It turned out that Mary Anne's dad and Dawn's mom had been high-school sweet-

hearts, only they'd gone their separate ways after they graduated. Then Mrs. Schafer moved back to Stoneybrook, she and Mr. Spier began seeing each other again, and after a long time, they got married! So now Dawn has a stepfather, Mary Anne has a stepmother, and it's one big, usually happy family. They all (including Tigger, Mary Anne's kitten) live in the colonial farmhouse that Dawn's mom bought when the Schafers moved toConnecticut .

Here are a few more things about Dawn. She's an individualist who stands up for what she believes in, even if no one else believes in it. She's organized (thank goodness, because her mom is exactly the opposite). She and her mom (and Jeff and her dad) love health food and don't eat meat. Dawn is gorgeous. She has LONG silky blonde hair. Honest, it's so blonde it's nearly white. She has sparkling blue eyes and she dresses like the individual she is. She wears what she wants to wear. My other friends and I think of it as "Californiacasual." Dawn has two holes pierced in each ear. (Mary Anne and I will never get our ears pierced.)

The vice-president of the club is Claudia Kishi. When Mary Anne and I were still in our old neighborhood onBradford Court , we

lived across the street irom Claudia. So she grew up with us, too. Claudia lives with her parents and her older sister,_ Janine, who is a genius. It's true. Janine is only in high school, but she gets to take courses at the local college.