamond candy rings.
Pa laughs and asks, “Are you going to wear
yours or eat it?”
“I might just do both!” Nanny says.
Pa slips Nanny’s ring on her finger. “Does this remind you of our wedding day?” he asks.
Nanny smiles at him. “This is even better,” she says. “Our girls and our grandchildren are with us now!”
This is the best Valentine’s Anniversary Day ever!
Then Randall Jeremiah Johnson gives me a little box.
“It’s not my party,” I tell him.
“I know,” he says. “But I got you something anyway.”
I open the box. Inside is a candy necklace with a note that says:
I put on the necklace, remembering what Momma said about breaking hearts. “Thank you!” I say. “I am happy to be the Queen of Valentine’s Day and your friend.”
Randall Jeremiah smiles. “Okay,” he says. Then he adds, “Can I have a bite of your necklace?”
Boys are so silly! Randall Jeremiah, Lucy, Ugly Brother, and I decide to go sit by the candy bar, because we’d rather eat candy than cake.
I look around the Party Barn at all my family and friends and smile sweetly as I eat my candy. I sure do feel like a real, true Valentine Queen!
16. Celebrate Nanny and Pa’s surprise party!
Marci Bales Peschke was born in Indiana, grew up in Florida, and now lives in Texas with her husband, two children, and a feisty black-and-white cat named Phoebe. She loves reading and watching movies.
When Tuesday Mourning was a little girl, she knew she wanted to be an artist when she grew up. Now, she is an illustrator who lives in South Pasadena, California. She especially loves illustrating books for kids and teenagers. When she isn’t illustrating, Tuesday loves spending time with her husband, who is an actor, and their two sons.
anniversary (an-uh-VUR-suh-ree)—a date that people remember because something important happened on that date in the past
13.Kylie Jean Valentine Queen Page 3