By robina1978
It's very early morning and in the house on the hilltop everybody is still asleep. All but little Douglas and his sister Nikki.
Very quietly they climb down the stairs and Nikki opens the door to the lounge.
They spot empty glasses and dark-green bottles on the table. On an other table are small bowls with left over crisps and nuts.
They walk towards the calendar, that Mum had bought them a while ago. The calendar is huge and has beautiful colourful pictures. Mum had told the kids that on New Year's day they were allowed to turn the cover, so they could see the first picture.
Nikki, with little patience, turns the cover and quickly joins her brother Douglas.
On the cover is a picture of a beautiful clown with lively colours.
Douglas says,"really very nice."
They both look at the picture for a long time . Then Nikki dives for the nuts. She puts them in between them. That way they can share.
"How nice New Year is," says Nikki.
"Yes," answers Douglas. "When is the next New Year?"
"That takes a very long time. A whole year. Why?"
"Do we have to wait that long till we can see the next picture?," Douglas asks.
"No, silly. That is next month already."
Douglas wants to know how long that is. Certainly less than year his sister answers.
"Do we also get up early then?," Douglas asks.
"Maybe," Nikki answers chewing her nuts.
| Author Notes | Many thanks to Moonwillow for the beautiful art. |
By robina1978
Douglas and Nikki are at the farm of farmer Peter. Peter is a friendly guy. He often allows the children to help with work at the farm.
They both love that. Today their dog Roxy came with them.
"What a cutie", laughs the farmer, stroking the little dog's head.
"If you both like it, you can feed the chickens".
Doug and Nikki run to get the feed for the chickens. Roxy runs after them.
They go to the chicken coop and scattered the corn on the ground. The chickens come quickly to eat it.
Then Roxy spots the chickens. All of a sudden she barks like mad. The chickens are scared and fly away.
Nikki tries to recall her. But Roxy does not listen and continues chasing the poor chickens. Then Nikki suddenly sees the gate is still open, and before long the chickens are everywhere chased by Roxy.
Shortly after the chickens, Roxy sees the sheep. The same happens again, barking loudly she follows them too.
She really enjoys herself. She feels like the queen of the farm.
The she sees Lefka, the cat. With growls and barking he goes for the chase.
Lefka runs to the stables, followed by Roxy.
Suddenly Roxy is confronted by a huge animal.
"MOO," says the cow. Roxy got a real scare. "Moo," says the cow even louder.
Howling as if in pain, Roxy runs out of the stables.
"Ha ha," laughs farmer Peter. "Did you meet Bella? She won't be chased."
Roxy did notice this. If he comes to the farm again, he will be more quiet.
By robina1978
There is a letter from aunt Ena and uncle Will. They are expecting a baby soon.
Included in the letter a photo of the baby.
"How"?, asks Nikki, "Is the little baby born then?"
"No," laughs Mum. "This is an echogram."
Nikki pulls a funny face. "An echo-what?"
"An echography is a photo of the little baby when it is still in the belly of aunt Ena."
"How is that possible?", Nikki asks.
"The Doctor has a very smart machine. With this he can look from the outside. No problem for the baby".
Together they look at the photo.
Doug and Nikki only see some grey and white spots. Nowhere they see a baby.
Only when Mum points it out they see something that maybe resembles a baby.
"I find it just a very ugly baby," Doug says disappointed.
"That is because it very small", Mum laughs. "When it is fully grown, it will look like a real baby".
"Why do they make a photo at this stage of being ugly?" Nikki asks.
"This way the doctor can see if the baby is healthy. And also if it will be a girl or a boy".
"Oh, what is it going to be then, Mum"? Nikki asks excited.
"That I don't know; aunt Ena only wants to know after it is born". "More exciting that way".
Both children agree. They can almost not wait till the birth. Will it be a girl or a boy?
Who can say?
| Author Notes | Many thanks to MKFlood for the lovely art. |
By robina1978
| Author Note: | MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!! |
Everybody sits around the festive table in the house on the hill.
Douglas, Nikki, Dad and Mum, both grandparents, aunt Ineke and uncle Bram and of course little Helena, farmer Peter and Petra.
Under the Christmas tree are many, many gifts. It seems like a lorry dumped his load of presents.
Mum and Dad spoil their guests with delicious little bites and drinks. All sing and laugh.
Then the time is finally there for what Douglas and Nikki waited for so long: the presents.
The children are allowed to open their presents first. Douglas gets cuddly lion. Nikki gets a new doll. They are over the moon with their presents.
"Now I want to give Gran a present!" Nikki screams. From under the Christmas tree she gets a blue parcel. "Here you are, Gran", Nikki says. Gran looks surprised at Nikki's gift and opens the parcel. They are nice and warm slippers in .
"Oh," Gran laughs happily, " this is exactly what I need. And they are so beautiful. Thank you very much, Nikki." She gives Nikki a big kiss and puts the slippers on. Gran is above the clouds.
Nikki is happy that Gran is so pleased with her present.
That is the way presents work. It is nice to get them, but at least equally nice to give them.
| Author Notes |
Please be lenient as I am Dutch.
Many thanks to Cleo for the lovely picture. |
By robina1978
The end of the year is near.
The children of group three, have to show all things they learned this year, they must also understand them. Therefore they receive a real test from teacher John.
They are not allowed to make too many mistakes, otherwise they won't go to group four next year,
Against what she'd like, Nikki has to study in her room. Outside the weather is really great.
Daddy put the inflatable pool in the garden, and filled it with water. From her open window Nikki can hear her brother splashing and laughing.
Poor Nikki fancies to play as well. But first she has to make sums, in preparation for the test. The sums are extremely difficult, and Nikki has to work very hard. It slugs on and on.
When she is finally ready, it's bedtime.
'I think, it is very good, that you've worked so hard,' Mum says when she looks at the sums.
'I'm sure your hard work will bring results. Wait and see.'
The next day mother collects the children from school. As soon as she sees Nikki, she asks how the test went.
Sighing Nikki puts her backpack on the ground, and opens it.
She takes a sheet of paper out. It is the test.
At the top is written in red : 'all ten right! Bravo!' Under this is a stamp with a smiling face.
This makes Mum so proud.
'Do you see now that your work gets rewarded?,' Mum smiles. 'We have to celebrate. Come, we will get an ice cream, because deserve that so much.'
That's for sure.
| Author Notes | The book is not nearly finished and the chapters need to be put in the right order. |
By robina1978
Dozy the cat goes out one night, as it is a warmish summer evening.
He walks to the square behind the butcher shop. That is where all the cats of the village meet each night. When Dozy arrives at the square, he searches for a good place at the wall.
A huge white cat trots to the square. She stops underneath the streetlight, so it looks like she is under a big spotlight.
'Female and male cats', she says sweetly, 'welcome at our summer concert. Tonight some of our best singers will perform with some nice songs. I hope you'll enjoy'.
The white cat disappears from the light.
From behind the dustbin bags, two other cats walk into the light.
They start a beautiful song.
The other cats listen, touched by the song. When the song finishes, they applaud loudly.
Bowing deeply, the singers receive their applause.
As soon as the clapping stops, they start their second song. They sing with loud voices a beautiful aria.
Suddenly something hisses through the air in the direction of the singers. They can only just avoid it. It turns out to be the butcher's shoe.
'Are you lot finished with your cat screaming'? He calls angry. 'Each summer night it is the same, it drives me absolutely mad'.
The cats leave quickly. The concert is over for tonight.
People just don't like screaming cats.
| Author Notes | Day by day chapters are written in this bedtime story book. |
By robina1978
Nikki sits close to a bush in the garden.
She holds one hand protectively around her other hand.
Douglas spots his sister there.
"What do you have there?" He wants to know.
"Shh," Nikki says. "A ladybug".
Douglas is curious. "Can I have a quick look?"
Two pair of eyes look at the little red beetle that sits on the back of Nikki's hand.
"Gosh, how beautiful," Dougie says.
"It's two years old," Nikki says.
"How do you know that?" Asks Douglas amazed.
"You see that 'cause it has two spots on each wing."
"Then he is still a toddler", says Douglas with a loving smile on his face.
Douglas asks with a sweet little voice: "Can I hold it once?"
"Be careful though", Nikki advices.
Douglas holds him, and wonders: "Does he not miss his parents?" He asks his sister.
"Ah, maybe he is only taking a stroll, and will later go back to his Mummy."
The small ladybug walks on Douglas' arm. "It really tickles", he laughs.
Then Nikki takes it back. Then from the top of her finger he flies away.
"He must be going back to his Mum", Douglas says.
"Bye bye ladybug!" They yell together.
| Author Notes |
Courtesy to Google for the lovely photo.
|
By robina1978
Douglas and Nikki are with their Dad in the garden, under a tree.
Dad points upwards. "Do you see that nest?"
Douglas and Nikki stare through the leaves. High-up in the tree hangs a nest made with twigs and clay.
"There are some baby blackbirds in it, "Daddy whispers. "Look, their parents are flying in."
A brown and a yellow bird land near the nest.
They have insects in their beak.
"The black bird is the father," says the father.
"What do they do with the insects?, asks Douglas.
"They are for the little ones, look."
When the little babies hear their parents, they make a contest in chirping.
The parents try to divide the insects equally amongst the open beaks. As soon as the insects are finished, the babies start chirping again. The blackbirds fly away to fetch more insects.
"This way they are busy the whole day to feed their hungry young ones," Dad says. "By the end of the day they must be dead beat." "They are very lucky not to need nappies, like we humans do."
"But what do the babies do then without a nappies?" Nikki wants to know. " Do they pooh in their nest?"
"No," says Dad, "then the nest would get awfully dirty." If they need a pooh, they put their backside over the edge. So it just drops down."
Daddy only just said this, when a white little pooh fell on his head.
This proves beyond reasonable doubt, that he told the truth.
| Author Notes | Courtesy to Google for the photo. |
By robina1978
Dad, Mommy, Nikki and Douglas are camping in a big tent. The tent has a separate room for the parents and the children.
After the first night there Nikki and Douglas are covered in midgy bites. It itches terribly.
"I hardly slept last night because of these stupid bugs," Nikki says. "We had a real army in our tent."
"Poor soul, your first night spoilt by midgies," Mom comforts while she rubs an ointment on Nikki's arm.
"With my torch I tried to chase them. Every time I thought I had killed them all. But as soon as I went back into my sleeping bag, they were there again."
"I did not notice anything," Douglas says, even though he also has many bites. "No," Nikki growls, "you slept like a log, while I tried to keep the midgies away from you."
"You did not manage this perfectly," Mummy says while she puts a bit of ointment on his cheek.
"If I have another sleepless night in this tent, I will walk back home," Nikki moans.
"I will take care giving you both a quiet night," Mum in a calming voice. "Tonight I'll put oil on your skin that keeps these bugs away. During the day you should try to keep the tent closed, then the midgies can't get in.
The next morning they discovered they were absolutely fine. Not one midgy in their tent.
Just as well, Otherwise Nikki had to walk all the way home....
| Author Notes |
Inspired by the midgy bites that we got last night.
Written in U.K. English. |
By robina1978
"Bah, what a smell," Nikki says when she wants to enter the tent. "Where does that come from?"
She hesitates a wee while...shall she enter the tent? But she urgently needs the toilet. The toilet on the camping site has no toilet paper. People need to bring their own toilet paper. Nikki needs to fetch her own toilet roll, completely at the back of the tent, in her backpack.
She keeps her nose closed and takes a deep breath. She enters the tent. With her cheeks completely blown up with air it looks as if she goes to take a dive under water.
"It really is like a dive," she thinks. "It is just a dive into a tent with a terrible smell"
She walks along the folding beds to her backpack. It opens with pulling the rope hard. The toilet paper is not there. SHH. where did she leave it now.
Her breath is nearly finished. Oh no, will she have to breath in the horrible smell?
She has to let go.
Heavily breathing Nikki gasps for air. What smells so badly?
The she discovers where the smell comes from. They are socks from Douglas that he hid under his bed.
"Holy shit, what smelly socks!" Nikki curses. " I reckon Douglas has been wearing the same socks for a few days. If I tell Mommy..."
With a stick she gets the horrible socks and carries them outside.
It already smells slightly less in the tent. Now Nikki too spots behind another few items the roll of toilet paper. She grabs it quickly.
Finally she can go to the toilet.
"Surprisingly I did not loose anything in my pants. Otherwise Douglas would have it coming."
| Author Notes |
Many thanks to VMarguarite for the nice artwork.
The warning is for using Holy shit. I know English people don't like this; in Dutch it's quite acceptable. |
By robina1978
It is extremely hot today., over 30 degrees Celsius.
Douglas and Nikki wear their swimming suits and spatter each other in the tiny swimming pool.
"Hey," Nikki says. "Look!"
Daddy fetches the garden hose from the shed, and he attaches it to the tap in the shed. Then he starts spraying the garden.
Nikki gets an idea. She jumps out the pool and walks secretly to the shed. She gets the garden hose and folds it double, so the water can't run anymore.
"Hey? What the heck is this?" when he does not get any water through the hose. He turns the spray-head, but it does not help. Then he looks inside the head to see if there is a blockage.
Exactly at this moment Nikki lets go of the hose. The water sprays at full power, precisely at her father's face. Daddy chokes and coughs.
"Stupid hose," he curses.
He continues spraying, while he wipes the water off his face.
But Nikki folds the hose double again, so the water stops once more.
"What the heck!" Daddy says. "What can this be?"
Douglas who saw it all from a distance, laughs his head off.
Dad looks at him in surprise. Then he understands it. The children fooled him. Nikki lets go of the hose, laughing and runs as fast as she can. The water hits Dad's face again.
"Wait a second, rascals!" he shouts while on the chase with the hose after Nikki. In less than a minute he catches Nikki and Douglas. He gives the pair a huge shower, but they don't mind at all.
The wetter the better, with such hot weather!
| Author Notes | Courtesy to Google for the nice photo. |
By robina1978
Douglas and Fluffy ( the family dog ) are sitting in the garden. They have played a very long time and are taking a break now. They are absolutely filthy. Fluffy starts scratching vehemently.
"What is the matter, Fluffy? Do you have itchy bugs in your fur?"
Fluffy scratches his ear and everywhere he can reach his body.
Mom enters the garden.
"Mummy, I think that Fluffy has bugs. He is scratching all the time."
His mother inspects the coat of the dog.
"Oops, I have to get you a flea collar, Fluffy," she says. Soon Fluffy has his flea collar around his neck. "Then all the flees will disappear quickly," Mum laughs. She gives Fluffy a cuddle on his head.
Douglas and Fluffy are sitting side by side again. Douglas thinks about the flees. What is the itching on his back? He starts scratching. Ouch , now the itching is in his hair! With some speed he runs to his mother.
"Mummy, Mummy, I think I need a flea collar as well. I itch all over."
"Show me," Mummy says. She searches Douglas' hair. "I don't see anything Doug," she smiles. "This happens sometimes when you think too much about itchy bugs. But I have an idea. I will wash you thouroughly in the bath. Then you can have a collar too."
"Do I still have to wear a flea collar?" Douglas says scared.
"No, silly. I meant a neckless with sweets" Mum laughs.
A necklace with sweets?
What a surprise!
| Author Notes | Courtesy to Google for the image. |
By robina1978
Chase, the dog, is so happy. The butcher gave him an excellent bone to chew. He has been lying happily on the bone- chewing it. This without any doubt the best bone has ever gotten.
Chase would like to do something else for a little while. Racing in the garden or something like that. He dumps the bone and runs, happily barking towards the grass.
Suddenly he stops and stands as a statue.
Suppose somebody would run off with his bone. He definitely can't allow that. He has to hide the bone as quickly as possible, before another dog finds it.
As lightning Chase runs back to his bone, picks it up with his mouth.
Then he starts a search for a safe place. But several place won't be allowed by Mum. So several places he can't use.
In the vegetable plot he spots a small hole. He drops the bony morsel in, and vigorously puts earth over it.
He-he, that bone nobody can find. Finally Chas can go playing in the garden.
After a little while he hears Dad cursing in the veggie plot.
" Which idiot closed my hole? I just dug it to plant a pole in".
Jee, Chase. Maybe this was not such a good spot.
| Author Notes | Courtesy to Google for the photo. |
By robina1978
Douglas' group goes to the veggie plot with their teacher. They get a pumpkin there, because they want to make pumpkin soup. The children choose the biggest of them all. A few weeks ago it was still a small round little ball. Now there are enormous ones. Strange how they can grow so quickly.
The teacher takes the stem of the pumpkin, and she then carries the heavy fruit to the class room.
Douglas and a class mate are to fill a big pan for one half with water. Meantime the teacher cuts the pumpkin in bits, and removes the peel. She lights the cooker, and puts the pan on top of it.
The children are allowed to put the pumpkin bits carefully in the water.
"Now the soups needs to boil in the pan for about an hour, and then it is ready", the teacher says.
"Another hour", Douglas asks amazed.
"Eh...yes", answers the teacher.
"But I am absolutely starving", Douglas says.
"You will in a little while get an extra huge plate with soup", the teacher says smiling.
That is absolutely fine with Douglas.
Slowly the water in the pan boils. The lid trembles gently. After a while the whole classroom smells of the soup.
"Oh, oh, my stomach rumbles", says Douglas while sniffing the great smelling soup.
"Just a minute", says the teacher.
Finally the moment arrives. The soup is ready. The teacher adds some salt and pepper. Then she fills the bowls with soup for each child.
All children enjoy the soup enormously. And Douglas spoons three bowls away.
By robina1978
In English you would say New Year's Eve.
'-Nine, ten, eleven, twelve' people hear at the house at the hill top. All people cuddle, and kiss.
Douglas end Nicola, Daddy and Mum, granddad and granny, and the aunts and uncles.
After this they run outside. because I'm the village the fireworks started. From the hill they have an excellent view.
The colourful flowers of the fireworks are with enormous bangs painted in the sky with stars that fade out softly. Everybody is enormously interested. But their dog is not at all impressed. He barks loudly through all the noise.
In a darkish corner of the garden, garden gnomes watch under a bush, hugging each other and wishing each other a Happy New Year.
The hen house also have a party. The cock and his chickens cockle each other Happy New Year.
'Beautiful eggs and many corn this year', it sounds all the way.
But ....where is the cat.
The sneaky thing crawled in the shed. He jumps on the deserted party table. Where there are many deliciously tasty dishes. Licking his lips he sniffs at a fat part of chicken. That is what he wants. Greedily he carries the chicken, and runs outside. He hides behind the hen house.
Now he can finally start enjoying hi meal, while far away the fireworks bang. He does not like New Year perse, but the chicken carcass he loves.
Starting now: bite.
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