A Very Squirrely Birthday by Caroline

We LOVE to publish the work of Durham middle school students, and we're so excited to share the latest story from Caroline. Enjoy! 

A Very Squirrely Birthday

By Caroline M

Chapter 1 : A Birthday Morning

Hi, my name is Caroline and today is my eleventh birthday.

   I woke up to see 3 presents on the floor. Excited, I quickly scrambled out of bed to open the presents on the floor. The smallest present was a purse with a leather strap. In the next box was some squirrel feed. I quickly ripped open the biggest present, and inside it was a squirrel hoodie that seemed to have a soft glow to it. I hurried to put it on and raced to the mirror to see how I looked, only to realize I was a squirrel!

 Chapter 2 : Oh Nuts!

Wait what, I'm a squirrel!? (and also yay maybe I can talk to the squirrels!) I realized that my brother was probably up and he could help me. So I darted out of my room to find my brother. I found my brother watching TV in his room but, when I opened my mouth all that came out was screech chitter chatter. Startled, Isaiah screamed, “Mom, Dad, Caroline let a squirrel in the house!” They came running and put me in our dog’s old cage, I was trapped! They hurried down the stairs and into the backyard, they opened the cage and then went back inside. I banged on the door with my tiny squirrel paws but they were gone! 

      

Chapter 3 : A Big Mistake

My parents went upstairs to find me but all they found was the presents I had opened earlier. They saw that the hoodie wasn’t there. They looked at the tags I had cut off and realized that the squirrel that had been inside was me! Apparently, the squirrel hoodie turns whoever wears it into a squirrel! They raced back outside to find me but I had run off. My family decided to look for clues. It looked like nothing was going to turn up when suddenly, Isaiah yelled, “I found something!” My parents rushed to the bathroom upstairs. Isaiah explained that one of my necklaces wasn't there and that he suspected that I was wearing it. Meanwhile, I was playing with my squirrel friends Storm and Toffee. We played hide and seek and then a bit of tag. Back at my house, my family agreed that they would set out to find me and try to lure me back with candy.

                                 

 Chapter 4 : Hide and Squeak

  I was playing hide and seek with Storm and Lumi when I found the best hiding place; my squirrel house. When it was my turn to hide, I snuck over into the squirrel house and situated myself under the big shelf inside. That’s when I heard the door. My brother was going to play with our neighbors I guessed so, I peeped out of my spot just in time to see that the door didn’t close all the way. When Isaiah was gone, I snuck inside to see no one was home. Yay, I thought to myself, I have the whole house to play in alone! So I got out my old L.O.L dolls and played with them. After a while I got bored so I got some LEGOs out and built a car (the little ones where you use your feet to move) and played with that. But then I had the best idea: Make some parade cars and set up a festival! 

Chapter 5 : Crashing the Party!

I quickly got to work dragging bins out and snapping pieces together. I built for a while and finally finished it but it was missing something, squirrels! I knew I couldn't let any inside, so what could I do? Then, my mind drifted to my bed. That’s it, Peanut! (Peanut is a toy squirrel I got for my 10th birthday) I squeaked. I scampered up the stairs to my room and then onto my bed. Now where is he? Ah ha, I pulled him out of the blankets and then pulled him with me to the stairs. Hm, I can’t pull him and get down the stairs so, I guess I'll toss him down. So, I did and set him up at the LEGO festival. I was having a great time but it needed snacks! I climbed into the pantry and got some granola. Now it’s even better than before! But still, It was kinda lonely feeling. I thought, what else does this need? Music! I squeaked. I got my dad’s old phone and tried to play some music but I forgot that I have squirrel paws. I can use a computer then! I thought out loud. I managed to drag it out and play music but while I was dancing, I knocked it over! Crash, Crash, Crash! LEGOs went everywhere, and I was stuck fast!

Chapter 6 : Help!

Help! I’m stuck help! Gah, I thought, nobody’s home to help. I tried to climb out but the LEGOs just fell right back around me like sand. Then I remembered that when you buried your feet in the sand, wiggling them would move the sand off, so maybe it would work with the LEGOs. I tried it and it worked! Ok now that I’m free, what should I do? Just then my family came inside and saw me. 

“There she is!” said Isaiah. They rushed over and picked me up. “How do we turn her back into a human?” Asked my Mom. “Maybe try pulling around her neck?” Isaiah said. My dad tried that and it worked! I was human again. I think we can all agree that we’ve had enough adventures for now. I said. We all laughed at the crazy day we had. Then my mom saw the wrecked LEGO party. “Caroline!” She yelled. Oops. I said and we all got to work cleaning up the giant mess as I told them the crazy things that had happened to me.

      

    Until next time, - Caroline.