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Post by zoar3 on Jul 17, 2012 19:55:47 GMT -5
^Nod we do hear through Ben telling Mal how her brothers enjoyed watching Mr. Hobart's home movies and eating healthy breakfasts at I believe the Rosebud the following morning. I meant more "regular" days. I know the BSC didn't sit for this family as much as others and that in general the books don't tend to show a lot of daily (ordinary) family life with either the sitters or the clients.
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Post by zoar3 on Oct 3, 2012 10:24:35 GMT -5
I found a couple more reasons I really don't like this book. I think you are right Wiggirl and the bitterness of some characters/lasting changes start in this one.
On page 66 Mary Anne is once again sitting for the quarreling Marilyn and Carolyn trying to get them talking. MA says:
"You know what? You are two different people now. You have different friends now. You can't expect people to treat you the same anymore."
The wording there is "off" to me. It can be read as "Before your makeovers you literally were the same person, so of course, people treated you as Marilyn and (no or) Carolyn. Now that you look different and Carolyn has made some friends, you are magically two separate girls." I wonder if Mrs. Arnold ever saw the masking tape room divider. It was back up before MA came to a new sitting job after she had seen Marilyn (I think) take it down the last time. I would have enjoyed seeing Marilyn with a friend. I got the impression that perhaps she really did not have any. Maybe she had been so accustomed to kids not caring who she was or wanting to know her that now that that was changing she didn't know what to do while Carolyn (who at least at this point was more extroverted) did. That would gave been a much more interesting subplot and tied into the Spier-Schafer union.
The other thing I really disliked was Kristy and how she dealt with Emily. Talk about OOC and plain mean. Karen at 6 might have been being pushy but Kristy at 13 was cruel. Starts on page 92. Plus, I just thought of something. This was the book where Kristy reminds us that Emily is not the fastest of stair climbers yet, in fact she still walks rather slowly. If that is true, how in the world did she manage to scramble up and down a kitchen chair fast enough to where she was standing beside the chair when Kristy came into the kitchen? I won't get into my thoughts on Kristy's reaction just that I was glad she apologized to Emily and (to my knowledge) was never purposely callous again.
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oldhickory
Sitting For The Arnolds
Heather Loves Boys and Gym
Posts: 3,258
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Post by oldhickory on Oct 3, 2012 17:47:59 GMT -5
i actually didn't think kristy was necessarily cruel for punishing emily. she didn't have a reason to distrust karen, and emily can't get away with things the others would be punished for just because she's younger. even if she did it, and she did so not knowing it was wrong, she can't learn any better if it's overlooked.
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Post by zoar3 on Oct 3, 2012 17:57:21 GMT -5
^I agree that Emily should not get away with things. It just came across (to me) like Emily, who Kristy already acknowledged didn't always have very good communication skills, was simply standing there sobbing away as Karen continued to the lay blame on her. I think what also bugged me (always does) is when anyone labels a child as "bad." I won't get into that, I promise. Kristy, at this point had no other (immediate)charges. David Michael and Andrew were occupied playing "Wandering Frog people." She could have taken a minute or two to try and calm the situation down before deciding what to do. Maybe I read more into this than there was.
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Post by wiggir13 on Oct 4, 2012 14:04:11 GMT -5
Does anyone actually have an idea of what wondering frog people actually is?? I never remember a description and I am just imagining people hopping around aimlessly.
This book also made me realize that I wish kristie had made some friends other than the bsc. This book just makes me feel sad for her.
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Post by zoar3 on Oct 4, 2012 17:38:14 GMT -5
^I always thought some sort of action figures, possibly resembling Ninja Turtles? I think I might have asked our own Wanderingfrog this question once, but don't remember what she said.
Didn't Kristy say in this one something about friends going in different directions? To which MA felt guilty? I think Kristy was being kind in her choice of wording when what she meant was friends chosing to replace friends. :/
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on Oct 5, 2012 2:36:03 GMT -5
I now seriously think the parts where they went for the birthday dinner and dressed up for the wedding are the best.
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Post by virgoscorpio on Feb 19, 2013 15:21:13 GMT -5
This book rocks! Goozie Koona for the win!!! One thing always bothered me though: why would Mary Anne decide to wear Dawn's dress that she wore to the engagement dinner over buying a new one? What girl would turn down the opportunity for brand new clothes, especially Mary Anne who probably doesn't get them too often anyway!? Laura Ashley is ultra Ann. I wonder if the day before writing that bit, Ann went to a dinner party that Scholastic was throwing because that's all the women employees probably wore in 1990! I always remember the scene in which Richard, Mary Anne and Dawn are planning Sharon's surprise party because it was always awkward for me -- having Mary Anne correct herself and be so on-her-toes with what she's saying in front of her dad. I felt sorry for her. I thought Jeff calling Richard sir was funny. Richard is a sir! And I can see it being hard for a 10 year old boy to say something different especially since Richard doesn't always radiate roses and peaches and sunshine.
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on Feb 20, 2013 9:06:21 GMT -5
And Richard is a lawyer after all, no excuses! They have money and he could have insisted she buy something special for the wedding. It is a pretty dress though, for 1989! I liked what Dawn was wearing on the cover though to be honest, I think both looked too casual for a wedding, even if it's a small and second wedding. They could have bought something shiny (not gaudy though) or with designs like what Sharon had on, the 80's were good for that. Too bad Sharon did not at least let them look at Zingy's, I hated how there was so much polarized thinking in Stoneybrook about who shopped where, like that store is only for Stacey and later on, Dawn went there and Mallory & Jessi acted like morons there.
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oldhickory
Sitting For The Arnolds
Heather Loves Boys and Gym
Posts: 3,258
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Post by oldhickory on May 9, 2013 14:29:25 GMT -5
why would Mary Anne decide to wear Dawn's dress that she wore to the engagement dinner over buying a new one? MA decided to wear dawn's dress because she didn't find anything she really liked when they went shopping. dawn's sailor dress sounded really cute though! i love the wedding feeling in this book. compared to the frantic mess elizabeth and watson got themselves into, this was much more laid back and personal. i loved that richard and sharon considered just going to a justice of the peace (i've already given my opinion on flashy weddings, so i won't start that again), but i'm glad they decided to have a small wedding because the end result was really nice.
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starrynight
Sitting For The Kuhns
The Royal Diner of Pizza Express
Posts: 4,004
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Post by starrynight on May 11, 2013 22:55:50 GMT -5
^ I have a new appreciation for this book (and the wedding included within it) now that I'm older. Years ago, I couldn't imagine a wedding without all the bells and whistles (i.e. the Barrett-DeWitt wedding in SS#12). Now, though, I don't see the point when it's the marriage that actually matters. Kudos to Richard and Sharon for keeping it simple.
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on May 14, 2013 8:10:24 GMT -5
I love Sharon's pink dress a lot
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Post by virgoscorpio on May 14, 2013 18:23:31 GMT -5
I totally agree with you, starrynight. I also don't see the point in spending a ton of money on an extravagant wedding when it would be more practical to put it toward a house, savings, debt, etc. At the same time, people can spend their money however they wish but it shouldn't be the size of the wedding that counts but the love involved
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on May 15, 2013 0:23:39 GMT -5
Plus both had been through marriage before, as they both put it and didn't feel the need to go all out all over again
It still bothers me how they got it wrong with Dawn giving Mary Anne the present at the end, and in #31, Dawn is talking about getting something for her. I think she had given Mary Anne a barrette in this book, and the cat shaped pin in the second one, maybe it was the same barrette.....I wonder if it was from Merry Go Round
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Post by candykane on Sept 29, 2013 16:22:42 GMT -5
I read this one again yesterday and I just have to say that a part of me still wants Carolyn's new room! I was always super jealous of it when I was a kid because it sounded so cool to me. Even though I've since become a dog person, the cat pillows and trash can with ears and tail still sound adorable.
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