Gus and Trudy HelpWith Spring Cleaning

Gus and Trudy had noticed that the days were getting warmer. They heard the birds chirping and saw the squirrels scurrying all over. They both knew what that meant. Spring had finally come to the little garden on Bloomfield Avenue.
Gus and Trudy also knew that this meant that a great deal of cleaning was going to happen. After all, there had been hurricanes, nor'easters, snow, sleet, rain, and lots and lots of wind this past winter. Things were looking a little run down in the garden.
"What do you think we should do first?" Trudy hooted to Gus early one morning.
Since it was early in the morning Gus just snorted at her, "Hrumph!"
"I don't think that is the answer I am looking for Gus. It is Spring and we need to help clean up our garden."
Gus rolled out of bed. He knew that Trudy spoke the truth. The garden was a huge mess. There were twigs and branches all over the place. Even though it was early spring, the weeds had begun to take over the garden beds. The grass in between the beds was starting to get tall. Things certainly did look afright.
"Let's get started with the twigs and branches today", Gus finally decided.
All day Gus and Trudy picked up all the twigs and branches that were laying about in the garden. They took a very short break for lunch and kept working until it was too dark to work anymore.
Gus took a long, hot bath and put his most comfortable gnome pajamas on. Trudy cleaned and cleaned her feathers until they were shiny and soft. They had a wonderful dinner of tea and toast with marmalade. They talked long into the night about their plans for the garden this summer.
Finally, when they were both so tired they couldn't keep their eyes open, they said good night. Gus climbed into his cozy bed and Trudy flew up into her soft nest in the rafters of the house.
And everything was dark and quiet and peaceful in the little garden on Bloomfield Avenue.

Gus and Trudy Want To Go To School

"Wouldn't it be interesting to go to school with Elaine one day?"
Gus turned around and looked at Trudy. He thought he had heard her correctly, but he wasn't quite sure.
"Wouldn't it be interesting to go to school with Elaine?" Trudy repeated.
Now Gus knew he had heard Trudy. Gus had wanted to take a trip into school to visit the gnomes that stayed in Elaine's classroom, but Trudy had lays been a little afraid to go.
"Gus, are you listening to me?" Trudy hooted.
"I am listening to you Trudy, I just can't believe what you're saying!"
Trudy hooted at Gus. She knew that he would be surprised to hear her suggest visiting the school. She usually did not like to leave the orderly garden on Bloomfield Avenue, but she flt that she needed to try one thing new. She knew that Elaine would take care of her and Gus and she just felt that it was time to visit the kids.
"Well Gus, I think you should let Elaine know that we would like to visit. You need to ak her hat day would be the best for her."
Gus was so happy he could hardly contain himself. He had not seen the classroom gnomes since the summer and he really wnted o catch up on the gnome gossip with them.
Gus couldn't wait to make plans to visit the school.

Gus and Trudy Spend Easter With The Pixies

Gus and Trudy usually saved Easter morning to share with the Easter Bunny. Usually EB was so tired from his all night basket delivering that he needed some resting time with Gus and Trudy. This year was different. This year EB was going directly home after his basket delivering. Gus and Trudy were, as ever, very polite and never questioned why. They just extended the invitation for next year. EB readily accepted.
However, this left Gus and Trudy at a loss as to what to do Easter morning. Gus voted for staying extra long in bed. But, then again, Gus always wanted to stay exa long in bed.
Trudy felt that they should offer a cheery breakfast to some poor souls who never were invited anywhere.
Even before she had hooted out the words, Gus was stomping his foot and yelling,"There's a reason why they are not invited anywhere....they are pesky!"
Trudy looked down her sharp beak at Gus. "If creatures were invited places only on the basis of their pleasantness, I would say that you would be home a great deal."
Gus thought about it for a minute. When Trudy was right, he was right.
So the plans were made and the Pixies were invited over for Easter morning. Gus was on the watch for the start of any pixie wildness. If you let them start their wildness it gets out of hand, he thought darkly.
Trudy was the perfect hostess. She kept the pixies in line and they all had a very pleasant morning. When the breakfast was done and all the dishes washed and out away and the last pixie was out the front door, Gus breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Finally, all was calm and quiet in TE little garden on Bloomfield Avenue.

Spring Again 2013

"Gus! Gus! This is going to be the best spring ever!" Poor Gus rolled over and looked out the top window of the Winter Burrow. It looked like Spring had come again to Bloomfield Avenue. But why was trudy making all of that racket? "Gus, did you hear me? This is going to be the best spring. Ever." "I did hear you Trudy. I heard you the first, second, and third times that you called my name." "But Gus, if you heard me then why aren't ou getting up and getting dresses? Didn't you hear me say that this was going. to. be. the. best spring. ever.?" Trusy said each word very carefully. Gus just snuggled further under the covers. It might be spring on the calendar, but it was not spring to Gus until the sun shined for an entire day and the temperature eas above 50 degrees. "I heard everyoone in the house talking about redoing the garden this spring. I think that is why this is going to be the best Spring ever," Trudy hooted," new dirt for the beds, a new fence with proper gates, and pea gravel to cover all the crab grass. And Gus, a new house for us!" All of a sudden in a whirl and a flash, Gus was up and unning around the house in a very ungnome like fashion. He was muttering about his encils and paper and drawing up plans or the new house. Gus had wanted a new house for such a very long time. Trudy stopped in front of Gus," Sit down Gus. I will bring you your things, and a hot cup of tea." Gus sat in his thinking spot and lit his candle. True to her word, Trudy brought him his drawing materials, a big cup of hot tea, and a hot biscuit. Gus thanked her and began to work on his plans. Trudy nestled on her perch and hooted. This was going to be the best spring. Ever.

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.

Gus and Trudy Watch the Ocean Turn Green

Gus and Trudy were so excited. Today was the day that the people at the beach in Allenhurst were going to dye the ocean green. Even though they did not like to see summer, Gus and Trudy were very excited to see this tradition. Gus climbed on Trudy's back and off they flew. As they were landing on the beach (in a little hideaway corner behind a dune) they saw Abby and Tommy! Boy were they having fun. Then it happened - green - the ocean turned green! All the kids (and some grown ups) laughed and played in the ocean. It was a beautiful sight. Gus and Trudy stayed on the beach until the sun set. It had been a glorious day. Trudy told Gus to climb on her back and she began the flight home. They talked about all the things that had happened this summer. Earthquakes, ambulances, hurricanes, and now, the ocean was turned green. When they landed at their house they went inside and had a cup of herbal tea. They nibbled on some scones. Trudy began to yawn and Gus said they should go to sleep. They went into their rooms and snuggled in for the night. Everything was calm and peaceful in the little house in the orderly garden on Bloomfoeld Avenue.

Gus and Trudy and Irene

Gus and Trudy were in a panic. They had seen Elaine going into the garden and pick up all the objects and take them to the garage. They just couldn't figure out what was going on. Then they heard the neighbors all talking about Irene. How Irene would come and blow everything away. How Irene would make floods all over the garden. How Irene might even take down some of the big oaks that Trudy loved to sit in. Gus and Trudy decided that they did not care for Irene. They decided that when they saw Irene they would kick her out of the orderly garden on Bloomfield Ave. The neighbors were still talking. Oh no! They were saying that maybe the beloved beaches could be ruined by Irene! Gus and Trudy, as honorary lifeguards, were mad about this. How dare she! What was the matter with Irene? And better yet - what did Irene look like? "She must be pretty big to do all that damage," Gus said. "She must be pretty fast to whip around and cause big, strong oak trees to fall," said Trudy. "Where do you think she gets the water to dump all over the place?," Gus wondered. "If she can knock things over that are so big - what about our little house?," Trudy hooted. Gus and Trudy had so many worries and so many questions. They were getting very scared. Then they overheard Abby and Tommy talking about leaving their house and going next door with Annalisa and Nick to stay the night. Now they were worried. What about Anthony and Gianna? They heard that their whole family was going to stay in one room so they would all be safe. "Does Irene steal kids too? What about gnomes and owls? Is anyone safe?,"they wondered. "And what about Carmela? Will she be OK down the road?," Gus and Trudy asked each other. They certainly had a lot to worry about. What to do? "We can't even get hold of the Great Flamingo to help us out,"Trudy said. Then they remembered Dorrie. She knew a lot about everthing because Abby talked to her all the time and explained things to her. So Gus jumped on Trudy's back and they flew up to Abby's window. Tap, tap, tap Trudy's beak tapped the window. Dorrie came to the window. Gus and Trudy asked her about Irene. What did she look like? How could they fight her? How could they help protect everyone on the street? Why was Irene so mad at them? Dorrie laughed. She knew a lot about Irene and others like her because she had lived in Florida for a very long time. She very patiently explained to Gus and Trudy that Irene was a hurricane. And as a hurricane, irene had to do what Mother Nature told her to do. She didn't have any choice. And when she was done blowing and rainingn she would just fade into nothing. "Sometimes I think that these hurricanes get a little carried away and blow and rain so much because they know that soon they will fade into nothing," Dorrie said wisely. Now Gus and Trudy understood. But they were worried about their house and the orderly garden. They deicded to talk to Elaine. Elaine told them that she was going to take their house and put it into the garage. When the storm was over she would restore order to the garden. She even invited Gus and Trudy o stay in the house with Josie and Jasmine, the cats. They did. Then Irene came. She blew and she rained for two days. The wind was actually very scary. Branches of trees were flying everywhere. But the mighty oaks fought hard. Not one fell. The garden was flooded and Elaine said they would have to wait for the water to go down. They waited. Elaine straightened up the garden and it was orderly again. She out Gus and Trudy's house back in it's spot. Gus and Trudy checked out the beaches and boardwalks. Elaine had shown them oictures from the internet. They were scared about what they might find. The beaches were somewhat washed out but people were in big machines trying to put more sand on them. Other people were nailing loose boardwalk boards back into place. Everything was going to be OK. Gus and Trudy went back home. They saw all the kids on the street. Everyone was safe. Gus and Trudy were tired from the worrying. They went back to their little house in the orderly garden on Bloomfield Ave. and promptly fell asleep.

Gus and Trudy Meet a Turtle

Gus and Trudy met a new neighbor today. Old Gnome had moved into the oak tree hollow in the front yard. What was the most exciting part was that Old Gnome had a Turtle move in with him.

"I'm so old now," Old Gnome grumbled" I don't want to move too fast or fly through the air or run fast on a rabbit. I just want to take my time, go slow, and smell the roses."

Gus and Trudy helped Old Gnome off of Turtle.

"Hello! My name is Gus and this is my dear friend Trudy. We live in the gnome home in the orderly garden."

Turtle blinked very slowly and said," My.......name....is....Old Turtle....Pleased...to ...meet..you....."

Gus and Trudy thought there could be more coming from Old Turtle so they hesitated.

Old Turtle drew a big breath and let out a sigh. "Old.....Gnome....it....is....time.....for....our...nap....."

Old Gnome patted Old Turtle's back and chuckled. "Yes my old friend it is time for our after-breakfast-but-before-lunch-nap."

Old Gnome waved to Gus and Trudy and helped Old Turtle into the hollow of the oak tree in the front yard.

Gus and Trudy and the Dog Days of Summer

Trudy had spent the morning watching Elane in the garden. She heard Elaine mumbling and complaining about the groundhog who continued to snack on her vegetables. She heard Elaine making plans to make her garden :groundhog proof" for next summer. Then she saw Elaine sit down, take a big gulp from her water bottle, and say,"These really are the dog days of summer."

That got Trudy to thinking. Were dogs going to start coming over to the garden? Did these days belong only to the dogs? Would it rain dogs without the cats? What was it about these days that made it the dog days of summer?

She headed into the little house that she shared with Gus. She asked Gus about the dog days of summer. He shrugged and then started to get worried too. he certainly did not want dogs to spend all the days in his garden. he wanted these days to belong to everyone. This was going to be a problem.

Do YOU know what the dog days of summer are? Maybe you could leave a note for Gus and Trudy and let them know!

Gus and Trudy Watch a Beautiful Sunset

Gus and Trudy were so very lucky to watch this beautiful sunset!

Gus Eats His First Watermelon

The watermelons were coming out finally and Gus was very excited. Even though he was a garden gnome he had never tasted a watermelon before. It's not that he wasn't interested in watermelons it was just that he usually gave all the watermelons away. This year he was determined to at least taste a watermelon.

He crept into the garden and plucked a nice ripe watermelon off of the vine. He went back to his house and cut the watermelon up into chunks. He remembered Elaine saying that she ate her watermelon with salt. She always said that it made the watermelon taste a little sweeter.

Gus liked the watermelon so much that he ate the whole watermelon by the end of the day. He was so full that he didn't eat dinner. He just shuffled off to bed with a full belly and fell right to sleep in his tiny bed in his little house in the tidy garden on Bloomfield Avenue.

Gus and Trudy Meet the Gargoyle

Gus and Trudy were feeling slow and lazy because of the heat. They really did not want to leave the garden and travel about because it was so hot and humid.

Trudy thought it might be a nice idea just to take a walking tour of the yard surrounding the garden.

"I don't know", Gus said "Elaine waters the garden but the grass is all dead in the yard. How much fun would we have?"

"Gus, I think you would be surprised at what else is in the yard besides grass" Trudy said.

So they decided to start their walk earlier in the morning so when the heat of the day came they would not be out in the sun. They went out of the garden by the sunflowers and went in to the front yard.

"Look Gus", Trudy sighed, "there are pink roses in the front yard and hostas lots of hostas!"

Gus kind of mumbled and grumbled at the pink roses but he clearly enjoyed the hostas. He enjoyed the shade that their broad leaves provided. He was pleasantly surprised at the soft green moss that grew, protected from the harsh sun, under the hosta leaves.

Gus and Trudy spent some time stretched out under the hostas and on the soft green moss. They talked about this and that. Gus decided tha they should stay away from the sewer because he knew that without the rain to keep him happy, the sewer troll was in a horrible no good mood. And nobody would want to be around a sewer troll in a horrible no good mood , if they knew what was good for them!

Gus decided they should walk down the side of the house where the shed was. They turned the corner of the house and surprise! There was net row of hosta planted against the side of the house!

"So that is what Elaine was doing the other day," Gus said,"she was digging around with a shovel and had the wheelbarrow going like crazy. She was planting hosta here."

Trudy smiled at him and nodded. She knew that Gus enjoyed seeing new plants in the yard.

They turned and looked at the shed. Then they looked at each other. Each knew what the other was thinking. They would stay away from the shed and the opossum and groundhog war that was going on over who should own the cool den underneath it.

Gus and Trudy saw the bird bath filled with cool clean water. They knew Elaine changed the water every day. Trudy told Gus to climb on her back and they flew up to the bird bath. They took the opportunity to cool off. They splashed and laughed and spent a whole glorious hour sitting in the cool water.

When they had enough of the water, Trudy flew Gus up to the deck and they laid out in the sun until their clothes were dry and warm. Elaine happened to look out the door and saw Gus and Trudy. She popped her head out the door and asked them if they would like some blackberry ice tea and a scone. Gus, Trudy and Elaine sat on the deck enjoying the cold ice tea and the sweet scone. Elaine told them to walk down the steps instead of flying. She said they would find someone interesting on the step.

Gus and Trudy tiptoed own the stairs and who did they see? The Gargoyle! The Gargoyle had been missing for some time but now he was back! The Gargoyle laughed as Gus and Trudy danced around him. Gus and Trudy spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with the Gargoyle. It was the best part of their day - to see an old friend back at home.

Evening finally arrived and Gus and Trudy were very sleepy from their exciting day. They hugged Gargoyle good night and left for home. They had a glass of milk and a peanut butter sandwich. They sat up and watched the fireflies flitting around the garden. They played a game of checkers. Gus was yawning and Trudy's eyes were starting to close. Gus shook Trudy awake and helped her into her bed. Then he went into his room, said his prayers, and climbed into his bed. Very quickly he fell asleep in his tiny bed in his little house in the orderly garden on Bloomfield Avenue.

Sand Gnomes

Gus and Trudy had entered a sand building contest at the beach. They were so excited. They woke up very early and flew down to the beach just so they could get started.

Gus and Trudy worked for hours and hours. They were very pleased with what they had made. The judges were pleased also - they won First Place - the Blue Ribbon!

Gus and Trudy celebrated by going out for ice cream sodas. Then they took a long walk down the beach. Finally when the moon was up high in the sky, Gus climbed on Trudy's back and they flew home. They climbed into their beds, exhausted from the day. Gus and Trudy soon fell asleep in their little house in the orderly garden on Bloomfield Avenue.

Gus and Trudy Spend the Afternoon with Flamingos

Gus and Trudy were very excited! The Great Flamingo was sending a few flamingos to spend the afternoon with Gus and Trudy. Gus knew the Great Flamingo wanted an update on how Dorrie and Florrie were doing over at Abby's. And how was Tommy doing with his pal?

In the early afternoon the three flamingos landed in the orderly garden on Bloomfield Avenue and spent the afternoon with Gus and Trudy. They flew to the roof of Elaine's house and watched Abby and Tommy outside with their mom. Tommy was playing with his new bubble gun and Abby was looking through her American Doll catalog, circling everything she wanted with her blue crayon.

They looked very happy and they were listening to their mom. Tommy even went inside to let in the dog so that his mom didn't have to!

The flamingos and Gus and Trudy flew up to Abby's window and tap tap tapped on the window. Dorrie and Florrie answered. They gave the flamingos their report for the Great Flamingo. They gave Gus and Trudy a big hug and then they went to have some quiet time.

The evening was coming and the flamingos had to get ready to go home. Gus and Trudy hugged them all and waved good bye to them as they rose into the air and started to fly away.

Then Gus and Trudy went back to their little house in the orderly garden on Bloomfield Avenue to spend a quiet night.