BSC041 - Mary Anne vs. Logan - Martin, Ann M.

    Chapter 1.

    "How do I look?" I asked.

    "Look? You look just fine," replied Dawn. "Anyway, you're only going to baby-sit for Jenny. What's the big deal?" "I don't know. I guess Mrs. Prezzioso is the big deal. You know how she's always dressed. And how she always dresses Jenny." "Yeah. They look like contestants in a mother-daughter beauty pageant." Dawn and I giggled. Dawn is not only one of my two best friends; she's my stepsister. It was a Friday night and I was getting ready to sit for Jenny. Dawn was perched on a chair in my room.

    "You know what?" I went on. "Mrs. P. has only gotten worse since she found out she's going to have another baby." "I can't believe that we know what the baby is going to be, and the rest of the BSC members don't. They don't even want to know, Mary Anne." "They want to be surprised, that's all," I said.

    (BSC stands for the Baby-sitters Club. Dawn and I and a bunch of our friends belong to it. I'll tell you about it later.) Who am I? I'm Mary Anne Spier. I live in an old (very old) farmhouse with Dawn, my father, and Dawn's mother. In case you're wondering, Dawn and I have been friends longer than we've been stepsisters. After our parents got married, Dad and I and my kitten, Tigger, moved into Dawn's house. That's because it's bigger than my old house was. Since we're pretty new at being a family, I call Dawn's mother Sharon, and Dawn calls my father Richard. That feels more comfortable than Mom and Dad. All things considered, our family is coming together pretty well. We have our tough times (what family doesn't?), but the good times are getting to be more frequent, and they last longer.

    Let's see. I have brown hair, brown eyes, and a boyfriend! His name is Logan Bruno. Sometimes it's hard for me to believe I have a boyfriend. That's for two reasons: 1. I'm really shy. I bet I'm the shyest eighth-grader at Stoneybrook Middle School.