Ellie the Flower Girl Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1: Wedding Bells

  Chapter 2: Puppy Love

  Chapter 3: Hailey Pops the Question

  Chapter 4: Critter Club on the Case

  Chapter 5: Lulu Goes on Tour

  Chapter 6: Dress Disaster!

  Chapter 7: The Hard Truth

  Chapter 8: A Surprise Visitor

  Chapter 9: Ellie Comes Clean

  Chapter 10: The Big Day

  ‘Liz’s Night at the Museum’ Excerpt

  About Callie Barkley and Tracy Bishop

  Wedding Bells

  Ellie Mitchell hurried out to the school playground for the last ten minutes of recess. She found her friends Marion, Amy, and Liz at the swing set.

  Marion was pushing Amy on one of the swings. “What took you so long?” Marion asked Ellie.

  “I stayed behind to see the photos,” Ellie explained. She gave Liz a push on the other swing.

  Their teacher, Mrs. Sienna, had been at her daughter’s wedding over the weekend. She had come back with lots of pictures. And Ellie had asked to see all of them.

  “I’ve decided something,” Ellie announced. “All I want in life is to be a flower girl!”

  Liz laughed. “How come?” she asked.

  Ellie gasped dramatically. “I mean, scattering the flower petals? No one else in the wedding gets to do that,” she pointed out. “And the fancy dress! That might be the very best part! The flower girl at Mrs. Sienna’s daughter’s wedding was wearing this gorgeous pink dress. It had these different layers of pink and sparkly beads. And it totally matched her shoes!”

  “If I were ever a flower girl,” Marion said, “I would want to design my own dress.” Marion loved fashion design.

  Amy shook her head. “I’d be way too nervous to be a flower girl. I know I’d trip or something. Then it would be remembered forever in photos!” She shivered at the thought. Amy didn’t love being the center of attention.

  Liz pumped her legs, trying to swing higher. “We went to my uncle’s wedding last summer,” she said. “Each bridesmaid’s dress was a different color. It was so colorful! I think it’s kind of boring when all the dresses match.”

  Ellie smiled. “You do love color,” she said to Liz. Liz was an artist, after all!

  “Speaking of color,” Amy cried, “Ms. Sullivan said we could help paint the fence at The Critter Club after school today!”

  The four friends had started the only animal rescue shelter in their town of Santa Vista. They had named it The Critter Club and it was located in their friend Ms. Sullivan’s barn.

  “Fun!” Ellie exclaimed. “It will give us something to do, since we don’t have any animals to take care of right now.”

  Liz grinned. “Do we get to paint it any color we want?” she asked hopefully.

  At dismissal time, Ellie’s mom picked her up from school. They made a quick stop at home so Ellie could change into painting clothes. Then Mrs. Mitchell drove her over to The Critter Club.

  On the way, Ellie told her mom about her day. “Mrs. Sienna’s daughter got married!” she exclaimed. “And I got to see all the pictures!”

  Ellie’s mom smiled at her in the rearview mirror.

  “If you thought that was exciting,” Mrs. Mitchell said, “you must be really excited about your cousin Hailey’s wedding in a few weeks.”

  Ellie gasped. “That’s right!” she cried.

  Mrs. Mitchell laughed. “Did you forget?”

  Ellie laughed too. “I guess so! I wonder who her flower girls are,” she said.

  Puppy Love

  Mrs. Mitchell dropped Ellie off outside the barn. Ellie ran inside. Liz, Marion, and Amy were already there. So was Amy’s mom, Dr. Melanie Purvis, who was a veterinarian. She often helped the girls take care of their Critter Club animals.

  They were all crowded around a small animal crate. Dr. Purvis was reaching inside.

  “Oh good!” Amy cried, seeing Ellie come in. “You’re here!”

  “Ellie,” exclaimed Liz, “wait till you see our new guest!”

  “Ohhh, who is it?” Ellie asked eagerly.

  Dr. Purvis turned around. Cradled in her arms was one of the sweetest little puppies Ellie had ever seen!

  “Awwwww,” the girls all said together.

  “She’s a French bulldog,” Dr. Purvis told them.

  Ellie pet the puppy’s neck. “I love her droopy cheeks!” she said. “She’s so adorable!” Suddenly, the puppy licked Ellie’s hand.

  “Her name is Lulu,” Dr. Purvis said. She explained that an elderly lady had brought Lulu in to the vet clinic. “Her grandchildren gave her the puppy as a gift. But she was finding it hard to take care of Lulu properly.”

  Ellie nodded. It wasn’t the best idea to give pets as surprise gifts. It often didn’t work out.

  “Well, Lulu,” Ellie said, “I don’t think we’ll have any trouble finding you a new home.”

  The other girls agreed. “Who could resist that face?” Liz said.

  Just then, they heard a knock at the barn door. They turned to see a young woman in the open doorway. “Ellie?” she said, peering inside.

  “Hailey!” Ellie cried, running over. She gave the woman a big hug, then turned. “Hey everyone, this is my cousin Hailey!”

  “Hello!” Hailey called out, waving. “Sorry to drop in,” she said to Ellie. “I was just talking to your mom on the phone. I was going to stop by your house to ask you and Toby about something. But she said you were here.”

  “I’m so glad you came!” Ellie said. She hadn’t seen Hailey since last year at a family Christmas party. One by one, she introduced Hailey to Amy, Marion, and Liz, and to Dr. Purvis.

  “And this,” Dr. Purvis said, “is Lulu!”

  She held the puppy out. Hailey immediately reached out to pet her. “Oh my gosh,” she cooed. “I love French bulldogs! Awww . . .” Hailey looked at Dr. Purvis. “Do you think I could hold her?”

  Dr. Purvis smiled. “Of course!” she said, handing Lulu to Hailey.

  Hailey beamed as she cuddled Lulu. Lulu looked just as happy, covering Hailey’s face with wet kisses.

  “This is exactly the type of puppy I’ve always wanted,” Hailey said.

  Ellie and the girls looked at one another. Was their search for a new home for Lulu already over?

  Hailey Pops the Question

  “You know, Hailey,” Ellie hinted, “Lulu is up for adoption. That’s why she’s here at The Critter Club.”

  Hailey’s smile faded. She sighed and handed Lulu back to Dr. Purvis. “I wish I could!” she said. “But I’d have to get Connor to agree. And we have a lot going on right now—including our wedding!”

  She looked Ellie right in the eyes. “Speaking of which . . . ,” Hailey continued. Now her face looked quite serious. “Ellie, I need to ask you something. It’s something very important. Could we talk outside for a moment?”

  Ellie nodded, feeling a pang of nervousness.

  What was so important that she needed to ask Ellie . . . in private?

  The next moments were a blur to Ellie. She followed Hailey out of the barn. She sat down next to her on the bench by the maple tree.

  Then she heard the words flower girl and in my wedding. Ellie realized Hailey was smiling and waiting for Ellie’s answer.

  The next thing she knew, Ellie was screaming at the top of her lungs.

  The girls ran out of the barn. “Is everything okay?” Amy asked.

  Ellie laughed and shouted, “Hailey asked me to be the flower girl in her wedding! Whoo-hoooo!”

  Amy, Liz, and Marion cheered. They gathered around Ellie and Hailey.

  “Well? What did you say, Ellie?” Liz asked jokingly.

  Ellie laughed.
“I said yes, of course! Oh, I’m sooooo excited, Hailey.”

  “I’m so excited you said yes!” Hailey replied. “Next weekend, you can come with me to the bridal shop. I’ll show you the flower girl dress I had in mind.”

  Ellie jumped up and down. “I can’t wait!” she exclaimed.

  Hailey stayed to play with Lulu for a while. She sat down with the girls in a circle on the grass. They let Lulu run around in the middle. When the puppy got tired, she flopped down between Hailey and Ellie. She put her head down on Hailey’s leg.

  Later on, at home, Toby met Ellie at the front door. “I’m going to be in Hailey’s wedding!” he told Ellie. “I’m the ring bear! Grrrrrr!”

  Ellie gave Toby a high five. “Awesome! But it’s ring bearer,” she explained. “You get to carry the wedding rings down the aisle. That’s a big job!”

  Toby stood up straight and looked very proud. For a split second, Ellie felt a pang of jealousy. Wait a second, she thought. How come the flower girl doesn’t get to deliver something important too?

  But Ellie shook it off. Toby would probably wear a tuxedo or a suit, not an awesome dress like hers.

  Ellie couldn’t wait to see what her flower girl dress looked like!

  Critter Club on the Case

  On Friday after school, the girls met at The Critter Club. They filled Lulu’s bowl with puppy food. Then they watched her gobble it down while they made plans to get her adopted.

  Earlier in the week, they had put an ad in the newspaper. Amy’s dad was an editor at The Coastal County Courier. He got their ad a good spot in the Classifieds section.

  But so far, they hadn’t gotten any phone calls about Lulu.

  “Well,” said Amy, “we’ve found homes for lots of animals. Let’s think. What has worked before?”

  Ellie recalled the time she’d brought the bunnies on stage at the end of her play. “It definitely worked,” she pointed out.

  Marion remembered taking the stray kittens to a horse show. They found homes for all of them in one day!

  Liz remembered the holiday party they threw to get people to come meet two guinea pigs.

  “So how can we get Lulu out to meet people?” Ellie wondered.

  They were quiet as they thought it over. Then Amy spoke up.

  “The weather is going to be nice this weekend,” she said. “We could take Lulu on a field trip. Maybe to the park?”

  Ellie, Marion, and Liz loved the idea. There would be lots of people out. They could introduce Lulu around.

  “Plus, I think Lulu will love it!” Amy said.

  Lulu wagged her stubby tail and barked. Arf, arf!

  It was decided. Amy and Marion would take Lulu to the park on Saturday. And Ellie and Liz would take her on Sunday.

  “Perfect,” said Ellie, “because I can’t do it tomorrow. I have a big appointment at the bridal shop!”

  Ellie sank into the floral print armchair. She looked around the dressing room of the bridal shop. It was the largest, fanciest dressing room she had ever been in.

  Hailey was sitting next to her in a matching chair. “Can you just tell me what color the flower girl dress is? Teal? Red? Pink?”

  Hailey smiled and shook her head. “You’ll see in a second!”

  One of the employees had gone to get the flower girl dress Hailey had picked out. Ellie was going to try it on for size.

  It was so hard to be patient. Seconds felt like minutes, which felt like hours.

  “So how is little Miss Lulu?” Hailey asked while they waited. “Have you guys had any luck getting her adopted yet?”

  Ellie shook her head distractedly. “Nope,” she said, “not yet.” She was listening for any sign of that employee coming back.

  Finally, there were footsteps and the employee came back into the room. She handed Hailey a dress in a garment bag.

  “Here it is, Ellie,” Hailey said. “I hope you love it as much as I do!”

  Ellie jumped out of her chair. She craned her neck to see as Hailey unzipped the garment bag. Ellie took the hanger. She held the dress against her body and looked in the mirror.

  She took a long look . . . and her excitement slowly fizzled.

  This is a flower girl dress? Ellie thought. There had to be some mistake.

  This was a plain, straight lavender dress. It had no sleeves, a simple neckline, and no decorations or fancy details. Where was the sparkle? Where were the fabric rosettes?

  Hailey was looking hopefully at Ellie and smiling. “Isn’t it elegant? I think it’s going to look amazing on you. But what do you think?”

  Ellie hesitated. Hailey had picked out the dress. And Ellie really didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

  Ellie forced a smile. “I love it,” she said.

  Lulu Goes on Tour

  Ellie and Liz waited while Lulu stopped to sniff the grass along the park path. It was Sunday and they were taking their turn at “Operation Find Lulu a Home.”

  The day before, Amy, Marion, and Lulu had met a bunch of nice people in the park. They were all happy to meet the puppy. They even agreed she was super adorable. But no one had been ready, willing, and able to adopt her.

  Ellie and Liz decided they’d walk the looping path around the outside of the park. As they walked, Ellie told Liz about the dress—and how she’d used her acting skills.

  “I had to dig down deep,” Ellie said dramatically. “But I think Hailey believed me when I said I liked it.”

  Liz smiled. “It can’t be that bad, can it?” she asked.

  Ellie shrugged. “It’s not ugly,” she agreed. “It’s a very nice lavender dress. And it fit me perfectly. They didn’t have to hem it or anything, so I got to take it home. It’s just . . . plain.” Ellie sighed loudly. “I hoped it would have some pizzazz. Some zing! Some star power!” She looked at Liz. “You know?”

  Liz put her arm around Ellie. “I know,” she said kindly. “You do love star power.”

  Ellie nodded. “But what can I do? Hailey picked that dress and I’ll just have to keep my opinion to myself!”

  They continued on the path around the park. It took a while because there were so many people who stopped them to ask about Lulu.

  “Oh my goodness! That’s the most adorable puppy!” said a young lady jogging by.

  “Is your puppy a boy or a girl?” asked a little boy who wanted to pet Lulu.

  “How old is she?” asked the little boy’s dad.

  Even a woman selling flowers from a cart stopped them. “And what is this little munchkin’s name?” she asked the girls.

  They told everyone they talked to that they were trying to find Lulu a new home.

  “Oh, Lulu,” the flower seller said to the puppy. “If only I didn’t already have a dog.” She looked up at the girls. “A rather active dog. He doesn’t play so well with others.”

  She was packing up her cart and getting ready to leave. She took three flowers out of one of her pails. “Here,” she said, “take these. Three daisies for three young ladies.” She gave one to Ellie. She gave one to Liz. And she tucked the third under Lulu’s collar. Then she smiled and turned to go.

  Ellie and Liz beamed. “Thank you!” they called after her.

  The daisies were each a different vibrant color. “You look fabulous!” Ellie said to Lulu. “So dressed up!”

  They walked on, finishing their loop around the park. Then they took Lulu back to The Critter Club.

  At home Ellie went up to her room. She sniffed her daisy as she flopped down on her bed.

  Hanging from her closet door was the flower girl dress. Ellie sighed. One little flower had really dressed Lulu up. “If only there were a way I could dress up that dress,” she said to herself. “But I can’t.”

  She looked at the flower in her hand. She looked up at the dress.

  “Or can I?”

  Dress Disaster!

  Ellie went to her closet. She pulled out a box that held her belts. Her eyes were drawn to a glittery pink one.

  In a f
lash, she changed out of her clothes and put on the flower girl dress. She couldn’t reach the back zipper to zip it all the way up, but it was close enough.

  Ellie added the pink belt around the waist. She checked her reflection in her mirror.

  “Wow!” she said out loud. A little sparkle made a big difference.

  Maybe she’d show Hailey the next time she saw her.

  Ellie took off the belt and put it down on her bed. It landed next to the daisy.

  All of a sudden, Ellie had an idea!

  She pulled her craft bin out from under her bed and opened the lid. She tossed aside the bottles of paint on top. Underneath, she found what she was looking for.

  There were fabric flowers in different colors. There were glittering fake gems. There were shiny sequins and brightly colored beads.

  Just think what a few details could do for this dress! Ellie thought. A few flowers on one shoulder? A line of beading around the neckline? A sprinkling of sequins on the skirt? Or maybe . . . Ellie gasped at the picture she was painting in her mind. Maybe all of that!

  Just then, Ellie heard her mom calling from downstairs. “Ellie! Dinner!”

  “Coming!” Ellie called back.

  Her mom’s voice had snapped Ellie out of her daydream. She shook her head. There was no way she’d actually make any changes to the dress. First of all, she knew there was a big chance she’d mess it up!