When we arrived back home, we felt so clever. I knew never giving up would pay off. I was so delighted that the national organization would let us do our own show. I knew that if the state show didn’t go on, they wouldn’t have enough competitors for nationals. Then the world show might have to be canceled, too. So, in a way, they were lucky to have us. I felt like such a hero. I was so pumped, I decided to write about it in my diary.
Dear Diary,
I am so happy that I will be able to reach my goal. I feel so exhilarated, like I’m floating on air. I can see everyone around me, so proud of me, like I just saved a little baby from getting hit by a car. I can feel my heart pumping out of my chest.
Happy Ellie
That was a good start; I’d write more later because right now there was a lot to do.
Our moms were handling the details, and all my friends were already packing everything in sight. This was partly because they were leaving to go back to their own homes, but mostly because they were so excited about the show that they needed something to do.
They even got a little carried away and started packing my stuff! “Okay, girls, don’t pack my stuff. Girls, hey! Put that down. That’s fragile. GIRLS!”
They all looked at me with scared faces, dropping anything and everything in their hands. Then we all laughed. It was like I was the Queen of England and everyone bowed at my feet. It kind of felt cool.
As I watched them pack, I thought, We need to celebrate our accomplishments. But how? We need to do something fun, close, and easy. As all of the girls were leaving in the morning, we needed to celebrate today. Then I had an idea! Perfect, perfect, and perfect—a pool party.
The weather was unseasonably warm for the spring (but I do live in Georgia!), and I have a pool. So having a pool party is fun, and it’s easy. I invited all of my school friends, and, when they arrived that afternoon, we put on our bathing suits, got our towels, and ran downstairs. We had a contest to see who could get in the pool first by doing a cannon ball. Ava won! She’s fast and furious.
It had been a while since I had spent any time with my friends from school and they got along with the girls from the horse show.
It was great! We swam and played volleyball and basketball. We had some races, too. We played lots of sports and games. It was a blast!
After swimming, my school friends had to go home and Mom called me and my horse show friends in for dinner. We had roast beef, potatoes, and corn. It was a big meal because the other girls were leaving the next day. We were all hungry, and we all eat like horses!
After dinner, we took turns showering and then we watched scary movies. When we got too freaked out, we decided to watch comedies instead. That was fun, but eventually we had to go to bed. We all had nightmares about the same movie. It was the scariest movie of them all.
Early in the morning, we woke up and shuffled downstairs. I was halfway down when I smelled pancakes or waffles—I wasn’t sure which one. It was both! I was in the lap of luxury. The only thing that could make it better was having all the girls stay with us forever. But I knew that wasn’t going to happen. So I settled on the pancakes and waffles.
One by one the moms came and picked up the girls. To everyone, I said, “Bye! It was nice having you stay here. See you at the show.”
I had to say that twenty-four times. I was upset they all had to leave, but I would see them again soon at our horse show.