Marlee Wasn't In The Mood To Cook Today!

The next morning Grandma B announced that she was going to be the one teaching the One More Bite cooking school. She told Marlee that there were lots of folks that would be interested in making homemade noodles for the holidays. Many of them bought frozen noodles at the store and they just weren't as good she didn't think. She had been making these noodles for a long long time. Her Grandma Taylor and her mother had made homemade noodles so of course, she wants their tradition to carry on to Marlee and her friends.

Marlee thought it was just fine for her "B" to do the show. She didn't think that she was in the mood for doing it. She was tired this morning. She had been upset about the mysterious blue 4 wheeler and the Christmas rush anyway. She was in the mood to help some of her friends decorate Marleewood. There was a lot to do. It seemed like Christmas was coming way too fast for she and her friends to get everything done.
There had been a rush of people that stormed in for the Fall sales and had bought some of Charlie's Christmas things too so that caused Marlee and Charlie to be a bit behind.

When Marlee and Grandma B got to work they each went in separate directions. "B" to the kitchen to get ready for the cooking school and Marlee to find her friends.
We will be watching Grandma B today teaching folks how to make homemade noodles while Marlee is busy with her friends.
"B" told us that the first thing she does is NOT use a bowl! Nope, she just puts a tablecloth on her big table that she can throw away. She saves dishes that way.

First she dumps five (5) pounds of flour on the table. Then she makes a big round hole in the middle of the flour. Then she gets out twelve (12) eggs and puts the yolks in the hole. When she gets that done she adds just a touch of salt and a little bit of water. Then I think she uses a fork to beat the eggs and salt and water together.
 Oh look, she is kneading the dough with her hands. Do you see her coffee cup? I think she drinks coffee while she is kneading the dough!
Grandma B told everyone that the next thing you do is use a rolling pin to roll out the dough. A rolling pin is round and long and heavy. It has a black handle on each end. That makes it easy to get a really big circle of noodle dough. Although it looks more like a square, what do you think, circle or square?
Then when she is finished doing that sometimes she has family that like to cut the noodles with a little kitchen tool that looks round and has a handle on it. Sometimes her son helps make noodles.

Then Grandma B showed her audience that she cooks the noodles in chicken or turkey broth, adds some chicken or turkey and lets it cook for quite awhile. It takes awhile for such a big batch to cook in a big electric roaster. Oh my goodness that looks good.
Grandma B always makes noodles for her Thanksgiving meal. Her family likes her noodles so well that most of that roaster of noodles will be gone after a big holiday meal.
 Many families have noodles for Thanksgiving.
While Grandma B was busy in the One More Bite cooking school Marlee and her friends were busy decorating the Holiday Shop. They were having a time of it because the tree was so much taller than they were. So they did the best that they could. Actually they were quite proud of the job that they had done. And they should be! It was a group effort. Once again that's what friends do; help each other. Marlee had some friends that were taller. That was good that they were there today. Hopefully they can go to Grandma B's house and help decorate her tree. We will see.

As you can see Addison's daddy is really tall so he can help her decorate their tree at home. What a great memory!
Somewhere far far away there were two (2) undercover agents getting ready to go to Marleewood. They had gotten a lead on a runaway blue 4 wheeler. It had been missing for several days. The big boss wanted it back where it belonged as soon as possible!

Oh Oh, Grandma B Makes A Terrible Mess!

Not too long after Thanksgiving Marlee went out to the Mini Farm to spend some time with her Grandma B. It was cold outside so Marlee stayed inside and played with her toys.
Grandma B seemed a little nervous lately. She wanted to believe Marlee about that blue 4 wheeler, but every time Marlee came to get her there was nothing there. But the other day she too heard a motor running. At least she thought she did.
Anyway, B was in a hurry to get their supper ready. She was going to make meatloaf tonight. Marlee liked that. She had a bowl with meat and eggs and some spices in it. She was mixing it up and reached for the oatmeal to put in the bowl. When "B" put her fingers around the oatmeal box it slipped right out of her hand and spilled all over the floor! Oh dear what a mess.
Marlee heard a commotion out in the kitchen and came running out there to see what had happened. Evidently her Grandma B was upset and was talking kind of loud to herself. Hmm
Marlee is such a good little girl she ran to get a bowl to help pick up the mess. Grandma B got a broom too. Soon the mess was cleaned up. The meatloaf was in the oven and all was well it seemed.
Marlee went into the living room to find Stashia. If you have been reading Marlee's adventures you know that Marlee and Stashia became very close friends when she was little. Stashia always "had her back" she called it when she got into trouble. She kept her secrets and she even got herself into trouble sometimes for going along with some of Marlee's ideas.
Grandma B didn't always understand the close bond between the two of them. That's because she was not aware that Stashia and Marlee had their own language. They could talk to each other. They had been doing this for months!
One of Grandma B's friends said some thing one day to the effect that "it almost seems like they can talk to each other, doesn't it?" Oh, if they only knew!
Since Marlee had gotten older she hadn't spent as much time with Stashia as she used to. Not long ago when she got home from her long vacation she promised that they would spend more time together.
Then "stuff" got in the way of the promise. Marleewood was a new business and took a lot of not only Marlee's time, but Grandma B's as well. Because Marlee was out in the world so to speak she met new people. Many of the people she met she had become friends with. Some of the new friends were people that her Grandma B already knew. They had all volunteered to help her with Marleewood.
Well, today Marlee had a long talk with Stashia. She was worried. She was worried about Grandma B. She knew that she had dropped that box of oatmeal because she was nervous. Sometimes when a person gets nervous their hands shake. She just knew that it had something to do with that 4 wheeler! "B" had acted different ever since she said to be quiet. Remember?

She told Stashia all of these things. Stashia was a good listener. She also was very wise. She was a lot older than Marlee. She had seen and heard a lot of things. However, this time she did not have a clue.
 Why did it always disappear every time Marlee went to show someone? Every single time she got back to the window it was gone. Marlee also told her friend that she just knew that she had seen that rider on the blue 4 wheeler.
She just knew she had.
Well, Marlee went back to playing with her toys while Grandma B was finishing up their supper. She was hungry. Soon she heard Grandma B call her. She said that supper was ready. She was glad because meatloaf was one of her favorites.
Marlee got up and started out to the kitchen when she heard something. She started to ignore it, but instead she went to the window and said, ""B" there it is, there it is!" She pointed her finger at the window so "B" could see where she was pointing. This time she was sure that the blue 4 wheeler was going to stop. She wanted it to so much. She just knew that the rider was in trouble. She just had a feeling. If the rider wasn't in trouble why would it have ridden clear out to the Mini Farm?
"B" came running into the living room and said, "Marlee, what in the world are you yelling about? Are you okay?" Marlee pointed out the window again and said, "Look "B" there is the blue 4 wheeler. I think that the rider is in trouble."
 But once again when "B" looked out the window there was nothing there but her car sitting in the driveway; no 4 wheeler in sight.
Marlee could hear Stashia make a low noise in her throat. Her friend knew she was right. Stashia hadn't seen the blue 4 wheeler, but she had heard the motor!

It Was A Very Good Day......To Be Silly!!

No matter how old you are as someday you will see, dear Marlee, there is always a good day to be silly. These "silly days" often happen after a day of very hard work, or when you are very very tired. Today is both of those things.

The huge sale was over. People were still coming in to shop, but everything was going just fine.

 Grandma B was decorating a cake for company. It looked too pretty to eat. She was looking serious wasn't she? Then Marlee walked by and all of a sudden Grandma B said, "Hey, Marlee, you want some frosting?" Well my goodness sakes what is a girl to do but just open her mouth. Yummy!
Then in the Daycare there was Noah and his Grammy being goofy with french fries sticking out of their mouths. Oh they were laughing and having such a good time.
But wait there is a little boy sitting at the table eating with a football helmet on. Ha ha. Such fun.
But poor little Joshua couldn't believe his eyes. He had never seen Grandma B be so silly or Grammy either. It seemed like to him that everyone was being silly. It must be a special day!
But did you know that people aren't the only things that can be silly. Yes, that's right, dogs can be silly too. Do you remember Penuche, Ginny's Great Aunt Diane's little dog? Well, she likes cookie dough. Look at her, she can't wait to eat some of that cookie dough that Ginny's Aunt is mixing up. If you look really really close you will see her lick her lips (chops). She just can't hardly wait for Aunt Diane to "accidentally" drop some cookie dough on the floor. Ha ha.
Marlee loves cookie dough and so does Ginny. Do you like cookie cough or baked cookies the best?
Well it seemed like everyone at Marleewood was having a good time. Marlee and her friends were all laughing and being goofy.
But somewhere there was a little blue 4 wheeler. It's little motor was running softly. The rider could see Marleewood, but didn't go onto the parking lot.
I wonder if Marlee will see it today? Probably not because she is very busy having fun with her friends.
Suddenly Grandma B said, "Shh, I think I hear something. Let's be quiet and listen."
They all got very quiet. No one heard a thing.
"Boy, Marlee, you have me hearing things now. We had just better forget what you think you saw. It was probably nothing."
They all agreed except A.J. He knew that Marlee had seen something because she was really serious about showing him where she had seen that rider on the blue 4 wheeler the other day.
The blue 4 wheeler was gone when he got there that day. But you see A.J. believed Marlee.  Today A.J. didn't say anything. He just nodded his head at Marlee. She understood the nod. They were friends...
Long long ago there was an elderly lady that was Grandma Lu's friend. She would give her family "the nod" if she approved of something that they did.
It looks like A.J. and Marlee may have the same kind of relationship; a quiet strong friendship. Sometimes words are just not needed.

Clearance Sales At Marleewood Cause A Close Disaster

Marlee and A.J. soon forgot about the mysterious disappearance of the blue four wheeler. There were more important things to do. For instance try to keep people from ruining all of the Fall and Thanksgiving things that had not been put away for next year. You see
 Charlie and Marlee had thought it was an excellent idea to go ahead and mark the prices down. That way they figured that they would have room for all that Christmas merchandise they had gotten so early. So they had not done what they had told their Grandmas. Oh oh. Bad idea. When they let all those people in the doors there was pushing and shoving.

Marlee and her friends had started to decorate a Christmas tree. It was almost knocked over with the rush of people. Marlee had a headache! Oh no, this was just not good. She was trying to give one of the babies in the Daycare a bottle and the baby was screaming. Could anything be any worse? Yes it could! Remember poor Ginny?  All those mamas and grandmas had dropped off their children at the Daycare. Oh Ginny! Grandma B's friend, Nikki, was there to help thank goodness. I think that there were other folks there too.
Otherwise, it
would have been a total disaster.
All of a sudden there was a calm  clear voice saying, "Hello there, could we help you guys in the Daycare today? It sure looks like it's busy to us. Wow!"
Without waiting for an answer she said,  "Look, Addison, I think we should go ahead and take care of some of these children, What do you think?"
Addison nodded her head and went into the Daycare room to play with the children. That way they were all busy and having fun. So now Ginny and Nikki, and Grandma Honey, and Addison were all there helping with the children.
Noah was there too. He is a very good brother, isn't he?
Things had settled down at last. The children had all gotten taken care of with some cookies that A.J.'s grandma had sent with him to work that day. She did a good job of decorating them for Christmas, didn't she?
Even though Marleewood had way too many shoppers today, a good thing happened. They sold out of all the Fall and Thanksgiving decorations.
The Christmas things got mushed together and some things fell on the floor. So the Grandmas helped Marlee and Charlie and a lot of their friends. They got everything all hung up on the racks. Marlee, even though she had a headache, did her part too. She is a good worker.
She went into the Daycare and sat down with a cookie and a cup of water to relax. She thought that they had worked hard enough for one day. She told the Grandmas and her friends that it was time to close up shop. They all agreed with her.
While everyone was busy getting ready to close, Marlee looked out the window.
She saw a blur of blue and heard a motor running. She recognized that rider! She went to get her Grandma B. But when they got back to the window, it was gone; once again...

There's Trouble At Marleewood!

The telephone was ringing off the hook! Grandma B's cell phone was dead so it was not working. Her home phone was ringing ringing ringing! Finally Grandma B answered it and sleepily said, "Hello?"

It was Ginny. She said, "Grandma B I'm standing outside at Marleewood. It is late and the doors are locked. I can't get in and the parking lot is full of cars with people that want to shop. You can't believe what a mess this is. Can you and Marlee get here soon?"
Grandma B apologized and said,"Sure, but where is Charlie and her grandma?"
Ginny said, " I don't know, I don't see them anywhere."

Grandma B said, "Okay, We will be right there."
This is what she found when she went to get Marlee.
"Oh dear, Marlee is still asleep too! I need to call Charlie and her grandma and see if they will handle all of the shoppers and open the doors until we get there."
Grandma B called and called and finally Charlie's grandma answered the phone. Grandma B told her what was happening. Charlie's grandma said they would go right over. "Oh no! Charlie and her dog, Mo, are sound asleep! I am so sorry we will get dressed and go right over there."
Well Grandma B was used to handling emergencies. So she put a helmet on Marlee because they were going to take the Ranger and probably drive a little bit too fast. (I've heard tell she may drive a tad too fast sometimes.)

When they got to Marleewood they couldn't believe their eyes! What a mess. The parking lot was full of little kids and their cars, four wheelers, and even a bike!
The people were anxious to get into Marleewood to take advantage of the sales.

There was so much honking and noise you just couldn't believe it! Sawyer and Cooper were trying to keep order, but they weren't having much success. Poor guys.
Even a Grandma that we don't know was
trying to help the boys with her really big 4 wheeler. It was a total disaster! And it was just so noisy!!




Maybe we should call A. J. the security guard. He could take care of this, couldn't he?
He helped Marlee out not too long ago. It's always good to have friends in different walks of life. A.J. was always ready to help with his blue uniform on.
Do you see Emma? Her friend is pushing her car evidently because it ran out of battery charge. Friends always help each other out whenever they can.
There were lots and lots of friends and new friends in the parking lot.
There is a bit of a mystery though. There is a blue four (4) wheeler with a mask/helmet wearing person riding it. That person is not coming closer. The person is way back towards the very edge of the road with the motor running.
Marlee saw that person and went to tell A.J. By the time A.J. got back there that mysterious rider was gone! Who could that be? Why would that rider just disappear like that? What does that hand signal mean? What is going on?
Hopefully all is well. Hmm.

The Day After Thanksgiving

It was the day after Thanksgiving and all the dishes were done. Marlee's friends and relatives had had their naps. One of Marlee's friends fell asleep watching television. How many of you have ever done that? Hannah looks so tired, doesn't she?

The Thanksgiving decorations were being put away.
There was a cute Pilgrim and Indian and two (2) turkeys. One turkey was red and one turkey was green. They were all put away to be used next year. They were fun to make and to decorate with.

There were two (2) friends that were on a ferry boat. They were going to see their grandparents. It was also their mama's birthday. What a fun trip. Ginny and James could see big big water couldn't they? Great big waters have different names. Some are called lakes, some are called oceans and some are called bays. I think that Ginny and James are on an ocean. It is the biggest of them all! They were on their way to have another Thanksgiving meal!

Then there is our Marlee. She got a new outfit today. The weather is dreary and rainy. She and Grandma B had a visit. They decided since they had all worked so hard lately they were going to take a little vacation just like Ginny and James.
Marlee would be back at it on Monday with a new adventure I'm sure.
Some of our friends and their dog took a hike after their Thanksgiving meal. They are Grandma Lu's daughter, Melanie, and her grandchildren. She and her husband started going on hikes after meals long before they ever had children. They enjoy the outdoors and nature. Do you see Daisy? She is the white dog. Remember she got the red cape award on one of Marlee's adventures.
Some of them will be going back to school and work so it was a fun family time for them.
I'm so glad that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Thank you all for sending pictures for Marlee and her friends to look at when they are grownups too. What a good time they will have.
See you in a couple of days!