Buddies, bouncing, and brownies!

Ned just loves to read.  He reads everything ... from text books to history books, novels, fairy tales, poetry, how-to books, science journals, you name it.  To help out Pierre he decided to read a book about locks and keys.  He read it thoroughly a few times, and then got to work and made a key that would open the cages at the lab so Pierre could let his friends out to play with the gang.    They were so grateful and had a great time all day on the loose.

Today TOMH&R decided to play on a trampoline.  First Emilio got on, tentatively did a few bounces until he got the hang of it, then he was bouncing all over the place.  Lola, Jorge, Chico and Luigi got on and bounced with him .... Yippee!!!  Then they got off and let the others have a turn.  Fred, Ned, Jed, Ed, Ted, and Julio got the next turn.  Gustave got on too.  First he used his snail foot to hold himself steady on the trampoline, just kind of went up and down a little bit. Ed and Ted were bouncing like crazy, landing on everyone else all over the place.   Gustave lost his grip and went rock, went flying off the trampoline and landed on the grass.  Al had no interest in it at all.  Upyours went on by himself and did some fancy breakdancing moves each time he bounced.  Guerrero had some wicked ninja jumps he wanted to practise ... Ed and Ted watched in awe.  Freddy didn't bother trying the trampoline ... after the skateboard and pneumatic tubes he knows he doesn't have the stomach for these things.

Pierre and his visiting friends from the lab got on, and this time Alphonso decided to give it a try.   Just then, Raoul came along and jumped on ... they all went flying in every direction.  Fortunately Alphonso didn't land in the mud, but he did get some nasty grass stains.  He'll have to work pretty hard to get those out.

Then they all went home for some brownies.  They love chocolate!  Everyone got pretty hyper from the sugar rush and wanted to go trampoline some more but they figured they should take a break and sleep it off.  After the snack and the nap Pierre took his friends back to the lab.  He'll keep the key in a safe place so he can have them over to play anytime he wants.  They were very grateful for the day out to meet TOMH&R.

At the Library ....

Tomh&r decided to go to the library.  They didn't want to settle for a small town library, no way ... they went straight to the huge one downtown.  After enjoying a few trips up and down the escalators they finally decided it was time to find some good books. 

Alphonso went straight to the  Origami section to learn how to fold origami napkins.  He had one with him, as always, and started right in.  He fumbled it up a few times and ended up with a folded up gob of nothing until he finally figured out the knack and made a lovely origami swan.  Now he'll have to get a new napkin for dinner time so he doesn't mess up his art.

Lola headed for the joke book section.  She was looking for a "1001 fart jokes" book but didn't find any.  She settled for one called "Really Stinky fart Jokes" and thought it was hilarious.  She told the others jokes all day long.

Ted & Ed wanted to get a book on how to make a vortex or a black hole but it had to be a picture book because they don't know how to read.  Gustave spent the day teaching them.  Good thing they're fast learners.

Luigi looked up cookbooks.   Pierre was looking for instructions on how to build a meth lab to make a few extra bucks but couldn't find anything.  The security people were giving him funny looks so he gave it up.  

Ned chose some light reading like Pride & Prejudice and War & Peace.  He put them in his backpack and as soon as he put it on, he fell backwards from all the weight.  This happens to UpYours all the time so he gave Ned some tips on flipping back upright.  Ned was very grateful for the help.

Freddy was trying to find a book on how to kill flies (for his crumpets) without squishing them.

They looked all over for Jed, he seemed to have disappeared.  Finally they found him in a corner with a cappuccino  reading Cosmo. Oh dear.

They toured the whole library, from the bottom floor all the way up so that everyone got a chance to look for whatever interested them.  Al helped them out with the books on the top shelves by knocking them down for easier reach.

Finally it was time to go home.  Ned's backpack was full, but at least he mastered walking upright without falling on his back again.  UpYours has a very roomy shell and carried quite a few books in there.  Raoul had brought along his skateboard and carried the rest on it.

When they got home they discovered a new friend had arrived.  It was Guerrero.  He's a fluffy orange cat.  He's also a ninja, or thinks he's a ninja.  He wears a black mask and his fluff sticks out all around it.  Guerrero is Ed & Ted's idol, they keep badgering him to teach them ninja moves for Fight Club but he says they're not ready.

Time to be thankful!!!

It's Thanksgiving!  Emilio and Alphonso have gathered all of their friends together for a great Thanksgiving meal.  They had all the usual Thanksgiving type food .... roasted turkey, mashed taters, yams, carrots, stuffing, cole slaw, cranberry sauce, pickles, rolls, and scrumptious cheesecake for dessert.

They also added everyone's regular favorites to the meal ... pb & j sandwiches, plain pb sandwiches, pasketti & meatballs, chimmichangas, grapes (peeled), chocolate covered raisins, licorice, fig newtons, crumpets with flies, and for drinks there was milk, cranberry juice, lem onade, cold beer, and gatorade.

Everyone lined up and sat together at the table with wide eyes and drooly mouths.  Their noses were sniffing like crazy, what a glorious feast!  Gustave was seated at the head of the table.  Before they ate he had a request.  He wanted them to go down the line and each one say something they're thankful for, then something they would wish for.  It started out well, with Emilio saying he was very grateful for all his friends ... his wish would be to have even more friends.  UpYours was thankful for his sturdy shell, he wished that they would all be together forever and always.  how sweet.

Then things started to go a little askew ...

Alphonso was thankful not to have to sit next to Luigi so he wouldn't get splattered on.  He wished for stain repellent and an SOS pad (steel wool).

Lola was thankful that she's so beautiful and wished for bling. Gustave rolled his eyes and went on to the next one.

Ted & Ed were thankful for all the fun and adventure they always have.  They wished for more fun and adventure.

Chico and Jorge were both thankful for being so grooooooovy and for their brotha from anotha motha (each other).  Chico wished for chimmiCHANGas.  Jorge didn't wish for anything, he's happy as he is.

When Gustave asked Luigi what he's thankful for, he said "that's amore!".  We're not sure he understood the question.  Then he wished for pasketti.

Ned was thankful for books, wished for more books.  I get the feeling they thought the wishes were going to be granted by a genie or something.

Fred was thankful for his truck and zamboni, he wished for an airplane.  He's unstoppable!

Jed likes the city (remember, he's the hillbilly) and is thankful for cement ponds.  He wished he had a toothpick.  He currently chews on a piece of straw or grass ... a toothpick wouldn't wilt and die.

Julio/coach was thankful for his whistle.  Raoul was thankful he's so soft and fluffy.  Neither of them had a wish.

Al doesn't participate in many of the gang's adventures and he's very grateful for that.  His wish was "Vegas baby!"  or maybe Atlantic city if he's still banned.

Freddy was grateful for dramamine to help him with motion sickness.  He wished for health and happiness for everyone.  aww, so sweet of him.

Pierre was thankful for his laboratory and wished for the key to the cages so he could release his other "co-workers".

Finally Gustave was just grateful for his wisdom.  He's very old and very wise and has seen and learned a lot from life and his many friends.  He's thankful for them all.  He's very happy and had nothing to wish for.

Once all this jibber-jabber was done with it was time to dig in.  Alphonso tied a napkin around his neck and they started passing the food around.  For a few minutes it was a lot of "please pass this .... " and "please pass that ..." so everyone got a little bit of everything.  Nobody had ever had cranberry sauce or pickles before and they all wanted to try them.  It was similar to when they had salt & vinegar chips ... they took a bite, made a sour face, then kept on eating them.  Yum yum!

A few minutes into the meal someone noticed some strange marks in the mashed potatos.  They almost looked like feetprints.  They asked Gustave if he had any help making the dinner and he reluctantly told them that Ed & Ted had volunteered to mash the taters.  Apparently they decided the best way to do that and get them all whipped and smooth was to spin around in them like a tornado.  They were supposed to sweep out their tracks but must have missed a few.  Ed & Ted sat there with big smiles and looked around the group, waiting to see if they did a good job.  Everyone agreed that they were the smoothest taters they'd ever had.

When they finished their dinner they went on to the cheesecake for dessert.  It was so rich and yummy, between them they ate the whole thing.  Then they sat back with full round bellies and took a nap.  All far from the sweet yet gassy Lola.  Everyone was very full and happy and thankful for each other.

tubes and Pierre

The gang went to the hospital to visit Pierre.  Pierre is a pale rodent in the hospital laboratory who takes part in experimental projects.  Yes, he's a white lab rat.  He wears a lab coat and sometimes latex gloves, a mask or protective goggles when necessary.  When they got to the lab to see him he had a surprise for them.

He took them all over to a neat little gadget in the wall of the lab.  It was a pneumatic tube system that they use to get test samples from one place to another within the hospital.  He had it all set up and ready to go.

UpYours couldn't fit in the tubes so he was in charge of the hats and coats while the others were gone.  Raoul tried and tried to get into a tube.  First he went in head-first and his big fluffy butt was sticking out.  Then he tried to back in, but his furry cheeks and head wouldn't fit in, so he had to sit out with UpYours.

The others paired up to take turns in the tubes.  First went Julio with Freddy.  They got in the tube and Pierre pressed the button.  The tube took off through the hospital ... up, down, sideways, like a roller coaster at top speed.  They should have known better than to let Freddy go after the skateboarding incident ... he just doesn't have the stomach for these things.  He ralphed his crumpets as soon as he staggered out of the tube.  Then Emilio and Alphonso went.  They could be heard shrieking and giggling all over the hospital from the time they took off until they returned.  Then Ed & Ted zipped off.  Next went Chico and Jorge, then Fred & Ned, then Jed and Luigi.  

Gustave went with Lola.  He needed someone extra fluffy to go with so he wouldn't just bounce around all over the tube during the trip, plus Lola is quite "gassy" as they learned after she had meatballs, and nobody wanted to be stuck in a confined space with her for very long.  Gustave didn't mind and had a great time.

They all took a few turns through the tube system and then they all went home to leave Pierre to finish his work.  

Julio / Coach

 We have a new addition to the gang ... he's another hedgehog (regular size) and his name is Julio.  He is the big brother to Ed & Ted and is here to keep an eye on them so they don't get out of control.  

The twins are a bit embarrassed about having their big bro around, so they call him Coach instead.  They got him a snazzy red ball cap to wear and a whistle for around his neck so he looks the part.  They tell everyone he's their Fight Club coach.  

The rest of TOMH&R calls him Julio, because they know who he really is, but Ed & Ted are in denial and keep calling him Coach.  He knows they're troublemakers and he's one of the few around that they actually listen to, so the rest are glad to have him here.  He really likes the whistle.

new hats!

Ever since Jorgé's cowboy hat got all fluffy in the dryer, he's been scouting around for a new hat.  He finally found one!  He loves his new "three muskateers" hat, thinks it makes him even more groooooovy looking, especially with the fancy feather!

 

He's not the only one that got a new hat.  Luigi found this "chef boyardee" hat to wear.  

It was intended to just wear when he's making his pasketti, but he loves it so much he wears it all the time. 

Very snazzy indeed!