"There," she said, admiring her own work, "don't you touch that, Mother,
until after Thanksgiving Day; and then it will be all in order for Mrs.
Crawford to see. When is she coming?"

"They'll arrive Wednesday night and stay over until Friday morning. You
may help me make the guest-rooms fresh and pretty for them."

"Yes; I'll stick pins in the cushions to make the letters of their
names. Shall I?"

"Well, no; I don't believe I care for that particular fancy. But I'll
show you how I do like the pins put in, and you may do it for me. Now,
run out and play, we'll have ample time for our housekeeping affairs
later on."

Away went Marjorie, after bestowing another tumultuous bear-hug on her
mother. She whisked on her hat and coat, and with her mittens still in
her hand, flew out of the door, banging it after her.

"Cold weather always goes to that child's muscles," thought Mrs.
Maynard, as she heard the noise. "She never bangs doors in summer time."

"Wherever have you been?" cried the others, as Marjorie joined them on
the hill.

"Talking to Mother. I meant to come out right away after school, but I
forgot about it."

Gladys Fulton looked at her curiously. She wasn't "intimate" with her
mother, as Marjorie was, and she didn't quite understand the
relationship.

In another minute Midge was on her sled, and, with one red-mittened
hand waving on high, was whizzing down the hill.

King caught up to her, and the others followed, and then they all walked
back up the hill together.

"Going to have fun, Thanksgiving Day?" asked Dick Fulton, as they
climbed along.

"No. We're going to have a silly old Thanksgiving," said Marjorie. "Only
grown-ups to visit us, and that means we don't have any good of Father
at all."

"Aw, horrid!" said King. "Is that the programme? I didn't know it."

"Yes!" went on Marjorie, "and I've promised Mother to behave myself and
to make all you others behave, too." Her own eyes danced, as she said
this, and King burst into laughter.

"That's a good one!" he cried. "Why, it will take the whole Maynard
family to make you behave yourself, let alone the rest of us."

"No, truly, I'm going to be good, 'cause Mother asked me most
'specially." Marjorie's earnest air was convincing, but King was
skeptical.

"You mean to be good, all right," he said, "but at the party you'll do
some crazy thing without thinking."

"Very likely," said Mopsy, cheerfully, and then they all slid down hill
again