# Mabel and the Moonflower Cottage

An episode of [Kid’s Bedtime Stories Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1780176346), 28 Oct 2026, 12 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/76048180/ep11_ship.mp3

Mabel stays up just late enough to watch a night-blooming moonflower open, petal by petal, in the silver moonlight. Grandpa Ellis hosts while Maya tells of cocoa on the garden step, a patient moth, and the good feeling of waiting soft for a wonder — perfect for drifting off to sleep. Chapters: 0:00 — Grandpa Ellis Welcomes Maya Back 2:37 — Maya Tells of Mabel and the Moonflower Cottage 7:38 — Grandpa Ellis Tucks the Night In Sweet dreams, little listener. A new bedtime tale every night. This Episode is Brought to you by: Uppbeat, the music library where storytellers find tunes they are welcome to use: https://share.uppbeat.io/b1d396uc1nke — and Willow, the voice companion that turns spoken thoughts into written words: https://go.willowvoice.com/coloredjuice Follow Kid's Bedtime Stories for a new tale every night. By ColoredJuice Podcast Studio.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: Well, hello there, little one. Grandpa Ellis is back in
[0:05] Speaker 1: his creaky chair tonight with his blanket over his knees
[0:10] Speaker 1: and a brand new story folded soft in his pocket.
[0:16] Speaker 1: Grandma Rose is resting this evening after hosting the Hugo
[0:21] Speaker 1: tale so gentle last night. Hugo named all six boats home,
[0:27] Speaker 1: you remember. Little Drift sailed home last of all, and
[0:33] Speaker 1: far away Elsie helped Pip relight the twelfth lantern, and
[0:38] Speaker 1: Willa is still safe in her own warm bed, with
[0:42] Speaker 1: her tiny brass bell hung by her pillow. Tonight brings
[0:48] Speaker 1: a new friend, and a cottage garden full of buds
[0:53] Speaker 1: that open only at night. Her name is Mabel. She
[1:00] Speaker 1: is seven years old and she lives in Moonflower Cottage
[1:06] Speaker 1: where white moonflowers sleep all day and bloom at moonrise.
[1:13] Speaker 1: Maya is back to tell the tale after walking the
[1:17] Speaker 1: cloud garden with Nora for you. So settle your head
[1:25] Speaker 1: deep in your pillow. Pull your blanket. Up to your chin,
[1:32] Speaker 1: and off we go. The tale tonight reaches your pillow
[1:38] Speaker 1: with thanks to two kind friends of the show, Upbeat,
[1:43] Speaker 1: the music library where storytellers find tunes they are welcome
[1:49] Speaker 1: to use, and Willow, the voice companion that turns spoken
[1:55] Speaker 1: thoughts into written words. and before Maya begins a soft
[2:01] Speaker 1: hello to the grown-ups on the watch, these tales stay
[2:06] Speaker 1: free because kind folks help tend the garden. The Speaker
[2:11] Speaker 1: Supporter Club plants bonus tales inside your podcast app, and
[2:16] Speaker 1: Patreon picks every tale early with members-only stories and longer
[2:21] Speaker 1: editions from all our shows. Both links rest in the
[2:25] Speaker 1: show notes now, Maya. The garden is desky. Till it's
[2:31] Speaker 1: sweet and slow.
[2:37] Speaker 2: Mabel was seven years old, and she loved three things best.
[2:43] Speaker 2: Warm cocoa with milk, smooth white pebbles, and waiting up
[2:48] Speaker 2: for night things. Moonflower Cottage stood at the very end
[2:59] Speaker 2: of Primrose Lane. behind a white gate that never creaked,
[3:04] Speaker 2: and all round the cottage lay a round garden of
[3:07] Speaker 2: tall green stems. Each stem held a moonflower bud, tight
[3:13] Speaker 2: and pale as a folded handkerchief. By day the buds slept,
[3:19] Speaker 2: but each night, when the moon rose, the buds opened
[3:23] Speaker 2: into wide white blooms, one by one. Mabel had never
[3:28] Speaker 2: seen one open. Each night she fell asleep before moonrise,
[3:33] Speaker 2: and each morning the blooms had closed again, keeping their secret.
[3:39] Speaker 2: But tonight was special. Tonight the roundest bud of all
[3:44] Speaker 2: stood ready, fat as a candle flame. And Mama said
[3:48] Speaker 2: Mabel might stay up, just this once, wrapped in her
[3:52] Speaker 2: blanket on the garden step, till the moonflower opened. So
[3:58] Speaker 2: Mabel settled on the step with her cocoa, The garden
[4:01] Speaker 2: lay dusky and still. The moon was not yet up.
[4:05] Speaker 2: The roundest buds stood closed and quiet, giving nothing away.
[4:11] Speaker 2: Mabel sipped her cocoa, slow and small. A pale moth
[4:16] Speaker 2: drifted past her cheek and landed on the step beside her,
[4:20] Speaker 2: folding its wings like a tiny tent. Hush now, breathed Mabel.
[4:26] Speaker 2: We are waiting for the wonder. Now, while Mabel watches
[4:31] Speaker 2: the still-closed bud, a drowsy nod to the grown-ups, a
[4:36] Speaker 2: free tale each night only keeps blooming when listeners help
[4:40] Speaker 2: water the roots. The Spreaker Supporter Club grows bonus tales
[4:45] Speaker 2: inside your podcast app, while Patreon gathers every tale early,
[4:51] Speaker 2: with extra stories and longer editions from the whole family
[4:54] Speaker 2: of shows. You will find both links tucked in the
[4:58] Speaker 2: show notes. Now, back to the garden. The dusk deepened.
[5:06] Speaker 2: The garden sounds grew soft and few. Somewhere beyond the wall,
[5:11] Speaker 2: an owl called once, low and far, and then the
[5:15] Speaker 2: quiet came back, deeper than before. Mabel pulled her blanket
[5:20] Speaker 2: round her shoulders and kept her eyes on the bud. Then,
[5:25] Speaker 2: over the garden wall, the moon rose. Round and calm
[5:29] Speaker 2: it came, spilling silver across the stems, and the roundest
[5:34] Speaker 2: bud trembled. One pale tip loosened. Then, a second, the
[5:42] Speaker 2: bud was opening. Mabel held her breath. One petal unfolded.
[5:49] Speaker 2: slow as honey pouring, then another, then a third, and
[5:54] Speaker 2: a fourth, till five white petals lay open to the moon,
[5:59] Speaker 2: wide as her spread hand. The bloom glowed faint, and
[6:03] Speaker 2: a sweet, soft smell drifted out across the step. The
[6:08] Speaker 2: pale moth lifted off the step, and settled on the
[6:11] Speaker 2: petal edge gentle as a blink. See, whispered Mabel, it
[6:17] Speaker 2: waited for you too. And the bloom nodded in the
[6:20] Speaker 2: night air as if to say yes. Mabel sat a
[6:25] Speaker 2: well longer, watching the moonlight rest inside the open flower.
[6:31] Speaker 2: Then she stood, quiet as the moth, and whispered goodnight
[6:35] Speaker 2: to the bloom. Sleep well till tomorrow night. She said,
[6:40] Speaker 2: I will keep your secret always. Back inside, Mama took
[6:47] Speaker 2: the empty cocoa cup and Mabel curled into her narrow
[6:50] Speaker 2: bed under the window with a smooth white pebble on
[6:54] Speaker 2: the sill and the moonlit garden resting far below. The
[6:59] Speaker 2: night lay soft outside, full of blooms. and the garden
[7:04] Speaker 2: breathed its slow evening song. That is the tale of
[7:09] Speaker 2: the Moonflower Cottage, my friends. Mabel waited soft and still,
[7:14] Speaker 2: and the night bloomed for her. Maybe tomorrow you can
[7:18] Speaker 2: wait soft for one small wonder, too. Now Grandpa Alice
[7:23] Speaker 2: is back to tuck the night in. Listen for his soft,
[7:27] Speaker 2: rumbly voice. Good night, pale petals. Good night.
[7:38] Speaker 1: Was that not a lovely tale, little one? Thank you, Maya,
[7:43] Speaker 1: for telling the Mabel tale, so gentle one. Thank you, Mabel,
[7:48] Speaker 1: wherever you are, for showing us how good it feels
[7:54] Speaker 1: to wait, soft for a wonder. Now it is your
[8:01] Speaker 1: turn to rest. The bloom is opened. The garden is calmed.
[8:08] Speaker 1: Your bed is warm. Everything is exactly as it should be.
[8:15] Speaker 1: Let us get sleepy together. Stay exactly as you are.
[8:22] Speaker 1: Only listen to my voice. First, pretend your eyes are
[8:28] Speaker 1: two moonflower buds. Heavy and white, let the first petal close. Slow.
[8:36] Speaker 1: Soft let the second petal close. Slower still, your pillow
[8:43] Speaker 1: is cool and smooth. Your blanket is the night garden air,
[8:51] Speaker 1: holding you soft and softer than softest of all. Now
[8:56] Speaker 1: breathe with me. Breathe in through your nose, slow and deep,
[9:02] Speaker 1: and breathe out through your mouth. Long and slow. Let
[9:07] Speaker 1: all the day drift away across the dusky garden. One
[9:12] Speaker 1: more time. Breathe in. Soft and slow. And breathe out.
[9:19] Speaker 1: Softer still. Feel yourself sink one inch deeper into your
[9:26] Speaker 1: warm bed. Good. So good. Let your toes be still.
[9:36] Speaker 1: Let your legs be heavy and warm. Let your tummy
[9:42] Speaker 1: rise and fall, easy as night air. Let your hands
[9:47] Speaker 1: lie open and soft, and let your eyes stay closed,
[9:52] Speaker 1: for they have worked hard all day, and now they
[9:57] Speaker 1: can rest. And before sleep carries you off, one last
[10:02] Speaker 1: drowsy word for the grown-ups. These tales bloom free because
[10:06] Speaker 1: gentle listeners share the watering. The Spreaker Supporter Club delivers
[10:11] Speaker 1: bonus tales direct to your podcast app, or Patreon brings
[10:15] Speaker 1: every tale ahead of release day. with bonus stories and
[10:19] Speaker 1: longer editions from each show we make. Both links doze
[10:23] Speaker 1: in the show notes, ready whenever you are. Now back
[10:26] Speaker 1: to Dreamy. Tomorrow night a brand new tale will be
[10:31] Speaker 1: waiting on your pillow. A new friend, a new wander,
[10:36] Speaker 1: every single night. So ask your grown-up to follow kids'
[10:42] Speaker 1: bedtime stories. So not one tail slips past. But that
[10:52] Speaker 1: is tomorrow. Tonight is for sleeping. So pull your warm
[11:00] Speaker 1: blanket tight, little bud. The moonflowers are watching over you.
[11:07] Speaker 1: The night is holding you soft. And someone loves you
[11:13] Speaker 1: more than all the petals in the whole wide garden.
[11:20] Speaker 1: Good night, little one. Good night. Sleep tight. I will
[11:27] Speaker 1: see you in your dreams.

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