A Christmas Treat For Mama

Thanks so much for stopping by to read my story! I had a lot of fun participating in Susanna Leonard Hill's Holiday Writing Contest. I ended up writing two stories. You can read my first entry here. I hope you're all having a very happy holiday and enjoying time with those you love!

A Christmas Treat for Mama

By Kailei Pew

249 Words

Melody grinned as she rushed home. She had planned the perfect Christmas treat for weeks. And today, Grandma helped her make a mountain of fudge for Mama.

“Wow!” Someone said from behind. “Is that a mountain of fudge?!”

Melody turned to see her new neighbor, Jason.

“Yes!” Melody boasted. “All for my Mama!”

“Oh,” Jason said, looking at his toes. “Sure wish I could make a treat like that for my Mama.”

“Go tell your Daddy.” Mindy suggested. “I’m sure you can make a fine treat for your Mama.”

“Yeah…” mumbled Jason. “Maybe…”

Melody continued on her way. But she slowed as she approached her house…

Maybe it was the way that Jason’s coat hung much too big around his small frame.

Or the way his sad eyes had never quite met hers.

Or perhaps something in her heart just told her…

...Jason couldn’t make a treat like this for his Mama.

She hurried back and clumsily pushed the fudge into Jason’s hands.

“I think your Mama would like this even more than mine,” she said hastily.

“Oh boy! Thank you!” He whooped. “Mama! Mama!” He called as he ran inside.

Melody raced back to her house, hot tears burning in her eyes.

She burst through the door and fell into her Mama’s arms. The entire story tumbled from her lips.

“And now,” she sobbed, “I don’t have a Christmas treat for you!”

“Oh baby girl,” Mama said, “Don’t you see? You’ve given me the greatest treat of all!”

A Santastic Treat

I was pretty on the fence about participating in Susanna Leonard Hill's Holiday writing contest... as you can see by my lack of posts on this blog, life has been a little bit crazy and busy. But in the most amazing ways. We've had a lot of fun around here, and the blog has suffered. But when I sat down to see if I could come up with a little story, I ended up writing out two and it was so fun! So I figured I might as well throw my hat in the ring! To read more about the contest, check out Susanna's blog here. The basics are:

Write a children’s holiday story (children here defined as age 12 and under) about A Holiday TREAT! The story is not to exceed 250 words.

So without further ado, here is my first entry. You can read my second entry here.

A Santastic Treat

By Kailei Pew

242 words

“Just...one...more…” Mindy said, trying to balance the last gumdrop on top of her creation. The other elves were busy wrapping toys. But Mindy had the most important job of all. She was making the gingerbread sculpture for Santa’s Christmas party. It was Santa’s favorite tradition. The treat of all treats. The centerpiece of the celebration.

It had to be Santastic.

She held her breath and let go.

Crash!

Mindy sighed as her gingerbread palace crumbled.

“It wasn’t right anyways,” she thought.

Mindy tried again.

She measured and mixed.

Baked and built.

Frosted and finished.

But it was still all wrong.

Mindy scratched her head and baked again.

She tried the Eiffel Tower.

Too pointy.

She tried the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Too tilty.

She tried the Colosseum.

Too crumbly.

Everything she crafted was wrong, wrong, wrong.

Mindy flopped down, creating a cloud of flour.

When the dust settled, she looked at her designs. They were impressive, but they didn’t mean anything.

Maybe she needed something more personal.

Something close to home.

Something…

Santastic.

With ten pounds of sugar and a little elf magic…

Light poured from the candy cane poles.

Glitter shimmered across the powdered sugar snow.

And smoke curled up the gingerbread chimneys.

Santa’s Village came to life!

“Ho, Ho, Ho!” Santa’s eyes twinkled when he saw the masterpiece at the party. “It’s almost too good to eat.” He winked at Mindy as he took the first Santastic bite.

Halloweensie Stories

I adore Halloween. It's such a fun holiday and I love making a big deal of it for my kids. Though I should probably specify... I love all of the fun and wholesome parts of Halloween... pumpkin patches, carnivals, chili cookoffs, carving pumpkins, hay rides... I do NOT love the scary parts of Halloween. I'm pretty much a baby there. But give me all the candy, caramel apples, and chances to dress up any day.

So when I read about Susanna Leonard Hill's Halloweensie Writing Contest, I knew I needed to write a story. I ended up writing two and really did have so much fun... But let me tell you, writing a full story with a legitimate beginning, middle, and end in only 100 words? It. Is. Hard! But definitely a fun challenge. The requirements this year specifically: write a 100 word Halloween story appropriate for children (children here defined as 12 and under) (title not included in the 100 words), using the words potion, cobweb, and trick.

Now, without further ado, my stories.Happy Halloween, everyone! Be safe and. have fun tonight!

The Monster Bash

By Kailei Pew

97 Words

Wanda grinned.

The music was spooky.

The punchy potion, to die for.

And the decor? Creepy perfection.

This would be the greatest Halloween party ever!

But why wasn’t anyone here??

Ding-dong!

“Finally!”

“Trick-or-treat!”

“Trick-or-treat??!”

Slam!

Where was everyone??

The music was falling flat.

The potions fizzing out.

The cobwebs drooping.

Wanda moped up the stairs, when something caught her eye.

“Oh no! The invitations!”

She flipped her wand—ZAP—and sent them away. ZOOM!

Ding-dong.

“Please oh please…”

“It’s party time!!”

With a flick of her wand...

The music revived.

The potions sizzled.

The decorations dazzled.

A true monster bash!

The Great Candy Caper

By Kailei Pew

97 Words

Rope? Check!

Loot bags? Check!

Mask? Check!

Benny’s eyes narrowed.

He tiptoed past a witch brewing her potion and guarding her loot.

“Made it!”

Benny braved sticky cobwebs to scale the wall. He tied the rope, and lowered himself down.

But as he hovered over the goods, some skeletons arrived.

“Trick-or-treat!”

The witch tossed treasure into each bag.

“What? Aaaaaaaaaaah! Oof.”

“What a cute little thief! Here you go!”

“You’re just giving me candy??!”

“Of course. It’s Halloween!”

“Come on.” said a skeleton. “Next house!”

Benny grinned.

Costume? Check!

Friends? Check!

Free candy? Check!

Best night ever!

Hi! I'm Kailei 

I write picture books and am in the process of seeking representation. Shout out to my friends in the query trenches. It sure isn't for the faint hearted!

I believe in books. I believe in imaginative play. I believe in having fun, getting messy, and being silly with my kids. Thus FOR LITTLE READERS was born, where I share a book and activity each week. I hope you'll jump into the fun with your kids and be inspired by something I share here. 

Why books? I believe that books open up a world of possibilities to young kids. In a book, anything is possible. Kids can find themselves in the pages and get completely lost in the story. The day we brought our first baby home from the hospital, we read her a bedtime story and never looked back. Now we can read for hours every day. I'll never tire of the wonder in her eyes with each new story. 

Why imaginative play? Kids need to be silly. They need to go on adventures. They need to navigate their world in a fun, safe place. I could go on and on about the benefits of imaginative play, but I'll spare you. Just know this: it's SO important in a child's development. 

I believe that when reading and imagination meet, magic happens. I hope to help you make that happen for your child.