On Saturday afternoon（下午）/ˌɑːftəˈnuːn/, Nina and her mother planned dinner（晚餐）/ˈdɪnə/ for eight at home（在家）/æt həʊm/. They had 160 yuan（元（人民币单位））/juˈɑːn/ to pay for（为……付款）/peɪ fɔː/ the meal（一餐）/miːl/. Her mother said, “Before we go shopping（去购物）/ɡəʊ ˈʃɒpɪŋ/, let us decide（决定）/dɪˈsaɪd/ what everybody（每个人）/ˈevribɒdi/ will eat（吃）/iːt/.” Nina asked, “Would you prefer（更喜欢）/prɪˈfɜː/ fish（鱼；鱼肉）/fɪʃ/ or chicken（鸡；鸡肉）/ˈtʃɪkɪn/?” Her mother replied, “Fish. Grandfather（祖父；外祖父）/ˈɡrænfɑːðə/ enjoys（喜欢；享受）/ɪnˈdʒɔɪz/ it, and the twins（双胞胎）/twɪnz/ can eat it too.”

At the market（市场）/ˈmɑːkɪt/, they compared（比较）/kəmˈpeəd/ prices（价格）/ˈpraɪsɪz/. A fresh（新鲜的）/freʃ/ fish cost（花费；成本）/kɒst/ almost（几乎）/ˈɔːlməʊst/ half their budget（预算）/ˈbʌdʒɪt/. Nina pointed to a smaller one. “Is this enough for eight people?” Her mother shook（摇动；摇头）/ʃʊk/ her head. “No. Buying（购买）/ˈbaɪɪŋ/ two would be too expensive（昂贵的）/ɪkˈspensɪv/. Let us choose（选择）/tʃuːz/ chicken, seasonal（时令的；季节性的）/ˈsiːzənəl/ vegetables（蔬菜）/ˈvedʒtəbəlz/, rice（米；米饭）/raɪs/, and fruit. The meal can still be special（特别的）/ˈspeʃəl/ without costing too much.”

They found a whole（整个的）/həʊl/ chicken at a fair（合理的；公平的）/feə/ price and chose carrots（胡萝卜）/ˈkærəts/, mushrooms（蘑菇）/ˈmʌʃruːmz/, tomatoes（西红柿）/təˈmɑːtəʊz/, and green（绿色的）/ɡriːn/ beans（豆；豆荚）/biːnz/. Nina checked（核对；检查）/tʃekt/ each amount（金额；数量）/əˈmaʊnt/ on her phone（电话；手机）/fəʊn/ before they paid（支付）/peɪd/. Nina reported（报告）/rɪˈpɔːtɪd/, “We have fourteen yuan left.” Her mother smiled. “Good. That is enough for bread, but not extra（额外的）/ˈekstrə/ snacks（零食）/snæks/.” They carried four heavy bags（袋子）/bæɡz/ home（家；在家）/həʊm/ together（一起）/təˈɡeðə/.

Nina put away（收好）/pʊt əˈweɪ/ the cold（冷的；冷藏的）/kəʊld/ food（食物）/fuːd/ and turned on the oven（烤箱）/ˈʌvən/. Ten minutes（分钟）/ˈmɪnɪts/ later, the kitchen was still cool（凉的；凉爽的）/kuːl/. Her father examined（检查）/ɪɡˈzæmɪnd/ it. “The heating（加热；热量）/ˈhiːtɪŋ/ part has burned（烧坏；烧伤）/bɜːnd/ out. I cannot fix（修理；解决）/fɪks/ it tonight（今晚）/təˈnaɪt/.” Nina looked at the uncooked（未烹调的）/ˌʌnˈkʊkt/ chicken. “What can we serve（端上；提供）/sɜːv/ now?” Her mother remained（仍然是；保持）/rɪˈmeɪnd/ calm（镇定的）/kɑːm/. “We will use the stove（炉灶）/stəʊv/ instead. Please take out（取出）/teɪk aʊt/ the largest pot.”

They changed（改变）/tʃeɪndʒd/ the menu（菜单）/ˈmenjuː/ to chicken stew（炖菜）/stjuː/. Nina cut the meat（肉）/miːt/ while her mother prepared the vegetables. Her father cooked（烹调）/kʊkt/ rice, and her younger（年幼的；较年轻的）/ˈjʌŋɡə/ brother（兄弟）/ˈbrʌðə/ set eight plates（盘子）/pleɪts/ around the table. He asked, “Can I help with（帮助做……）/help wɪð/ dessert（甜点）/dɪˈzɜːt/?” Nina answered, “Yes. Wash the grapes（葡萄）/ɡreɪps/ and arrange（摆放；安排）/əˈreɪndʒ/ the orange（橙子；橙色的）/ˈɒrɪndʒ/ pieces（块；片）/ˈpiːsɪz/ in a glass（玻璃；玻璃杯）/ɡlɑːs/ bowl（碗）/bəʊl/. Keep them in the fridge（冰箱）/frɪdʒ/ until dinner.”

When Grandfather arrived, he tasted（品尝；尝起来）/ˈteɪstɪd/ the stew and paused（停顿）/pɔːzd/. He warned（提醒；警告）/wɔːnd/, “The sauce（酱汁）/sɔːs/ is a little salty（咸的）/ˈsɔːlti/.” Nina did not hide her mistake（错误）/mɪˈsteɪk/. “I added two spoons（勺；匙）/spuːnz/ without tasting it. How can I correct（改正；正确的）/kəˈrekt/ it?” Her mother poured in unsalted（未加盐的）/ʌnˈsɔːltɪd/ soup and added more vegetables. After fifteen minutes, Nina tasted the stew again. “This is much better,” she said with relief（宽慰；放松）/rɪˈliːf/.

All eight family members sat（坐下）/sæt/ down on time. The hot stew, rice, salad, bread, and fruit filled the table, and everybody had enough. Her father raised his cup. “You did more than（超过；不仅仅）/mɔː ðæn/ cook a meal. You stayed within the budget, cooperated（合作）/kəʊˈɒpəreɪtɪd/, and solved（解决）/sɒlvd/ an unexpected（意外的）/ˌʌnɪkˈspektɪd/ problem.” Nina laughed. “Next time, I will check the oven before shopping.” After dinner, the family helped wash the dishes（洗餐具）/wɒʃ ðə ˈdɪʃɪz/.