Question: Why was Mimi running?
Answer: So Robert couldn’t follow her. Just because a story is long, does not mean it is interesting.
WHAT I COULD HARDLY WAIT FOR
LUNCHTIME!
I wasn’t mad anymore, and I couldn’t wait to tell Mimi about Flower Cat! Even though Mimi is allergic to cats, I knew she was for sure going to love the idea.
WHAT MIMI LOVED
FLOWER CAT!!!!
She especially loved the drawing I made. “That would look great on a T-shirt,” said Mimi. “I’d definitely wear that.” “Me too,” I said, because she was right. It was super cute!
WHAT I NOW KNOW ABOUT TRAINING CATS
Mimi and I used all our library time to do cat and wedding research. We found out one big thing about cat training. It is one hundred times easier to train a dog than to train a cat.
Cats are not all like dogs!
WHAT I NOW KNOW ABOUT WEDDINGS
Cat brains do not like to learn new tricks. When the wedding starts the bride and the groom do NOT walk down the aisle first. Here is the list of who gets to walk down the aisle first.
The bridesmaids and the groomsmen (I don’t know if Augustine Dupre is having any of these).
The flower girl. (All by herself!)
The bride with her father. (Does Augustine Dupre have a father?)
Then the getting-married part starts.
The whole time the bride and the groom are getting married you can only see their backs, not their faces. They DO NOT look down the aisle and smile at everyone who came to watch them while they are doing the
WHAT WAS NOT GOOD NEWS
getting-married part.
WHAT IS REALLY HARD TO DO
Everything we found out! Give up on an idea when you really love it and have even made a drawing about it that you would 100 percent wear on a T-shirt.
WHAT I WANTED TO HAPPEN AT AUGUSTINE DUPRE'S WEDDING
I wanted Augustine Dupre to be standing at the top part of the aisle and then turn around and look back and see Crinkles doing his slow paw walking all the way up to her. If Augustine Dupre saw this, she would for sure never forget her wedding. It would be the best present ever!
WHAT MIMI SAID
Mimi looked at me—she was wearing her sad eyes. I could tell she was feeling empathy feelings for me. “It was a great idea,” she said. “Don’t be sad about not doing it.” I looked back at her and smiled. “Who says we can’t do it?” I asked. I held my finger up. “Flower Cat has to happen!” “How?” asked Mimi. I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know that part yet. I have to think first.” Mimi smiled. “You’re a good thinker,” she said. “Think, Grace. Think!”
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER SCHOOL
Max and Sammy walked home with us again. Sammy seemed grumpy. I heard him whispering to Max. “Do we have to pssst psst pssst pssst dog thing?” “What’s the dog thing?” I asked. Max stuck his hand into his backpack and pulled out a plastic bag. “Crackers!” he said “For the backflip. Can we do it?” For some reason I wasn’t excited about Mr. Scruffers doing backflips anymore. Maybe it was what Dad had said, because now, somehow, it just seem fair to Mr. Scruffers.
SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO DO STUFF THAT IS NOT EASY
When the not-easy thing is saying no to a friend, you have to choose the best words you can so their feelings don’t get hurt.
BAD CHOICE OF WORDS
“I don’t want you to train MY DOG to do a
GOOD CHOICE OF WORDS
“I’m sorry, Max, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to have Mr. Scruffers do a backflip. She might get hurt, and it’s not really a natural thing for her to do.”
WHAT CAN HAPPEN EVEN IF YOU USE THE GOOD WORDS
Your friend can still get mad. Max shook the plastic bag. “I brought these from home and everything! No fair! You wanted to do it before!” He looked at me to see if I would change my mind, but I shook my head no. “Fine!” he said. He turned and stomped off. Sammy was the only one who suddenly seemed happy. “Hey Max!” he shouted. “Can I have the crackers if you aren’t going to use them?” Max threw the bag onto the ground and kept walking. “Score!” shouted Sammy. He ran to the bag, opened it, and started eating. He looked back at us and waved. He shouted something else but we couldn’t tell what it was. It’s not easy to understand someone with
WHAT MIMI AND I SAID TO EACH OTHER AT THE EXACT SANE TIME
And it wasn’t an I’m-so-excited-I-can’t-be-lieve-that-amazing-thing-just-happened wow. It was more of a that-sure-was-not-what-I-was-expecting wow.
WHAT MOM SAID WHEN I GOT INSIDE
“Grace, look what Luke brought.” She was holding a big brown box. “Luke bought me a present?” I couldn’t believe it. “Oh,” said Mom, and she laughed. “No, I bought the present. Luke brought the package because—” I interrupted her: “He’s the UPS man! Very funny, Mom, and also very confusing.” Mom laughed again and shook the box. “Open it up!” she said. “Now. Here.” She handed me the box. I dropped my coat on the floor.
WHAT I SAID WHEN I OPENED THE BOX
“Oh my gosh, Mom! It’s amazing!” It was the most beautiful silver dress I had ever seen, and there were shoes to go with it too. It was perfect—a perfect wedding outfit. “Can I try it on?” I asked. “Now?” “Of course!” said Mom. I could hear Mr. Scruffers barking in the backyard. “Leave her outside,” said Mom. “We’ll let her in later. I don’t want her jumping all over your new dress. Now go upstairs and model for me.”
MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT THE NEW OUTFIT
The dress was amazing, but my most favorite thing of all was the new shoes, and the clicking noises they made each time I took a step. They sounded just like Mom’s fancy shoes. Mom’s shoes were for sure higher, but still these were great.
“Oh, Grace!” said Mom. “You look so grown up!” I smiled. “Watch,” I said. I started a fancy twirl but something went wrong. All of a sudden my feet slipped. I flapped my arms but the air couldn’t hold me. fAHHHHH!” FLUMP! I landed in a heap on the bed. “I’m okay,” I whimpered. I looked over at Mom and saw her covering her mouth, she was trying not to laugh. “Maybe we should practice walking before spinning,” she said. I looked at my feet. “Stupid awesome shoes!”
THE PLAN FOR SUNDAY
I said. And then I smiled, “I love them!”
Augustine Dupre was going to have a practice wedding. Mom said it’s a normal thing to do, so that everyone can know what they are supposed to do on the real wedding day. Mom said practice weddings are usually closer to the real wedding, but Sunday was the only day everyone in Augustine Dupre’s wedding could get together. I wanted to wear my new dress but Mom said I had to save it for the real wedding. She did not say the same thing about the new shoes. For those she said, “Practice makes perfect!”
QUIET TO CRACY
The next morning Mimi and Robert came over right when we were cleaning up breakfast stuff. Mimi said she was bringing Robert over to play with Mr. Scruffers. Mimi’s mom likes him to get exercise. Mimi said Robert is like a dog—he needs running-around time or else he gets annoying and loud in the house. Her big idea was for Robert to get tired out by chasing Mr. Scruffers in my backyard. It was a good idea.
Robert is cute. He likes to pretend he and Mr. Scruffers are best friends. I told Mimi about my fancy shoes. She said she couldn’t wait to see them. Just when we were going to call Robert and Mr. Scruffers inside, Robert suddenly yelled, “Squirrel!” and pointed to a branch way up in the tree. Mr. Scruffers went crazy! “I’m helping find squirrels,” yelled Robert, and then he started barking too.
WHAT MOM SAID
Two minutes later Mom stuck her head out the door. “What’s going on out here?” she shouted. “What’s wrong with the dog?” It’s hard not to notice Mr. Scruffers when she is going crazy. “Squirrel!” I shouted, and I pointed at the tree. “Well go pick her up and bring her inside,” said Mom. 'All that noise must be driving the neighbors crazy, and it’s not helping that Ro
bert’s out there barking with her!” When I went to get Mr. Scruffers, I looked up at the squirrel. He didn’t seem one bit scared!
WHY ROBERT WAS SUPER HAPPY
It only took about a minute to get everyone in the house. Mr. Scruffers always calms down the minute you pick her up. Robert was still excited and was chatting like crazy. “We’re a dog team,” said Robert. He pointed to Mr. Scruffers. “We fight squirrels.” “Good job,” I said. “Here, these are for you.” I dumped a handful of crackers onto a plate. “Stay here and eat. Mimi and I will be right back.” Robert nodded his head—his mouth was already full. Mr. Scruffers sat down right next to Robert’s chair so she could watch every bite. “He’s okay. Let’s go,” said Mimi. “I want to see those shoes!”
WHAT MIMI SAID ABOUT MY SHOES
She loved them. I knew she would. I let her try them on, even though my feet are bigger than hers. “These are hard to walk in,” said Mimi. “You’re right,” I said. “They’re pretty tricky shoes.”
When we came back downstairs, Robert wasn’t sitting at the table anymore. “Robert! Where are you?” shouted Mimi. “Woof,” said someone. Mimi and I followed the woof to the TV room. Robert was sitting in Mr. Scruffers’s bed and Mr. Scruffers was sitting on the sofa. “Oh, Robert,” said Mimi. “You know you’re not a real dog, right?” “Woof,” said Robert. “Paw,” said Mimi. Robert held up his hand for her to shake. Mimi looked at me and smiled. “He’s easy to train,” she said. “Plus he already knew how to do that because Mom makes him show her his hands before dinner, to check that they are clean.” “Woof,” said Robert. “Yes, you’re a good dog,” said Mimi.
After Mimi and Robert left, I had one big thought. I sure wish getting Crinkles to do tricks was as easy as getting Robert to do tricks.
WHAT I KNOW
Teaching a cat a new trick is hard to do, maybe even impossible, so instead I decided to make a list of things that Crinkles already knew how to do. Maybe that would help.
WHAT CRINKLES CAN DO
Walk really slowly across our lawn—especially if Mr. Scruffers is watching him.
Hiss at Sammy and not go near him.
Not come when I call him.
Do anything to be with Augustine Dupre.
Wear a collar with his name on it.
Lick a tuna fish can clean.
Jump into and then sit in any kind of empty box.
This was not a big list. Crinkles is not super talented. But still, maybe that was okay. Maybe he could do what I needed him to do anyway.
WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ON THE LIST
WHAT CAN MAKE MR. SCRUFFERS STAY IN ONE PLACE AND NOT MOVE
There is only one thing that makes Mr. Scruffers be the best-behaved dog in the whole world, and that thing is Robert eating crackers. When she watches Robert eat, Mr. Scruffers sits as still as a statue—only her eyes move.
MY PLAN SO FAR
CAN YOU BE A FLOWER CAT WITHOUT A FLOWER BOW?
I have to make Crinkles wear a flower on his collar. This is important. He cannot be a flower cat if he does not have a fancy flower—and it has to be big enough so everyone can see it.
I could make a flower out of paper, but I am lucky—I know someone who can make an even better flower than I can. That someone is Mimi.
I called Mimi the minute after I thought of how she could help me. Of course she said yes! That was the easy part. The hard part was going to be getting Crinkles to wear it. That was going to take practice, and we were going to have to practice without Augustine Dupre seeing us.
SUNDAY
Today is Augustine Dupre’s practice wedding. It is pouring rain! So far Mom has said “Poor Augustine Dupre” about twenty times.
The practice is at one o’clock. Mom says I’m not allowed to wear my new shoes in the rain, so I have been wearing them in the house all morning instead. I’m getting good! I've probably done about a hundred twirls, and now I don’t even wobble or fall down at all.
WHAT MOM FINALLY SAID YES TO
After I begged for about forty minutes Mom finally let me go downstairs to see if Augustine Dupre needed any help.
I did my special knock on the door. It sounded busy in there. I could hear a lot of people talking. After about five knocks Augustine Dupre opened the door and invited me in. The first thing I saw was Luke sitting on the sofa, and guess who was sitting on Luke? Crinkles! The second thing I saw was a little girl throwing pieces of paper all over the room. That kind of thing is hard not to notice—especially when it is handfuls at a time.
WHY AUGUSTINE DUPRE WAS HAPPY TO SEE ME
“Oh, Grace!” she said. “I’m so glad you’re here. I want you to meet Delphine. She really needs your help.” Augustine Dupre pointed to the little girl I had noticed already—now she was throwing handfuls of paper up into the air over her head. It was probably fun, but it certainly isn’t what a flower girl is supposed to do.
Luke put Crinkles on the chair and stood up. He introduced me to everyone in the room—his parents, his aunt and uncle, and the little girl, who was of course Delphine. They were all French. I had to say a lot of bonjours.
HOW I HELPED DELPHINE
Right away I could tell that Delphine liked me. Sometimes little girls like bigger girls, and lucky for me this was one of those times. I could also tell that we were not going to be super chatty together. Delphine only spoke French! I know a few French words like bonjour, oui, non, and au revoir, but you can’t have a very big conversation if all you can say is hello, yes and no, and goodbye.
Augustine Dupre showed me exactly what Delphine had to do and then gave me a pot to use as my pretend basket. That way Delphine and I could practice together.
WHAT IS REALLY FUN
I was surprised, but follow-the-leader-flower-girl is a pretty good game. After about fifteen minutes we were both excellent at it, and I was even wearing my fancy shoes!
I could tell Augustine Dupre was super happy, plus she said, “Oh, Grace, you are the best!”
Crinkles was also super happy. He is not a big sit-on-people cat, so it was surprising to see him jump on Luke’s lap whenever Luke sat down. Luke saw me watching. “I bribed him,” he said, “with these.” He held up a little can of cat treats. “Crinkles loves them! And now he loves me!” “Just like I do,” said Augustine Dupre. They looked at each other and smiled. It was a romance moment!
WHAT MOM WAS WRONG ABOUT
Augustine Dupre didn’t seem one bit sad about the weather. The only time she even mentioned it was when I was leaving to go back upstairs. She said, “Grace, can you ask your mother if she has any extra umbrellas we can borrow for the rehearsal?” “Sure,” I said, and I ran upstairs. I was in a rush. I needed to write down the name of those cat treats. They were going to be a big help!
THE REHEARSAL
I think rehearsals in the rain are probably much faster than rehearsals in the sun. The whole thing was over super quick. At the end, Mrs. Luther and Augustine Dupre gave each other a big hug. It was weird to see them be such good friends. I bet it was because of Crinkles.
THE TWO BEST PARTS
The FIRST best part was that I finally found out what my special wedding job is going to be, and I love it. It’s super important. Mimi was 100 percent right: Augustine Dupre is good with ideas.
The SECOND best part of the rehearsal was that I could tell that if everything went perfectly right, my flower cat plan would actually really work. There was just one thing I needed to figure out. Sometimes when there is something you need to solve, it can help if you let the idea just sit in your brain for a while. Detectives do this when they are trying to solve mysteries. Mom loves to watch those kinds of shows on TV, so I know what I’m taking about.
MY LITTLE FLOWER CAT PROBLEM
After the rehearsal, Augustine Dupre, Luke, and all the French people went to a restaurant. They invited me too, but Mom had already given me lunch, so I wasn’t hungry. Plus I wanted to get Crinkles’s flower from Mimi, go to the grocery store to
buy the cat treats, and, if there was time, do another comic for Mr. Frank. My day didn’t have any extra time for just sitting around!
WHAT WAS SURPRISING TIMES TWO
The first thing I did was ask Mom if we could go to the grocery store. Mom looked at me and said, “Are you reading my mind?” I shook my head. “Well, I was just thinking about asking you if you would mind coming with me to the grocery store.”
Just Grace and the Flower Girl Power Page 5