# Albie and the Button Boat

An episode of [Kid’s Bedtime Stories Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1780176346), 24 Oct 2026, 16 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/75962493/ep08_ship.mp3

Albie finds a grand brown coat button in the grass by Willow Pond and turns it into a tiny sailboat with a reed mast and a leaf sail. Grandma Rose hosts while Oliver tells his very first tale — of Tilly the harvest mouse, a slow voyage across the still water, and the good feeling of sailing a small friend home — perfect for drifting off to sleep. Chapters: 0:05 — Grandma Rose Welcomes a New Voice 2:18 — Oliver Tells of Albie and the Button Boat 11:30 — Grandma Rose Tucks the Night In Sweet dreams, little listener. A new bedtime tale every night. Grown-ups: more bedtime tales wait on our supporters' feed: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/kid-s-bedtime-stories-podcast--6408070/support Want every episode before everyone else? Join us on Patreon for early access to all episodes, exclusive supporter-only stories, and extended editions across every Hustle Studios show. Join here: https://www.patreon.com/cw/hustlestudios Follow Kid's Bedtime Stories for a new tale every night. By Hustle Studios.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: A Colored Juice Podcast Studio Production presents... Well, hello there,
[0:06] Speaker 1: little one. Grandma Rose is back, with her shawl round
[0:12] Speaker 1: her shoulders and a brand new story warming in her teapot.
[0:19] Speaker 1: Grandpa Ellis is resting tonight after telling you the Nora
[0:24] Speaker 1: tale so gentle last night nor watered one droopy moonflower bud,
[0:31] Speaker 1: you remember. Hazel the hedgehog kept watch beside her, and
[0:38] Speaker 1: the bud bloomed white as fresh milk in the moonlight.
[0:42] Speaker 1: And far away, Willa is still safe in her own
[0:47] Speaker 1: warm bed, with her tiny brass bell hung by her pillow.
[0:52] Speaker 1: Tonight we have a new friend waiting. and a new
[0:58] Speaker 1: voice to tell his tale. His name is Albie. He
[1:04] Speaker 1: is six years old, and he is staying in a
[1:08] Speaker 1: brick cottage beside Willow Pond, where the ducks paddle slow
[1:16] Speaker 1: circles and the reeds whisper in the evening breeze. Oliver
[1:23] Speaker 1: is here to tell the tale, his very first tale
[1:29] Speaker 1: on our show. So fluff your pillow, pull your blanket
[1:34] Speaker 1: up to your chin, and off we go. And before
[1:40] Speaker 1: Oliver begins, a cozy word for the grown-ups at bedtime.
[1:46] Speaker 1: These nightly tales stay free because kind listeners help keep
[1:50] Speaker 1: them afloat. You can join the Spreaker Supporter Club for
[1:54] Speaker 1: bonus tales tucked right into your podcast app. or join
[1:58] Speaker 1: Patreon for early access to every tale plus supporter-only stories
[2:03] Speaker 1: and longer editions from the whole family of shows. Both
[2:07] Speaker 1: links rest in the show notes. Now, Oliver, the pond
[2:11] Speaker 1: is still. Tell it soft and slow.
[2:13] Speaker 2: Albie was six years old and he loved three things best.
[2:23] Speaker 2: Warm toast with honey, smooth round pebbles, and things that float.
[2:29] Speaker 2: For one whole week, Albie was staying with his grandpa
[2:35] Speaker 2: in a brick cottage beside Willow Pond. The cottage door
[2:41] Speaker 2: was blue as a robin egg, and past the garden gate,
[2:47] Speaker 2: the pond spread out wide and still, full of sky.
[2:56] Speaker 2: Every morning, Albie walked the pond path with his grandpa,
[3:01] Speaker 2: hunting for treasure. Feathers, acorn caps, stones with stripes. His
[3:11] Speaker 2: pockets jingled all the way home. On this morning, the
[3:17] Speaker 2: morning of our story, Albie found the best treasure yet.
[3:24] Speaker 2: Half hidden in the grass by an old jetty lay
[3:30] Speaker 2: a big brown coat button round as a cookie with
[3:37] Speaker 2: four tiny holes for thread. Said Albie, picking it up.
[3:44] Speaker 2: You are far too grand to lie in the grass.
[3:48] Speaker 2: I will find you a fine new job. His grandpa
[3:53] Speaker 2: knelt down beside him, slow and creaky. A button that
[3:59] Speaker 2: size could hold a giant coat shut, he said, or
[4:04] Speaker 2: it could sail. Flat things float fine if the water
[4:10] Speaker 2: stays calm. Sail, said Albie. His eyes went wide and bright.
[4:18] Speaker 2: A button boat? May I try on the pond, Grandpa? Please.
[4:26] Speaker 2: So his grandpa pushed a short dry reed through one
[4:31] Speaker 2: buttonhole for a mast and slipped a broad leaf down
[4:35] Speaker 2: the reed for a sail. There, he said. One boat.
[4:42] Speaker 2: Ready for a captain? Falby carried the button boat to
[4:47] Speaker 2: the jetty and knelt at the edge. He set it
[4:51] Speaker 2: on the water, soft as setting down a soap bubble.
[4:55] Speaker 2: It bobbed. It steadied. It floated. My boat floats, breathed Albie.
[5:05] Speaker 2: It really, truly floats. Just then, from under the jetty boards,
[5:12] Speaker 2: came the smallest sound. Squeak! Squeak! Oft as a squeezed sponge.
[5:20] Speaker 2: Abby peered under the boards, and there on a half-sunk
[5:25] Speaker 2: log sat the tiniest harvest mouse he had ever seen.
[5:32] Speaker 2: Her fur was gold as wheat, her ears were round
[5:36] Speaker 2: as seeds, and her pink tail curled round her feet,
[5:42] Speaker 2: trembling just a little. Well, hello there, small one, said Abby.
[5:49] Speaker 2: very soft, lying flat on the jetty. Are you stuck? Speak,
[5:58] Speaker 2: said the mouse, in a voice thin as thread. I
[6:02] Speaker 2: am Tilly. My nest sits in the tall reeds on
[6:06] Speaker 2: the far bank, and the pond looks so wide tonight,
[6:10] Speaker 2: and my legs are too wobbly to swim all that way.
[6:13] Speaker 2: Then you shall sail, said Albie. A captain always carries
[6:22] Speaker 2: small passengers home. That is what butt folk do. He
[6:31] Speaker 2: held the buttonboat steady while Tilly climbed aboard on shaky legs.
[6:36] Speaker 2: She sat in the middle, wrapped her tail round her toes,
[6:40] Speaker 2: and held the leaf sail with both paws. Ready, Captain,
[6:45] Speaker 2: squeaked Tilly. Now, while the button moat bops beside the jetty,
[6:51] Speaker 2: a sleepy hello to the grown-ups. Keeping these tales free
[6:55] Speaker 2: takes many hands. The Spreaker Supporter Club tucks bonus tales
[7:00] Speaker 2: right into your podcast app, while Patreon brings every tale
[7:05] Speaker 2: early with supporter army stories and longer editions from the
[7:09] Speaker 2: whole family of shows. You will find both links in
[7:13] Speaker 2: the show notes. Shhh. Now, off we sail. His grandpa
[7:19] Speaker 2: showed Albie how to puff, soft and slow. Young captain,
[7:26] Speaker 2: he said, blow at the leaf, gentle as cooling cocoa.
[7:33] Speaker 2: So Albie puffed, the leaf sail bellied, and the button
[7:39] Speaker 2: boat slid away from the jetty, smooth as a skater,
[7:45] Speaker 2: with Tilly weaving one paw. Across the pen they sailed,
[7:51] Speaker 2: past the lily pads, past one sleepy back, past the
[7:59] Speaker 2: place where the willow branches dipped low and trailed silver
[8:06] Speaker 2: lines on the water. Pathway across the breeze dropped, and
[8:14] Speaker 2: the boat slowed to a stop. The pond went glassy still.
[8:21] Speaker 2: Do not fret, small sailor, called Albie, soft as he could.
[8:28] Speaker 2: Captains always carry a spare breeze. And he puffed again,
[8:35] Speaker 2: steady and slow, till the sail filled and the boat bobbed.
[8:43] Speaker 2: At last the button boat bumped, the far bank, soft
[8:48] Speaker 2: as a kiss, and there in the tall reeds sat
[8:54] Speaker 2: a round grass nest lined with downy feathers. Oh, squeaked Tilly,
[9:03] Speaker 2: hopping ashore. Oh, Captain, you shall be all the way home.
[9:10] Speaker 2: A bigger mouse poked her head from the nest. Gold
[9:15] Speaker 2: fur silvered at the ears. That was the mama mouse,
[9:21] Speaker 2: and she had been watching the pond a long while.
[9:25] Speaker 2: She pressed her paws together and bowed. Once, the way
[9:31] Speaker 2: boat folks say thank you without a single word. His
[9:37] Speaker 2: grandpa took Albee by the hand, and round the pond
[9:42] Speaker 2: path they walked. All the way to the tall reeds
[9:49] Speaker 2: to fetch the brave little boat. Tilly was already curled
[9:55] Speaker 2: in her feather-lined nest. Tail round toes, eyes half shut.
[10:02] Speaker 2: Sleep tight, Tilly, breathed Talby. Mind you stay near the
[10:08] Speaker 2: tall reeds when the pond turns dusky. Back at the cottage,
[10:14] Speaker 2: his grandpa warmed milk in a small pan. and they
[10:19] Speaker 2: drank it on the cottage deck, watching the pond turn
[10:24] Speaker 2: dusky blue, while one last duck paddled home through the
[10:30] Speaker 2: silver willow lines. Then Albie curled into his narrow bed
[10:37] Speaker 2: under the window, with the button go dried safe on
[10:43] Speaker 2: a sill and his pocket treasures. Lined up beside it,
[10:49] Speaker 2: the pond lay still outside, full of stars. And the
[10:57] Speaker 2: reeds whispered their soft evening song. There's a tale of
[11:04] Speaker 2: the button boat, my friends. I'll be sailed someone small
[11:09] Speaker 2: safe home. Maybe tomorrow you can help someone small too.
[11:15] Speaker 2: Now Granna Rose is back to tuck the night in.
[11:20] Speaker 2: Listen for her soft, warm voice. Good night, still water.
[11:25] Speaker 2: Good night.
[11:31] Speaker 1: Was that not a lovely tale, little one? Thank you, Oliver,
[11:36] Speaker 1: for telling your very first tale. So gentle. And thank you, Albie,
[11:43] Speaker 1: wherever you are. for showing us how good it feels
[11:48] Speaker 1: to sail a small friend home. Now it is your
[11:54] Speaker 1: turn to rest, the tale is told. The boat is moored.
[12:01] Speaker 1: Your bed is warm. Everything is exactly as it should be.
[12:09] Speaker 1: Let us get sleepy together. Stay exactly as you are.
[12:19] Speaker 1: Only listen to my voice. First, pretend your bed is
[12:25] Speaker 1: a little boat on Willow Pond. Your pillow is cool
[12:31] Speaker 1: and smooth. Your blanket is the still water. holding you up, soft,
[12:41] Speaker 1: then softer, then softest of all. Now breathe with me.
[12:48] Speaker 1: Breathe in through your nose, slow and deep, and breathe
[12:54] Speaker 1: out through your mouth, long and slow. Let all the
[13:00] Speaker 1: day drift away across the still water. One more time.
[13:08] Speaker 1: Breathe in soft and slow, and breathe out softer still.
[13:16] Speaker 1: Feel yourself rock one inch deeper into your boat bed.
[13:23] Speaker 2: Good.
[13:25] Speaker 1: So good. Let your toes be still. Let your legs
[13:31] Speaker 1: be heavy and warm. Let your tummy rise and fall.
[13:36] Speaker 1: easy as ripples round the button boat. Let your hands
[13:40] Speaker 1: lie open and soft, and let your eyes stay closed,
[13:44] Speaker 1: for they have worked hard all day, and now they
[13:50] Speaker 1: can rest. And before you dwarfed off, a final sleepy
[13:58] Speaker 1: word for the grown-ups. These tales reach your bedtime free
[14:02] Speaker 1: because listeners lend a hand. The Spreaker Supporter Club brings
[14:07] Speaker 1: bonus tales straight into your podcast app, or Patreon shares
[14:12] Speaker 1: each tale before release day, with extra stories and longer
[14:16] Speaker 1: editions from every show in the family. Both links live
[14:20] Speaker 1: in the show notes whenever you are ready. Now, back
[14:24] Speaker 1: to sleepy. Tomorrow night. There will be another story waiting
[14:30] Speaker 1: for you, a new friend, a new voyage, every single night.
[14:38] Speaker 1: So ask your grown-up to follow kids' bedtime stories so
[14:44] Speaker 1: you never miss a single tale. But that is tomorrow.
[14:51] Speaker 1: Tonight is for sleeping. So pull your water blanket tight,
[14:58] Speaker 1: little sailor. The button boat is your nightlight. The pond
[15:06] Speaker 1: is watching over you. And someone loves you more than
[15:14] Speaker 1: all the harvest mice on the whole wide bank. Good night,
[15:22] Speaker 1: little one. Good night. Sleep tight. I will see you
[15:30] Speaker 1: in your dreams.

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