"So, if you want to sign up for a trip of a lifetime, go to the hallway
outside the auditorium..."
I wasn't listening to Principal Tweedy. I was dreaming about Rome.
Animated Lizzie: Rome, Rome, Rome! I'm going to Rome!
"So do you want to go?" Mom asked me.
"Do I want to go? Is that even a question? Of course I want to go!" I exclaimed.
Okay, let me back up here. See, after I ruined the graduation ceremony, Principal Tweedy announced that the school would be taking twenty kids from our grade to Rome for two months! We had to bring in $100 to go. This was a trip of a lifetime, the place I'd been dreaming about for, like, ever!
"I guess I'll take that as a yes then."
"So, Gordo, are you coming with me?" I asked.
"Why wouldn't I? Rome sounds cool." He replied.
"So what are we waiting for? Let's go sign up before all the spots are taken!" We zipped out of the room, to see that the first (and only) person on the list was Ethan Craft!
"Ahhhhh! Now I have to go!" I squealed.
"Now I don't want to." Gordo mumbled, but I didn't hear that.
Kate came up behind both of us and pushed us out of the way. "Excuse me, but MOVE! I need to sign up. Rome is the place where Eiffel Tower is, the city of romance..."
Gordo snorted. "Um, I think you're talking about Paris."
"Whatever."
I narrowed my eyes. "Great. Now I don't want to go."
"Are you serious?" Gordo exclaimed. "Just because of Kate Saunders?"
"No, I'm not serious." I said as I added my name under Kate's. I wrote down all the information they needed, and then pulled my parents over for them to write their signature. Gordo did the same.
"I just wish Miranda was here-or there, Rome with us." Gordo said.
"Me too, but she really loves Mexico."
He sighed. "I know." Then his face lit up. "I guess it's just the two of us then."
Animated Lizzie: Is that good or bad?
"You know, that's exactly what I said to Miranda when you got mad at us for spying on you and Brooke." I said.
"Brooke? Oh, yeah. That was two years ago, wasn't it?"
"I don't know. Middle school kind of seems like a big blur to me now." I said absentmindedly. "Whatever. I can't wait to start packing!"
Animated Lizzie: Good bye home, hello Rome!
Right.
I was in such a good mood until my parents told me that I had to earn the 100 dollars! The trip was in a week! How could I earn so much in such little time? Gordo had to earn his own money too, so we decided to work together. But that meant we had to get 200 dollars in a week!
Can you say impossible?
Well, at least I had twenty dollars saved up, and Gordo had forty. That meant only 140 dollars.
"Ideas, ideas." I murmured.
I was in my room, lying on the floor, on my stomach, with Gordo, as we discussed ideas on how to make money. I was thinking as hard as I could, and nothing was coming up.
Animated Lizzie: Come on, words out of my head, out. out! Ooh, Scranton! Is that the only word that's ever in my head?
"A car wash!" He exclaimed.
I crumpled my nose in disgust. "Too dirty, and not enough money that we can squeeze out of it."
"Okay then-selling cookies! Bake sale or something! Garage sale!"
"Ooookay, Gordo, calm down. But, hey, that's a good idea! I got tons of junk lying around!" I smiled.
"Ooh, never mind. Remember when Matt and Lanny tried to sell their stuff?" He bit his lip.
"Who?" I joked. "Yeah I guess you're right. but hey! We can at least try it."
So I spent the next hour gathering all the things I didn't want anymore. Unfortunately, there wasn't much. I put high prices on the things that I had and headed to the kitchen. Baking was not my passion.
I sighed and got to work.
"Vanilla, vanilla-where's the vanilla!" I searched the cupboard.
Animated Lizzie: Great. Just when you think you have all the ingredients, the vanilla's missing.
"Oh well. I don't need vanilla."
"Yes you do." I heard a voice from behind me.
Oh great. "Matt! Go away!" I said.
He glanced at the ingredients on the counter and rolled his eyes. "Amateur." He sighed.
Animated Lizzie: Why is that according to Matt, I'm an amateur at everything?
"Oh and how would you know?" I asked.
"Just watch me."
For the next ten minutes, I watched him zip around the room, carrying batter and M&Ms and butter and everything else. He finally slammed the oven door and said, "Done."
I waited a while for them to get done, and then tasted one.
They were soo delicious.
I tried to control my anger as Matt smirked. "Okay, okay, they're good- amazing. Can you make two more batches?" I asked willingly.
He handed me a list. The same list he shows me every time I ask him to do something. To tell you the truth, I was kind of bored with this routine.
I gave him a wedgie with a bored look on my face, but inside I was laughing.
"Ooh, ow, okay! I'll do it." And with that he was off, making cookies.
I called Gordo and asked him if he was ready to come over with all of his stuff. He said he'd be over as fast he could be and that he was getting rid of a lot of stuff. I was relieved. By the time Gordo was at my house, Matt was done with the cookies.
"Wow!" He said. "It smells good in here. Have you been baking something?"
"Baking?" Mom came up to me and hugged me. "Oh, honey, what's wrong this time?"
Huh?
"What? Nothing's wrong." I said.
"Well, when you didn't want to do rhythmic gymnastics, you were baking cookies and-"
"No, mom! Matt's baking cookies for our cookie-slash-book-slash-garage sale- slash auction." I explained. That sounded kind of weird.
"Matt? Helping you?"
I nodded.
"Pinch me, I must be dreaming." She walked away.
"Okay, so you set up the things in my front yard?"
He nodded.
After that, Gordo, Matt, and me set up cookies and punch and made a huge sign and put posters all over town.
We had twenty-seven customers.
And we had made two hundred seven dollars.
Animated Lizzie: It's a good thing that Gordo has a whole bunch of antiques that no one in his family wanted. We should auction things off more often.
"203, 204, 205, 206, 207!" I squealed. "We have $207!"
"Yeah!" Gordo cheered.
We were going to Rome, and had tons of shopping money left over!
Life could not get any better.
I wasn't listening to Principal Tweedy. I was dreaming about Rome.
Animated Lizzie: Rome, Rome, Rome! I'm going to Rome!
"So do you want to go?" Mom asked me.
"Do I want to go? Is that even a question? Of course I want to go!" I exclaimed.
Okay, let me back up here. See, after I ruined the graduation ceremony, Principal Tweedy announced that the school would be taking twenty kids from our grade to Rome for two months! We had to bring in $100 to go. This was a trip of a lifetime, the place I'd been dreaming about for, like, ever!
"I guess I'll take that as a yes then."
"So, Gordo, are you coming with me?" I asked.
"Why wouldn't I? Rome sounds cool." He replied.
"So what are we waiting for? Let's go sign up before all the spots are taken!" We zipped out of the room, to see that the first (and only) person on the list was Ethan Craft!
"Ahhhhh! Now I have to go!" I squealed.
"Now I don't want to." Gordo mumbled, but I didn't hear that.
Kate came up behind both of us and pushed us out of the way. "Excuse me, but MOVE! I need to sign up. Rome is the place where Eiffel Tower is, the city of romance..."
Gordo snorted. "Um, I think you're talking about Paris."
"Whatever."
I narrowed my eyes. "Great. Now I don't want to go."
"Are you serious?" Gordo exclaimed. "Just because of Kate Saunders?"
"No, I'm not serious." I said as I added my name under Kate's. I wrote down all the information they needed, and then pulled my parents over for them to write their signature. Gordo did the same.
"I just wish Miranda was here-or there, Rome with us." Gordo said.
"Me too, but she really loves Mexico."
He sighed. "I know." Then his face lit up. "I guess it's just the two of us then."
Animated Lizzie: Is that good or bad?
"You know, that's exactly what I said to Miranda when you got mad at us for spying on you and Brooke." I said.
"Brooke? Oh, yeah. That was two years ago, wasn't it?"
"I don't know. Middle school kind of seems like a big blur to me now." I said absentmindedly. "Whatever. I can't wait to start packing!"
Animated Lizzie: Good bye home, hello Rome!
Right.
I was in such a good mood until my parents told me that I had to earn the 100 dollars! The trip was in a week! How could I earn so much in such little time? Gordo had to earn his own money too, so we decided to work together. But that meant we had to get 200 dollars in a week!
Can you say impossible?
Well, at least I had twenty dollars saved up, and Gordo had forty. That meant only 140 dollars.
"Ideas, ideas." I murmured.
I was in my room, lying on the floor, on my stomach, with Gordo, as we discussed ideas on how to make money. I was thinking as hard as I could, and nothing was coming up.
Animated Lizzie: Come on, words out of my head, out. out! Ooh, Scranton! Is that the only word that's ever in my head?
"A car wash!" He exclaimed.
I crumpled my nose in disgust. "Too dirty, and not enough money that we can squeeze out of it."
"Okay then-selling cookies! Bake sale or something! Garage sale!"
"Ooookay, Gordo, calm down. But, hey, that's a good idea! I got tons of junk lying around!" I smiled.
"Ooh, never mind. Remember when Matt and Lanny tried to sell their stuff?" He bit his lip.
"Who?" I joked. "Yeah I guess you're right. but hey! We can at least try it."
So I spent the next hour gathering all the things I didn't want anymore. Unfortunately, there wasn't much. I put high prices on the things that I had and headed to the kitchen. Baking was not my passion.
I sighed and got to work.
"Vanilla, vanilla-where's the vanilla!" I searched the cupboard.
Animated Lizzie: Great. Just when you think you have all the ingredients, the vanilla's missing.
"Oh well. I don't need vanilla."
"Yes you do." I heard a voice from behind me.
Oh great. "Matt! Go away!" I said.
He glanced at the ingredients on the counter and rolled his eyes. "Amateur." He sighed.
Animated Lizzie: Why is that according to Matt, I'm an amateur at everything?
"Oh and how would you know?" I asked.
"Just watch me."
For the next ten minutes, I watched him zip around the room, carrying batter and M&Ms and butter and everything else. He finally slammed the oven door and said, "Done."
I waited a while for them to get done, and then tasted one.
They were soo delicious.
I tried to control my anger as Matt smirked. "Okay, okay, they're good- amazing. Can you make two more batches?" I asked willingly.
He handed me a list. The same list he shows me every time I ask him to do something. To tell you the truth, I was kind of bored with this routine.
I gave him a wedgie with a bored look on my face, but inside I was laughing.
"Ooh, ow, okay! I'll do it." And with that he was off, making cookies.
I called Gordo and asked him if he was ready to come over with all of his stuff. He said he'd be over as fast he could be and that he was getting rid of a lot of stuff. I was relieved. By the time Gordo was at my house, Matt was done with the cookies.
"Wow!" He said. "It smells good in here. Have you been baking something?"
"Baking?" Mom came up to me and hugged me. "Oh, honey, what's wrong this time?"
Huh?
"What? Nothing's wrong." I said.
"Well, when you didn't want to do rhythmic gymnastics, you were baking cookies and-"
"No, mom! Matt's baking cookies for our cookie-slash-book-slash-garage sale- slash auction." I explained. That sounded kind of weird.
"Matt? Helping you?"
I nodded.
"Pinch me, I must be dreaming." She walked away.
"Okay, so you set up the things in my front yard?"
He nodded.
After that, Gordo, Matt, and me set up cookies and punch and made a huge sign and put posters all over town.
We had twenty-seven customers.
And we had made two hundred seven dollars.
Animated Lizzie: It's a good thing that Gordo has a whole bunch of antiques that no one in his family wanted. We should auction things off more often.
"203, 204, 205, 206, 207!" I squealed. "We have $207!"
"Yeah!" Gordo cheered.
We were going to Rome, and had tons of shopping money left over!
Life could not get any better.