Even though she's lived here for almost two

years now, Dawn still looks like a California girl. She dresses like a true individual, and she's got long, long pale blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes. She's into health food in a major way, and it doesn't seem to bother her at all when we all make gagging noises at her tofu salads. Dawn just is who she is: She's got a lot of self-confidence and she doesn't seem to care too much about what other people think.

Now, remember when I said that Dawn had something to do with the big change in Mary Anne's life? Well, get this: Dawn's mother recently got married. Who did she marry? Mary Anne's father! Can you believe it? They used to date each other in high school when they were growing up, right here in Stoneybrook. Then, when Mrs. Schafer moved back here, the romance began all over again.

So Dawn and Mary Anne are now stepsisters! And I can't say that the transition from friends to relatives was an easy one for them. When Mary Anne, her father, and Tigger first moved into Dawn's house, things were more than a little rocky for awhile. But it seems as if they're all getting along much better now.

Okay, there are still two more members of the club, our junior officers, Mallory Pike and Jessi Ramsey. They were both asked to join

while I was away in New York last year and the other members couldn't quite keep up with all the jobs they were offered. Of course, they're still members even though I'm back now. They're called junior officers because they're two years younger than the rest of us — they're in sixth grade — and aren't allowed to sit at night, except for their own brothers and sisters. But there are plenty of day jobs to keep them busy. Mallory and Jessi are both great sitters, and we were lucky to get them for the club.