"You can't fool my mother on geniuses," replied Nancy, who like her companions was putting away the odds and ends of things that had been scattered in the morning's adventure. "Mother is an expert, and she sort of knows--me." This last was said in a way implying a very doubtful compliment for Nancy. "I've been almost a genius at art, for instance. When I was five years old I could draw a goose with my eyes shut." "How about it when your eyes were open?" asked Ruth, quizzically. "It was usually a little fat pig, then," Nancy admitted, amid an outburst of girlish laughter. "Nancy," interrupted Isabel, "here's the ice cream man." "Ours," declared Nancy. "Now we'll whistle for Ted and his boys and shut up shop for lunch. Isabel, will you please open the side door? We'll take a tray over to Miss Manners and then sit down and enjoy ourselves." "Here's Ted and his friends now," announced Ruth. "They seem to know it is ice cream time." "That will save trouble," Nancy remarked. And presently the big sale was all but forgotten in preparations for the feast of ice cream, with other suitable summer lunch supplies. Isabel took an attractive tray over to solicitous and attentive Miss Ada Manners, while Nancy and Ruth attempted to satisfy the demands of Ted and his ice cream loving friends. The noon day was much warmer than the morning had indicated, and this coupled with the sale excitement, went far to make the little party a tremendous success, just as Mrs. Brandon had planned it to be. CHAPTER XI THE FAILURE The days were slipping by, and Nancy found herself entangled in a rather confused vacation. True, she had already reaped real benefit from the big sale and from the subsequent days' sales in her shop, but was it really being a vacation? It must be admitted that Nancy had a tendency to stubbornness, but since that peculiarity very often marks the first stages of a strong character, her mother wisely allowed her to continue to try things out for herself. The Whatnot Shop was not proving in any way a disappointment, but it was most certainly giving Nancy work, so that she was not free to come and go with the other girls, in spite of Miss Manners frequent and generous offers to "'tend store" for her. A bright spot on her calendar not very far off, was the coming of Mrs. Brandon's vacation. Soon she would be at home, free to do all the precious things a devoted mother plans to do in the little interval of freedom so long looked forward to and so quickly spent. "When you are home," Nancy would continually plan, "I'm going to do that," referring to any one of a number of things being postponed.