The Maple Festival

by Poppy Green

  Contents

  Chapter 1: Fall Fun

  Chapter 2: Delicious Daydreams

  Chapter 3: Miss Olsen’s Orchard

  Chapter 4: Lots of Leaves

  Chapter 5: Ready, Set, Bake!

  Chapter 6: All Work, No Play

  Chapter 7: The Best Festival Ever!

  Chapter 8: Don’t Drop the Acorn!

  Chapter 9: Art to the Rescue

  Chapter 10: Back in Business

  Winter’s No Time to Sleep Excerpt

  About Poppy Green and Jennifer A. Bell

  Fall Fun

  Sophie Mouse tapped her pencil on her school desk. Her assignment was to write a math word problem. Sophie wondered if Mrs. Wise would like hers.

  Mmmm . . . thought Sophie as she reread the problem. Autumn was a very yummy time of year. It was when her mom made all kinds of maple treats at her bakery in Pine Needle Grove. And every year, Mrs. Mouse sold them at the big Maple Festival. Sophie couldn’t wait for this year’s festival. It was coming up this weekend!

  A cool breeze blew in through the window. It carried a few leaves with it.

  “Okay, class!” Mrs. Wise called out. “Time for recess!”

  The whole class jumped up. Sophie joined her friends Hattie Frog and Owen Snake at the door. They headed out to the playground.

  “Are you both going to the Maple Festival this weekend?” Sophie asked them.

  Hattie nodded. “Of course!” she said. “I want to ride the Ferris wheel at least five times!”

  Owen gasped. “There will be a Ferris wheel?” His family had moved to Pine Needle Grove a few months before. He had never been to the Maple Festival.

  “Owen, there’s so much to do there!” Sophie cried. The three friends were nearing the swings. “There’s dragonfly racing. You can play games to win prizes, like cranberry necklaces and acorn-top yo-yos!”

  “There are ribbon-dancing grasshoppers!” added Zoe, a bluebird who was swinging on a swing.

  “And my mom’s bake stand too!” added Winston, Sophie’s little brother. He ran between Sophie and Hattie and was gone in a flash.

  “Yummm,” said several students, rubbing their bellies. Lily Mouse’s bake stand was always one of the most popular attractions at the festival.

  Ben, a rabbit who was Sophie’s age, called out from the top of the slide. “I heard there’s going to be a fire-breathing lizard this year!”

  Sophie, Hattie, Owen, and Zoe looked at him in surprise.

  Ben shrugged. “What?” he said. “That’s what I heard!”

  At home that evening, Sophie’s mom and dad were talking about the festival too. “It’s going to be a busy week,” George Mouse said. He was an architect. Every year, he helped animals build their festival stands.

  Lily Mouse looked more tired than usual. She had worked all day at the bakery. “Mrs. Fields isn’t going to be able to help me this year. She is visiting friends in Briar Patch.”

  A chipmunk named Mrs. Fields usually helped Lily Mouse the week before the festival. There was so much extra baking to do.

  Sophie hurried over to her mom. “I can help you!” she offered. “I could be your assistant!”

  Lily Mouse smoothed the fur on Sophie’s head. “Thank you, Sophie,” she said. “But I think I might need a grown-up to help me.”

  Sophie clasped her hands together. “Oh pleeeease, Mom,” she pleaded. “You’ve always said that I’m a big help in the kitchen.”

  Lily Mouse looked at Sophie. She seemed to be thinking it over.

  Finally, she said, “Okay. We’ll give it a try. You can start after school tomorrow.”

  Sophie cheered. Her mom smiled, but held up a hand.

  “But don’t say I didn’t warn you,” said Mrs. Mouse “There’s a lot to do!”

  Delicious Daydreams

  After school the next day, Sophie dropped Winston off at his friend James’s house for a playdate. Then Sophie hurried toward the bakery. She was excited to be her mom’s assistant for the Maple Festival!

  Sophie ran through the village of Pine Needle Grove. Her nose picked up the sweet scent of maple sugar. Minutes later, she arrived at the bakery. She opened the front door.

  “Hello?” Sophie called. There was no one up front.

  Suddenly, there was a loud clatter from the kitchen. Sophie followed the sound. She pushed open the kitchen door. Her mom was standing in the middle of the room. At her feet was an overturned bowl and a puddle of batter.

  “Oh dear,” Lily Mouse cried. “I worked for hours on that maple cupcake batter.” Her mom sighed.

  Sophie patted her mom on the back. “I’ll help you clean it up,” she said. “Then we can mix up another batch.”

  Lily Mouse looked up at Sophie and smiled. “Thank you, sweetie,” she said. “I’ve been rushing about all day. And I’m trying to come up with some new recipes for this year’s festival. But I haven’t thought of anything yet.”

  Sophie grabbed a mop. As she cleaned up the batter, she wondered if she could come up with a new recipe. What would I invent if I were a baker? Sophie thought. What tastes good with maple? Daffodil petal? No. Too bitter. Pine cone dust? Nah. Too spicy. Then Sophie stopped mopping. She had an idea!

  “Mom,” Sophie said, “how about a recipe that combines maple and apple?” Sophie thought it sounded perfect for autumn!

  Lily Mouse was at the sink, washing the mixing bowl. She stopped scrubbing. A smile slowly lit up her face.

  “Now why didn’t I think of that?” Lily Mouse said. “What a wonderful idea, Sophie!”

  Miss Olsen’s Orchard

  Lily Mouse was out of apples. So she and Sophie each grabbed an empty basket. They walked together to the apple orchard. It was near Goldmoss Pond, not too far from the bakery.

  “Hello!” Miss Olsen, a small gray squirrel, called to them as they walked up. Her family had run the orchard for years. “What can I get you today, Mrs. Mouse?”

  Sophie loved coming to Olsen Orchard. There were so many different kinds of apples! There were small red ones that the small animals liked. There were large green ones for the bigger animals. And there were lots of sizes in between in red, yellow, green, and even pink.

  At Olsen Orchard, you could pick your own apples. Or the squirrels could pick them for you. They worked in pairs. One squirrel scurried up a tree in a flash. She picked an apple and dropped it down to another squirrel, who caught it in a basket.

  Lily Mouse told Miss Olsen that she needed lots of different kinds of apples. “My assistant, Sophie, and I are making some maple-apple treats for the festival!” Sophie stood up straight. She felt proud to be introduced that way.

  Miss Olsen smiled at Sophie. “Do you want to help pick the apples?”

  Sophie beamed. “Sure!” she exclaimed.

  Miss Olsen called over two other squirrels. They started picking apples from the taller trees. Sophie got started on a shorter tree with yellow apples on it. She climbed up to the highest branch. She reached out to an apple on the end. Then she twisted it while pulling gently and—pluck! One perfect apple!

  Before long, Sophie had filled about half her basket. She looked over at the squirrels. Their basket was completely overflowing!

  “I think that’s plenty!” Lily Mouse called out. She thanked Miss Olsen. But when she and Sophie tried to pick up the baskets, they were too heavy to carry.

  So Miss Olsen loaded the baskets into her wheelbarrow. Then she walked Sophie and her mom back to the bakery.

  “You must be very busy this week too!” Lily Mouse said to Miss Olsen. Olsen Orchard always had a stand at the festival.

  “Will you be in charge of the apple carving again?” Sophie asked.

  Miss Olsen nodded. “Yes! And this year the organ
izers asked us to create a huge apple sculpture as well. It will be on display right next to the Ferris wheel!”

  Wow! thought Sophie. This really is going to be the biggest and best festival yet!

  Lots of Leaves

  At school the next day, Sophie was daydreaming at her desk. She thought she could still smell the maple-apple muffins she and her mom had made the day before.

  Sophie stared out the window. She made a list of her recipe ideas in her head.

  Fluffy orange-and-clove cakes. Poppy-seed doughnuts. Cranberry-nut cookies. And we’ll need more maple treats. Maybe maple-glazed waffles? Two of them, with a layer of whipped cream in between! Sophie’s mouth began to water.

  “Sophie!” a voice whispered. Sophie shook herself out of her delicious daydream. “Sophie, Mrs. Wise is waiting for you!”

  It was Hattie, standing at Sophie’s side. Sophie looked around. The rest of the class was lined up at the schoolhouse door. Everyone’s eyes were on Sophie.

  “Well, Sophie?” Mrs. Wise said. “Are you going to join us on our leaf walk?”

  Sophie jumped up and hurried to the end of the line. “Sorry!” she said. “I was just . . . thinking about something.”

  Mrs. Wise smiled and led the class outside. She took the class on a leaf walk every autumn. They identified trees by their leaves. They pointed out the brightest ones. And each student collected a few fallen leaves. Back at school, they would use them to make leaf rubbings.

  Mrs. Wise led the class out of the schoolyard. They turned down a looping path through some dense woods.

  Here they were free to stop and collect their leaves.

  “I found birch!” called out Lydie, Hattie’s sister. She held up a yellow leaf.

  “Here’s an elm!” shouted Owen, pointing with his tail.

  Winston held up a brown leaf. “Oak!” he called out. Sophie smiled. She and Winston both knew oak leaves very well. Their house was at the base of an oak tree.

  Sophie scanned the ground as they walked on. She was looking for one certain type of leaf. . . .

  She scurried toward a pile of bright red leaves under a large tree. She picked one up. “Maple!” Sophie announced.

  Mrs. Wise nodded. “That’s right!” she said. “Maple seems to be on everyone’s mind this week!”

  Mrs. Wise led the class back to the school. They spent their art time making their leaf rubbings. Sophie’s was a rubbing of three maple leaves.

  At recess, the whole class made a huge leaf pile in the middle of the playground. Then they lined up to take turns jumping in it.

  Sophie took a running leap and disappeared into the pile. The leaves were so soft! Sophie popped out of the pile, a huge grin on her face. “Autumn is awesome!” she exclaimed.

  Ready, Set, Bake!

  Sophie hurried to the bakery after school. She had written down all of her ideas on a page in her sketchbook.

  “I love them!” Lily Mouse cried when she read them. “I love them all.” She stood up and tossed Sophie an apron. “I guess we better get busy!”

  So that afternoon, Sophie and her mom made orange-and-clove cakes, poppy-seed doughnuts, and cranberry nut cookies.

  Lily Mouse gave Sophie baking tips as they worked.

  “Measure carefully!” said Lily Mouse as they mixed the cake batter. “A teaspoon of baking powder is usually plenty. A tablespoon is usually . . . a disaster.”

  She showed Sophie how to glaze the donuts while they were still warm. “If they are too cool, the glaze won’t stick,” said Lily Mouse.

  She let Sophie mix the cookie batter all by herself. “Don’t overmix,” said Lily Mouse. “Stir just until all of the ingredients are combined. Then the cookies will be soft and chewy.”

  The next day, they made dozens of waffle-cream sandwiches. “How did you come up with this idea, Sophie?” asked Lily Mouse.

  Sophie smiled and shrugged. “It just came to me at school yesterday.”

  Lily Mouse smiled. “Hmmm,” she said. “Daydreaming at school, are we?”

  Sophie’s whiskers twitched, but she didn’t say anything.

  The day before the festival, they made lots of Lily Mouse’s tried-and-true recipes.

  They made pecan custard and pumpkin pies.

  They made carrot cupcakes and apple-berry tarts.

  Last but not least, they made giant maple cookies. They rolled out the dough and cut each one in the shape of a maple leaf.

  When the cookies came out of the oven, Sophie got to decorate them with icing. She made each one a little bit different.

  At the end of the day, Sophie and her mom looked around the bakery kitchen.

  The countertop was crowded with trays and baskets full of muffins, cookies, scones, breads, and waffle-cream sandwiches.

  The catering cart was piled high with the first load of cakes and pies. They would take it over to the festival grounds early the next morning.

  “Do you think we made enough?” asked Sophie.

  “Well,” said Lily Mouse, “everyone says there will be more animals at the festival than ever before. Let’s hope we can feed them all!”

  Lily Mouse turned off the kitchen light. Then she and Sophie went out the back door of the bakery. They headed home to the oak tree to rest up for the big day.

  All Work, No Play

  “Well, this is it!” said George Mouse. He lifted the last pie off the catering cart.

  The whole family—Mr. Mouse, Mrs. Mouse, Sophie, and Winston—had worked together to get all the baked goods from the bakery to the festival grounds. They had started before sunrise that morning. It had taken many trips back and forth.

  Now, finally, the bake stand was stocked and ready.

  “Just in time,” said Sophie. “Look!” A few animals were strolling into the festival.

  For the first time that morning, Sophie had a chance to look around. Colorful flags flapped atop the tents. Musicians were warming up their instruments. The scent of popcorn and other festival foods filled the air. And, off in the distance, Sophie thought she caught a glimpse of the Olsens’ apple sculpture. She hoped to get a closer look later.

  Sophie glanced up. Towering over everything was the giant Ferris wheel!

  In the middle of it all was Lily Mouse’s bake stand—one stand in a long row of many other stands. Each one had crafts, or food for sale, or games to play.

  Lily Mouse looked up and down the row. “There are definitely more stands this year,” she pointed out. “I hope customers can find us!”

  “Don’t worry, Mom,” Sophie said. “Animals come from far and wide to taste your treats, remember?”

  Mr. Mouse took Winston by the hand. “Hey, Winston!” he said, looking around excitedly. “How about you and I go check out the games?”

  They headed off, leaving Sophie and her mom to wait for their first customers.

  A few minutes later, Sophie saw Hattie, Lydie, and their parents walking toward them.

  “My goodness!” exclaimed Mrs. Frog. “I heard the festival would be bigger than ever. But this is really something!”

  “Everything looks delicious!” said Mr. Frog.

  Sophie grabbed Hattie by the hand. “Let me show you some of the things I made.”

  Sophie showed Hattie the maple cookies she’d decorated. Suddenly, she felt a tap on her back. She turned around.

  “Owen!” cried Sophie.

  Owen’s eyes were wide in amazement. “There’s so much to see here!” he said. “I don’t know where to start!”

  Hattie looked at Sophie. “Let’s go find all the cool new stuff we heard about!”

  “Yes!” Sophie cried. She looked over at her mom to tell her—then stopped. She couldn’t just run off. That wasn’t what a good assistant would do.

  Sophie’s heart sank. She had been so excited to help out at the festival. But she hadn’t realized what it meant.

  If she was helping the whole time, she wouldn’t be able to have fun, too.

  The Best Festival Ever!
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  Suddenly, Mrs. Mouse came over to them. “Sophie, why don’t you go explore the festival with Hattie and Owen?” she suggested. “You’ve earned it after all your hard work this week!”

  Sophie gave her mom a hug. “Thank you!” she said. “I’ll be back later when your line gets long!”

  Sophie grabbed her satchel. Inside, as usual, were her art supplies. She carried them in case she saw something she just had to draw. She slung the satchel over her shoulder and ran off with her friends.

  They zipped from stand to stand. They watched some animals playing a new game called tree-stump ring toss. One chipmunk tossed three rings over a tree stump and won! His prize was a big, shiny balloon. They’d never had balloons at the festival before!

  The friends stopped to check out a giant spider’s web that was so strong animals could climb up it! The spider stood proudly in front of it, encouraging the animals to try.

  Sophie, Hattie, and Owen passed a hopping panda . . . then realized it was Willy, a toad from school, wearing face paint.

  “Willy! That looks so real!” cried Sophie. “Where did you get your face painted?”

  Willy pointed toward a stand at the very end of the row. There was a long line of young animals waiting their turn. At the front of the line, the face-paint artist was painting a raccoon’s face to look like a tiger.

  They decided not to wait in the long line. Instead, they headed off to watch the dragonfly races. This year, dragonflies from all different parts of the forest had entered. Sophie and her friends got there just in time to see the very close finish.