six Cheer Up, Buttercup Are you ready yet?” Brooke shouted up the stairs. Aly and Brooke were in the kitchen, but their parents were still upstairs. While they waited for their parents to drive them to the carnival, Aly was busy double-checking the wheelie suitcase that was filled with: balloons streamers Scotch tape polishing tools like emery boards and hand cream exactly 498 glittery hair elastics Aly pulled out the list of nail polish colors they had packed the night before: Carnival Polishes Cherry on Top (red) Orange You Happy (orange) Cheer Up, Buttercup (yellow) Oscar the Green (green) Deep Blue Sea (blue) We the Purple (purple) Cotton Candyland (pink) Silver Celebration (silver) Golden Oldies (gold) Witches’ Brew (black) They were all there, two bottles of each. “Mom and Dad, I said, are you ready yet?” Brooke called up the stairs, louder this time. Still no one answered, so Brooke went marching up the steps. Aly checked on the beautiful and sparkly poster Brooke had made, which was carefully rolled up so it wouldn’t crease.
