7 Ways to avoid becoming an Ogre’s snack.

1. Look Happy.

Ogres’ love happy people and beings. Grumpy witches make them itch.

2. Sing soft lullabyes, Ogre’s love music and have a penchant for napping.

3.  Smell like a bar of chocolate. They love smelling chocolate but hate eating it. The downside of this is if you are a slow mover you may be caught and given a cuddle,  which is tantamount to being squished.

4. Tell them you are Breeze’s seventh cousin. By the time they figure it out you will be long gone.
5. Offer them the book you are reading. They will read it first then eat it, giving you time to run away.
6. Admire their clothes. They are highly fashionable and will rush to the nearest mirror to try and see what they put on that is so stunning.
7. Bring a politician you don’t like with you, they can munch on them instead of you.

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Matt’s Christmas Adventure – 2

Breeze spotted something bouncing about close to Tulip’s house. He arrived at her door and went inside. “We- have- a -problem.” He said gasping for breath after his long run.
Tulip spun around and saw Breeze. She heard his words but noticed she was missing a cake. “You have a problem. You ate one of my Christmas cakes.” She was not looking happy.
He said, “I didn’t look.” He held out both hands to her and stuck out his tongue.
“Okay, sorry I believe you. But who took it?” When Breeze told her what he thought had happened Tulip was looking worried.
“But Matt could be anywhere by now.” She paced about her kitchen. “We need to act quickly. We don’t need a Matt on the moon for Christmas.”
“Cool.” Breeze said.
Tulip glared at him. “Who made the bubble?”
Breeze whispered, “Lovisma.”
Tulip walked out onto her porch and shouted for Lovisma. By the time Tulip returned to her kitchen Lovisma was sitting at her kitchen table eating a cake. Breeze quickly explained what had happened to Matt.
“I told him it was a silly idea but the boy insisted said he would tell everyone it was me who made the food at the last party go pop and bang everytime someone tried to eat.” She was smiling at Breeze whose tongue had been burnt by the sizzling food.
“I want you to bring him back now.” Tulip stamped her foot and the whole house shook.
Lovisma said, “No need to get angry or nasty. I will have him back in a jiffy.”
Breeze surprised them both when he said, “No, I think you shouldn’t bring him back so quickly. But this is what I would like you to do.” When he told them his plan both Tulip and Lovisma were shocked but they agreed it would teach Matt to behave in future.

Matt was wide awake. The sound of twinkling bells and whispers from the stars woke him. “Santa is near.” They whispered.
Matt twisted and turned about in the bubble but he couldn’t see one single reindeer.
The bubble was sinking slowly towards the ground. It landed in the clearing near Tulip’s house. Matt could see a large group. The children were jumping up and down and racing about. The adults were enjoying Tulip’s Christmas cakes and talking to …Santa.
“I’m over here,” he shouted as he watched Lily being lifted up into the sleigh to sit beside Santa. Matt was frantic he wanted to pet the reindeer. He wondered why no one could hear him or see him. It began to snow as he watched. He sat and cried. “I messed up, stupid me. I shouldn’t have gone looking for him. I should have known he would come to us. He always does.” As soon as Matt spoke the bubble burst . The snow felt cool on his skin. He ran towards the sleigh. Breeze blocked his path. Matt looked up at Breeze and said, “I’m sorry.”
Breeze said, “Don’t say it to me, you need to apologize to Tulip, Lily, your mum, Lovisma and Santa.”
Matt said, “Yes. I will. Can I…please see him and pet Rudolph.”
Breeze was a kind ogre and he couldn’t be angry with anyone. He hoisted Matt onto his shoulder and said, “Make way for the adventurer who got a little lost on his way here.”
So it was that Matt got to talk to Santa and more importantly got to spend time with the Reindeer. As he was saying goodbye to Santa Matt was startled when Santa placed a parcel in his hand. “Specially for you Matt. Remember to be good.”
When the reindeer were mere dots in the sky Matt tore the paper off his present and discovered he was holding a ball of glass. “It’s a bubble,” he mumbled.
“Shake it,” his mum said.
When Matt shook it he saw a tiny bubble rise from the ground, snow was dancing within the glass and against a dark sky a tiny sleigh raced across the sky. He smiled and said, “Cool I won’t forget. He always comes to visit.”

Matt’s Christmas Adventure. – A Christmas 2 part story.

It was the 24th December. Every child, big and small, was hoping Santa would stop in Mudpile Wood. Last year he had enjoyed a mug of hot milk and some of Tulips Cinnamon fairy cakes. This year she planned on giving him Mincemeat bread along with his customary hot drink.
Breeze was collecting holly, with berries, for his relations. Ogres loved to decorate their cave with holly. This meant Breeze had to fight off the birds who wanted to eat the berries not sit and look at them.
He began to walk home underneath his large pile of holly which made him look like a moving holly bush. Breeze heard Lily say, “But what will we do if he doesn’t have time to stop? He is a busy man.” Breeze dropped his load of holly and sat down behind it. He wanted to hear the answer to Lily’s question.
Matt said, “I have been thinking of this and this is what we will do.”
Breeze held his breath to hear more but Matt was whispering and he couldn’t find out what Matt planned to do. He collected the holly and decided it might be best to keep an eye on the group of children. He didn’t want them getting into trouble before Christmas.

Breeze spent the afternoon decorating his cave. He finished it at dinner time. Matt’s mum Nell came rushing into Breeze’s cave. “He is gone. Matt is gone. Lily says it was an accident but she won’t tell me anything please help Mr. Breeze.”
Breeze sighed, looked very sadly at his red berry and mushroom pie, “Don’t go anywhere.” He said, then decided to scoop it into his hands to eat as he followed Nell out into the cool evening air.

They found Lily sitting outside her house. She was crying as she said, “It wasn’t my fault, or Matt’s or Lov..It just went wrong. The bubble ate him and carried him away.”
“Where to, Lily?” Breeze asked.
She pointed towards the clouds.
They all stood looking at the twinkling stars and wondered what to do next. “He hasn’t even got his hat and coat,” Nell sobbed.

*****************************

Matt was happy inside his soap bubble which Lovisma’s spell had made strong as steel. Earlier when Matt asked her to create a spell to make the bubble bigger and stronger, Lovisma was curious to see what would happen. Matt sat on a cushion of moss inside the bubble which sat on a branch of a tree. Lovisma watched him until she got bored and left.

As the sun began to sink in the sky the wind decided to play with the ogre sitting in the bubble. It pushed and pulled until the bubble was carried away high into the sky. Matt thought this was fun, he could see everyone below him.
His mum was hanging out her washing. He waved at her but she couldn’t see him. The bubble swooped low and one of his dad’s vests was sucked into the bubble to land beside Matt. He put it on.
The bubble swooped low over Tulips house. The windows were open because Tulip was baking. The bubble flew in one window and out another neatly snagging a freshly baked bun as it went.
Matt felt happy. He was warm and he had a bun to eat. Matt waited to see what would happen next. The wind tired of lingering close to the ground climbed towards the stars. The air was colder up here. Matt pulled his dad’s vest about him and waited to see what would happen next. He grew tired and curling up in a ball he fell asleep.

Breeze plays detective.

Breeze wasn’t happy. He had not met Tulip in days. This meant he had not eaten one fairy cake in two whole days. He decided a visit to her house was necessary.

When he arrived at Tulips house he found the house locked up and a note stuck to the front door.

“I will be back when I am back.”

Breeze read it aloud a few times.  This is very odd he thought and went to see, Elegant.

However Elegant did not know where Tulip was gone.

The kind witch did offer to make some witch cakes for Breeze he accepted them and discovered they were not as nice as Tulips cakes. Thanking Elegant he left with the parcel of cakes tucked into his pocket along with Spike his pet frog.

Breeze asked everyone where Tulip had gone but no one knew. He went home feeling worried. It was most unlike her to simply leave without telling him or Hamish or Elegant where he was going.

When he got home he placed Elegants cakes on the table. Spike had eaten one and was now curled up on a leaf that sat in a saucer. How do I find a missing Fairy, he wondered.

Then he remembered his friend Bob.

He sent him a short note;

Dear Mr. Bob,

I am sending you these great cakes baked by my friend Elegant. We hope you in return will do us a great favor and ask Ellie to find Tulip. We are worried the tiny fairy is in trouble or ill no one has seen her in two  three days.

Tulip was last seen at her house on the edge of the wood you could start there.

I am really worried.

Breeze

 

Then tucking the note into the witches cakes Breeze sent them by pigeon to Bob’s house.

“I do hope the silly dog does read the note and doesn’t simply eat the cakes.”

Breeze could do nothing more but wait.

The Day the Trees cried.

Daisy-Lyah woke Breeze by tickling his nose with some grass. Minutes later his nose still itched as he trudged along trying not to step on Lisbeth who was saying  “Hurry, Mr. Breeze. Can’t you run?”

Daisy-Lyah was flying ahead of them. The thought of running always gave Breeze a headache so he walked.

He was thinking this had better be good to have woken me from such a delicious nap  when they came to a stop. He stared at the trees before them.

“See the trees are crying please make them stop.” Daisy-Lyah’s bottom lip was wobbling while Lisbeth was jumping up and down on Breeze’s right foot.

Breeze had never seen a tree cry and he was afraid to admit it but Breeze found this fascinating. Why would a tree cry? He wondered, they have everything they need here. Nice rich soil, loads of sunshine and rain and I talk to them. 

They must be hurt” he whispered to the two girls.  They ran away shouting, “We will get bandages”.

Breeze ran his finger along the bark of the first tree. He felt a small hole in the bark. Who would do such a thing? A flurry of movement caught his eye and Breeze saw a bird clinging to the tree a little distance away. He appeared to be tapping the wood with his beak. “Doesn’t that hurt you?” Breeze asked. “Why are you doing it?”

The bird said “I have lost my house. I had a nice home in a hole in a trunk of a tree close to here but the tree fell in the storm last winter. Now I have no home so I am trying to make one. I am searching for soft wood to make a hole to live in.”

Breeze scratched  his head and thought about this strange problem. A home for a bird. The words rattled around  his head for a while. Suddenly he said, ” I know come with me.”

When Lisbeth and Daisy-lyah returned Breeze was putting ointment on the trees. “They are not crying they are hurt, so I am putting a cream on them and you can put on a bandage, please.”

When they were finished they stood back and admired their work.

The trees wore ribbons of different colours. “They do look smart. They will heal quickly.”  He told Lisbeth and Daisy-lyah  who promised to check the bandages.

“What made them cry?” Lisbeth asked.

Breeze told her and said, “I think the problem is solved come and see.” He brought them to Hamish’s house and pointed at a tree close to the house.

There sitting on a branch was a boot sitting on its side on a branch. “It is a smelly old boot.” Daisy-lyah whispered.

“But not any old smelly boot,” Breeze said, “it is the home of a tappin bird called Fred.”

On hearing his name the bird flew out of its new home and sat on a branch singing a happy song.

The trees did stop crying and they all loved their ribbons so much Lisbeth and Daisy-lyah had a new job to do each day.

 

 

A Fairy Princess lands in the wood.

Breeze was woken by a strange noise, he sat up and looked around him.  He checked to make sure the world was okay. The sky was blue, in the distance he saw a lot of sleeping sheep and down below the wood was as he last saw it, green and quiet.

Then he heard it again.  He wondered had an elf come to play a trick on him. He decided to check it out. Elves, like his friend Ainion (which sounded like Eye-nee-on) tended to be a bit nasty with their tricks, they had a love of seeing misfortune happen to others which meant others ended up wet or cold or frozen solid for a while.

He crept through the wood and finally spotted her in a large clearing close to the center of the wood.

It was a fairy. She had light brown hair, twinkling eyes and a huge smile. Her wings were gossamer light and her skirt was colored like a rainbow. She was playing in the sunlight chasing a large butterfly. Breeze watched her for a while and noticed the most extraordinary thing. A sunbeam was following her!

When she moved to the left of the clearing the sunbeam danced after her, and when she walked forward the sunbeam danced after her. He smiled. A pair of blackbirds landed on the branch beside him and came to watch. Soon others joined them. The wood was filling up with birds, rabbits and then the branch groaned as Lisbeth and Matt climbed alongside Breeze.

Lisbeth said, “Is she a nasty witch in disguise? Maybe it is Lovisma.” Lisbeth shuddered.

Breeze said, “You stay here and I will find out.”

He slid down the tree trunk and said, “Hello. I am Breeze. ”

The fairy stopped moving and stared at him. She looked frightened.

Breeze said, “We were wondering who you are? We know the other fairies in the wood.” As he spoke he sat on the ground.

The tiny fairy seemed to relax when Breeze sat down. She said, “I am Daisy-Lyah. My job is to catch sunbeams and deliver them to woods. I do this every day. It is a tiring job. I stopped for a rest and found him.” She pointed at the large butterfly.

Lisbeth came to sit beside Breeze. “I never heard of a Fairy who was allowed to catch sunbeams.” Breeze said. “I thought only Princess’ were allowed to do that.”

“My full name is Princess Daisy-Lyah.” Daisy-Lyah said. “But if I say that people laugh. And I don’t like people laughing at me.”

“I won’t laugh cos it is a beautiful name. I’m Lisbeth. Can I play too?” Lisbeth asked.

Daisy-Lyah said, “Yes please it is always better when more people play.”

And so it was that Lisbeth found a new playmate. Daisy-Lyah came often to the wood after that and Tulip always made sure there was plenty of toffee topped fairy cakes for Daisy-Lyah to eat and take home with her.

 

Story inspired by comment from blog site; little things and me

The Tale of the Curious Tree as told by Breeze.

Breeze was left in charge of  Mrs. Groundsels Grandchildren.  “Tell us a story, please.” Lisbeth demanded flashing her dark blue eyes at him.

Breeze sat and stared all around him. In the distance an old twisted tree caught his eye.

Lowering his voice he said, “A tiny oak tree was planted in the wood many years ago by a kind and friendly witch. ”

“It wasn’t Lovisma then.” Lisbeth said and moved closer to him.

Breeze smiled then said,

“The tree was planted in a good place. It began to grow. A rabbit stopped one day beside the tree to scratch his ear. The tree bent sideways to  ask the rabbit what it was doing. 

“I am itchy. So I am scratching the itch.” The rabbit said and then he hopped away.

The tree decided it was good to know answers to simple questions.

Whenever an animal stopped close to the oak it would move its body to look at the animal and ask a question or two. Over time the tree grew very knowledgeable about everyday things.

It knew why the clouds danced across the sky on sunny days and why they emptied buckets of raindrops on the forest on dark cold days. It also learnt the names of all the plants and animals in the forest. “

“Really?” Lisbeth asked.

Before Breeze could speak, Matt said, “That is rubbish there is no twisted oak tree in this wood and if there was it wouldn’t know anything about anything. Trees are just trees.”

Lisbeth looked sad. “Mr. Breeze, that is not true. Is it? Your story is beautiful. I think trees are great.”

“Thank you Lisbeth. Matt will discover the truth some day soon.” He hoisted her on his shoulder and said, “we are going to visit the tree.”

He walked a long way then stopped before the tree. Lisbeth ran her hand along the bark.  “You are a super-duper old tree. ” Breeze placed her on a low branch and jumped up beside her.

“Does it know everything?” She asked Breeze.

“Maybe not everything but it does know a lot of stuff.” He looked at her. “Why?”

“I would like to know what there is far beyond the Sugar lump mountains. Please Mr. Tree can you tell me?”

Breeze looked at her and said, “why don’t you write a note and pin it to the tree?”

She grinned at him. “Trees can’t write.”

“No but fairies can and I bet Tulip or Izzy could talk to it, or Elegant. I will ask them. They could write the answer down for you.”

So Lisbeth left her note pinned to the tree.

Next day she woke Breeze from a nap by shouting at him, “I got an answer.” Lisbeth read the note: “Beyond the Sugar Lump mountains lies a green valley. It is filled with cows grazing, sheep sleeping and lambs having fun. There is no river but there are many different types of flowers and trees. The air is filled with humming birds who sing as they collect pollen from the plants. ”

Lisbeth was smiling when she finished the note. “I am never going to tell Matt about this. It is great to know something he doesn’t. Someday when he walks miles and miles to find out what is over the mountains I can say, I knew all along because the kind oak tree told me.”

When she left Breeze slept, dreaming of dancing trees who became so knotted they fell over and grew on the ground.

 

 

Breeze lists his top five foods.

My five favorite foods.

1. This is easy everyone knows I love cakes and biscuits.

  

2.  I love green salads, I put a whole lettuce into a bowl and add in green pepper, parsley, chives, and eat it all in one go.

3.  Nuts. I am lucky living in a forest. Hazelnuts are my favorite.

4. Mrs. Groundsels home made soups.

5. Carrots. They help me see better at night.

 

My top five most hated foods.

1. Chocolate.  Yuck hate the stuff but oddly I love smelling it.

2. Cream – some people put it in their cakes. I think it ruins the flavor.

3. Sea-weed. My cousin Bertie brought some back from his holiday by the sea. He thought it was delicious. I  buried it in my garden.

4. Pumpkins.  I hate them so much I don’t use them at Halloween.

5. Mushrooms.  They taste slimy to me. Though Spike my pet frog likes to sit on them and sing.

A puzzle lands in the field beside Mudpile Wood

Breeze was dreaming of butterfly – cakes.  All of his dreams lately were filled with cakes of one type or another.

His dream about Hasty fairy Cakes was so frightening he hadn’t told asked anyone about it, yet. He decided to forget about it and perhaps some day ask for advice.

His nap time was interrupted by a very high bossy voice saying. “I told you to pack cucumber sandwiches.”

Breeze pulled a yucky face. He hated cucumber and the idea of sandwishes with just cucumber in them was not nice.

The woman who spoke looked very un-happy. He wondered if Tulip could wave her wand and make the lady look a little happier.

Then he heard another voice say, “But last week you scolded me because I brought cucumber sandwiches.” The second lady looked much nicer, she looked like a lady who smiled a lot.  She was taking out a cup and saucer and laying them on the ground.

“Why is she doing that?” Breeze whispered. But there was no one to answer him. “And what are they doing? ”

Breeze scratched his head and decided this was one question too many. He slid down the tree and went to ask Tulip for advice.

“Maybe they are having a picnic.” Tulip said.

“What is a picknicky?” Breeze asked.

“Not picknicky a picnic. It is when you have tea and sandwishes outside.” Tulip told him.

“Maybe we should have one.” Breeze suggested.

“We do that every day. Show me where they are.”

Breeze brought Tulip to the field. He spent a long time looking under briars, giant strawberry leaves but he didn’t find them.

Tulip smiled and said, “You were dreaming there was no strange women.”

“If I could draw I would draw them for you.”

Tulip flicked her wand and handed him a giant piece of paper and a pencil.

She decided to have a nap.

When Breeze woke her he showed her his drawings.

 

 

 

“They look real. But why can I see two of them on one sheet of paper?” Tulip asked.

Breeze’s face went very red.

“I made a mess of the first sheet and drew one on each side.”

“They are very strange women. I think they are ghosts.” Tulip said. She turned around to see Breeze running to his cave.

She shouted to him. “Where are you going?”

“Home. I have enough trouble with witches. I don’t need two ghosts to mess up my nap time as well.”

Tulip watched him run and thought, for an ogre he is very fast on his feet. Then she decided she might as well go home as well.  “Perhaps I will give them to someone to color in.”

 

 

Breeze’s Secret Job.

“I will never tell you another truthful story about me.” Breeze said.

Tulip frowned. She didn’t understand why and asked him to explain.

“Because since I told you about the tree all you do is ask me questions.” He folded his arms infront of his chest. “Stop doing it.”

Tulip smiled. “Okay but perhaps you will answer me this one last question. Why did you stop gardening?”

Breeze scowled at her.

Mrs Groundsel was walking past them. She was delivering a batch of blackberry jam to her friend Robyn and heard Tulips question. She stopped and said, “why would you think he has?”

“Because he is always asleep or sitting in a tree?” Tulip said.

“Not always only when you are around.” Mrs Groundsel walked away.

Breeze climbed his tree and Tulip was tired of asking questions so she went home.

Tulip didn’t forget Mrs. Groundsel’s answer. She decided to become a Fairy detective.  She began to get up earlier in the morning and go to bed late at night. But it didn’t matter, whenever she went looking for him Breeze was always asleep. Izzy asked Tulip, “do you need a sleeping potion? You look very tired and your wings are droopy looking.”

Tulip told her the reason why she was feeling so tired.

Izzy was quiet for a while as she  sipped her tea. Suddenly she said, “I know why you can’t find him working or moving about during the day because he is working at night.”

Tulip shook her head. “No Breeze is not a bat he is that jolly green ogre we keep tripping over on the porch when we have finished baking. He can smell vanilla icing a mile away.”

Izzy said, “tonight you and I will keep watch. I will go to his cave and watch from high above it. You can stay at the edge of the forest. You can follow him.”

***************

 

The moon was bright, the sky a dark curtain behind it.

Izzy was sitting a short distance from the entrance to Breeze’s cave. She was knitting a jumper for a baby rabbit. Tulip was writing out new recipes at the edge of the wood as she waited for Izzy’s signal.

Suddenly Izzy heard Breeze stomping out of his cave.  Spike was sitting on his shoulder. They walked straight past Izzy without seeing her. She waited until they were a little distance away then she send a ribbon of light shooting into the sky.

Tulip spotted the signal. She sent her recipe book back to her kitchen and hid.

It didn’t take long for Breeze to appear on the path from the mountains. Tulip was surprised when he didn’t enter the wood but turned sharp left and walked towards the flat fields behind the trees.

She stayed well behind him. Tulip didn’t want him to see her.  He walked for a long time, through three giant fields.

Then suddenly he came to a small field. Breeze bent low. Spike jumped from his shoulder.

Tulip forgot to watch Breeze she was too busy trying to recognize all of the vegetables she saw growing in the field.

“He is a secret gardener. ” She sat in the hedge for a while and watched him work. He was very good. There were no weeds in his garden just healthy, carrots, potatoes, sweetcorn, peas and beans. Suddenly she had answers to a lot of her questions. It was Breeze who supplied everyone with the vegetables they loved when they couldn’t find them close to Mudpile Wood.

Tulip wanted to rush out and give him a hug. But, she knew she couldn’t. It was his secret to keep or reveal and not hers.

She decided to go home.

Next day at lunch time Tulip was asleep when there was a loud knock at her front door. It was Izzy, ” So you didn’t find out where he went or what he did?”

Tulip said “Yes, I mean no I didn’t.”

Izzy smiled “And I suppose you didn’t bake the giant gingerbread man Breeze is sharing with everyone in the middle of the clearing?”

Tulip looked very innocent and tired. “No, I can only bake small gingerbread men in my small oven.”

Izzy decided not to ask any more questions. “You look tired. I will bring you back some of the amazing gingerbread. Pity we don’t have the recipe, isn’t it?”

Tulip was too tired to worry about her friends twinkling eyes. She went back to bed.