Kate’s Vermonth Adventure by Janice Hanna Page B

too!”
    â€œYou do?” Kate looked at her, stunned.
    â€œI do.” Sydney nodded. “So, don’t be so hard on yourself!”
    â€œYou’re a natural, Kate!” her mother added. “You need to stop saying you’re no good at sports.”
    â€œSaying we’re no good at sports is an Oliver family trait.” Aunt Molly laughed. “Most of us in the Oliver family are more into technology.” She turned to Kate. “Did you know your Uncle Ollie is working on a new mixer for the creamery? Michael’s been helping him.”
    â€œMichael sure isn’t helping him today,” Sydney explained. “We just saw him skiing. He’s really, really good.”
    â€œAh.” Aunt Molly nodded. “He’s decided to enter the competition, then.”
    â€œI guess.”
    â€œWell, don’t fret, Sydney. Let’s just pray and see what God does. In the meantime, you girls scoot on out to the barn and take a plate of these cookies to your Uncle Ollie. They’re his favorite.”
    â€œMaybe I can help him with his project,” Kate said, growing excited. “I’d love to see all of the gadgets he’s working on out there. Maybe I’ll learn something new!”
    Sydney laughed. “That sounds just like something you’d say, Kate. You’re always more excited about learning than anything else.”
    â€œThat’s a special gift God has given her,” Aunt Molly explained. “He’s gifted her with…”
    â€œLots of brains?” Sydney asked.
    Everyone laughed.
    â€œWell, I
do
get a pretty big head sometimes,” Kate said with a giggle, “especially when it comes to my science projects. But that doesn’t mean I have more brains than anyone else.”
    â€œStill, you’re the smartest girl in our club,” Sydney said. “And I just know you’ll figure out what’s going on at the creamery. Before long this mystery will be solved.”
    â€œYes, but who knows if the creamery will reopen.” Aunt Molly sighed. “I talked to Geneva Hampton today, and she said the county health inspector is coming back for another inspection. Everyone is nervous they won’t pass this time around.”
    â€œI still say there was something strange about that rat on the video,” Kate said. “It looked different from other rats I’ve seen. I can’t wait to hear back from McKenzie.”
    She thought about it as she trudged through the snow to get to the barn, where Uncle Ollie greeted her with a smile. Enough worrying about rats! For the rest of the day, she just wanted to do what she did best…work on gadgets and gizmos!

Hi-Ho, the Dairy-O
    After the long day of skiing and helping Uncle Ollie in the barn, Kate finally fell asleep. Every muscle in her body ached from skiing, so she tossed and turned all night trying to get comfortable.
    When she finally did fall into a deep sleep, Kate had a crazy dream. She was skiing through the Mad River Creamery, chasing rats! At the end of the dream, she fell into a humongous vat of curds and whey. For some reason, the woman in the white fur coat was swimming in there, too, with the mean man! And Michael was standing nearby with skis in his hand, talking about what a great competitor he was.
    When she finally awoke, Kate found herself quoting the lines from “Little Miss Muffett.” Totally strange!
    She rubbed her eyes and looked at the clock. Seven thirty in the morning? Too early to be up, especially on a vacation.
    She rolled over in the bed, wondering where Sydney was. Had she been swallowed by a giant rat, perhaps?
    Kate rose from the bed, brushed her teeth, and dressed in her warmest clothes. She had a feeling she knew just where Sydney would be. Sydney’s foot had felt back to normal when they went to bed the night before. Minutes later—after shivering her way through several snowdrifts—Kate arrived in the