Cam Jansen and the Valentine Baby Mystery
Page 3
“They’re tiny,” Cam said. “But they’re beautiful.”
Cam pressed close to the window, but she couldn’t read the cards with their names.
Mr. Jansen waved to the two nurses in the back of the nursery. He pointed to the twins and then to himself, so they would know he was their father. The nurses smiled and wheeled the bassinets closer.
“Oh, they’re adorable,” Mrs. Shelton said.
“Seth,” Cam said, “and Alice. I like those names.”
“Mom and I like them, too,” Mr. Jansen said.
Cam looked at Seth and Alice Jansen. Her brother and sister looked to her like two perfect dolls. It was hard for Cam to imagine that she had once been that small or that one day they would be as big as she was now.
Cam and the others watched the babies for a long time. Then Mr. Jansen said, “Let’s visit Mom.”
They all walked down a long hall to the room Cam’s mom shared with another new mother. When they walked into the room, Mrs. Jansen put her finger to her lips and pointed to the woman in the next bed. She was sleeping.
Mrs. Jansen reached out and took Cam’s hand. She held it and smiled. It was a happy, tired smile.
“The babies are beautiful,” Cam whispered. “I like their names, and it’s so great they’re twins.”
They all stood there for a while and whispered about Cam’s new brother and sister.
“Mom is tired,” Mr. Jansen whispered. “I think we should go now.”
Once they were outside the room, Cam’s father thanked Mrs. Shelton for bringing Cam to the hospital. Then he asked, “Could you take Cam home? I’ll pick her up at your house when I get back.”
“Of course I can. Oh! Maybe I can’t.”
Mrs. Shelton told Cam’s father about her stolen purse. “Then, just before the nurse called, we saw the thief drive off with my car.”
They all walked to the elevator. “I’ll go downstairs with you,” Mr. Jansen said. “If you don’t get your car back, I’ll drive you home.”
“I’ll help you and Mom with the twins,” Cam told her father in the elevator. “I’ll read to them and feed them and play with them.”
“And change their diapers,” Eric added.
Cam made a face. She wasn’t sure she wanted to change Seth’s and Alice’s diapers.
“Mom and I would like you to help,” Mr. Jansen said. “But only after you finish your schoolwork.”
The elevator doors opened.
“There they are!” Danny shouted.
Danny, Beth, and Ms. Benson were near the reception desk.
Danny told Cam, “My dad said Ms. Benson could take me here after school.”
“Was your sister born? Is she pretty? What’s her name and how is your mom?” Beth asked.
“Yes, yes, Alice and Mom are fine, but Mom is tired,” Cam answered.
“That’s wonderful,” Ms. Benson said.
Cam smiled. “Aren’t you going to ask about my brother?”
“What brother?” Danny asked.
“Cam’s mom had twins!” Eric shouted.
“Shhh,” Ms. Benson said. “This is a hospital.”
“Their names are Seth and Alice,” Cam whispered.
“That’s so nice,” Ms. Benson said. “And they picked Valentine’s Day to be born. That’s so sweet.”
“Hey,” Danny said. “Here’s a baby riddle. Who is smarter, Mrs. Smarter or Mrs. Smarter’s baby?”
“Excuse me,” Mrs. Shelton said, and went over to speak to the security guard.
“Mom’s purse and car were stolen,” Eric said. “We even saw the thief drive off with her car.”
“Wow!” Beth said. “You really had an exciting day. All I did was learn about triangles, rivers, and poetry.”
Then Beth turned and saw Ms. Benson.
“Oops!”
“That’s okay,” Ms. Benson said. “Cam did have an exciting day.”
“Cam solved the mystery of who stole Mom’s purse,” Eric said. “She told the police where to find the thief.”
“Look,” Mrs. Shelton said. She held her keys out as she walked over. “They caught the thief. Mine was the third car this week that was stolen from the hospital parking lot. The police think this man stole all three. Now my car is in the parking lot. I’ll get my money back, too, but first I have to go to the police station and fill out a report.” Mrs. Shelton smiled and said, “Thank you, Cam.”
“Really,” Danny said. “Who is smarter?”
“Do you want to see Seth and Alice?” Mr. Jansen asked Ms. Benson.
“Of course I do.”
“It’s the baby,” Danny said. “The baby is a little Smarter.”
No one laughed.
“Don’t you get it? The baby is little and its last name is Smarter, so it’s a little Smarter.”
“You’re not funny,” Beth told him.
“Oh yes I am,” he said.
Mr. Jansen spoke with the man at the front desk. Then he told Ms. Benson that she could go up and see the babies. Danny and Beth would have to wait in the lobby with him.
“Good-bye,” Cam said to Danny, Beth, and Ms. Benson. Then she went with Eric and Mrs. Shelton to the garage.
Mrs. Shelton said, “I wonder where my car is parked.”
“Please, Mom,” Eric said. “Give me your keys and I’ll do what Cam said. I’ll pretend I’m the thief.”
She gave Eric the keys. He hurried ahead. He held the keys over his head and pressed the clicker. He was looking for a car with blinking lights.
Eric had hurried right past a car parked by the entrance to the garage. It was his mother’s car.
Cam laughed and told Mrs. Shelton, “Eric doesn’t make a very good thief.”
“I’m glad he doesn’t,” his mother said. “But he is a very good son.”
“And a very good friend,” Cam added.
Cam called to Eric and pointed to the car. Then they drove home together, hap-pily talking about Cam’s new brother and sister, Seth and Alice Jansen.
A Cam Jansen Memory Game
Take another look at the picture opposite page 1. Study it. Blink your eyes and say, “Click!” Then turn back to this page and answer these questions. Please, first study the picture, then look at the questions.
What is Danny, the boy sitting next to Eric, doing?
Who is Cam sitting next to?
How many children are sitting at the table?
Is it a round table or a square table?
What shapes are taped to the lunchroom windows?
Is there an adult in the picture?
Super Memory Question:
How many apples are on the table?
Cam Jansen has a
photographic memory. Do you?
Look back over twenty-five years
of Cam Jansen mysteries to see
how much you remember.
Study the following pictures.
As you look at each one,
blink your eyes and say, “Click!”
Then turn to the questions for that
picture and try to answer them.
When you are done, look back at the
pictures and see how you did.
Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds, #1
Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Babe Ruth Baseball, #6
Cam Jansen and the Mystery at the Monkey House, #10
Cam Jansen and the Scary Snake Mystery, #17
Memory Quiz Questions:
Who is standing on the bench?
Is the running man fat or thin?
Does he have a mustache or beard?
Is he wearing a striped shirt?
Which direction is the man running?
Is anyone wearing a hat?
Super Memory Question:
What’s the name of the jewelry store?
Memory Quiz Questions:
Who is pointing at the Babe Ruth sign?
Is Eric wearing a baseball cap?
Who is standi
ng next to Eric?
Is anyone sitting by the Babe Ruth display?
What’s the name of the coin shop that has a display at the hobby show?
What’s on the raised stand at the very front of the picture?
Super Memory Question:
How many cuckoo clocks are on the back wall?
Memory Quiz Questions:
How many people are in the picture?
How many are standing on their hands?
What is the letter on the boy’s hat?
Are any monkeys playing on the swings?
Is Cam looking at the monkeys?
Is anyone wearing a short-sleeved shirt?
Super Memory Question:
How many monkeys are in the picture?
Memory Quiz Questions:
What is the man pointing at?
Is he wearing a jacket?
Does he look happy?
Is Cam standing? Is Eric?
Is the woman with the camera wearing a skirt or pants?
Super Memory Question:
What’s Eric wearing, pants or shorts?
(Answers on page 74)
1. “Cam” is Cam Jansen’s nickname. What is her real first name?
A. Jessica
B. Stephanie
C. Jennifer
D. Betty
2. “Cam” is short for
A. Camellia
B. The Camera
C. Caramel
D. Camel
3. Cam remembers just about everything she
A. hears
B. reads
C. sees
D. learns
4. What does Cam say when she wants to remember something?
A. “Clock!”
B. “Click!”
C. “Cluck!”
D. “Hello.”
5. We first meet Cam Jansen’s classroom teacher in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Dinosaur Bones (#3). What’s her name?
A. Ms. Adams
B. Ms. Baker
C. Ms. Green
D. Ms. Benson
6. What color is Cam’s hair?
A. Red
B. Blonde
C. Black
D. Brown
7. What is Eric’s last name?
A. Smith
B. Shelton
C. Rivers
D. Jones
8. We meet Eric’s twin sisters in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Television Dog (#4). What are their names?
A. Jane and June
B. Donna and Diane
C. Candy and Cindy
D. Francine and Felice
9. What is the television dog’s name?
A. Cloudy
B. Rover
C. Poochie
D. Fido
10. We first meet Cam’s funny aunt Molly in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Circus Clown (#7). Molly travels a lot because she works for
A. the circus
B. an airline
C. a bus company
D. a baseball team
11. What has never been stolen in any Cam Jansen mystery?
A. Diamonds
B. A gold watch
C. Computers
D. A corn popper
12. We learn Cam’s parents’ first names in Cam Jansen and the Birthday Mystery (#20). What are their first names?
A. Anne and David
B. Joseph and Arlene
C. Barbara and Elliot
D. Jane and Barry
13. What’s the “barking treasure” in Cam Jansen and the Barking Treasure Mystery (#19)?
A. A seal
B. A dog
C. A puppet
D. A game
14. What’s the name of the movie Cam and Eric watch in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Monster Movie (#8)?
A. Revenge of the Ten-Foot Spiders
B. Prince Paws
C. Shoe Escape
D. Gila Monster Madness
15. Who in Cam’s class loves to tell jokes?
A. Beth
C. Susan
B. Jacob
D. Danny
16. Cam’s gym teacher is in several books. What’s his name?
A. Mr. Day
B. Mr. Benson
C. Mr. Davis
D. Mr. Jackson
17. In Cam Jansen and the Snowy Day Mystery (#24), Mrs. Lane, the bus driver, says, “It’s only snow! It’s just tiny ____.” Tiny what?
A. things
B. flakes
C. drops
D. particles
18. Who is arrested in Cam Jansen and the First Day of School Mystery (#22)?
A. Cam’s teacher
C. The school principal
B. Cam’s friend Eric
D. No one is arrested
Answers:
1. C
2. B
3. C
4. B
5. D
6. A
7. B
8. B
9. C
10. B
11. B
12. D
13. B
14. C
15. D
16. A
17. B
18. A