Creative Writing Month of January: Blog 1- Letters from Mom & Mimi

Happy New Year Angel (and happy birthday to your Poppy on Sunday)!

This month, your Mimi and I are going to try something new… we are going to write you a story.  But there are some guidelines.  I will write a piece, then your Mimi has to finish it and we will do this every week for the four parts.  The only things your Mimi and I agreed on were the characters- Ellie and a magic teapot.  Anything is fair game- except we have to continue the same story, no starting over.  However, we are giving ourselves a time limit (because we know otherwise we will fall in love with this creative writing project and get nothing else done)- 45 minutes total (so whether that means 3 sentences or 3 pages, that’s what the other person has to work with).  And we each have an additional 30 minutes every week to figure out an illustration to go with our part (your Mimi had some extra time this first week as she also designed the title picture of the teapot).  Our goal Ellie is to have a beloved bedtime tale for you and future generations.  So alas, here we go (your Mimi’s part will be in italics and mine will be in regular font):

Ellie and The Magic Teapot: Part I

            “Hello Baby, Mickey, Blanket, and Mine-Mine.  Welcome to my tea party.”  Ellie says excitedly to her friends, her blue eyes sparkling.  She had neatly set five settings around the small table in her bedroom.  Blanket and Baby had to share a seat though because there weren’t enough chairs.

            “I’ve put on my best pair of knit pants for you and I tried my hardest to comb my hair,” Ellie adds as she tries to pat down the blonde tangle of knots that are sticking out of the back of her head.  Her Mom was always trying to get her to wear bows but Ellie preferred a wilder look.  She made sure that her stuffed friends looked their best too.  Baby had on a frilly dress and she had her Mom wash Blanket. 

            “Now, these silly plastic cups have holes at the bottom.  So when I pour the tea, put these butterfly stickers underneath so the water doesn’t spill all over the floor.  My Mom gets very frustrated when everything gets wet,” she tells her stuffed friends.

            She picks up the plastic kettle and wonders if the sparkles that appeared gleaming on the side were always there... she never noticed that before. She shrugged and skipped off to the bathroom sink and filled the plastic kettle with water.  Some of it splashed over the top as she carefully walked back into her bedroom and into the tea party circle on the floor.

            “Now, who would like a delicious chocolate chip cookie to dunk?” Ellie asks her friends as she passes the plate of plastic goodies around.  No one answered.  “These cookies aren’t really good at all are they?  I wish we had my Mimi’s homemade ones but she lives so far away that I would need to take a very long plane ride to get there,” she sighed as she started to fill the first teacup with water.

            Just as she noticed the butterfly stickers weren’t doing a good job of keeping the water in the cups, the sparkles on the kettle again caught her eye.  But suddenly, they started jumping off endlessly and swirling all around the circle to make a beautiful rainbow of colors.  The swirling sound began to resemble the ABC song.  Ellie thought she could hear Baby, Mine-Mine, Mickey, and Blanket singing and swaying along.

            And before she knew it, she and all of her friends were sitting at Mimi’s dining room table and moving around.  “Where are we?” Mine-Mine squeaked in a high pitch bird voice.  Ellie couldn’t answer because she was wide-eyed in disbelief.

            “Ellie, I’m so glad you and your friends could come visit me,” Ellie’s eccentric grandmother yelled out of the kitchen.  She appeared then in her neon green dress and she smiled her very beautiful and welcoming smile that Ellie loved most of all.  “But I don’t think it’s my cookies you want, let’s pour that kettle again and get you to your Great-Grandmom Mundy’s kitchen fifty years ago.  She invented the homemade recipe I inherited and I think you need to taste them warm from her oven.”

            And with that, Baby leaned over and picked up the kettle and started to pour as Blanket dabbed the wet spots that leaked over the edge.  The sparkles started jumping off again and before she knew it, Ellie was being whisked away in a beautiful rainbow of color and song…

            Thankfully she grabbed Mimi’s hand as the melody grew louder and the rainbow colors took on a circular swirl with a never-ending middle!  “Wheeeeeee!” giggled Mimi!  “Thank you for taking me with you El, I can already smell those delicious cookies!”

            And just like that, as though they had been there all along, everyone was seated around Great Grandmom Mundy’s kitchen table!  Everyone that is except for Blanket.   But no one noticed right away.

            Great Gram had sensed we were coming and already set the table for seven.  Each teacup had its own personality and somehow we were seated to the teacup that matched our own. Placed to the right of Great Gram’s seat was Ellie’s teacup.  It was very bold in color, hot pink and red being the dominant shades with a crown of gold lacing its rim.  Great-Gram Mundy exclaimed matter-of-factly, “Ellie this teacup is for you for it holds authority.  Only a strong minded and logical thinker can drink from this cup.”  Ellie smiled confidently knowing full well she was in charge!   The next teacup in line was Baby’s.  Designed like a sippy cup Baby’s was colored in soft pinks, yellows, greens and blues.  And musical notes with sporadic Zzzzzzzz’s dotted the outside.  This time Gram Mundy soothingly whispered, “Baby this cup is for you for it holds hope and only what is seen through a child’s eyes.”  In all her innocence Baby understood this statement completely.  As the table rounded the next teacup in line belonged to Mickey Mouse for around its base held tiny black mouse ears creating a path to a magical castle.  Great-Gram enchantedly sang, “Mickey Mouse this teacup is for you for it holds the secret words that will break all magical spells.”  Mickey Mouse knew that only he spoke the sorcerer’s language. Rounding the opposite corner of the table from Great-Gram’s place was Mimi’s teacup.  Her teacup was bright yellow with colorful angels, hearts, X’s and O’s and rainbows.  Gram Mundy winked and said, “Mimi this cup is for you for it can only be sipped by someone who believes in the impossible."  Mimi winked back and knew her place.  Next to Mimi and opposite Baby sat Mine-Mine’s teacup.  A beautiful ocean of pastel blue with billowing clouds and tiny lighthouses circled its parameter.   Great-Gram Mundy boldly stated, “Mine-Mine this teacup is for you for only those who can see in depth can truly understand the clues that are placed before them.”   The last teacup to complete the table’s circle was pure white for it held comfort and love… no more, no less.  Great Gram Mundy softly started to speak, “ Blanket, this cup was meant for you… Blanket???  Blanket???  Everyone looked above the table, around the table, underneath the table and then at each other.   

            Baby got up and carefully waddled from the kitchen through the dining room and into the living calling out Blanket’s name but only to receive a voice of silence to her cry.  In a panic, Mine-Mine flew up the stairs to check out the 2^nd floor squawking out Blankets name over and over again also.  He too received no answer.

            Back to the kitchen they went.  With tears in her eyes Baby started babbling, “What should we do Ellie? What ever should we do?  Blanket is alone and probably frightened!”  Mine-Mine clasped his wings together like a little nervous Nelly repeating Baby’s same phrase, “ What should we do Ellie?  What ever should we do?  Blanket is alone and probably frightened! Oh my, oh my, whatever shall we do?”

We will continue the story next week, Ellie!

We love you!

Mom & Mimi