Gus Talks to the Birds

It was a sunny spring day and Gus knew exactly what he wanted to do. He had not spent anytime checking to see if all the birds had returned from their winter away. Usually in the very early spring Gus would go around to all the nests and make sure that all his bird friends had made the trip back from the south ok. Gus had been so busy watching Trudy think that he hadn't had the chance to check all the nests. But this morning when Gus woke up, Trudy had left a little ladder for him to climb out of the nest. She had also left a note: Going to look around for some twigs and stuff to build a big nest. Use the ladder to climb out of the nest. See you tonight. Trudy. "Well, well Trudy," Gus laughed, "You certainly are determined to build the big nest." Gus was still laughing when he went into his small cottage to make some porridge for breakfast. Gus sat down at his table and ate his porridge and drank some tea. he felt that it was time to walk around and see if his bird friends were all home. Gus met his friend Robin, BlueBird, Cardinal, and a few of his squirrel friends. He spent the day listening to all of the stories about flying home from the south. The birds coud not believe the wonderful weather. They al felt like it was summer already! Gus was tired when he returned home. He looked up at Trudy's nest. It was about 3:00 in the afternoon and Trudy was not back. Gus had a small snack and climbed intot his hammock to take a quick nap. Gus thought he hadjust fallen asleep when he heard Trudy's familiar hoot hoot. He blinked his eyes. It was dark out! he must have slept for a while. He turned over and looked at his clock - it was 9:00!!! he had missed his dinner - slept right through dinner! "Gus, what did you do today that you are so tired?" Trudy hooted. "Trudy I really just spent the day walking around checking up on our bird friends," Gus answered," I only had a small snack and then fell asleep for a quick nap." "Well Gus, I think you took more than a quicknap. Are you hungry?" Gus thought about that. Was he hungry? He was always hungry! "Climb up on my back Gus - let's head over to the beach for a dinner in the dunes." Gus climbed on Trudy's back for the short flight to the beach. Trudy and Gus met some friends in the dunes and had a wonderful clambake dinner. They had such a good time - they didn't evennotice that the sun was begiining to come up. "Good thing you had that 'quick' nap Gus," Trudy hooted, "We have spent the whole night talking and laughing!" Trudy flew Gus back to her nest and they watched the sun come up. "I think I coud use a quick nap," Gus said. "So could I Gus, so could I."

A Thinking Day for Gus and Trudy

Trudy was still thinking about the nest that she would build for Abby and Tommy. She still could not believe that they had to sleep in BEDS! Hard, lumpy beds - instead of soft, cozy nests... The shame of it. She had spent a great deal of time during the night going over her plan in her mind. She was being very quiet about it. She did not want gus to know that she was planning something. Gus, of course, knew exactly what Trudy was up to. he noticed her stillness and knew that this was a sign that Trudy was cooking up a scheme. he also knew, from their conversation last night, that the plan had something to do with building a big nest for Abby and Tommy to sleep in. He would let her think a little longer but then he would have to try to talk her out of this huge nest building. The problem was, he couldn't think of a good reason to stop her from building the nest. He would have to think. Now Gus and Trudy were sitting in Trudy's nest, both lost in thought. trudy was thinking of a way to build a huge nest for Abby and Tommy and Gus was thinking of a way to stop her from building the nest. It was going to be a very quiet day in the garden.

Gus and Trudy and the Nest

It was a gray day. A lazy day. A day that looked like it could start raining but it just never got around to it. Gus and Trudy decided that it was a good day to just sit in Trudy's nest. "I wonder where Abby and Tommy have been?" said Gus, "It has been very quiet on the street." Trudy hooted and agreed with Gus. "Maybe they are staying in their nests today too." Now it was Gus' turn to laugh,"Trudy, Abby and Tommy don't have nests - they live in a house!" "Well yes, in a house, but they have a nest to sleep in - don't they?" Trudy was very concerned. How could anyone get a good night's sleep if they didn't sleep in a nest? She couldn't understand. "No Trudy, no nest. They sleep in beds. Beds in their house," Gus was almost laughing out loud. Trudy was very quiet. She felt that Abby and Tommy were missing out on a great sleep experience. OK a bed was alright once in a while, but to get a truly wonderful night's sleep - well nothing beat a nest! Gus noticed that Trudy was very deep in thought. He thought that she was planning something. He was right. Trudy was trying to think of all the different ways that she could make a nest for Abby and Tommy. She thought that it would take a great deal of planning, but she was determined to have Abby and Tommy have at least one night's sleep in their very own nest. Gus spent the day watching Trudy think and plan. He chuckled to himself, he couldn't wait to see what Trudy was planning!

Gus and Trudy Decide What to Plant in the Garden

It was a beautiful sunny morning. Gus and Trudy decided that they realy needed to go into the little garden on Bloomfield Avenue. It was spring and they had not even started to talk about what should be planted. They both agreed that they needed to start planning right away. Gus and Trudy both agreed that after last year's trouble with the groundhog, they would have to be very careful about what they planted. If you remember, last year the groundhog ate almst all of their green beans, peas, lentils, and cannelinni beans. It was horrible. Everyday more and more would disappear from the little garden on Bloomfield Avenue. Soon all that was left were the tomatoes and potatoes. "So we are agreed," Gus said, "We are going to plant a lot of potatoes this year." "Yes", Trudy replied,"Potatoes right away and then maybe some tomato plants." "Basil, definitely basil.... and all different types of herbs.... and flowers" "Lots of different kinds of flowers!" Gus and Trudy were very excited, but as they walked around the little garden they saw that they had a lot of work to do to prepare it for planting. The garden boxes had to be weeded and tilled. Some of them looked like they needed some dirt added to them. The grass around the boxes was looking very shabby. Gus would love to put down gravel but that would take a long time to do. Trudy thought that they could lay down some hay or mulch and see what happened. The fence around the garden was looking beaten up as well. Gus and Trudy were not really sure what they would do about that. Usually Elaine would take care of the fence. They had seen her walking around the fence and talking to herself about fixing it. They would just have to wait and see. Gus and Trudy spent the day discussing seeds and plants and flowers. When the sun finally set, they had talked the garden all the way through. They were both very tired, but they felt like they had accomplished a lot. Tomorrow they might draw out their garden plan, but for now...Trudy flew Gus up to her nest and they both fell quickly asleep.

Gus and Trudy Have a Visit With the Tooth Fairy

Gus couldn't believe the news - Abby had wiggled her tooth out! "You know what that means - don't you?" Trudy hooted. "Yes, yes, I know - we need to start geting ready," Gus grumbled. Trudy knew that Gus was happy that Abby had wiggled her tooth out. he was ust grumpy because they had just seen the Easter Bunny off after a visit and now they were going to have a new visitor. "I just wish I had a day or two to get ready," Gus grumbled again. "Oh Gus, don't worry. You know she doesn't spend much time visiting. She just needs a cup of tea and a small snack and then she is on her way. She has a lot ofhouses to visit every night." Trudy hooted and then tried to hide a laugh. "She" was the Tooth Fairy. The Tooth Fairy was going to have to pay a visit to Abby tonight. The Tooth Fairy would take Abby's tooth and leave something behind. When she was done at Abby's, she would fly over to the little garden on Bloomfield Avenue and have a quick visit with Gus and Trudy. Gus and Trudy spent the day cleaning up and baking some scones for their visit. Around midnight, Gus put the kettle on for some tea. Trusy put the scones on a pretty plate and they waited. Just as the kettle started to whistle, the Tooth Fairy came flying into Gus' house. "Hi Gus and Trudy. It is so nice of you to have some tea and scones ready for me. by the way, what happened to your house Gus?" "Long story. Why don't you sit and rest. Have some tea. Trudy made cherry scones - your favorite," Gus said. Gus, Trudy, and the Tooth Fairy sat down and had tea and scones. The Tooth Fairy had them laughing and laughing with stories of her nightly visits to collect children's teeth. Finally, she announced that it was time for her to go. She had many, many more houses to visit and not a lot of night time left. Before she left, she showed Gus and Trudy Abby's tooth. It was beautiful, so white and clean. You could tell that Abby was taking very good care of her teeth. Gus and Trudy were so proud of Abby. The Tooth Fairy sprinkled some fairy dust on Gus and Trudy and flew away to finish collecting teeth. Gus laughed and Trudy hooted. Together they cleaned up the tea and plates. Just as the sun starting coming up they finished. trudy hooted at Gus and he climbed on her back. Together they flew to trudy's cozy nest. They covered themselves with fluff and stuff and snuggled in for a good sleep.

Happy Easter From Gus and Trudy

The Easter Bunny was very tired. He had been hopping all night to get the Easter Baskets delivered. Finally, he was going to his favorite after-egg delivering place. "Hi Gus and Trudy!" The Easter Bunny said,"Do you have my cup of tea and my hot cross bun ready?" "Sure we do, come and have a seat," Gus and Trudy loved this time of year when they were able to have a good long visit with the Easter Bunny. Gus, Trudy and the Easter Bunny sat down at the beautiful table filled with hot cross buns, tea, scones, cream, sandwiches and all kinds of delicious food. They talked and they laughed and finally Gus could see that the Bunny was getting very tired. "You have had a long night Bunny," Gus said gently,"Why don't we let Trudy fly you up to her nest and you could take a long nap?" "That would be lovely," the Bunny said,"But Gus, what happened to your house?" The Easter Bunny had just noticed the big chunk of roof that was missing from Gus' roof. "Well, it is a long story and I will tell it to you after your nap," Gus said as Trudy put the Bunny on her back and got ready to fly to her nest,"But don't worry, Abby and Tommy drew up some plans for a new house and it will look beautiful." Gus watched as Trudy flew with the Bunny up to her nest. He whistled a little tune as he began to clean up the dishes and started to cook up some carrots and desserts for dinner. While the carrots were cooking, he took another look at the plans that Abby had drawn for him. "This is certainly a wonderful picture. I can't wait to start building my new house. I am so happy tha Abby and Tommy took the time to plan it out for me." Trudy flew down from her nest,"Bunny was already asleep by the time I tucked him in," she said. "He will be hungry when he wakes up. And you know he will tell us about all of his adventures from last night," Gus said,"Why don't we have a small cup of tea and a little rest while the carrots are cooking?" Gus and Trudy sat quietly on the rocking chairs on what was left of Gus' front porch. Gus whistled a little tune and every once in a while Trudy would join in with a soft hoot. They were very happy.

Gus and Trudy Greet Spring

It was a warm April morning. Gus walked out of his tiny house in the garden on Bloomfield Avenue. He faced the sun and stretched his arms wide. He was so very happy that Spring was finally here. Gus had spent this winter hibernating. Gnomes don't usually hibernate, but then they get to a certain age and are very, very tired they sometimes do sleep through the winter. Gus was getting older. He had been very, very tired when winter started. He had talked it over with his best friend, Trudy, and decided that hibernating was the way to go. Gus had set his alarm clock to April 6, 2012. He figured the weather would be nice by then. It would also give him time to plan out the garden with Elaine. "Hoot,Hoot, Hoooray!", said Trudy as she flew down from a nearby tree branch, "I am soo glad that you are finally up Gus! I've missed you!" Gus and Trudy hugged. Gus was so happy to see Trudy. He turned around to look at his house. "OH NO", Gus cried,"What happened to my house?" "Well, that darned groundhog got hungry and decided to chew on your roof this past winter. Didn't you feel it," asked Trudy. "I most certainly did not know that my house was being used as a winter snack for that pesky groundhog!" The little gnome house did look afright. The roof was really chewed up. The chimney was completely gone. It didn't look like it could even be repaired. Gus and Trudy decided that Gus could stay awhile in Trudy's nest while he set abput building a new house. "First things first," said Gus, "Let's check up on the kids." Trudy flew Gus around the neighborhood. They checked in on Anna and Nick, Gianna and Anthony, Carmela, and finally Abby and Tommy. Gus couldn't believe how tall Abby and Tommy had grown! He checked in on Florrie to make sure that everything was OK. Florrie explained that there had been a lot of changes and a big family secret had come out. She explained everything to Gus and Trudy. Gus and Trudy understood. They were glad that Florrie was around to help Abby and Tommy. "Maybe Abby and Tommy could draw a picture of what our house should look like," said Trudy. (She shared Gus' house with him. "Sounds like a great idea. Florrie, could you ask them to draw a new house for us? We cold use their drawings as plans to build our new place!" Gus said. Florrie agreed and Gus and Trudy flew to Trudy's nest high in the trees and decided to take a nap.