Cinderella story (sorta).

Think for a sec about the distribution of chores in your house. Are your brothers responsible for other tasks, like outdoor yard work? Every family doles out chores differently, and some parents tend to assign chores that are "traditionally" gender-biased--the girls help in the kitchen and laundry room, while the boys take out the trash and mow the lawn. The problem with this kind of division of labor, though, is that dirty dishes and laundry are near-daily tasks, but lawn upkeep and trash duty are not. Throw in the fact that you are the only girl, and your brothers really do have it easy if they are splitting the "male" chores among the three of them. Point this out to your mom. Offer to take on a little yard work, and suggest that your brothers fold socks and underwear for a change. Let her know it's not that you mind lending a helping hand--you just think it's fair that everyone should pitch in even amounts of time and that certain jobs should not be considered girls-only. Hopefully you can work out a system so if you set the table, for example, your brothers can take care of after-dinner clean-up duty. Fair?

I met this really popular girl at day camp, and she asked me and my two buds to be in her group. We accepted, but then she decided she didn't like my friends and kicked them out of the group. I want to stay friends with the popular kids but don't want to lose my true friends. Help!

Imagine this: You ditch your old pals to hang with the "popular" group. Then, two weeks later, your new "friend" decides she doesn't like you either so you're dissed by the "in" crowd. You've lost two true friends, so now what? Anyone who invites people to be friends one minute and kicks them to the curb the next isn't a genuine friend. Do you want to be associated with someone you can fall in and out of grace with so quickly? If you won't give up the "in" crowd, let this girl know that you intend to continue spending time with your old buds. If she's cool with that, OK. But if she's only concerned with power and popularity, you and your real friends are much, much better off without her.

My BFF is paranoid about her "big size," as she calls it. She's not tiny, but she's not exactly huge either. She thinks she looks bad in her clothes and wears the same baggy thing just about every day. What can I do to make her stop this nonsense?

You can't grab your friend and shake the "nonsense" out of her. Until she believes she has a great bod, that won't do a bit of What many "big" girls don't realize is that baggy clothes only make them look bigger. Your bud probably can't wear tiny tops and too-tight shorts, but take her shopping and show her what she can wear. Have a blast tearing through all the stores at the mall and have her try on different things until find what styles work for her body type. Once she sees how great she looks in the empire-waisted sundress, maybe she'll toss the oversized, underwashed tee. Also, perhaps you could encourage some physical activity to get her into exercise mode. Since the weather's so hot, why not suggest a twice-weekly session at the local ice rink? Hopefully, she'll begin to feel better about herself--and that's what really matters.

My brother and sister always find my diary and read it. They make fun of me and threaten to tell everyone my secrets if I don't do them favors. What should I do?

Thievery and blackmail provide intrigue ... in spy movies. But in real life? You need a plan of action. You could clue your parents in to your sibs' behavior, but then they might spill your secrets in retaliation. And talking to the sibs yourself probably won't help much either. There's only one thing left to do--you need to outsmart them at their own game. You could keep your diary on your computer with a password (don't write it down!) or leave your journal in a place they could never get to, like your locker at school. If you really want to turn the tables on them, plant a fake diary in your room that has a message to the spying sibs. When they find your "diary," the joke's on them!