Frank Pearl in The Awful Waffle Kerfuffle (Judy Moody and Friends) Read online

  bobbed her head. Cookie wiggled her

  butt.

  “Gimme kiss!” said Cookie. “Mww!

  Mww! Mww!”

  43

  .

  Frank pointed to the poster in the

  school lunchroom. His mouth fell

  open. A glob of ABC sandwich fell

  out.

  “Gross!” said Judy Moody and

  Jessica Finch.

  “Gross!” said Amy and Rocky.

  The Awful Waffle Kerfuffle

  CHA

  p

  TER

  3

  45

  .

  THE GREAT THIRD-GRADE

  BREAKFAST BASH AND WAFFLE-OFF!

  This Saturday in the school cafeteria

  ·

  Families welcome ·

  · Prizes for best waffles ·

  · Proceeds go to third-grade field trip ·

  “Look! It’s the Great Third-Grade

  Breakfast Bash! We get to come to

  the cafeteria on Saturday with our

  families and eat breakfast.”

  “What’s so great about breakfast?”

  asked Rocky.

  “It’s only the most important meal

  of the day,” Jessica Finch said.

  “Breakfast tastes like pencil

  shavings,” said Rocky.

  46

  “But this year it’s a Waffle-Off,”

  said Frank. “To raise money for our

  third-grade field trip.”

  “So we can go to the Smelly Jelly

  Bean factory!” said Judy. “Where they

  make weird flavors of jelly beans, like

  toothpaste and rotten eggs.”

  .

  48

  “What’s a Waffle-Off?” asked Amy.

  “The Waffle-Off is the best contest

  ever,” said Frank. “It’s to see who can

  make the best, most amazing waffle.”

  “They give out blue ribbons for all

  kinds of waffles,” said Jessica. “Like

  Most Blueberries, Whipped Creamiest,

  and Best Use of Sprinkles.”

  “I’m going to win,” said Frank. “I

  can feel it!”

  “Are you off your waffle, Frank?”

  asked Judy.

  “You can’t even cook,” Rocky said.

  “Can you?”

  “Parents make the waffles,” Jessica

  told them. “All you have to do is dress

  up your waffle fancy with whipped

  cream and sprinkles and stuff.

  Then Mr. Todd gives

  out ribbons before

  they get eaten.”

  Frank and his

  friends got quiet,

  dreaming about

  waffles.

  .

  “I’ve got a great idea for my

  waffle!” said Frank.

  “Is your waffle a sandwich?”

  Judy asked. “Mine is going to be a

  whipped-cream sandwich.”

  “Does your waffle play sports?”

  Rocky asked. “Mine is going to play

  sports. And it’s not going to taste like

  pencil shavings.”

  “My idea snap-crackle-pops! My

  idea will blow your mind. It’s all about

  the fizz-i-cality. Just you wait.”

  .

  At last it was Saturday. “Welcome

  to the Great Third-Grade Breakfast

  Bash,” said Mr. Todd. “Thanks for

  coming to our Waffle-Off! I hope

  you’re all ready to break an egg.”

  Everybody laughed.

  “Ready, set, waffle!” Moms and

  dads poured batter onto sizzling waffle

  irons. Pssh! Fluffy, puffy

  golden waffles!

  .

  Judy’s waffle sandwich was held up

  with pizza tables.

  Amy’s waffle had her name spelled

  in blueberries.

  Rocky’s waffle looked like a soccer

  ball.

  55

  .

  Then came the Piggy on a Pillow,

  made by Jessica A. Finch. A puffy

  pink cloud of whipped cream floated

  on top of her waffle. It was sprinkled

  with sugar glitter. On top was a sugar-

  dusted candy piggy with rosy-red

  cheeks.

  “I can win for the pinkest or

  prettiest waffle,” said Jessica.

  “Or piggiest,” Judy teased.

  56

  Frank had hidden his top-secret,

  none-of-your-beeswax waffle under

  a cake dome. “Ta da!” said Frank.

  “Presenting”—

  he lifted the lid

  —“the

  Super-Amazing Exploding Volcano

  Waffle!” A hill, a mountain, a tower

  of brown jelly beans rose up from

  that waffle like a volcano. The Mount

  Vesuvius of all waffles.

  .

  Marshmallow Fluff spewed from

  a hole in the top. Pop, pop, fizz, fizz.

  Fizzlers, wizzlers, and sizzlers popped

  and exploded like lava.

  “Wait till Mr. Todd sees this!” said

  Frank. “Blue ribbon, here I come!”

  Then, all of a sudden, the fizzlers

  fizzled and the wizzlers melted into

  the sizzlers. Rainbow-colored lava

  oozed down the jelly-bean mountain.

  Plop! The glop hit the floor in one

  giant gluppy glob of gloop.

  “OOH! Gross! Bluck!” said all the

  kids.

  “Mount Vesuvius meltdown!” said

  Frank.

  Stink came running over to see.

  58

  .

  “What’s all this waffle kerfuffle?”

  asked Mr. Todd.

  “It’s Frank’s Super-Amazing

  Exploding Waffle,” said Judy.

  “Super-Amazing Disaster Waffle,”

  said Frank. “It was supposed to be an

  exploding volcano. But the jelly beans

  caved in. And all the Pop Rocks ran

  together. Now it just looks like a

  giant mud pie.”

  He ran to grab a towel from the

  kitchen. On his way, he passed the

  prize table full of ribbons. Shiny blue

  ribbons that called out MOST! BEST

  !

  BIGGEST

  ! FANCIEST

  ! He would never win

  the contest now. He would no-way

  no-how be taking home a ribbon.

  60

  .

  When he came back with the

  towel, Frank could not believe his

  eyes. T
here, gleaming in a beam of

  sunlight, was none other than one of

  those very same big shiny blue prize

  ribbons. The ribbon was on his waffle.

  The Mount Vesuvius Meltdown.

  Stink yelled and pointed. “Hey,

  Frank! You won! You won the awful

  waffle contest!”

  “But not for being awful,” said Judy.

  Frank leaned in and read the ribbon.

  ONE OF A KIND

  ! “I won? I actually won

  a contest? With a real blue ribbon?”

  He looked at Mr. Todd.

  63

  .

  “Your waffle is in a class by itself,

  Frank.”

  Frank stuck the blue ribbon on his

  shirt and grinned.

  “It’s one of a kind,” said Mr. Todd.

  “Just like you.”

  Stink chewed on a jelly bean from

  Frank’s waffle. “Hey!” He made a face.

  “It tastes like pencil shavings.”

  “Told you!” said Rocky.

  “I like it! Got any more?”

  Frank laughed. “Ha, ha. Those are

  Smelly Jelly jelly beans. They look like

  maple syrup, but the flavor is pencil

  shavings.”

  “Clever,” said Mr. Todd. “I like how

  you tied it into our class field trip to

  the Smelly Jelly Bean factory.”

  64

  .

  “Too bad you don’t win money with

  that ribbon,” said Rocky. “Then you

  could buy more Smelly jellies.”

  Stink reached into his pocket. He

  pulled out a dollar bill. “One dollar!

  I’ll give you one whole dollar bill for

  the one-of-a-kindest, awfulest, most

  delicious waffle in the world!”

  “Sold!” said Frank.

  66

  .