Shady Pines Celebrates Winnie the Pooh Day
WINNIE the POOH and FRIENDS on Their Big Day!
The loud roar of a vacuum cleaner fills the Sanders’ home with deafening sound. It’s mid-morning and Edna
is in a hurry to finish cleaning her house. She’s expecting Scoop, the Cub Reporter from The Shady Pines Gazette newspaper to show up any time now. He’s coming to interview her on one of her favorite topics - Winnie the Pooh. As a cartoon character herself, Edna is crazy about the adventures of this bear and his buddies. Their stories are filled with kindness, friendship, caring, and other positive themes. And, best of all, January 18th is the official Winnie the Pooh Day!
BOOMER and HALLEY
"Something about those Pooh stories reminds me of the books our local author, Mary Jane McKittrick, writes about our family. My husband, Harold and I think Boomerang, our Australian Shepherd dog, and our silver streak of a cat, Halley's Comet, are very entertaining critters. I guess other people do, too! Honestly, when we first adopted those four legged "children" we had no idea how to be parents. But, just like the Pooh stories, The Boomer and Halley books 
inspire kids to be good, honest and decent people. Although, I must say, our Boomer and Halley often have us spinning and they tend to get the whole town of Shady Pines into the act!" (For Boomer and Halley books Go HERE)
As she puts the vacuum away in the utility closet, Edna sees Boomer and Halley are hanging out in the kitchen. She smiles. “You two act like you don’t like one another, but I know better!”
Boomer cocks his head. “Whaaat?”
Halley can’t believe what she’s hearing. “Mom thinks we get along?”
Edna sweeps up dog and cat food that has spilled onto the floor. “Listen you two, this is a big day. It’s National Winnie the Pooh Day. I am a big fan of the lovable bear and all his friends.”
Boomer is confused. “Halley, Winnie the Pooh is a bear? Does he live in Shady Pines?”
Halley shakes her head. “I don’t know. And who are his friends?”
Edna pulls a book down from the shelf. “Here it is. My very own Winnie the Pooh book.”
Ding Dong!
Boomer barks and gets ready to head to the front door. “That must be Scoop,” says Edna. "I'll bet he ran here like always."
When she opens the door, she sees a familiar young man with a shock of red hair. He has his camera equipment slung over his arm and a reporter’s notebook sticking out of his jacket pocket.
“Hi ya, Mrs. Sanders, hey Boomer, how are you?”
Edna motions for him to come in. “Good to see you Scoop. Let’s go into the kitchen.”
Scoop follows Edna while Boomer brings up the rear. “Here we go Scoop. You can have a seat right there at the table. Would you like something to drink?”
Scoop takes out his notebook and puts his camera bag down by his feet. “No, thank you. I’m OK for now.”
Edna sits beside him and puts her Winnie the Pooh book on the table. “One of my prized possessions.”
THE SANDERS CONNECTION
Scoop reaches for his camera. “Would you mind if I get a photo of you reading your book? And, maybe some shots of the pages?”
Edna is thrilled. “Of course.”
While Scoop gets set up, he asks, “Tell me why this means so much to you.”
Edna clears her throat. “Well, first, do you see the name above the entrance to Winnie the Pooh’s tree house? It’s Sanders!”
Scoop is shocked. “Really?”
Edna shows him a page with that very specific picture. Scoops snaps a photo. He can't believe it. "Would you look at that. It does say Sanders." Scoops looks through more pages.
"When I was working at the Community Center one day, a young boy asked me to read a Winnie the Pooh book to him. That's when I got hooked. The youngster told me he liked all of the characters but related the most to Christopher Robin."
Scoop looks up. "That's the young boy in the story, right? I just wrote an article for the Gazette. Christopher Robin was based on the author's real life son." (Scoop's article HERE)
SCOOP GETS the SCOOP!
Edna nods. "Exactly. Think of it. Humans and animals together telling wonderful stories. What does that remind you of, Scoop?"
Scoop is smiling. "Sounds to me a lot like what happens around here in Shady Pines Story Town! That's why it's cool being a reporter. Just like Pooh, we've got plenty of interesting characters around here."
Now Edna is smiling. "That's your story, Scoop. Now I've got to scoot you out of here. I've got some moms and their kids coming over for a Winnie the Pooh lunch."
Scoop places his photo equipment into his camera bag. "Let me guess, you're going to have some honey on the table."
Edna gets up from the table. "In honor of the honey-loving bear, there may even be some honey baked ham."
As Scoop heads back to the newspaper office, Edna gets ready to welcome her guests. It's going to be another memorable gathering in Edna's Kitchen and it's happening, once again, in the small Southern town of Shady Pines.
LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW AND LET US KNOW WHAT YOU LIKE ABOUT WINNIE THE POOH DAY!
Hey Everyone,
And don’t forget. You can still get a copy of the brand new Pine Cone Corner Activity Packet that has all sorts of other fun things for the kids.
EDNA'S KITCHEN STORIES 
It's me, Edna Sanders. Welcome to Edna’s Kitchen. In honor of Valentine’s Day I want to tell you about the time my wonderful husband, Harold, did something to demonstrate his love for me. As a result of his efforts, my kitchen blender has become famous in our small Southern town of Shady Pines. You see, my blender, Gertie, is always blowing her top. Maybe you’ve heard about this problem? No matter where I go in town, people like to tease me. They'll say things like:"Hey Edna, I hear NASA is tracking that blender of yours across several galaxies.""Chop, chop, Edna. That blender of yours is about to blow!""Edna, has the Ford Motor Company called you yet about your blender? I hear they're looking for ways to rev up the engines in their new cars!"Anyway, you get the drift. My blender has become a joke with lot of punch lines. And, I haven't even made punch in it yet! So, I want to let you in on 
"Oh, Harold. You startled me.""Sorry. Guess you couldn't hear me over that noisy blender of yours.""Be kind to Gertie. She may be getting on in years, but she can still get the job done.""Why don't you let me take that thing and give it a tune-up?""Well, I will be busy at the Center tomorrow afternoon. I guess that'll be all right.""Sure. And here's the best news. Once the 'ole gal is back to running full force, you'll be able to make more recipes in less time."You know Harold's intentions are well meaning. He likes to tinker with things down at his store. When you own Nuts 'N Bolts hardware, that's what you do. He left for work the next morning with Gertie tucked under one arm. I was a little anxious, but what can you say?Harold returned home that evening and proudly placed Gertie back on the kitchen counter."Edna, it's time for a test drive.""I'll just pull a few ingredients together and...""No, no. Let's make your chicken soup that I like so much. With the vegetables and everything."
And that's how the legend of Gertie, my blender, was born. Surprisingly, Gertie survived her frantic flight. And since that night, I have found ways to better control her speed and power. Harold was right. The new, and improved Gertie has cut down on the time it takes me to whip something up. I must tell you there are still times, when, well, we have our little mis-adventures.It doesn't matter. What matters is that Gertie helps me create recipes for people to enjoy. Only, now, she's able to do it in record time, due to Harold's loving gesture. He was just trying to help make things easier for me. In Edna's Kitchen kindness and caring are the best ingredients of all in the small Southern Town of Shady Pines!
Hi Everyone. Scoop the Cub Reporter here with Breaking News.
Shadows deepen earlier each day in late December. Streetlights around Shady Pines come on just after 5 pm as the night approaches. Why, before you know it, it’ll be New Year's Day!
“Well,” says Edna, “I’m thinking agility classes for Boomer and walking on a leash classes for Halley. She still doesn’t have the hang of it yet.”
Harold agrees with his wife. “Yes, and Halley likes to show she can do things other cats can’t do. It gets people to notice her and she adores being the center of attention.”