by Meg Greve
“I have a present for you,” she said. Her voice sounded wobbly. She handed Kayla a bag.
Annie walked into the kitchen as Kayla took the bag. She looked puzzled.
“No Jasmine! Don’t do it!” Annie said.
“It’s okay, Annie. I think you will like this better than our first plan,” Jasmine said. She smiled at both of them.
Kayla opened the bag and pulled out the new skirt from Jasmine’s mom.
“Oh wow! A new skirt! Thank you so much! But why did you get me a present? It’s not my birthday!”
“I knew the boys put the paint on your chair before you sat down,” Jasmine said. She looked down at the floor then back up at Kayla.
Kayla’s mouth opened, then shut again. She was quiet for a second.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she said. Her eyes looked watery.
“Because I heard you say you were going to play tricks on Annie and me at your sleepover. And I heard you talking about my hair. I was so mad at you that I decided to let you see how it felt to have someone be mean to you,” Jasmine said. She twisted her braid nervously. “But I didn’t realize how badly you might feel. I am really sorry Kayla,” Jasmine’s voice trailed off to a whisper. Her throat felt funny. Annie squeezed her hand.
“We didn’t say we were going to play tricks on you. What I meant was that we were going to teach you fun sleepover games and how to curl your hair and stuff,” Kayla said. “Why would I play tricks on you?”
Jasmine didn’t know what to say. She was so embarrassed that she misjudged Kayla. Especially since she wanted to be her friend!
“I am really sorry,” Jasmine said again. “I should have asked you about what I heard. I was really looking forward to being your friend.”
Jasmine thought Kayla might ask her to leave the sleepover. Instead, Kayla gave her a hug.
“I guess I can understand how you might have misunderstood. Next time, ask me!” Kayla said. “Now let’s watch the rest of the movie!”
“You forgive me?” Jasmine said.
“Of course I do!” Kayla said. “Isn’t that what friends are for?”
She grabbed Kayla and Annie’s hands and jumped up and down. The girls’ laughter brought the rest of the party to the kitchen.
“Everyone, I have a confession to make,” Kayla said. Her face became very serious. Jasmine and the rest of the girls looked at her and waited.
Kayla reached into a cabinet and pulled out a tattered pink doll.
“This is MooMoo. I’ve had her since I was a baby. And I can’t sleep without her,” Kayla held her head up high and waited. No one said anything for a few seconds.
“Why do you keep her in the kitchen cabinet?” Maya giggled.
“Because I was hiding her for the party, silly,” Kayla said.
Jasmine and Annie slipped out of the kitchen and came back with their own dolls. They held them up so the girls could see them.
Then the rest of the girls went and got the dolls they’d brought along. They sat at the table and talked about terrible nights when they’d tried to sleep without them. Jasmine knew she would be just fine when she climbed into her sleeping bag later, surrounded by friends.
“This is the best sleepover ever!” Jasmine said.
Reflection
Dear Diary,
When I think about this sleepover, I get so happy! Even about all the bad feelings before the party. I know that sounds so weird! It taught me that I should be proud of myself and what I can do. Sometimes you get invited to parties and sometimes you don’t. That’s okay. The most important thing is to always treat people nicely. The way you want them to treat you! That is much easier to say than to do sometimes. I also learned that asking for forgiveness is really hard. It made me feel so much better, though.
XO,
Jasmine
Discussion Questions
1.Why did Jasmine feel like Kayla might not like her?
2.What reasons does Jasmine give to want to go to the sleepover? Do you think those are good reasons? Why or why not?
3.How do you think Jasmine should have handled what she heard in the library?
4.How does Annie help Jasmine change her mind about the tricks they wanted to play at the sleepover?
5.Would you have forgiven Kayla? Why or why not?
Vocabulary
Look at the words in the list below. How are they used in the story? Can you write a sentence for each of the words to show you know what the word means?
apologized
apology
brochure
complicated
glaring
miserable
misunderstood
realize
Writing Prompt
Write a letter to Jasmine and tell her how she should have handled her tricky sleepover problem. Should she have let Kayla sit down in the chair? What could she have done instead?
Q & A with Author Meg Greve
Do you remember any bad sleepovers you had as a child?
I do remember one. My friends and I decided to cut my hair. That was a HUGE mistake! It looked awful, my friend’s mom was really mad, and I had to have my hair cut really short to fix the problem! It didn’t grow out for a year!
Do you have a daughter of your own? Did she have any sleepover problems?
I do have one daughter. She liked having sleepovers. I remember lots of times when she and her friends would come over, make a huge mess, and go to bed too late. Moms really don’t enjoy sleepovers as much as their kids do!
Plan a sleep-under!
A sleep-under is a great party for kids and parents. Invite your friends to come to your house in their pajamas. Have the same kind of party you would have if you were having a sleepover. The only difference is, everyone gets picked up before bedtime. This way, parents are happy to let you join in the fun and friends don’t have to worry about sleepover rules!
Here are some fun sleep-under ideas:
1.Have everyone wear their hair in the craziest way they can style it. The craziest wins a prize!
2.Create a scavenger hunt in the house. The winner chooses the movie.
3.Make your own pizzas. Before settling in to watch a movie, use store-bought pizza dough and let everyone choose their own toppings.
4.Play board games or card games. Putting down phones and video games can help you get to know your friends better!
Pizza Party!
Making your own pizza can be really fun. Just be sure to get help from an adult.
Ingredients:
•store-bought (cooked or uncooked) pizza dough
•marinara sauce
•shredded mozzarella cheese
•your choice of pizza toppings, such as pepperoni, sausage, and veggies
Directions:
1.Follow package directions on pizza dough.
2.Spread some marinara sauce evenly over the dough.
3.Put on any toppings you like. Try something new!
4.Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the toppings and cook the pizza using the directions on the pizza dough package.
5.Eat it up!
Websites to Visit
Find more recipes for sleepover fun: www.kids-cooking-activities.com
Hairstyle ideas to try at your party: www.princesshairstyles.com
Get advice about being a good friend: http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/friends/index.html
About the Author
Meg Greve writes mostly nonfiction books. In order to write fiction, she had to remember when she was a kid and then change the story to make it more interesting. She played soccer, but never scored a goal, cut her own hair at a sleepover, and had fights with her best friend (but always made up)! Almost all of the story is from her imagination, but some of it has a little bit of truth. Can you guess which parts?
About the Illustrator
Sarah Lawrence always wanted to be an artist, so after graduating from art college in 2006, she took her pencils and started her freelance illustration ca
reer. Sarah lives in Brighton, England, with her daughter, and spends most of her days doodling, drinking tea, and playing princesses.
