Puppet Pandemonium Read Online Free

Reluctantly I tried them on. I could barely stand up.
    “Uh, nice,” I said. “Stiff, but nice.” I couldn't move my ankles.
    Dad had grown up in Franklin, and he insisted it was the best place in the world to raise a kid. That was all he could talk about. He gave me a double high five. I didn't want to spoil his fun.
    I wondered if Dad was going to give Mom a pair of boots too. How funny would that be? Instead of learning to ride horses, we'd have to learn to walk.
    Mom had said she would miss her gourmet supper club and their friends, and Gram, of course, but she was sure we would all adjust. My parents had talked about the move for weeks before they decided to leave Seattle, but I had secretly hoped they would change their minds. No such luck. The Sold sign in our front yard made a believer out of me.
    “It's not every kid who gets to grow up in a small town,” Dad said.
No kidding
, I thought.
    I wobbled over to the sofa and pulled the boots off. My toes had already gone numb.
    “As soon as the kids get to know you, you'll have a whole new set of friends,” Mom said.
    “Remember when Ryan Morris came to our school last year and everyone made fun of his weird hair?” I reminded her. “No one wanted to sit with him at lunch. He had to sit alone with a hot-lunch plate full of broccoli until he made some friends.”
    “And what made you guys finally accept him?” Dad asked.
    I couldn't believe he didn't remember. “His dad was the manager of the movie theater. He became the most popular kid in school. Ryan came with free popcorn and movie tickets.”
    I saw Gram and Mom trying to hide smiles.
    “What if nobody likes me?” I asked. “What if I have to spend the whole school year with only a broccoli spear for a friend?” I cut my eyes across to Dad. “What if you have to buy a movie theater?”
    “At least we can see free movies if it comes to that,” Dad said.

    When it was time to set the table, Gram said she'd help me. We took the plates and food out to the patio. It was a nice afternoon for a Labor Day picnic. On a clear daylike this we could see Mount Rainier from our deck. Most of the time, we could see snow on its peaks.
    “Aren't you going to miss the mountains?” I asked Mom when we sat down to eat.
    “Of course,” she said. “But I won't miss the slow drizzle every day and the ice and snow in the winter. At least you won't be playing baseball in the rain anymore.”
    “But the sun in Texas might make me melt,” I said. “You could end up with a puddle for a son. That's worse.” I moved my baked beans around on my plate, but everyone ignored me.
    “Tell your parents about our show today,” Gram said.
    I told them how I had helped Ricky Raccoon when Ella Pearl had tried to eat him alive. Then I told them about his tail getting wedged in the escalator and us getting stranded on the stairs until the security guard got the escalator running again.
    “That sounds terrible,” Mom said.
    “Couldn't you pry the tail loose?” Dad asked.
    “Nope, it was stuck tighter than a bug on flypaper. And the worst part of it is, Ricky's tail is now in shreds. I need to stay here and earn money to buy Gram a new Ricky Raccoon.”
    “Or a new escalator,” Dad said, laughing. He poured another cup of coffee and helped himself to Mom's chocolate supreme cake.
    When it was almost time for Gram to leave, she handed me a package from her purse. “I've got a gift for Baker too.”
    I couldn't believe my luck. “A cell phone? I don't think I'm allowed to have one,” I said, looking at my parents. To my surprise, they smiled.
    “I've checked with them already,” Gram said. “They've agreed to my conditions.”
    “Conditions?” I flipped the phone open. It was already working. “This is so cool!”
    “Your phone comes with prepaid minutes. So don't waste them. Once they're used up, you don't have minutes again until I buy more for you the next month. I'm starting you out with eight hundred and fifty