Last week, I pre-empted My Favorite Scene to start posting about our Big Trip, but this week, I'm pre-empting the continuation of the Big Trip photos to post my entry for Susanna Hill's holiday contest. Next week, I promise, I will continue with our travelogue with pictures of Shanghai.
Susanna Hill, besides being an all-round wonderful author and person, also holds regular super-fun writing contests on her website. This time, she has really outdone herself with the incredible prizes for the Holiday Contest. I'm not just entering for those prizes, mind you; I have the much loftier goal of entering the contest to support Susanna. *snort* Okay, I'm in it solely for vying for one of those prizes. I cannot lie, or Santa won't bring me those extra hours per day for me to read and write in. ;)
Here is my entry:
A Home for the Holidays (338 words)
Dora scurried into her burrow, tail twitching with excitment. “I found us the perfect home,” she announced.
“What’s wrong with this one?” asked Cousin Pip.
“It’s in the ground, and is dark and dank,” said Dora.
“Mice live in the ground, you silly,” said Pip.
“We’re Pacific Jumping Mice,” said Dora. “We don’t have to
live in the ground.”
“That’s right! Great Grandpa Fuzzy used to tell us stories
of how his papa lived in a tree,” Millie, Dora’s sister piped up.
“And that’s just what I found for us,” said Dora.
Millie’s eyes grew wide. “You found us a tree?”
“Uh huh; want to see?” asked Dora.
“Yes!” Millie clapped her paws.
“No,” said Pip with a sniff.
Dora and Millie ran and ran through brush until they came to
a tall white pine where no tree had been before.
“Ooooh!” said Millie, bouncing up and down.
They scampered up the trunk to a small, cozy hole. Lining it
with pine needles, they took a deep breath of the fresh, sweet scent -
“aaaaah!” - before snuggling together for a nap.
Rattle, rattle, shake, shake! Doris and Millie woke up with
a jolt.
“It’s an earthquake!” Millie squeaked.
Shake, shake, rattle, rattle, bumpity-bump!
“What’s happening to our new home?” Doris groaned.
Pine needles flew every which way. Doris and Millie huddled
together, paws over their eyes.
Finally, the bumping and shaking stopped.
“I can’t bear to look,” said Doris.
The rattling was replaced by rustling, and…giggles and
laughter. Lots of giggles and laughter.
“Maybe we should look?” said Millie.
They crept to the opening of the hole, brushed aside the
pine needles, and peeked out. Glittery tinsel sparkled by the glow of tiny,
shiny lights all around the tree. Silvery bells tinkled faintly as Doris
stepped out on a branch. Millie peered under her arm.
“It’s magical!” squealed Millie.
“It’s our magical new home,” said Doris.
“It’s our magical Christmas tree,” said the little girl
gazing up at the tree with eyes as sparkly as the lights.
If you like those prizes Susanna is giving away, you still have time to enter! Just post your story anytime this week to your blog and add yourself to her contest blog roll (or post it as a comment to her blog if you don't have your own blog).
"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams
