Isn’t it amazing how our children keep getting older and we don’t. 😉Happy 27th Birthday to our firstborn. Our little boogaloo, who isn’t so little anymore! Never knew before how much love my heart could hold! ❤️
When you ask your daughter what she wants for her birthday and the answer is BOOKS! This mama did something right. To the bookstore we go!
When in the desert, we met a man looking for his horse, or was he looking for his Gnu?
Here is the conclusion of The Forest Competition!
The sweat was pouring down Cara’s face. She was working as fast as she possibly could, and exhaustion was taking over. Would this day ever end? Had the battle been won? Serephina and Tatiana hadn’t checked in with her for awhile.
Snowball stretched and opened his eyes. Where was he? Why was it dark? Oh, that’s right he and Alabaster were in a giant log, waiting for Gandalf. Where was he? Where was Alabaster?
“Alabaster??” Snowball called his name, making his way to the opening of the log.
There was no reply.
Snowball trembled at a scary thought. What if a giant had got hold of Alabaster?
The forest was still.
He stepped out of the log , the snake was gone, much to Snowball’s relief.
“Alabaster? Where are you? Alabaster?”
“Over here!”
Snowball looked, and sure enough, Alabaster was outside taking pictures. Apparently, nothing stopped a serious photographer, not even battles against giants.
“Be careful! We aren’t supposed to be out of the log, remember. There is a battle going on!” Snowball’s eyes darted back and forth, looking for danger.
“Don’t worry, the battle must be in another part of the forest now, or perhaps it’s over. It’s been so quiet. I had to come out here for some fresh air! I told you not to eat all those beans on our way here. Scared me half to death at first. I thought someone was shooting close by us.”
Suddenly, the ground shook beneath them. The biggest giant they ever saw was walking straight towards them with a hungry look in its eyes.
“Either the battle isn’t over or the giants won!” Snowball gulped.
Pinching their eyes shut, they curled up into a ball, hoping to make themselves invisible, waiting for their fate.
“Over here!! Look what I have! You don’t want those fun-sized elves. They will give you indigestion. Come this way!”
The booming voice sounded like it was coming from a megaphone. The elves opened their eyes, and to their surprise, they saw the giant walking away following the sound of the loud voices.
An overpowering, sweeet fragrance filled the forest. Where was it coming from? The elves were tempted to follow the giant but had more sense than that. They would not let themselves be swayed by sweet things.
Instead, Alabaster kept snapping photos of the giant walking away. The other elves would be fascinated with his photos. He would get a 10 star rating for these.
Hearing the brush of wings from above, he aimed his camera up and snapped more photos of a horde of fairies flying. Surely, he would win the honor of the photographer of the year award now.
“There you guys are. I am relieved to see you are OK.” Serephina flew down in front of them.
“We won! We won! The forest is now ours and will be filled with the peaceful sounds of fairy songs and water flowing.
All thanks to Cara for teaching us how to make our secret weapon. Whoever knew that giants would have a weakness for Shoo-fly pie! As long as we keep making them, the giants will leave us alone, and General Sherman will stand guard.
That night, there was a grand celebration in the land of the Redwoods. Cara met Snowball and Alabaster when Serephina introduced them.
“I have the strangest feeling that I saw you both before. Were you ever at Mason’s Diner?”
“We rarely leave the North Pole, so I doubt it.” Snowball replied.
“You, especially look familiar,” Cara said to Alabaster, “but maybe it’s because of your hair. My boss, Mason, has hair like yours.”
Alabaster was shocked. “Hair like mine? Luxurious curls? What does he use on his hair?”
“I have no idea. I only know he keeps them in a locked cabinet in his office.”
“I lock up my hair gel, too! I have to keep it away from CandyCane, who used it before as glue for toys! Oh, the audacity!”
Cara held in a laugh, thinking it best that she didn’t confess what she used a bottle of Mason’s hair gel on. One he forgot to lock up. What he didn’t know didn’t hurt him.
Too soon, it was time to head back to BitterSweet CreMason could only do without her help for a couple of days.
With one more look back at the *bosque, land of many trees, she smiled and headed home to BitterSweetCreek, who knew what other adventures awaited her there.
If you go to the Redwoods, be quiet and listen. The echoes of fairy songs can still be heard since that legendary day. Breathe in deeply and feel the peace. That’s the secret of the Redwoods, available to all who walk upon their path.
*bosque*-Spanish- land of many trees
The next part to The Big Question!
Finding a needle in a haystack would be less stressful right now, thought Seraphina.
“What is wrong? You look like you have the biggest toothache ever! All those lattes caught up to you, didn’t they? I told you to cut back on the sugar.”
With a look of annoyance, Seraphina shook her head.
“My teeth are fine, and I could use a triple latte right now.”
“This must be something big! What is the problem? Is it something I can help with?”
“Have you changed your mind about helping the forest fairies with this big competition coming up?”
Calista trembled at the thought.
“You are braver than me, my friend! You saw the photos and heard all the details about what could happen if things went wrong. Plus, even if things didn’t go wrong. You saw how BIG that Giant was that emerged from behind that one tree!”
“Yes, I was trying to forget about that image. I don’t blame you. I wish I had never agreed to help. I had been so honored to have been asked, but now … ” She shivered.
They were quiet for a bit until Calista spoke.
“I thought you were going to have that kind waitress take your place. Did she refuse?”
“No, she accepted, that’s the problem.”
Giving her a quizzical look, Calista cocked her head to the side. “Why is it a problem?”‘
Meanwhile, back at Mason’s Diner, it was all set. Cara had handed in her vacation slip. She only needed to finish this shift and work for one more day. After that, she would be ready for an exciting adventure with the forest fairies.
She hadn’t told anyone all the details about where she was going yet. That could wait until she got back. Cara imagined the reaction she would get if she told Mason she was joining the forest fairies in a fight against the giants.
He would be calling the men in white jackets to take her away before her shift ended.
Tonight, she would be meeting with Seraphina again to practice the skills that Serephina was teaching her.
“Hey, can I get any help here? Mason, you need to find better help.” grumbled Tippner.
“Oh, stop your hollering, I am coming.” Cara walked over to him to take his order. She would have to daydream about the beautiful Redwood forest another time.
“Okay, let’s try this one more time.” Serephina was trying her best, but she could tell this was futile.
Watching the arrow fly backwards, she covered her face with her hands. How did one shoot an arrow backward?
This would never work. Cara was so proud of helping the fairies, but Seraphina was afraid she would be more of a hindrance than help.
It was late, Seraphina would soon have to start her night flight of visiting children. But there was time for one latte before starting her shift.
“How about we stop for now and drink some of your fabulous lattes?”
Cara agreed and opened the coffee shop to mix some up.
It didn’t take long,
Soon they were sipping with pleasure. Serephina’s stomach churned, having to break the bad news to Cara. May as well get it over with.
“Cara, You have been so brave in wanting to help us and we do appreciate it, but it seems that…”
“WAIT! Don’t say anything yet!”
Calista came flying over to Serephina, whispering something in her ear.
“That may work!” Hope raised Serephina’s spirits. Looking at Cara, she smiled. “I have a question for you.”
Mrs Claus was wringing her hands with worry.
“Are you absolutely sure this is safe?”
“Of course. Gandalf promised to watch over them. He knows where to place them so they won’t get hurt. You know how excited they are. How can I tell them that they can’t go? This is a humongous thing. Tales will be told. Our boys will go down in history.”
Sniffling, Mrs Claus tried to smile. She cared about Alabaster and Snowball, and as much as she liked them, she wouldn’t deny that they were experts at getting into mishaps. But Santa was right. She should relax. After all, Gandalf was in charge of their protection.
The stage was ready. History was about to be made. The fairies were taking over, and all would be well.
Snowball and Alabaster were in shock by what they saw. They knew the trees would be tall but leaping lizards. These trees were enormous!
They walked around in total awe, temporarily forgetting why they had come.
Swish! Alabaster ducked, covering his camera as an arrow flew by his head, only missing it by a bit!
“Cara! No! Remember our agreement. You aren’t shooting arrows. You have a different secret weapon. You almost hit that poor elf down below.”
Serephina flew to Cara, who was perched up in a tree.
“Y-Y-Yes ..” she stammered out. Visibly shaken that she had come so close to hitting an elf. She had been aiming in the other direction.
“Get down and work on preparing your secret weapon. The battle starts tomorrow, and remember, the elves are our friends. We have combined forces to fight against the giants, who want to take over our corner of the forest.”
“Understand!”
“Good. Let’s go.” Serephina flew away, sighing with relief that she had put rubber tips on the arrows. That poor elf wouldn’t have been hurt, even if Cara’s arrow had struck him.
Glancing down, Serephina didn’t see Cara. She looked behind her to see Cara still stuck in the tree.
“Why aren’t you coming?”
“It didn’t look as far down before.” Cara trembled, looking below.
“You will be fine. Take it slow as you inch your way back down the tree.”
After what seemed like forever, Cara finally made it down, vowing not to go up into the tree again. She followed Serephina back to get to work.
“Excuse me, are you Snowball and Alabaster?” Tatianna flew down in front of them.
“Yes, we are, and we are at your service.” Snowball stood up as tall as he could and saluted the fairy.
“Always glad to help.” Chimed in Alabaster.
“Thank you! Let me show you where I want you both stationed at.”
“Here you go. Crawl in here, and you should be safe from the giants.’
Snowball had a wary look in his eyes as Alabaster snapped photos.
He didn’t like dark spaces, and how did they know what was inside that log?
Pausing in snapping photos, Alabaster remembered something important. “Where is Gandalf? We were told he would be with us.”
Tatiana bit her lip, not saying anything at first.
“Will we get arrows to shoot?” Snowball asked.
“Sorry, I have to fly for now.. I will be back… Stay there!”
Tatiana pushed down the guilty feeling in her chest. But how could she have told them that Gandalf wasn’t coming? She didn’t want to scare them. Why, oh, why did Gandalf have to be called away now! Was someone named Bilbo Baggins really that important?
“You first!” Snowball said.
“Its dark in there. Maybe we could stay right inside of it. On the edge, so that we can still see out.”
Snowball agreed, and they stepped inside.
“Did you catch that she said we should be okay? I would feel much better if she would have sounded more confident!”
“Yikes, do you see that?” They scrambled further back into the log.
**To be continued**
Happy Tuesday! We left the desert and mountains behind but brought back a heart full of sunshine and wonderful memories!
Our vacation was fabulous in being able to see amazing sights, but it was made even better by finally meeting a long-time blogging friend face to face! I have said it before and will keep saying it. The best part of blogging has been the true friendships I have made. A priceless gift.
I was able to meet Snowball from the North Pole without having to go there! Who knew that he actually lived in the desert! More to come, but I can’t forget this is Quotes day, so I will stop babbling… for now. 😉 Enjoy the quotes, and have a fantabulous day!
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“There is no poem as lovely as a tree.” Joyce Kilmer She must have been to the RedWoods and also to see the Joshua Tree
If the blessing of friendship had a taste. It would be as sweet as white chocolate mocha lattes!
What secrets does the forest hold? What is hiding in the dark? The continuing fairy story is coming … next week. Thanks for your patience..
Happy Tuesday! We have gone from chasing trees to desert flowers in our trip of chasing unicorns. I hope you have an enjoyable week and find some unicorns!
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2. When you tour a lighthouse from 1856 and soak in the beautiful view from the top. Sorry, no pic. I need to clear away old blog pics to make storage room again.
3. When your husband stumbles backward and you jump up to help him and end up falling. Moral:Don’t fall when you are with me. I am no help. We are both fine, though Brad is sore, but good!
4. Within seconds of each other, a pigeon and a seagull landed near me to say Hi. I could have reached out to touch them, but I didn’t. I value my fingers.
5.On the Eastcoast beaches one collects seashells. On the Westcoast one collects pretty stones and driftwood. Well, Brad wouldn’t let me bring back the large driftwood that I wanted for our backyard. It didn’t exactly fit in our suitcase. LOL! The rocky coast is beautiful! Pictures coming.
6.On the road leaving the beauty of the Redwoods behind. If you want to see something that will take your hreath away and remind you of the AMAZING world we live in, we give the Redwoods 5+stars!
6. Leaving the Redwoods behind but not leaving California … yet … On the way to … ? ( take a guess, if you don’t already know.)
Part 1 from the introduction in Thursday’s post, Secrets of The Redwoods
The long-awaited event would soon be here. Tatiana was deep in preparation when her fairy pad buzzed.
With a quick look at the pad she picked up the call.
“Hi Festiva, what is up? Please tell me that your raspberry chocolate cookies are out of the oven and need a taste tester.
Tatiana heard Festiva giggle, but it was short and quick.
“I haven’t even started baking them yet. We have a problem!”
“Oh No, what kind of problem?”
“Merri and Lolita are sick. We will need someone to take their places. But we don’t have anyone to spare.”
Tatiana’s brow furrowed with worry. This was a big problem indeed. They couldn’t afford to be shorthanded. What would they do?
There was silence on the line.
“Hello? Did you hear me? Tatiana?”
“I heard you. Let me talk to some of the other fairies. Surely, we can figure something out.”
“I hope you are right. Though I have my doubts.”
Tatiana sighed, Festiva always had doubts.
“Don’t worry. Concentrate on getting your delicious cookies made! I will get back to you in a few days. Goodbye.”
Tatiana ended the call before Festiva was able to say any more discouraging words.
Wow! Serephina still couldn’t believe the good news that Calista told her.
“Pretty cool, isn’t it!” Calista said, in between drinking her salted caramel latte.
“YES! Whoever thought that we would be helping the forest fairies on one of their missions!”
Usually, the tooth fairies didn’t get included in the special events that the forest fairies participated in, but this time was different. They were desperate, Tatiana had said. They needed their help.
Serephina and Calista couldn’t stop smiling. It was their lucky day. What a fun adventure this would be!
Their first meeting with all the forest fairies was about over. Tatiana was perched up front on a banana leaf.
“Any questions?”
No one had any, and the crowd of fairies started to disperse, breaking up in little groups to chat.
Serephina and Calista looked at each other. With their fears left unspoken, they flew into the night. They had children to visit and teeth to collect.
Serephina couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “Did you see how big that hole was? Who do you think lives there?”
“I don’t know if I want to find out?” Clalista squealed.
They kept flying, lost in thought, unable to get the pictures that Tatiana had shown out of their mind.
This wasn’t the kind of adventure she wanted. Was it too late to get someone to take her place, wondered Serephina. An idea started to brew in her mind.
“You want me to what??” Sputtered Cara to Serephina early the next morning after serving her a banana chocolate latte with extra whipcream.
Oops! Serephina quickly flew out of the way.
“Think about it. It will give you a break from waitressing and you will be in a beautiful forest. I have to go now but it would certainly be a grand adventure! See you later!”
Serephina flew away, hoping Cara would agree to take her place. She may have left out some of the bigger details about the adventure, but what’s a missed detail or two.
**to be continued **
California time change has made me a morning person …. Waking up between 5 and 6 am …. !
When the airline ticket on your phone buzzes instead of giving the green light … You stand aside and wait for them to check you out on the computer … I literally took one step and was quickly told not to move …
I am used to feeling small but when surrounded by majestic redwoods, being short takes on a whole new meaning!
Nuggets of Gold 