THE RED-LETTER DAY

 "What's a red-letter day, Nora?" asked Betty, coming into the kitchen where Nora was doing the Saturday baking.

 

"It's a day when something 'specially¹ nice happens," answered Nora. "Why?"

 

"Mamma just said it would be a red-letter day if she got all her mending done by night. I wish," added² Betty wistfully, "that I could make it a red-letter day for her!"

 

"You can!" cried Nora. "I'll show you how to make a cake, and then she won't have to make it. She can have the time to mend."

 

"Goody, goody!" cried Betty, when her mamma said she might try.

 

"I didn't tell her about the red-letter part," she explained, as she and Nora measured and beat and stirred³. "That will make it another kind of red-letter day—S for S'prise."

 

The cake came out of the oven⁴ light and flaky and beautiful.

 

 

"Wouldn't it be nice," sighed Betty, "if it could only have a red S right in the middle?"

 

"It can," said Nora. "Make it of those tiny red candies of yours. You'll have to work fast before the icing dries."

 

When the S was finished it was pretty crooked⁵, even for an S. But there was no doubt at all about what it was.

 

When dinner was on the table Betty brought in the cake and set it before her mother.

 

"Well, well, well!" cried Mrs. Arnold. "What a fine little cook I have! But what is the S for, Betty?"

 

"It stands for Saturday, mamma," said Betty. And then she told all about the red-letter plan.

 

"It was a dear plan," said her mother. "And I did finish the mending. And now I'll tell my little girl something else. S stands for Saturday, but it stands for another word, too—it stands for my Sunshine," she finished, giving Betty a loving kiss.

1 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

2 added   

adj.更多的，附加的，额外的

参考例句：

• They have added a new scene at the beginning.在开头他们又增加了一场戏。
• The pop music added to our enjoyment of the film.片中的流行音乐使我们对这部电影更加喜爱。

3 stirred   

v.（使）移动( stir的过去式和过去分词 )；搅拌；（使）行动；（使）微动

参考例句：

• She stirred her tea. 她搅了搅茶。
• He stirred the coffee until it was a light reddish-brown. 直到咖啡成红褐色，他才停止搅拌。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 oven   

n.烤炉；烤箱

参考例句：

• You put food inside an oven to cook it.你把食物放进烤箱里热一下。
• She baked bread in an oven.她用烤炉烤面包。

5 crooked   

adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He crooked a finger to tell us to go over to him.他弯了弯手指，示意我们到他那儿去。
• You have to drive slowly on these crooked country roads.在这些弯弯曲曲的乡间小路上你得慢慢开车。