The Land of the Flowered Bed goes on Safari

At first, the animals in the Land of the Flowered Bed were excited summer had come. The seals loved dozing in the warm sunbeams streaming through the windows. Pumble was growing a vegetable garden in some old shoes he had found. Cookies spent his days hiding in the closet grumbling about all the excess sunshine, and Hairy had discovered a hidden library and was devouring all the books. All the other creatures swam, played volleyball and held campfire barbecues.

"I'm bored," Pumble sighed. He flung himself down on the ground, his apron covering his eyes.

"While I normally would not agree with such a silly statement, I'm afraid I must agree," Cookies said. The seals nodded, flopping over on their backs. The ducks from the Spa, who were eavesdropping, became so excited they flew out of the bathtub to the doorway of the Spa.

"Let's do something exciting!" cried the first duck from the Spa.

"Something we've never done before!" cried the second duck from the Spa.

"Does anyone have a towel?" the third duck asked, hiding behind a door. He was quite shy.

"What do you want to do?" Hairy asked.

"Find some new tasty grass," said the Flying Pigs.

"Swim somewhere," the ducks said.

The seals nodded their heads at the ducks' suggestion.

"I want to sample some delicious exotic food," Pumble said, licking his lips.

"Somewhere with culture," Cookies said.

"Hmm," Hairy said, tapping his finger to his chin. "The Living Room?"

"Boring." Pumble flopped over to his other side.

"Pedantic," Cookies said, trying out a big word he had heard on a commercial.

The seals shook their heads.

"The Garage?" Hairy suggested.

The ducks squalled from the Spa.

"Boring!"

"Stupid!"

"Perhaps another destination would be appropriate," the third duck suggested.

Hairy took a deep breath and tried again. "The Kitchen?"

Pumble sat up, drool running down his cheek. "Sure!"

Cookies shook his head and rolled his eyes. "We go there all the time. I want to go somewhere we've never been."

Hairy thought for a moment, tapping his foot against the carpet. "I know!" he cried. "We'll go on a safari in the backyard!"

"A safari!" Pumble cried. "That sounds delicious!"

"You know, my rich Uncle Owl went on safari every year," Cookies mused. "He was very cultured."

The seals cocked their heads and barked.

"A safari is a trip where you travel through a lot of grass and see wild animals," Hairy explained. "It's an adventure."

The seals clapped their fins in excitement.

"We like grass," the Flying Pigs said.

"Especially tasty grass," one added.

However, the ducks in the Spa were not amused.

"You can't swim on a safari!" the first duck yelled.

"We could get eaten by a rhino!" the second duck yelled.

"I'm afraid these two are more high maintenance," the third duck apologized.

"So it's settled then," Hairy announced, looking around at the animals. "Tonight, we'll pack. Tomorrow, we'll head out to the backyard and go on a safari."

If only he had seen the pair of eyes watching them through the window....

To be continued.....