Hello! Welcome to Stories Podcast. I'm your host, Amanda Weldon.
Today's story is called Raggedy Ann and the Pillow Fight, an original story written for you by Johnny Gruel and adapted for audio by Daniel Hines.
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Enjoy the episode! Raggedy Ann and the Pillow Fight Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Marcella, but everyone called her Marcy.
She had a lot of toys, but her favorite was an old ragdoll she had found in her grandma's things.
She had little button eyes and a big yarn smile and seemed extra special because she was so soft and so old.
Raggedy Ann was the leader of all Marcy's dolls and often led them on big adventures.
Always when Marcy wasn't looking, of course.
It's a rule among toys that they can only move around when people aren't looking.
Otherwise, it would cause all kinds of confusion.
infusion. Still, they love to play, and they're always paying attention, even if they don't say anything.
One night, after all the household had settled down to sleep, Raggedy Ann's friend and fellow soft doll, Raggedy Andy, sat up in bed and tickled Uncle Clem, the plastic action figure.
Andy tickled the bottom of Clem's foot while giggling quietly to himself.
Uncle Clem twisted twisted and wiggled in his sleep until finally he could stand it no longer and woke up, looking around, chuckling.
I dreamed that someone told me the funniest story, said Uncle Clem, but I can't remember what it was.
I was tickling you, laughed Raggedy Andy.
You little rascal, Clem said, but he was laughing again too.
When the other dolls in the nursery heard Raggedy Andy and Uncle Clem talking, they too sat up in their beds to see what was going on.
We've been so quiet all day, said Raggedy Andy, still not used to the occasional quiet day when Marcy was busy.
Let's have a good party.
This suggestion suited all the dolls, so they jumped out of their beds and ran over towards Raggedy Andy's and Uncle Clem's little bed.
Raggedy Andy, always in for fun, threw his pillow at Henny, the baby doll, and yelled, pillow fight.
Henny didn't see the pillow coming towards him.
It hit him in his rocking body, so he was knocked head over heels.
Henny was the old kind of doll that always used to say mama when it was tilted backward or forward. And when the pillow rolled him over and over, he cried mama, mama, mama.
It couldn't hurt the doll because he was a Christmas doll.
And Santa Claus always sees to it that each doll he makes in his great workshop is covered with a very magical wish, and this wish always keeps them from getting hurt.
Henny started laughing, and he could talk just as well as any of the other dolls when he was standing up, sitting, or lying down, but if he was being tipped forward and backward, all he could say was, mama, and that's just what he did.
This amused Henny as much as it did the other dolls, so when he finally found his feet, he jumped up, laughed, and threw the pillow back at Raggedy Andy.
Raggedy Andy tried to jump to one side but forgot that he was on the bed, and he and Uncle Clem went tumbling to the floor in a heap of laughter.
Then all the dolls ran to their beds, brought their pillows, and started having a pillow fight.
They threw the pillows back and forth and were careful not to hit anyone in the face.
Soon, they were all panting and laughing and having a great old time.
In fact, the excitement ran so high and the pillows flew so fast, the floor of the nursery was soon covered with feathers.
It was only when all the dolls had stopped to rest and put the feathers back into their pillowcases that Raggedy Andy discovered he had lost one of his arms in the scuffle.
He looked and his left arm was just gone.
Of course, this isn't that big of a deal when you're a ragdoll in a pillow fight.
It probably was grabbed and thrown as a pillow, maybe by Andy himself.
They looked all over and found Andy's little raggedy arm in a pile of tiny pillows.
It was in good shape except for being off his body.
Still, the dolls were worried over this and asked, what will Marcy say when she sees that Raggedy Andy has lost an arm.
We can just push it up his sleeve, said Uncle Clem.
Then when Raggedy Andy is taken out of bed in the morning, Marcy will find his arm is loose and she'll fix it without suspecting.
It has been hanging on by one or two threads for a day or more, said Raggedy Andy.
I noticed the other day that sometimes my thumb was turned clear around to the back, and I knew then that the arm was hanging on just kinda barely and the threads were twisted.
Well, let's try it, said Clem.
He pushed Raggedy Andy's arm up through his sleeve.
It seemed to work, but every time Raggedy Andy jumped about, he lost his arm again.
It would come slithering out of his sleeve and plop down on the ground.
This will never do, said Raggedy Ann.
Raggedy Andy is lopsided with only one arm, and he can't play in our games as well as if he had two arms. forms. Oh, I don't mind that, laughed Raggedy Andy.
Marcy will sew it on in the morning and I'll be all right, I'm sure.
Perhaps Raggedy Ann can sew it on now, suggested Uncle Clem.
Yes, Raggedy Ann can sew it on, all the dolls cried.
She can play Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater on the toy piano and she can sew.
I will gladly try, said Raggedy Ann, not sure at all if she could do it.
But there are no needles or thread in the nursery, and I have to have a thimble so the needle can be pressed through Raggedy Andy's cloth.
Marcy always gets a needle from Mama, said Babette, the fashion doll.
I know, said Raggedy Ann, but we can't wake up Mama to ask her.
The dolls all laughed at this, for they knew very well that even had Mama been awake, they would not have asked her for needle and thread, because they didn't wish her to know that they could act and talk just like real people.
Perhaps we can get things out of the sewing drawer, Henny suggested.
Yes, cried Susan, a little porcelain doll with cracks all through her.
Let's all go get things out of the sewing drawer.
Come on, everybody.
And Susan, although she had a cracked head, ran out of the nursery door followed by all the rest of the dolls.
Even the tiny little penny dolls clicked their china heels upon the floor as they followed the rest, and Raggedy Andy, carrying his loose arm, thumped along in the rear.
Raggedy Andy had not lived in the house as long as the others, so he did not know the way to the room in which the sewing machine stood.
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Let's go. M -I -C -K -E -Y All new Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus.
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Like Pluto, Goofy, Donald, Minnie, Daisy.
Hey, everybody. And me, Mickey Mouse.
Welcome to the clubhouse.
I'll be right here.
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When they got to the sewing machine, Raggedy Ann was propped up by Joe the Soldier doll.
After much climbing and pulling, the needle and thread and thimble were taken from the drawer, and all the toys raced back again to the nursery.
Uncle Clem took off Raggedy Andy's coat, and the other dolls all sat around watching while Raggedy Ann sewed the arm on again.
Raggedy Ann had only taken two stitches when she began laughing so hard she had to quit.
Of course, when Raggedy Ann laughed, all the other dolls laughed too.
For laughter, like yawning, is very catching.
I was just thinking, said Raggedy Ann.
Remember way, way back, a long time ago, I sewed this arm on once before?
She asked Raggedy Andy.
I do remember, now that you mention it, said Raggedy Andy.
but I cannot remember how the arm came off.
Tell us about it, all the dolls cried.
Let's see, Raggedy Ann began.
Your owner left you over at our house one night, and after everyone had gone to bed, we went up into the attic.
Oh, yes, I do remember now, Raggedy Andy laughed.
We played with the big whirly gig.
gig. Yes, Raggedy Ann said, the large spinning wheel.
We held onto the wheel and went round and round, and when we were having the most fun, your feet got fastened between the wheel and the rod which held the wheel in position, and there you hung, head down.
I remember you were working the pedal and I was spinning around very fast, said Raggedy Andy, and all of a sudden, the wheel stopped!
We would have laughed at the time, Raggedy Ann explained to the other dolls.
But you see, it was quite serious.
My owner had put us both in bed for the night, and if she had discovered us way up in the attic, she would have wondered how in the world we got there.
So there was nothing to do but get Raggedy Andy out of the tangle.
But you pulled me out all right, Raggedy Andy laughed.
Yes, I pulled and I pulled until I pulled one of Raggedy Andy's arms off.
Ha ha ha, Raggedy Andy said, and then I pulled and pulled until finally his feet came out of the wheel and we both tumbled to the floor.
Then we ran downstairs as fast as we could and climbed into bed, didn't we?
Raggedy Andy laughed.
Yes, we did, Raggedy Andy replied.
And when we jumped into bed, we remembered that we had left Raggedy Andy's arm lying up on the attic floor, so we had to run back up there and get it.
Remember, Raggedy Andy?
Andy? Yes, wasn't it lots of fun?
For sure it was, Raggedy Ann agreed.
Raggedy Andy wanted to let the arm remain off until the next morning, but I decided it would be better to have it sewed on, just as it had been when she put us to bed.
So, just like tonight, we went to the pin cushion and found a needle and thread, and I sewed it on for him.
There, Raggedy Ann said as she wound the thread around her hand and pulled so that the thread broke near Raggedy Andy's shoulder.
It sewed on again, good as new.
Thank you, Raggedy Ann, said Raggedy Andy, as he threw the arm about Raggedy Ann's neck and gave her a hug.
Now we can have another game, Uncle Clem cried as he helped Raggedy Andy into his coat and buttoned it for him.
Just then, the little cuckoo clock on the nursery wall went, the little door opened and the little bird put out his head and cried no more games Raggedy Ann said we must be very quiet from now on the folks will be getting up soon last one in bed is a monkey cried Raggedy Andy there was a wild scramble as the dolls rushed for their beds and Susan having to be careful of her cracked head was the monkey clunky.
So Raggedy Andy, seeing that Susan was slow about getting into her bed, jumped out and helped her.
Then, climbing into the little bed which Uncle Clem shared with him, he pulled the covers up to his eyes and, after pretending to snore a couple of times, he lay very quiet, thinking of the kindness of his doll friends, until Marcy came and took him down to breakfast. And all the other dolls smiled at him as he left the room, for they were very happy to know that but their little lady loved him as much as they did.
And a few minutes later, she came back for Raggedy Ann, and together they all had a wonderful breakfast of pancakes with chocolate chips and syrup.
The End Today's story, Raggedy Ann and the Pillow Fight, was written for you by Johnny Gruel and adapted for audio by Daniel Hines.
It was edited and produced by Andrew Martin and performed for you by me, Amanda Weldon.
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