When Forgetful Fran woke up, she was worried. Fran remembered what day it was—Thanksgiving. She remembered whose turn it was to have a party—hers. But Fran was afraid that she might forget to do everything for the party.

Fran hurried to the kitchen. She got the turkey ready and put it in the oven. It was too early to cook the rest of the meal. Will I remember to do it later? Fran wondered.

Fran took a bowl of fresh cranberries from the refrigerator. She brought in a big pumpkin from the porch. Fran put the pumpkin and the cranberries on the table. "Now I"ll remember to cook these," she said to herself.

In a drawer, Fran found construction paper and scissors. She left them on the table with red paper. "Later," she said, "I"ll come back and make place cards for my guests."

Next, she found a piece of red ribbon. "This will help me remember to do everything," Fran said. She wrapped the ribbon around her finger and tied it in a bow.

Fran cleaned her house for the party. She dusted. She polished. She swept. Fran worked so hard that she forgot to remember. She forgot about Thanksgiving. She forgot about the party.

After a while, Fran sat down to rest. The red ribbon was still on her finger. What"s this for? she wondered as she looked at it. Puzzled, she took off the ribbon. She carried it into the kitchen and put it away in a drawer. Then she saw the things on the table.

"Cranberries!" exclaimed Fran. "I know what to do with these." She got a needle and thread and quickly made a string of cranberries. She wound the string around her Norfolk pine, which grew in a pot.

"A pumpkin!" shouted Fran. "I know what to do with this." She got a knife and took it and the pumpkin out on the porch. Fran carefully carved a very scary face in the pumpkin.

Fran looked at the stack of construction paper. She said, "I know something fun to do with this." Using the red paper, she made cards shaped like hearts.

Just as she finished, Fran heard a knock at the door.

Sam, Edward, and Rosalind had arrived for the party.

"Happy Thanksgiving!" they cried.

"Thanksgiving?" Fran looked at her friends. "I forgot!"

"What did you forget?" Rosalind asked.

"The turkey smells good," said Edward.

"The house looks nice," said Sam.

Fran led her friends to the kitchen. She pointed at the Norfolk pine.

"How nice!" cried Edward, taking the string of cranberries off the pine. "I"ll put these in my freezer," he said. "Next month, when I have our Christmas party, I"ll put them on our tree."

Fran took her friends to the porch.

"EEK!" Rosalind shrieked. "That"s the scariest pumpkin I"ve ever seen!"

"Later, let"s draw pictures of it," Sam suggested. "Next year, when I have our Halloween party, I"ll use the pictures. I"ll carve a scary jack-o"-lantern just like this one!"

Fran took her guests to the table. She showed them the cards shaped like hearts.

"They"re beautiful!" Rosalind declared. She picked up the cards. "These will make nice invitations to my Valentine"s Day party." Rosalind smiled at Fran and added, "I don"t want anyone to forget to come."

Fran hung her head. "We have no cranberry sauce, no pumpkin pie, and no turkey place cards for the table."

"That"s not important," Edward said.

"That"s not what Thanksgiving is really about," Sam agreed.

Rosalind explained, "Thanksgiving is a time to be together."

Fran smiled at her guests. She said, "Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for friends."