âCome on, kids,â Dr. Goldman said. âLetâs get this stuff unloaded.â
Half an hour later, Janey was so exhausted she wanted to lie down on the grass and take a nap. She and her friends had hauled the heavy bales of hay into the barn. Theyâd draggedthe water tub into the pen, then hooked up the hose to fill it. Theyâd opened one of the hay bales and carried part of it out for Lola to eat. Theyâd found a spare shelf in the barn to store the grooming tools, a spare halter, and a few other items Tom had brought.
Meanwhile, Dr. Goldman had left with Tom, promising to return with her car to drive them all home. Janey couldnât wait!
But when she looked at Lola and saw her nibbling hay or grass, or sipping water, Janey felt happy and satisfied. âLola is so cute,â she told Lolli as they watched the pony. âIâm sure it wonât take long to find her the perfect new home.â
Lolli nodded, looking just as tired as Janey felt. âIâm glad sheâs here, even if sheâsa lot of work.â
Janey giggled. âAfter this, taking care of Roscoe will seem super easy! Oh, and your new bunny, too, if you get him.â
âYeah.â Lolli shot a look at her parents, who were helping the boys put away the hose. âStill, I think Iâll wait and ask if I can get the bunny until after Lola goes to her new home.â
Barn Chores
âHere we are, Farmer Janey,â Janeyâs father joked as he pulled into Lolliâs driveway the next day. âBetter get going on your chores!â
Janey smiled. âThanks for the ride, Daddy.â
She jumped out of the car. Adam and Zach were already there with Lolli, watching Lola eat grass in her pen. Theyâd come straight over after Adamâs morning dog-walking jobs.
âYouâre late,â Zach called when he spotted Janey. âBut donât worry, we saved all the stinky pony manure for you.â
âGee, thanks.â Janey rolled her eyes. âHowâs Lola?â
âGreat,â Lolli said. âAfter we feed her and clean up her pen, maybe we can use those brushes Mr. Valentine sent to groom her.â
Janey nodded. âGood idea. We want her to look good for her photo session.â
âWhat photo session?â Adam asked.
Janey held up her tablet. âI want to take some pictures of her to put on the blog. That will help her find a home faster.â
âGood idea.â Lolli picked up a pitchfork. âBut first, letâs get to work.â
The kids worked hard. They cleaned up all the manure Lola had made overnight, using the pitchfork to put it in a wheelbarrow and then dumping it in the compost pile behind the barn. They scrubbed out thewater tub and filled it again. They put out more hay.
âOkay.â Lolli brushed hay off her hands. âNow for the fun part!â
She hurried into the barn and fetched the bucket of grooming tools. There were several brushes, a wide-toothed comb, a hoof pick, and a bottle of spray-on conditioner.
âGet ready for your beauty treatment, Lola!â Janey sang out as the kids entered the pen.
Lola was eating the pile of hay the kids had set out. She barely looked up when they started brushing her.
âGood girl,â Janey said. âYou want to look pretty, donât you?â
Adam leaned over to peer at the ponyâstangled mane. âI think Iâll try getting some of these burrs out.â
âGood idea,â Janey said. âHer mane looks totally vile.â
She handed Adam the comb. He grabbed it and got to work.
After close to an hour, the pony looked much better. Janey stepped back to survey their work.
âShe looks great,â she said. âSee if you can get her to keep her head up so I can get some good pictures.â
They spent the next several minutes on the photo shoot. It wasnât easy, since the pony preferred eating over posing. But finally