Monday, October 17, 2016

Good books for your Toddler

Books for kids..Are you crazy??
No,books are good way of introducing things to  your kid.They will help the to learn how to pronounce words,identifying characters in the book and also learning good habits from it.

There are many books which will help your kid/toddler to learn few basic things,moral stories are good for home schooling kids and I love reading bed time stories to my kid.

I wonder where the painters would get such a lovely idea for drawing those adorable pictures in these kind of books.I have made list of books based on the age group and would certainly like to add more to the collection.

Cover art

Celebrate liking yourself! Through alternating points of view, a girl's and a boy's, Jamie Lee Curtis's triumphant text and Laura Cornell's lively artwork show kids that the key to feeling good is liking yourself because you are you. Like the duo's first New York Times best-seller, Today I Feel Silly and Other Moods That Make My Day, this is an inspired book to rejoice in and share. I'm Gonna Like Me will have kids letting off some self-esteem in no time!



A perfect first look at baby animals for parents and toddlers to share. These delightful spreads will entertain your toddler with images of animal babies, from kittens and ...




She'll feel like a little princess as magical fairies work together to spell her first and last name in a delightful, personalized fairy-tale book featuring beautiful ...



It's time for a trip to the pumpkin patch! Find out how pumpkins grow. See the many things we do with pumpkins. Let's carve a jack-o'-lantern. Spooky! What happens in fall? ...



Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate The first one said, "My, it's getting late!" Count with the pumpkins from one to five as they each experience the fun and spookiness of ...




An autumnal 8x8 offering that celebrates the ups and downs of fall! The leaves turn red, brown, and orange, then drift down from the trees. It is time to go apple picking and ...

Saturday, August 13, 2016

Party wear for kids

Dress to impress every one is very hard to find.For girls, ball gowns,Tulle frocks, Tutu's and Tiara's are among them.I mean they are all ballerina's, all princesses and all fairies.It is so sweet to watch them put on new dress on top of any dress and dance like a ballerina.In saying that the tutu and tiara or headpiece or crown is so fashionable for any little girl to wear at any time. And how lucky are we too to have such a variety in design and prices. So really the fairy tale, the ballerina or the princess can be your little girl any time she likes and look fabulous!



I feel like Red color is meant for party.This dress is absolutely gorgeous and stunning with all the ruffle at the bottom.The girl is looking like a princess in every glance.





This dress is a true British style with polka dots and  a hat to compliment the dress.





















Wow, this dress is absolutely fabulous...A dress in gold color is meant for party and the style is also new with a layered satin finish.




 

This one is gorgeous too with all the ruffles at cuffs and bottom line,highlighted with black color.Neckline is also apt for this dress.





Pi.nk color is every girl's favorite color.This dress is also fabulous

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Toys for Preschoolers


This is an age of great verbal,physical and social growth.Children learn between 4 and 6 new words a day, and like them to use to express personal feelings and experiences.Fine motor skills improve,enabling kids to use craft tools like scissors, and friendship with peers blossom.

Learning friends with adventure Bus



Age 2-5 years

Price is $19.99

Climb aboard for 3 adventures driven by imagination!
Explore new places, songs and activities with a school bus geared for pretend-play fun.

3 fun adventures

Visit the beach, head to the library and go on a picnic. Each adventure has its own song and phrases!

2 ways to play

Roll the destination sign for a special verse of Wheels on the Bus. Push the driver's seat button to start an adventure.

3 Learning Friends figures



Includes Koala, Fox and Penguin. Add more Learning Friends characters and the Play & Discover School Set (sold separately)!

20+ responses
Get language skills rolling with more than 20 playful songs, phrases and sounds.

Rev motor skills

Flip the stop sign, open and close the doors, fold down the picnic table, spin the bus destination sign and roll along.

Fuel imagination

Encourage pretend play with open-ended scenarios that introduce children to different locations, words and activities.

Teaches
Skills

Fine Motor Skills
Gross Motor Skills
Pretend Play
Vocabulary
The Learning Difference

The Learning Friends Adventure Bus is designed to help children use their imaginations to build confidence about new experiences. Three play-along adventures introduce new vocabulary and encourage pretend play.

Animal Sounds Noah's Ark




Price is £30.00

Find the tunes and the sounds on Noahs ark, press the animals and hear their noises, take the animals out to play, press Noah to hoot the horn and much much more. this great fun filled boat has it all. Requires 2 x AA batteries (Not included).

Minimum Age: 1 YEARS
Recommended Age: 1-3 yrs
Height: 21 CM
Width: 21 CM

Shapes & Sharing Picnic Basket



Age:6-36 months
Set a place for fun, learning and sharing!
Explore shapes, colors, manners and more with this 14-piece talking picnic set.

Fill up on fun

More than 30 audio responses encourage children to play pretend as they explore colors, shapes, sharing and more.

Room for two

Includes two place settings for learning and sharing with a parent or friend.

Move along

Children build motor skills as they sort, match, stack, empty and fill.

Pack and go

Store everything you need right in the basket for easy clean-up every time!

Monday, July 25, 2016

Interactive toys for Toddlers.

I feel rather sleepy by writing all bedtime stories.Now it's time to play with Toys.I have a collection of Toys from Leap frog and Chiccoo. Both brands offer various toys for different age groups and their toys are known for their quality and perfection.Hope you guys like these and bring them home for your loved ones.

Leap Frog Count-along cash register




Age 2-4 years

Price is $19.99

Count on big learning fun with a singing cash register pal that counts,talks and sings -20 check out

items included.


  • cash register
  • 8 colorful food pieces
  • 10 coins
  • shopping card
  • parent guide


Play with a friend
Set up your store! Place food items on a table or shelves, give your customers their coins, and invite

them on a shopping spree!

It helps you to learn colors,counting and numbers.


Leap Frog Alphapup




Age 1-3 years.
Price is $19.99

Pull along to hear ABC song-learn the alphabet and letter sounds.

Letter learning

Colorful stripes on AlphaPup's sweater double as buttons that trigger letter sounds and names to help

teach children phonics and early vocabulary.



Pull-along play

Pull AlphaPup's leash or press the music note button to sing along to three learning songs, and press

the bone button to learn fun doggies phrases.It comes in two colors Pink and green.

Soft ears

Playful pup makes a sweet pal with velvet-soft floppy ears that are fun to pet.

Walk & wobble

This pup loves to show off his strut! With his nose held high, AlphaPup trots along with paw-shaped

wheels that create a cute swagger while on the go.

It teaches Gross motor skills like pulling and pushing,phonics and the alphabets.

Musical rainbow tea-party set



Age 1-3 years

Price- $19.99

Lights up in 6 magical colors and plays 7 tea-time songs.
Brew up learning fun with this pretend play teapot that teaches colors, counting, matching, manners

and more.

Musical rainbow tea party set
3 AAA batteries
parent guide

Interact & imagine

Kids can host a tea party, hear tea gurgling and see it slosh realistically through the teapot’s
heart-shaped window.


Light-up teapot

Teapot lights up in 6 colors to teach color names, and plays 7 songs. Tip, sip and share tea with

friends in two cups.

Colorful cake

Practice motor skills serving and sharing 6 cake pieces, then match the cake to the “flavor” of tea you’ve chosen!



The Learning Difference

The Musical Rainbow Tea Party introduces essential preschool skills from early vocabulary to counting while building social skills like sharing, taking turns and patience.

Roll and Go Rocking Horse



Age 6-36 months

Price $14.99

Giddy up for motor skills!
Play three ways to build gross motor skills and achieve early milestones.

Learn cause & effect

Press the light-up saddle to hear fun phrases and sound effects that encourage baby to interact.

Batting play

Bat the horse to see it rock and hear a song, sound or rhyme like "Wobble-dy wobble-dy whoa, let’s
rock fast and slow."

Roll & go

Push along to start a fun game of chase! Blinking lights and playful songs motivate baby to crawl and build motor skills.

It teaches your kid  Gross motor skills,First words and phrases,cause and effect.

Chiccoo Snow White and Seven Dwarfs Musical cottage




It is never too early to be a princess.

Age-12m+

Snow white and 7 Dwarf Musical Cottage
An enchanted cottage to relive the tail of Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs.  With 10 fun manual

activities:
- Cover & uncover and peek-a-boo features to being to understand the relationship between cause and

effect;
- 15 melodies and sound effects to have fun with the magical world of Snow White.

Fit & Fun Goal League


An electronic game set with a football net & a ball which offers 3 play modes (penalty shots,golden

goal & challenge)

Age 2y+

A sports toy with electronics modes for football lovers!

The football net is triggered when the child scores, by activating amusing lights and sounds. It

offers 3 electronic games modes (penalty shots, golden goal and challenge) to play alone or with

friends, and 5 levels of difficulty for exciting matches. It reproduces 25 melodies and sounds

effects. The ball supplied with the game is made of soft material to be conveniently used inside the

home. With safety net in thin mesh.


3 In 1 Music Band Table



Age 9m+

3 in 1 Musical Table with 8 different manual activities!
This brand new music activity table is rich with different activities that include 25 entertaining

tunes and sound effects and 8 manual activities within 3 different musical toys. It allows more

children to play together and therefor encourages socialization that will help the child to acquire

greater self- awareness and confidence in his own capabilities when relating to others.
Each of the 3 activity toys is removable to allow babies to play with their favourite instrument

wherever they want. 3 different musical instruments encourage the baby to discover music and rhythm: -

 Drums: with 3 electronic play modes : Creates rhythm – the child is free to express his musical

creativity;  Keeps time – the child learns to play drums in time with the tune; Composes song – the

child becomes a star by composing songs in different musical styles.
- Maracas: with a roller and colorful flaps to play with.
- DJ console: with lots of manual activities like a slide, a scratching disk and a record player

stylus.

Sit and Ride train



New loco train with 2 play modes

A brand new ride on! with lots of fun elements like lights & sound effects
The traditional train has been renewed in a brand new ride on! The loco train offers a lot of fun: an

electronic panel on the steering wheel with lights and sounds and some mechanical activities to play

with. New Loco train offers two modes of use to follow baby’s growth. 1. Walker 2. Ride on Complete

with a compartment under the seat. Dimensions: 56x25x48,5h cms

Develops imagination and creativity skills
develops musical skills
develops psycho-motor skills

two modes
1.Sit and ride
allows the child to move around independently moving his legs.

2.First Steps
helps the child to stand up while taking his first steps,offering a handy support on the back handle.

Under seat storage compartment
Removable panel with lights and sounds and manual activities.

Leap Frog Number Lovin' Oven




Age 2-5 years

The perfect recipe for number loving fun!

From Counting and cooking to serving and sharing,it's a preschool prep for little chefs -16 fun

ingredients included.

Price $19.99

In the Box:


  • Interactive Oven
  • 4 pizza slices
  • 3 pieces of bread
  • 2 cupcakes
  • 1 fried egg
  • 1 skillet
  • 1 spatula
  • 1 baking tray
  • 2 plates


You can learn

  • Get cooking skills
  • Delightful singing oven warms up counting, sharing and vocabulary skills.
  • 30+ phrases & songs
  • Press the chef's hat for learning songs, or listen and learn along to fun phrases.
  • 16 ingredients
  • Fry an egg in the skillet. Bake up bread, a pizza and cupcakes, and serve food onto plates with the 
  • spatula!
  • High, medium & low
  • Move the number slider to explore numbers, time and temperature.


That's my  list of toys for Toddlers.If you feel that list is not enough and you would like to add more of your favorite toys,please feel free to write them in comments section.I will certainly add them.



Thursday, July 21, 2016

The tale of peter rabbit

 Today I was searching for a good story and I think this one would be perfect.The characters are so lively that every kid wants to try to be a peter rabbit and do all mischievous things.This is a old English story about a wee rabbit who is naughty,adventurous and scary all at the same time.Hope you enjoy this story.....



Once up on a time there were four little rabbits, and their names were- Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter.

They lived with their mother in a sandbank, underneath the roof of a very big fir tree.

"Now, my dears" said old Mrs rabbit one morning, "you may go into the fields or down the lane, but don't go into Mr Mcgregor's garden: your father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs Mcgregor."



"Now run along and don't get into mischief.I am going out."

Then old Mrs rabbit took a basket and her umbrella and went through the wood to the baker's.She bought a loaf of brown bread and five currant buns.

Flopsy,Mopsy and cottontail who were good little bunnies, went down the lane to gather blackberries.

But Peter,who was very naughty, ran straight away to Mr Mcgregor's garden, and squeezed under the gate.

First he ate some lettuces and some french beans and then he ate some radishes.



And then, feeling rather sick, he went to look for some parsley.
But round the end of a cucumber frame, whom should he meet but Mr Mcgregor.
Mr McGregor was on his hands and knees planting out some young cabbages, but he jumped up and ran after Peter, waving a rake and calling out, 'Stop thief'.
Peter was most dreadfully frightened;he rushed all over the garden,for he had forgotten the way back to the gate.
He lost one of his shoes among the cabbages, and the other among the potatoes.

After losing them,he ran on four legs and went faster ,so that I think he might have got away altogether if he had not unfortunately run in to a gooseberry net and got caught by large buttons on his jacket.It was a blue jacket with brass buttons, quite new.


Peter gave himself up and shed big tears;but his sobs were overheard by some friendly sparrows, who flew to him in great excitement and implored him to exert himself.

Mr McGregor came up with a sieve, which he intended to pop upon the top of Peter, but Peter wriggled out just in time, leaving his jacket behind him, and rushed into the toolshed, and jumped into a can.It would have been a beautiful thing to hide in, if it had not had so much water in it.

Mr McGregor was quite sure that Peter was somewhere in the toolshed,perhaps hidden underneath a flower-pot.He began to turn them over carefully, looking under each.

Presently, Peter sneezed- "Kertyschoo!"
Mr McGregor was after him in no time, and tried to put his foot upon Peter, who jumped out of a window , upsetting three plants.The window was too small for Mr McGregor and he was tired running after Peter.He went back to his work.

Peter sat down to rest;he was out of breath and trembling with fright, and he had not the least idea which way to go.Also he was very damp with sitting in that can.

After a time he began to wander about,going lippity-lippity, not very fast and looking all around.He found a door in a wall;but it was locked, and there was no room for a fat little rabbit to squeeze underneath.

An old mouse was running in and out over the stone doorstep,carrying peas and beans to her family in the wood.Peter asked her the way to the gate, but she had such a large pea in her mouth that she could not answer.She only shook her head at him.Peter began to cry..

Then he tried to find his way straight across the garden, but he became more and more puzzled.Presently he came to a pond, where Mr McGregor filled his water-cans.A white cat was staring at some gold fish; she sat very very still as if she was dead.

Peter thought it best to go away without speaking to her; he had heard about cats from his cousin, little Benjamin bunny.
He went back towards the toolshed, but suddenly, quite close to him,he heard the noise of a hoe-scritch,scratch,scratch,scritch.Peter scuttered underneath the bushes.But presently, as nothing happened, he came out and climbed upon a wheelbarrow,and peeped over.The first thing he saw was Mr McGregor hoeing onions.His back was turned towards Peter and beyond him was the gate!.

Peter got down very quietly off the wheelbarrow and started running as fast as he could go, along a straight walk behind some blackcurrant bushes.

Mr McGregor caught sight of him at the corner, but Peter did not care.He slipped underneath the gate and was safe at last in the wood outside the garden.

Mr McGregor hung up the little jacket and his shoes for a scarecrow to frighten the blackbirds.
Peter never stopped running or looked behind him till he got home to the big fir tree.

He got so tired that he flopped down on the nice soft sand on the floor of the rabbit-hole and shut his eyes.His mother was busy cooking;she wondered what had he done with his clothes.It was the second little jacket and pair of shoes Peter had lost in a fortnight.

I am sorry to say that Peter was not very well during the evening.

His mother put him to bed, and made some camomile tea; and she gave a dose of it to Peter!
'One tablespoonful to be taken at bedtime.'

But Flopsy,Mopsy and Cottontail had bread and milk and blackberries for supper.

The End....Good night.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Miller's mouse--bedtime story for kids

The Miller's Mouse




The reason why every one loved Tom Lecky so much was, I believe, that he was so good tempered, so cheerful and so unselfish.

Tom was not good looking, and, indeed, if one were disposed to be critical in such matters, one could have found fault with almost all his features except his eyes. These were brown like sealskin, and nearly always brimming over with merriment. But no one ever thought of criticizing Tom's features, and there really was a common belief among the villagers that Tom was a handsome fellow. And indeed he was, for his beautiful unselfish soul gave to his face a beauty which merely regular features can never do.

Tom Lecky owned a flour mill, which was situated a little way from Ellingford, the village where he had been born. He was "well-off," for the mill brought him a good deal of money. He had no relations, but hoped to have a very near one "a wife". This was Anne Grey, the blacksmith's daughter, who was as pretty as she was winsome. She was fond of pretty things too, flowers especially, so it was Tom's delight to gratify her fancy.



For this reason he bought Brooks cottage, which had a lovely garden. And week by week he purchased this or that to make his cottage pretty and home like for his bride. It would be difficult to tell how much pleasure Tom found in furnishing this cottage. He would wander in the garden paths among the rose bushes, smiling to himself as he thought of the many surprises in store for Anne. But a surprise was in store for him which was not at all pleasant. Anne Grey married some one else.

When Tom heard this, he locked up the pretty cottage, put the key in his pocket, and went to the mill to live. To Anne he spoke no word, though he saw her with her husband coming from the church. In fact, he spoke to no one, but did his work at the mill like a man in a dream. Some there tried to break through his stony reserve, but no one succeeded. Tom Lecky had become hard and soured. He remained alone in the mill except for the mice, and for these he set traps. He caught a great many, and plunged them, trap and all, into a bucket of water. When he found a trap with a mouse in it he would look at the little creature beating itself against its prison, turning rapidly round, forcing its pointed nose between the wire bars, while its long tail hung down through the bars on the other side. He would watch the bright little eyes almost start from their sockets in fear and agony, and yet no feeling of sorrow or pity came into his heart for the tiny captive, and after a time with a smile on his face he would drown the little creature. Could this be the Tom Lecky who had had such tenderness at the sight of pain?

Tom's "living room" was in the basement of the mill. In it were a table, a chair, a bed, and a cupboard. There was also a hanging bookshelf, with a row of books on it, which Tom never opened now. Through the ceiling of this room descended a ladder white with flour. If you climbed this ladder you found yourself in a room smothered with flour dust, and your ears were almost deafened by the sound of the machinery overhead which the wind impelled mill wheel kept in motion, while the descending stream of ground flour traveled unceasingly down from the grinding wheel to the bin below. There was a ladder from this room to the one above where the machinery was. There was also a room over this from which you could get outside and regulate the small spiny looking wheel at the top so as to gain all the force of the wind. All these rooms were festooned with cobwebs quite white with flour. The spiders were white, too, which made them look larger. Even the mice caught in the traps were white with flour.

Now at eight o'clock every evening Tom sat down at the round wooden table, and ate his bread and cheese by the light of a candle inserted in the neck of a bottle. And every night at this time there crept out from a crevice near the cupboard a tiny brown mouse, covered with flour dust. This little mouse seemed eager and hungry, but it never ventured near the traps where the alluring cheese smelt so deliciously. It would wait for Tom to drop a crumb, and then would dart after it and frisk away into its hole, to return and watch again for another crumb. This happened night after night, till Tom began to watch for the little creature with some eagerness. The sound of its tiny scampering feet on the floor would call up a feeling of pleasure like that which one feels when the knock of a dear friend is heard on the door. But Tom was bitter for all this, and at times he had a savage hope that the little mouse would after all be lured into one of the traps. He did not want to feel tender or kindly any more to anything. He wanted to feel cruel and heartless, because his tenderness had cost him so much pain.

One autumn evening, when the air was still, and a sweet afterglow rested on the sky like an echo of the sunset, Tom sat thinking in his chair. It was then that he saw something which he never forgot. He saw his small friend watching one of the traps in which another mouse had just been caught. "Now it will shun me," thought Tom. "It has seen what the traps are for." But the tiny brown creature did not run away, as might have been expected, but crept up to the miller as trustfully as ever; indeed, more so, for it came upon the table and nibbled at a piece of bread close to Tom's hand. Then Tom arose, and went towards the trap, and, instead of drowning the captive, opened the door and set it at liberty. From that time he set no more traps. And he fell to thinking with shame that he had not given even a "Good-day" to those who had brought their corn to him to grind, and that when he passed through the village he had spurned children and dogs who had once been favourites of his, and had come to him with the confidence of old playmates. He remembered that some he had known and cared for had passed through sickness and trouble, and he had not gone to cheer them with a single word. And all this because he was unhappy.

And as he pondered with ever increasing shame, the mouse crept up again and nibbled at his bread. "In spite of what this mouse has seen, it can still trust me," he thought, "and I, because one deceived me, have mistrusted all the world!"

Then he got up and put on his hat, and went out into the twilight. A little breeze had sprung up, and the trees seemed to be whispering together. He seemed to know what they said, though he could not have put it into words. He felt as if his old happiest self were rising once more from the tomb in which his resentment had buried it. It was not the light-hearted self which had once been, but it was the old loving, unselfish Tom for all that. He wandered on aimlessly at first, but afterwards with definite intentions. He would go to Brooks cottage. He could bear to do so now. He would see how the neglected garden had done without him, and perhaps tomorrow put it to rights.

When Tom reached the garden gate (it was a tall wicket gate through which you could get a peep at the garden) he undid the padlock, and in the half light saw a tall hollyhock stretching itself across the entrance as if barring the way. "The garden is ours—mine and the rest of the flowers," it seemed to say. "Why do you come to disturb our peace?—you who have forsaken us."

And the miller's heart answered, "If one who has forsaken you should come back, would you not receive him?" And then there came into his mind a glad thought. Anne Grey might some day turn to him in trouble, and then he would help her, and never—certainly never—reproach her. This thought warmed his heart as he passed into the garden. How sweet was the breath of the flowers! How their delicate shapes outlined themselves in the twilight! There was the little arbor over which Tom had trained the honeysuckle and blush roses. He had often fancied Anne sitting there in the long summer afternoons sewing and singing to herself. Now the trailers of the rose half hid the entrance, and a bat flew out at the sound of Tom's step. Night moths flitted hither and thither, and winged beetles made the air vibrate with their drowsy buzzing. The stars began to peep out one after another, and a hush seemed to fall on the garden as if the flowers were asleep.

Then Tom stooped his tall form under the rose trailers and entered the arbor. There was a table in it, and a sort of fixture seat all round. Tom had made it himself at leisure moments. "If we have little ones," he had said to himself, "there will be a seat for them all." Now he sat in the arbor alone, and the rose trailers moved in and out with a rustling sound.

The sounds and scents made Tom quite drowsy, and he presently imagined he really saw and heard things which never could have happened. But they were so beautiful that he liked to think them real even afterwards.

The table in the centre of the arbor was fixed, and upon it Tom leaned his arms. So he could see the glimmer of the sky between the branches, and one single bright star that looked, as he thought, kindly on him. He gazed and gazed at the star, and at the outlined branches, and at the peep of sky, till all his heart seemed to open to good—and that is to God. He gazed till self was forgotten in a beautiful dream. Ah! happiness, he saw, did not consist in self-gratification, but in giving up for others. Then he closed his eyes like a child who has wept but is comforted; and it was then that he heard the little brown mouse talking with the flowers. Now the mouse was at the mill, as we know, so this was very odd.

"Why is the miller so sad?" asked a tall lily.

"First of all," said the mouse, "because Anne Grey is married to some one else, but most of all because he has made so many others bear his sorrow."

"And did making others bear his sorrow make his pain less?" the sunflower asked.

"No," said the mouse, "it made it more; for he had to feel cruel as well as unhappy."

Then a tiny late linumflower spoke.

"I have not lived a long while," said the linumflower; "I came out late. I don't quite understand it, but I think it must be best to wait for one's joy. It may be the miller is to have more joy because he has to wait."

Then a yew tree spoke.

"You are right, little linumflower; my relations in the graveyard have told me as much. They hear what the dead say at midnight. It is those who wait who get the truest joy!"

Then the miller heard a voice which was not like the others. It was a baby voice with tears in it. "I is hungry," it said; and Tom started up, his eyes wide open, and in the star glimmer he saw a tiny child looking at him. Yes, he was awake, and the child was a real child.

"I comed in here," said the little one, "betause the gate was open."

The miller took the little one in his arms and kissed it.

"So you are hungry," he said caressingly. "Well, I must take you home. What is your name?"

"Dot," said the child; "and home is goned away on wheels, and uncle don't want me no more."

"Uncle," repeated Tom reflectively. "Then have you no mother or father, little one?"

"Never had none of these things," said Dot positively. "Some of the other children had, though," she added, as if for the sake of accuracy.

"What other children?" Tom asked with interest.

"Them as was with us in the van," said Dot.

"Did you live in a van, Dot?" inquired Tom.

"Yes," said the child, "the van has runned away. There's baskets and chairs and things all over the top of it. Uncle said he was agoing to leave me somewhere, and now he's done it."

"How old are you, Dot?"

The child shook her head. "I didn't have no birfdays," she said wistfully. "Ned and Polly and Jim did, but not me."

"Little Dot," cried Tom, hugging the small creature, "so they wanted to get rid of you, did they! Well, you shall come home with me; and, Dot, you shall begin to have birthdays tomorrow!"

"And some bread and gravy tonight—all across the loaf?" Dot asked anxiously.

"Yes, Dot, lots of times across the loaf if you want it."

"I will sell feather brushes for you," said Dot with enthusiasm.

Tom laughed. He had never laughed before all the summer through.

When Tom and Dot reached the mill it was quite dark, and Dot had to stand still in the doorway while the miller lit his candle. When the candle was lit the first thing Dot saw was the little brown mouse scudding across the table. She clapped her hands with delight, for she was not a bit afraid of mice. But the noise she made frightened the mouse, and it ran into its hole and never came out again all that night.

Tom slept on a heap of flour bags, for you see he had tucked Dot up snugly in his bed; but he slept soundly and well, for it is not so much the kind of bed we lie on, as the thoughts we lie down with, that give us pleasant sleep, and of all thoughts the best is that of having done some good and unselfish action in the day.

Dot proved uncommonly useful next morning. Tiny creature though she was, she was quite learned in domestic affairs. She lit the fire and tidied up the room before Tom was even awake. Indeed, when he did wake, it was to see her perched on his chair peeping into the cupboard to find the breakfast service. Tom's breakfast service was not extensive. It consisted of a huge cup and saucer a good deal chipped, two plates and a jam pot, this last article doing duty as a sugar basin.

Dot was evidently well used to make-shifts, for she even invented a new one. Upon the mantelshelf was a curious old vase with a griffin's head surrounding it. It was shaped like a jug, so Dot took it down and washed it, saying to herself, "This will make a fine milk jug."

"A fine milk jug?" yawned the miller from his flourbag couch. "Ah, to be sure! children want milk to drink." And with this he threw on his clothes, and hastily washed himself in a water butt which stood near the mill steps. Then he called to Dot. "Come, little one, bring your milk jug; we will go to the farm for milk for your breakfast."

"But we want to fetch the milk in a can," objected Dot.

Tom scratched his head in a bewildered way for a moment, then a happy thought struck him. "My beer can will do, won't it?" he asked.

"Yes," answered Dot seriously, "only first it must be scrubbed."

So Tom scrubbed the can obediently, and when it shone sufficiently the two started off to a neighboring farm to buy the milk.

On the way from the farm a strange thing happened. Tom and Dot were trudging merrily along a little lane, when they perceived a woman crouching under a hedge, holding in her arms a bundle wrapped in a shawl. The woman might have escaped notice, perhaps, had not a cry proceeded from the bundle. Tom had of late heard so many cries in his heart, that his ear readily lent itself to one from outside. He came up to the woman, therefore, at once and said, "You have a little one wrapped in that, haven't you? Is it hungry? If it is, here is some milk."

At first the woman did not raise her head. It was hidden in the shawl which covered the infant, so the miller repeated his question. Then the woman looked up, and the eyes which met Tom's were those of Anne Grey. She knew Tom at once, but it was with no smile of pleasure that she greeted him. Her words, too, when they came, were hard and cold. She only said, "So, Tom Lecky, you see what I have come to; rejoice in it!"

"Does the little one want food?" Tom asked again, without noticing in any way the words or the tone of the woman.

"And if it does?" said Anne, with a bitter little laugh.

"Why, if it does, I'm ready to give it some," said Tom, passing his coatsleeve before his eyes for a moment. Then removing it suddenly he smiled into the woman's face—an April sort of smile, which scarcely knows whether to cloud over or to beam out with full warmth—and said, "And if you want anything I can give, it is yours for the taking."

The woman burst into tears, and the child, which was scarcely more than a baby, cried too. It was then that little Dot came forward and took the shawled bundle in her own baby arms, and commenced to feed it from the milkcan.

"How is it you are so early?" inquired Tom anxiously, for he knew that Anne's new home was many miles away.

"I have been here all night," she made answer.

"Anne, the cottage is still there, and the bit of furniture in it; go there, Anne—go now."

So Anne went after all to the cottage, which had been so long prepared for her, but it was not with Tom. He stayed at the mill with little Dot. And every night, when the child lay sleeping, the brown mouse crept out to bear the miller company. It was about this time that Tom thought the mouse began to talk to him as it had talked with the flowers in the garden the night he had found Dot.

"Miller," said the mouse, "is it not small things which make one happy?"

"Some things may content one, but it takes great ones to make one happy," said he.

"Contentment is happiness," said the mouse.

Now while the mouse was speaking, the candle, which was, as we have said, in the neck of a bottle instead of a candlestick, went out, and dropped right to the bottom of the bottle. There was a tiny spark seen for some time through the green glass, and by its light the miller saw many strange things, and the mouse was mixed up with them all.

The first thing he saw was a misty little ladder, made apparently of the cobwebs which festooned the mill. The ladder reached from the table right up through the floor and through the next floor, and from thence right up through the roof. A star was seen gleaming on its top. Up this strange ladder the little mouse ran, and the miller saw it by the light of the tiny spark, which somehow shot out upward rays which lit the ladder from top to bottom. When the mouse reached the top a tiny creature floated down from the star and presented it with a gift. This the mouse brought down and laid on the table before the miller. At first he thought it was sparks from the candle, but as he looked closer he found glittering words were formed by them; but they were in a language he could not read.

"What is the language?" he asked the mouse.

"The language of the eyes," answered the mouse.

"Read it to me," said the miller.

And the mouse read: "Tom, I am sorry—I am lonely; my husband and parents are gone. Tom, have you forgotten the old days?"

"It must be Anne's eyes which say this," cried the miller. "Yes, I might have read it all along."

Then the filmy ladder disappeared, and in the green light rose the little garden where the spring flowers were growing now. Within the arbor where Tom had gone to sleep one night sat Anne, her hands engaged in knitting, her eyes looking far away.

"Mouse, what is she thinking?" asked the miller. "You seem to know everything."

"Her eyes are talking," said the mouse.

"And what do they say?"

"They say, 'The miller only pities me; he no longer loves me.'"

"Ah, the eyes are wrong," cried Tom. "I will go to her and tell her so."

"Not yet," said the mouse. "Wait."

And then among the flowers there appeared a little child, and the child spoke low to the flowers.

"Listen," said the mouse.

"Oh, flowers, I have no father," murmured the child.

"Stop," cried the miller, "I must go."

And as he said this the light went quite out, and in the dim starlight which shone through the window he saw the mouse nibbling a crust of bread near his elbow. But for this little rustling sound, and Dot's breathing, all was silent. Yet there were voices in the miller's heart which made themselves heard well enough. One was the voice of Hope, the other the voice of Love.

So next day, when the sun was setting, Tom put on his best clothes, and, taking Dot by the hand, walked towards Brooks cottage. When they reached it, Anne's little child stood in the gateway.

"Little one," said Tom, stooping and kissing the child, "is mother in the garden?"

The child pointed to the arbor.

"Stay together, children," said the miller; and then he entered the arbor.

"What did I tell you?" said the mouse. The miller was in the old room at the mill for the last night.

"It matters little what you told me," said the miller—"you taught me so much."

Now from this time the mouse spoke no more to Tom, though he often saw the little brown creature. It is only to the lonely and sorrowful that mice and trees and clouds and wind talk much. And the miller was happy, for had not Anne consented to marry him, and was not the wedding day no farther distant now than tomorrow?

Anne visited the mill with her husband a week later, and she said, "There are many mice here. Why don't you set traps for them?"

"I cannot do that," said the miller. "One mouse has taught me more than all the books I have read. The mice are welcome to what they take of the grain."

And Anne questioned no more. It was enough for her that she and Tom were together. So I suppose the little brown mouse, or at least its descendants, still live on unmolested at the mill.

Reciepe for a Happy day--bedtime story

One morning Marjorie's Mamma called to her several times before Marjorie answered, for her pretty brown eyes were very sleepy and would hardly stay open.





"Come, dear! Please hurry, for I want you to run to the grocery before breakfast!" Mamma called from the foot of the stairs.

"Oh dear!" exclaimed Marjorie, "I don't want to get up!" and keeping her head on the pillow just as long as she could Marjorie crawled out of bed backwards.

Her clothes were scattered about the room and her stockings were turned inside out. Her dress would not fasten and she cried, so that Mamma had to come upstairs and dress her.

So you see Marjorie's day began all wrong, for everything started topsy-turvy.

"Now hurry, dear!" Mamma said as she handed Marjorie the basket. Marjorie slammed the door as she went out and she was so cross she did not notice the beautiful sunshine nor hear the pretty songs which greeted her from the tree tops.

"It's so far to the old store!" Marjorie grumbled to herself, as she pouted her pretty lips and shuffled her feet along the path. "Hello, Marjorie!" laughed a merry voice.

Marjorie saw a queer little elf sitting upon a stone at the side of the road. His little green suit was so near the color of the leaves Marjorie could scarcely distinguish him from the foliage.

He wore a funny little pointed cap of a brilliant red, and sticking in it was a long yellow feather.

Two long hairs grew from his eyebrows and curled over his cap. He was hardly as large as Marjorie's doll, Jane.

"Who are you, and where did you come from?" Marjorie cried, for she thought him the most comical little creature she had ever seen.

"Why, I'm Merry Chuckle from Make-Believe Land!" replied the elf. "And aren't you very cross this lovely day?"

"I did not want to get up!" cried Marjorie, "and I just hate to go to the store! It's too far!" She dropped her basket on the ground and sat down beside the elf on the large stone.

"Isn't it funny?" laughed Merry Chuckle. "There are hundreds of children just like you who make hard work of getting up when they are called in the morning and who remain cross and ugly all day long!"

"I really do not mean to be cross, but I just can't help it sometimes!" Marjorie said.

"Oh, but indeed you can help it, Marjorie!" the elf solemnly said as he shook his tiny finger at her nose. "And I am going to tell you how. First of all, when you awaken in the morning you must say to yourself, 'Oh what a lovely, happy day this is going to be!' then raise your arms above your head and take three long, deep breaths. Jump out of bed quickly, always remembering to put your toes on the floor first.

"For," continued Merry Chuckle, "Old Witchy Crosspatch is always waiting for children to get out of bed backwards. And when they do, she catches them by the heels and turns everything topsy-turvy all day long; but when you get out of bed toes first, I'll be there to start you on a pleasant day and Witchy Crosspatch will have to return to Make-Believe Land and hide her head!" "Sure enough, I did crawl out of bed backwards this morning!" Marjorie said. "I know you did, my dear!" Merry Chuckle giggled. "And every time you do old Witchy Crosspatch makes everything seem disagreeable!"

"But I hate to run errands, Mister Chuckle!" cried Marjorie. "The old road is so dreadfully long and tiresome!"

"But the longer the road the more happiness you can find along the way, my dear!" Merry Chuckle replied, quick as a wink, his little eyes twinkling brightly. "If you look up at the blue sky and the beautiful sunshine and sing with the birds as you run along you'll find the road seems too short and you'll be back before you notice it. Just try it and see."

So Marjorie looked up the road with a smile and, sure enough, it did not seem so far to the store, and when she turned around, she was sitting upon the stone alone. The little elf had suddenly disappeared.

Marjorie picked up her basket and skipped down the road singing at the top of her voice and before she had time to think about how far it was she was back home telling Mamma all about the queer little elf from Make-Believe Land.

"You haven't been away long enough to stop and talk with anyone on the road!" laughed Mamma. "Are you sure you have not been dreaming?" Marjorie wondered if it really had only been a dream, but the next morning when the golden sunshine peeped through her bedroom curtains, Marjorie did as Merry Chuckle had told her the day before.

First of all she woke up and cried, "Oh what a lovely day this is going to be!" Then she took three long, deep breaths and then she jumped out of bed quickly, right on her toes. And, sure enough, old Witchy Crosspatch had to go back to Make-Believe Land and hide her head, so Marjorie spent a lovely, happy day with Merry Chuckle.

"I hope all children will hear of my recipe for a joyous day," said Merry Chuckle, "so that each day for them can be filled with sunshine and happiness!"


Sunday, July 17, 2016

Cinderella--bedtime story for kids





Once upon a time, there was a wealthy widower who married a proud and haughty woman as his second wife. She had two daughters, who were equally vain and selfish. The gentleman had a beautiful young daughter, a girl of unparalleled kindness and sweet temper. The man's daughter is forced into servitude, where she was made to work day and night doing menial chores. 

After the girl's chores were done for the day, she would curl up near the fireplace in an effort to stay warm. She would often arise covered in cinders, giving rise to the mocking nickname "Cinderella" by her stepsisters. Cinderella bore the abuse patiently and dared not tell her father, who would have scolded her.

One day, the Prince invited all the young ladies in the land to a royal ball, planning to choose a wife. The two stepsisters gleefully planned their wardrobes for the ball, and taunted Cinderella by telling her that maids were not invited to the ball.



As the sisters departed to the ball, Cinderella cried in despair. Her Fairy Godmother magically appeared and immediately began to transform Cinderella from house servant to the young lady she was by birth, all in the effort to get Cinderella to the ball. She turned a pumpkin into a golden carriage, mice into horses, a rat into a coachman, and lizards into footmen. She then turned Cinderella's rags into a beautiful jeweled gown, complete with a delicate pair of glass slippers. The Godmother told her to enjoy the ball, but warned that she had to return before midnight, when the spells would be broken.

At the ball, the entire court was entranced by Cinderella, especially the Prince. At this first ball, Cinderella remembers to leave before midnight. Back home, Cinderella graciously thanked her Godmother. She then greeted the stepsisters, who had not recognized her earlier and talked of nothing but the beautiful girl at the ball.




Another ball was held the next evening, and Cinderella again attended with her Godmother's help. The Prince had become even more infatuated, and Cinderella in turn became so enchanted by him she lost track of time and left only at the final stroke of midnight, losing one of her glass slippers on the steps of the palace in her haste. The Prince chased her, but outside the palace, the guards saw only a simple country girl leave. The Prince pocketed the slipper and vowed to find and marry the girl to whom it belonged. Meanwhile, Cinderella kept the other slipper, which did not disappear when the spell was broken.

The Prince tried the slipper on all the women in the kingdom. When the Prince arrives at Cinderella's home, the stepsisters tried in vain to win over the prince . Cinderella asked if she might try, while the stepsisters taunted her. Naturally, the slipper fit perfectly, and Cinderella produced the other slipper for good measure. Cinderella's stepfamily pleaded for forgiveness, and Cinderella agreed.



Cinderella married the Prince as her stepsisters are married to two handsome gentlemen of the royal court.They lived happily everafter..

The End....

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Sleeping beauty--Bedtime story





Once up on a time a beautiful baby girl was born to a king and queen.They had wanted a child for a long time,so they were very happy.
The proud king soon began organizing a christening feast for his little princess.
All the king's family and friends were invited to the christening.They also asked fairies to come- all apart from one, who was known for being mean.
On the big day the guests arrived,bringing lots of lovely gifts.
"Congratulations your highness!!!".
The fairies lined up to give the baby princess her presents.They came forward one by one,casting spells of kindness,beauty and cleverness.



The last fairy was just about to give her gift,when there was a loud noise in the courtyard.
"Crash"
Just then, the mean fairy who had not been invited burst in angrily and said....
"When the princess is fifteen she shall touch a spindle and fall dead!"
The queen collapsed in to the king's arms in shock, but then the last fairy who was kind stepped forwards,"Wait" she said.
"I can soften the curse a little," she said."If the princess touches a spindle,she will not die."
"Instead she will fall asleep for one hundred years.Only a prince shall be able to wake her....with a single kiss."
The king gave out an order for all the spindles in the land to be destroyed.
The princess grew up to a beautiful young lady.
One day she was exploring castle all by herself, she came across a door that she hadn't seen before.
She opened it and found steps leading to a mysterious tower.


The princess walked up the steps and in to a dusty room.There she saw a woman,busy at a strange wheel with some thread.
"Hello,what are you doing?" asked the princess.
"I'm spinning my dear", said the  woman.The princess walked closer, and as she came to spindle she reached out to touch it.
"Whrrrrrrrr Whrrrrrrrr"
"Ouch!" the princess cried as her finger touched the spindle, and while the wicked fairy for it was she-vanished,the princess fell down asleep.
At that moment the king and queen fell asleep on their thrones.The horses slept in their stables and the servants slipped in to their slumber.
Days,weeks and then months went past, and a large hedge of thorns grew around the palace.Every year it became thicker, until the palace was completely hidden.
Exactly one hundred years later, a prince was riding nearby.He could see the tips of a turret  above the thorns.As he neared, the hedge parted, allowing him to pass through.
The prince eventually arrived at the palace and saw  everyone was sleeping.
He wondered why everything and everyone had been frozen in time.




Finally, he came to the room where princess was sleeping.She was so beautiful that he stooped down to give her a kiss.At that moment she opened her eyes and woke up.
It was love at first sight.
Everyone in the castle also awoke.At last the princess was reunited with her mother and father.They were delighted!!
The evil fairy's spell was broken!
Sleeping beauty and prince were soon married and they lived happily ever after!


"Hip Hip Hooray"
The End.

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Humpty Dumpty--bedtime story

                                          


We all know Humpty dumpty in a nursery rhyme,but there is a story about his fall and how he recovered from it...Why late,let's start reading....

Humpty Dumpty was a smooth, round little chap, with a winning smile, and a great golden heart in his broad breast.

Only one thing troubled Humpty, and that was, that he might fall and crack his thin, white skin. He wished to be hard, all the way through, for he felt his heart wobble when he walked, or ran about, so off he went to the Black Hen for advice.

This Hen was kind and wise, so she was just the one, for him to go to with his trouble.

“Your father, Old Humpty Dumpty,” said the Hen, “was very foolish, and would take warning from no one. You know what the poet said of him:

Humpty-Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty-Dumpty had a great fall,
All the king’s horses, and all the king’s men
Cannot put Humpty-Dumpty together again.
So you see, he came to a very bad end, just because he was reckless, and would not take a hint from any one, he was much worse than a scrambled egg. The king, his horses and his men, did all they could for him, but his case was hopeless,” and the Hen shook her head sadly.

“What you must do,” continued the Hen, as she wiped a tear from her bright blue eye, “is to go to the Farmer’s Wife, next door, and tell her to put you into a pot of boiling hot water. Your skin is so hard and smooth, it will not hurt you, and when you come out, you may do as you wish, nothing can break you, you can tumble about to your heart’s content, and you will not break, nor even dent yourself.”

So Humpty Dumpty rolled in next door, and told the Farmer’s Wife that he wanted to be put into boiling hot water as he was too brittle to be of any use to himself or to any one else.

“Indeed you shall,” said the Farmer’s Wife, “what is more I shall wrap you up in a piece of spotted calico, so that you will have a nice colored dress. You will come out, looking as bright as an Easter Egg.”

So she tied him up in a gay new rag, and dropped him into the copper kettle of boiling water that was on the hearth.

It was pretty hot for Humpty at first, but he soon got used to it, and was happy, for he felt himself getting harder every minute.

He did not have to stay in the water long, before he was quite well done, and as hard as a brick all the way through. So, untying the rag, he jumped out of the kettle as tough and as bright as any hard boiled Egg.

The calico had marked him from head to foot with big, bright, red spots, he was as gaudy as a circus clown, and as nimble and merry as one.

The Farmer’s Wife shook with laughter to see the pranks of the little fellow, for he frolicked and frisked about from table to chair, and mantelpiece. He would fall from the shelf to the floor, just to show how hard he was, and after thanking the good woman most politely, for the service she had done him, he walked out into the sunshine, on the clothesline, like a rope dancer, to see the wide, wide world.

Of the travels of Humpty-Dumpty much could be said, he went East, West, North and South. He sailed the seas, he walked and rode on the land through all the Countries of the Earth, and all his life long he was happy and content.

Sometimes as a clown, in a circus, he would make fun for old and young. Again, as a wandering minstrel, he twanged the strings of his banjo and sung a merry song, and so on through all his travels, he would lighten the cares of others, and make them forget their sorrows, and fill every heart with joy.

Rocking horse--bedtime story for Toddler


Rocking horse

                                             

This is the bed time story of a very special rocking horse. He was a very old rocking-horse indeed. His first master, sunny-headed little Robbie, had grown into a man with a beard, and had given his old playmate to his sister's children.

These children had in their turn grown into great schoolboys, so the old horse, like the other toys, was left forsaken in the big nursery at the top of the house.

Broken down furniture and old magazines had found their way there, together with travel trunks and suitcases. Spiders had spun their webs over the windows and dust lay thick on everything.

When little Basil found his way into the old nursery it seemed to him like an enchanted palace. The spiders and dust only made him think that somewhere he would find the "sleeping beauty." The litter of toys and paper and boxes suggested hidden treasure.

Once in this room of delightful possibilities, he did not care how long his mother and aunt continued their wearisome talks downstairs of what they called "old times."  He sat himself down on an old stuffed chair while he considered where to begin his operations, and stared at the deeply cut initials on the mantelshelf, and regretted that the chimney piece in the nursery at home, being stone, did not lend itself to similar delights.

With a sigh he rolled over, and the rocking horse met his gaze. He looked at it so long that his eyes blinked. Older people would have said that just then the old horse creaked—as old things have a way of doing. But children understand these things better than old folks who have grown dull. Basil knew quite well that the old horse had sighed, and he asked him what was the matter.

"I was only wishing some one would smarten me up a bit," said the horse. "My left eye is in that box with the tin soldiers. My tail is tied to a stick in that cupboard where the tools are—a bit of glue would stick both in. And one stirrup is nailed to the table drawer for a handle. It could be gotten off, and tied to my saddle-strap with a bit of string. My mane is gone for ever. Johnny put it on a mask for whiskers, his cat, one day, and Herbert threw it in the bonfire.

I don't suppose any of the nails can be got out that Tom knocked into my sides; they are in too tight. Nor can the buttons and marbles be got out of my inside that Johnny put in through the hole in my neck. But I might be smartened up a little!"

"Oh, if that is all you want I dare say I can help you," said Basil, jumping up and running to the cupboard. "Here's your tail, anyway! And here's a bottle of liquid glue too. Now I'll look for your eye."

"You know," went on the old horse, "I heard the mother saying the other day that she would send me back to my old home if I were not so shabby."

Basil, who had found the missing eye, was now fixing it in its place with plenty of glue, which ran down and dropped off the horse's nose. Basil was sure he saw a tear drop from the other eye.

"Does it hurt?" he asked sympathetically.

"Oh, I don't mind that," said the horse. "It is like old times to be hurt by a little boy; besides, one must always suffer if one would look fine."


"Yes, Mother says something like that when I cry while she combs my hair," said Basil.

"Robbie didn't cry to have his hair combed," said the horse shortly. "He didn't even cry when the soap was in his eyes. By now he has grown into a brave man! When he fell off me and made his leg bleed he said it was nothing, and just got on me again. But he did cry when he parted from me."

"Well, he was a coward once, anyway."

"No, he wasn't," snorted the horse. "It isn't cowardly to cry because you are leaving some one you love."

"All the same, don't toss your head like that, or your eye will drop out again," cried Basil warningly. "But you may go on telling me about Robbie."

"I was his dearest friend," went on the horse. "He told me all about his troubles and showed me all his new things; and he used to learn his lessons sitting on my back. When he had a piece of cake he used to push a bit in through the hole in my neck, and rock me to make it drop into my stomach."

"Oh! then the hole has been there a long time."

"Yes, Robbie made it to feed me through. Those other boys only put buttons and marbles in, and old nails. Robbie always gave me a bit of cake with the biggest plum in it.

When he was ill he asked for me, and the mother had me put by the bedside, and I watched him night and day. His little hand grew so thin and pale, and he used to slip it out from under the quilt to stroke me."

"There! Your tail's in now," cried Basil. "So now I will see if I can get the stirrup off the drawer; then I'll sponge you a bit."

"If you could only make me look nice they would send me back for Robbie's boy, and I should see Robbie again. You are a kind little boy, and Robbie will love you."

"Tell me some more. You look ever so much better already," said Basil, tugging away at the stirrup. "And I dare say when you get back to Robbie he will have you painted up, and then you will feel just like you used to feel."

"Yes," said the old horse; "he will have me done up like new, and he will tell his little boy to love me for his sake, and all my happy days will begin again.

Often at night I have listened to the wind roaring in the chimney and have shivered with cold, and have thought how Robbie would have put a rug over me if he were here."

Just then the gong sounded for luncheon. "I must go now," said Basil, "but I will come up again and finish you."

"Auntie," Basil began, when he was seated at the table, "I have been mending up the old rocking horse; won't you send it to Uncle Robbie's boy?"

Basil was too wise to repeat all the old horse had told him, for he knew that grown-up people never understand that toys talk to the children.

"Yes, I think I will," auntie replied.

The lights were lit in the entrance hall of a big house in a country town. A frisky, little child raced to the door to meet a tall, handsome man who had just entered.

"Papa! Papa! the old wocking-horse is tum—it was youse when you was ittle boy; tum and see it."

The father perched his little son on his shoulder and mounted the stairs to the nursery, where the firelight danced on the walls.

The old rocking-horse was waiting, almost faint with joy; he was soon to see his beloved master, to feel his caress.

The father placed his son on the floor, and advanced to his old playmate.

"Well, what have we here!" he exclaimed, laughing.

"It is certainly good to see you old friend."

So the old horse was happy to be in his new home, reunited with his old friend and, also, to have a very special new friend.