Hartnett Sonya - Sadie and Ratz

I am Hannah. These are my hands. Their names are Sadie and Ratz. We live in a house with my mom and dad and my stick insect, Pin. I want a dog, but Mom says Im too young. Until I am older, I can only have a stick insect.

And Sadie and Ratz, dont forget, says Dad. Sadie and Ratz arent animals. But they behave like wild beasts, says Dad. These are things I like: When I am kind, these are things I do: These are things that Sadie and Ratz like: They also like piranhas. Sadie is the boss. She is the same size as Ratz, but she is meaner.

When Sadie grows up, she wants to be a dragon. When Ratz grows up, he wants to be a bigger Ratz. Ratz does what Sadie tells him to do. Together, they make a good team. This is what they do: When Sadie and Ratz are on the rampage, look out! There is someone in our house I forgot to mention. Baby Boy is four years old. Baby Boy is four years old.

Four years is a long time. It seems like Baby Boy has been around forever. Everyone says Baby Boy is a good boy. But these are things that Baby Boy does: When he does these things, Sadie and Ratz They jump onto Baby Boys head, and try to rub his ears off. Baby Boy doesnt like it. He bellows like a banshee bull.

Baby Boy bellows and then I get in trouble, even though Baby Boy caused the trouble in the first place. If he didnt annoy me, Sadie and Ratz wouldnt have to rub his ears off. Mom says I must be patient. She says, Baby Boy is only little. She says Sadie and Ratz should do yoga. She says, They might learn to relax.

These are yoga positions Mom thinks Sadie and Ratz could try: Sadie and Ratz invented their own positions: They showed Baby Boy the Hammerheads. He screeched like a banshee bull.

On Saturday, at our house, something strange happened. I was drawing pictures, and Baby Boy was wandering around. Suddenly some marker was on the wall. Who did this? asked Dad. Who did this? asked Dad.

This is when the strange thing happened. Normally Baby Boy would pretend he hadnt heard Dads question. He would pretend he was a spaceman who couldnt hear a sound. Instead of owning up to drawing on the wall, he would act like he was deaf. But this day, this strange day, Baby Boy yelled, Sadie and Ratz did it! Sadie and Ratz They showed Baby Boy their claws. But Baby Boy was hiding behind Dad, safe from attack.

Sadie and Ratz should be more careful, said Dad, scrubbing the wall. Baby Boy peeked out at me, and smiled like a crazy monkey. Later, after dinner, when Baby Boy was playing with trucks, Sadie and Ratz showed him their new yoga position: Baby Boy did the banshee bull thing. I got sent to bed. As usual. That was a strange day, but things were about to get stranger.

On Sunday morning, when milk got on the carpet, Baby Boy told Mom, Sadie and Ratz did it. That afternoon, when he skinned his knee, Baby Boy told Grandma, Sadie and Ratz pushed me. Even though Sadie and Ratz had not spilled milk or pushed Baby Boy, I didnt say anything. I just gave Baby Boy a cold stare.