Megan Stine_Jeffery & the Third-Grade Ghost 03 Read Online Free Page B

surprised.”
    “Oh, gross, Jeffrey,” Wendy said. “Don’t eat your potato puffs with your fingers. It’s not good manners.”
    Jeffrey looked at his hand and then at the potato puff in it. His parents and Wendy were looking at him. Jonathan laughed his big horse laugh. Jeffrey felt like a criminal who had been caught red-handed.
    “Well, tomorrow’s going to be a fun day,” said Mr. Becker, trying to change the subject. “We’ve got to buy our Christmas tree and decorate it—”
    “You mean you decorate your tree
before
Christmas Eve?” Wendy interrupted. She and her brother looked at each other in surprise.
    “What do
you
do?” Jeffrey asked. “Build a little Christmas tree house in it?”
    “We wait until it’s Christmas Eve to decorate our tree,” Wendy said.
    “And at midnight we give each other one present,” Jonathan added.
    “And then we have turkey for dinner the next day,” Wendy went on. “But my mom said you won’t have turkey. You always have roast beef.” She dropped her fork loudly on her plate. “Why do we have to do everything your way?”
    Jeffrey’s parents didn’t have an answer ready.
    Jonathan noisily scooted his chair back and left the table. “This Christmas is going to be no fun at all,” he grumbled on his way out of the dining room.
    “Well,” Jeffrey said to Wendy, “for once your brother and I agree. This Christmas is no fun at all!”
    With that, Jeffrey scooted out his chair and stomped out of the room, too.

Chapter Six

    “Hey, Jeffrey. Look outside!” said Mr. Becker. He was standing by Jeffrey’s bed early the next morning. His voice was excited, but he was whispering so that he wouldn’t wake up Jonathan.
    Jeffrey sat up quickly and looked out his window. It had happened again. Another thick snowfall had covered the town during the night.
    “Toboggan Sunday!” Jeffrey shouted. He gave his father a high-five.
    Mr. Becker put a finger to his lips. “Shhh,” he told Jeffrey. He pointed to Jonathan, who was zipped up in the sleeping bag on the floor. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”
    As Jeffrey hurried into his warmest clothes, there was a tug and a zip and then Jonathan poked his head out of the sleeping bag. Jeffrey was almost happy to see his cousin. He knew Jonathan would go bananas over what was going to happen.
    “Get dressed, Jonathan. It’s Toboggan Sunday!” Jeffrey said.
    “I don’t want to go to church,” Jonathan said sleepily.
    “That’s not what it means,” Jeffrey said. “My dad has an old toboggan in the attic. It’s from when he was a kid. Once a year he gets it out and we take it down Number One Hill on the golf course.”
    “So?” Jonathan mumbled as he stretched and yawned.
    “But it has to be a Sunday, and only a Sunday in December, and only if there’s a brand-new snowstorm the night before. And this is it! Pretty neat, huh?”
    Jonathan looked out the window and shrugged. “Doesn’t look like a very big snowstorm to me.”
    “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to,” Jeffrey said.
    Jonathan shrugged again. “What else is there to do around here?”
    They ate breakfast while Mr. Becker carried the toboggan down from the attic and tied it to the rack on the roof of the car.
    At the table, Wendy rested her cheek in her hand. She stirred and stirred her oatmeal.
    “Don’t you like it, Wendy?” asked Mrs. Becker.
    “It’s better with sliced peaches,” Wendy said. Then she scowled at Jeffrey. “Blow your nose, Jeffrey. Don’t sniff up!”
    Beep! Beep!
    “That’s the car,” Jeffrey said. “Dad’s ready to go.”
    “I’m not going,” Wendy said. “Our mom and dad wouldn’t want us to do anything dangerous.”
    “It’s not really dangerous, Wendy.” Mrs. Becker tried to explain. “Why don’t you go check it out and then decide?”
    Wendy shook her head.
    “Okay, stay home by yourself,” Jeffrey said, jumping up from the table and putting on his parka and scarf.
    “She can’t do