Part 34 (2/2)

”Certainly not,” said Bert; ”there is always a little lake of quiet water around ocean places.”

Aunt Sarah came out now, all dressed for a drive.

”Well, my dears,” she said, ”you are going to Ocean Cliff to-morrow, so you can invite all your Meadow Brook friends to a little lawn party to-day. I'm going down now to the village to order some good things for you. I want you all to have a nice time this afternoon.”

”I'm going to give some of my books to Nettie,” said Flossie, ”and some of my paper dolls too.”

”Yes. Nettie has not many things to play with,” agreed Nan, ”and we can get plenty more.”

”I'm going to get all my birds' nests together,” said Bert, ”and that pretty white birch bark to make picture frames for Christmas.”

”I've got lovely pressed flowers to put on Christmas post-cards,” said Nan. ”I'm going to mount them on plain white cards with little verses written for each friend. Won't that be pretty?”

Then what a time there was packing up again! Of course Mrs. Bobbsey had expected to go, and had most of the big things ready but the children had so many souvenirs.

”John gave me this,” cried Freddie, pulling a great big pumpkin in his express wagon down to the house. ”And I'm going to bring it to Aunt Emily.”

”Oh, how could we bring that!” protested Nan.

”In the trunk, of course,” Freddie insisted.

”Well, I have to carry a box of ferns,” said Flossie; ”I'm going to take them for the porch. There are no ferns around the salt water, mamma says.”

So each child had his or her own pet remembrances to carry away from Meadow Brook.

”We had better go and invite the girls for this afternoon,” Nan said to Flossie.

”And we must look after the boys,” Harry told Bert.

A short invitation was not considered unusual in the country, so it was an easy matter to get all the children together in time for the farewell lawn party.

”We all hope you will come again next year,” said Mildred Manners. ”We have had such a lovely time this summer. And I brought you this little handkerchief to remember me by.” The gift was a choice bit of lace, and Nan was much pleased to accept it.

”There is something to remember me by,” said Mabel Herold, presenting Nan with a postcard alb.u.m.

The little girls brought Flossie a gold-striped cup and saucer, a set of doll's patterns, and the dearest little parasol. This last was from Bessie Dimple.

And Nettie brought--what do you think?

A little live duck for Freddie!

It was just like a lump of cotton batting, so soft and fluffy.

”We'll fatten him up for Christmas,” laughed Bert, joking.

”No, you won't!” snapped Freddie. ”I are going to have a little house for him and a lake, and a boat--”

<script>