08 Judy Moody, Pig Sitter

Judy Moody, Pig Sitter The next morning, Judy peered through the peephole in the hotel door that looked out into the hall. All she could see was nothing. All she could hear was the slam of the door from last night after she got mad at Jessica. Judy sat on the edge of the foldout bed. She, Judy Moody, was a cruddy Study Buddy. Now Jessica would think she was a crummy pig sitter, too. She twirled and twisted her hair until it made a big fat knot. Ouch. Knock knock! She leaped up and ran to the door. Jessica Finch. Plus one potbellied piggy on a leash!

Judy forgot she was still mad. "PeeGee WeeGee!" she said, throwing open the door. Judy bent down to scratch the piggy's ears. PeeGee WeeGee snuffled the carpet. PeeGee WeeGee turned in circles. PeeGee WeeGee curled his tail. "At least somebody's happy to see me." Jessica had her hair in a special pigtail. And she was wearing a pink skirt and a shirt that had a picture of a pig. It said I'M WITH HIM. "I know you want to emancipate from me and everything," said Jessica. "But I still need you to babysit my pig." "I thought you wanted to emancipate from me, too," said Judy. "I did. I do. But you made a piggy promise," said Jessica. "Besides, I can't take a pig to a spelling bee." Jessica snorted and laughed like a hyena.

Once upon a lucky penny, Judy had wanted to be in the spelling bee herself. But now she was happy to be a pig sitter. "C'mon, PeeGee WeeGee," said Judy, taking the leash. "We are going to have way more fun than any old spelling bee, aren't we?" PeeGee WeeGee snuffled her mussy hair. Stink came to the door. He scratched under the piggy's ears. "Remember me?" "I call him P.G. for short," said Jessica. "Hold on." She ran back to her room. She came back carrying boatloads of pig stuff. "Here's his water dish. Make sure he has fresh water at all times." "Check," said Judy. "Here's his busy ball. Pig pellets come out, in case he gets hungry. I forgot Binky, his favorite stuffed animal. But here's his favorite

blankie if he wants to take a nap."

"Check," said Judy. "He likes this pillow, too." She handed Judy a pillowcase filled with beans. "He curls up on it. Oh, and this is special shampoo in case you want to give him a bath." "Does he have a favorite song, like 'On Top of Spaghetti?'" Judy teased. "Oops! I almost forgot." She ran away and came back waving a piece of notebook paper. "His favorite song is 'This Little Piggy' but these are the words he likes better. I wrote them out for you." Judy looked at Stink and made the cuckoo sign. Mr. and Mrs. Finch came out of their room across the hall. "Time to go, honey," said Mrs. Finch. "The spelling bee starts in one hour. Judy, do you and Stink have everything you need?"

Judy nodded. "I'm good with pigs," she said. The Moodys stepped out into the hall. "Just do your best today," Mom said to Jessica. "You're going to be great." "Class 3T will be proud," said Dad. "Thanks," said Jessica. "Wish me luck." "Break a leg," said Stink. "I hope not!" said Jessica. "Well, then, break a pigtail," said Judy. She cracked herself up. Jessica leaned down to give P.G. one more hug. "Don't let P.G. eat candy bars," she called over her shoulder. "Say hi to Mr. Todd!" Judy called back. "Oh, and TV kind of freaks him out," Jessica added, "unless it's the movie Babe." "Don't worry about P.G.," said Mom. "The