Will you join the Li’l Woodzeez for some football fun? Let’s go!
“Oh, goodie,” said her mother, Annie. “Looks like they’ve brought lots of snacks, too!”
It was warm and sunny on the day of the big football game. The snow had melted, leaving lots of room for the Li’l Woodzeez to play outside. One after the other, the Tailfeathers’ guests arrived at their home, each bearing a tasty, shareable snack. The weather was perfect for a potluck in the yard.
With everything set up outside, the Famileez chatted over their snacks and buzzed about the upcoming game. They wondered which team would win, which musical acts would come on stage, and which players would perform best – when Poppy’s dad, Redd, had an idea.
“What if we played a game?” Redd asked the group.
“That’s a great idea!” said Mrs. Katt Kingsberry.
All the grown-ups nodded their heads in agreement. In a jiffy, they split into teams and got into formation for a game of backyard football. Little Poppy and her friends, Kya Kingsberry, Jake Snipadoodle, and Hazel Healthnuggle, sat in the sidelines.
“Heads!” shouted Dr. Barbara Healthnuggle.
“Tails!” shouted Annie, in return.
The coin landed on tails. “A-ha!” said Annie, with triumph. “My team will kick!”
Redd kicked the ball, and it flew high across the yard. Barbara jumped up into the air and caught it, then – quick as a flash – all the grown-ups were running around on the grass, throwing the ball back and forth, tumbling and rumbling and playing with gusto.
“That looks like fun!” said Poppy.
“Yeah,” Kya agreed.
“What if we want to play?” asked Jake.
Redd Tailfeather and the other grown-ups paused their game to reply. “You can,” he hesitated. “But we’re not sure you can keep up! You four are small, and we are big. That’s not fair for you.”
“Hmph.” Poppy looked at her friends, then she stood up and crossed her arms. “Challenge accepted!” she announced. “We will play with you anyway! Grown-ups versus kids!”
So, Poppy and her friends huddled together for a plan. They needed to find a way to win against the grown-ups!
“OK team,” said Poppy. “If we can just get someone to fumble the ball, we can win!”
“How’s that?” asked Hazel, who looked sad. “They’re too tall for us. It’s not fair!”
But Poppy was determined. “Just watch,” she reassured Hazel. “We may be small, but we’re quick! Once we get the ball, we can get around them and score!”
“Let’s do it,” said Jake.
“We’ve got this!” Kya cheered.
Redd was rushing with the ball when Poppy cut him off suddenly and – finally – he fumbled!
So, Poppy grabbed the ball from her dad and ran with all her might! Then, she passed the ball to Kya, who passed the ball to Jake, who passed the ball back to Poppy.
Finally, the moment had come. Poppy ran into the endzone and slammed the ball into the grass of her family’s backyard.
TOUCHDOWN!!
