Help Me Get This Bike: Chapter 2
A Big Three Dollar Gamble + "Are You Smarter than Mr. Fluffbutt?"
Hello Parents, Grandparents, School Teachers, Homeschoolers, and Anyone Else Teaching Kids!
Welcome to Chapter 2! 🌟
We're so happy you're here! This week features a hilarious dream with Hudson - let's see if your little one can guess what movie it's inspired by? 😉
Don't miss the exciting game show at the end of this chapter! After reading the story, challenge your young learner to "Are You Smarter than Mr. Fluffbutt?"—hosted by everyone's favorite grumpy Persian cat! With three difficulty levels and a special certificate for perfect scores, it's the purr-fect way to make learning fun. Read, play, and share the joy of learning with others!
If your little learner enjoys the lesson, please share! We're releasing one lesson a week for 10 weeks! If you haven’t read Chapter 1, you can find it here.
Chapter 2 - The Big Three Dollar Gamble
Hey, it's me, Hudson, I'm in the middle of a fantastic dream.
I'm standing on the roof of my school, the wind in my hair, and the whole town is looking up at me. Silently waiting for my next move.
Behind me, there are two red bikes with a baby bassinet in between them - one wearing a tie like a dad bike, and one with a pearl necklace like a mom bike. There's a tiny red bicycle in the bassinet, wrapped in a blankie.
With pride, triumph, and the sun rising behind me, I lift the baby bike above my head.
Suddenly, the crowd goes wild—cheering and clapping like crazy. Ballet dancers twirling, cars honking their horns, and bikes popping wheelies everywhere. Someone throws bike confetti into the air.
"BEHOLD... THE CIRCLE OF BIIIIKE!" My voice echoes so loud it makes the pigeons scatter.
Knock knock. "Hudson," Dad says through the door. "It's time to wake up. Breakfast is ready."
I sit up quickly, shaking off the dream. I look over at the picture of the bike on my desk and sigh. "At $10 a day, it'll take forever to get this bike."
At breakfast, I push my cereal around in circles. "At this rate, I'll be a grandpa before I can buy that bike."
Mom looks up from her coffee. "Is the cat-sitting not going well, honey?"
"Mr. Fluff Butt is great, but... one cat isn't enough." I let my spoon drop with a clank.
Dad perks up. "You know what? When I was your age and wanted to earn money shoveling snow, I made signs and put them up all over the neighborhood. By the next snowstorm, I had five driveways to clear instead of one!"
I sit up straighter. "Really? Do you think that would work for pet-sitting?"
"Sure! We could make some flyers today. Let everyone know Hudson's on the job when they need someone to watch their pets."
At lunch, I make flyers in the school library: "Hudson's Pet Care Business—I'll take care of any pet!" When the librarian tells me it costs $3 for three copies, I nearly fall out of my chair. "What a disaster!" I blurt out. $3 is a lot of money! And what if nobody even calls?
I stare at the money in my hand. Dad seemed so sure about this. He did say this worked for him when he was my age. I take a deep breath and hand over the money from my Mr. Fluff Butt earnings. Sometimes you have to trust that grown-ups know what they're talking about, even when your brain is screaming "This is crazy!"
I put up the flyers at the pet store, pharmacy, and Italian restaurant. The pet store owner even promises to tell his customers about my business.
After putting up the flyers, I head to Mr. Fluff Butt's house for my usual cat-sitting duties. When I walk in, he's perched on top of his cat tower, giving me his signature "who are you and how dare you enter my kingdom" look.
I plop down with my math homework and start humming his favorite song. At first, nothing happens. But then - as if someone hit his royal "on" switch - His Majesty decides to grace me with his presence. He practically tumbles down the cat tower, dignity completely forgotten, and launches himself into my lap like a furry missile.
That evening at dinner, I'm feeling down. "Maybe making those flyers was a mistake. No one's called yet."
But just then, the phone rings. Dad hands it to me.
"Hi! We saw your flyer and were wondering if you could watch our ant farm Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week. We'll pay you $5 a day."
I nearly drop the phone. "Uh, yeah! I can definitely do that!"
This is great progress! Let me add it up: Mr. Fluffbutt for five days at $10 a day makes $50. Plus the ant farm for three days at $5 a day adds another $15. I wonder how much that is in total.
"Okay, Mr. Businessman, time for bed," Mom says. "If you don't sleep, you'll turn into a zombie, and zombies are terrible at running businesses."
I laugh and head upstairs, glancing at the picture of the red bike on my desk.
"I'll see you soon, my pretty," I whisper, and drift off to sleep.
MEOW-velous readers!
I, the magnificent Mr. Fluffbutt, have been watching you read this story about my humble servant, Hudson. While he may be adequate at serving my daily needs, let's see if YOU are worthy of my approval. Think you're clever enough to match wits with a distinguished feline such as myself?
Then step right up to...
And now... it's the moment we've all been waiting for... the game show that's been sweeping the nation... who is ready... to play... "Are You Smarter than Mr. Fluffbutt?"
Thanks for reading! This story and game are brought to you for free by Learn Through Stories!