The Dragon that Blew Bubbles 🐉 🫧 Cozy Bedtime Stories For Kids | Rewind

Hello and welcome back to Kuala Moong, a podcast of original bedtime stories and sleep meditations for kids, designed to make bedtime a dream. If I say dragon, I think you'll instantly picture our energetic little friend Disco, who can't resist getting his groove on. In fact, we recently did a bedtime boogie with him over on Kuala Tots, if you heard it. Anyway, note this is a different dragon, who belongs to a whole new family, and the youngest is soon heading off to start at Kokobara Kindi, the kindergarten in Sleepy Forest. The only problem is, he's nervous. Very nervous. Because how is he going to explain to his new friends that he can't breathe fire like all dragons are supposed to? In actual fact, when he opens his mouth, he actually blows bubbles instead. Yikes, I feel nervous for him. So let's do some deep breathing and get rid of that swooshy-wooshy nervous feeling. Place your hands on your tummy, and as you breathe in, feel your tummy rise, and then fall as you breathe out. And again, breathe in slowly and deeply, lengthening the breath a little, and then whoosh it out. Breathe in again, and slowly out as you feel your shoulders, ribcage, legs all just relax, and melt into the mattress beneath you. Lovely, keep on breathing steadily, and slowly, and maybe put a little smile on your face. He's going to be just fine. But let's join him now to see how he manages his first day. This is The Dragon Who Blew Bubbles by Jane Thomas. Before we begin, a quick message for the grown-ups. If you'd like to support our podcast, enjoy ad-free listening, unlock four bonus stories per month, and much, much more. You can join Coco Club. Subscribe in just two taps via the link in the show notes. But now, here's a quick word from our sponsors. Hey, cosy koalas! I have some very exciting news. It's Snaffle's birthday this month, April 20th in fact, and he's so excited he's decided to give you a present, and stay tuned for a very special invite too. To celebrate, we're offering 20% off our yearly Coco Club subscription, a little birthday treat from Snaffle's to you. If you didn't know already, Coco Club is our premium subscription of ad-free listening, bonus episodes, and loads of other fun extras. That means uninterrupted adventures with potato and beans, journeys with Hector and Sunny, and magical moments with Coco and Kira. Plus, our special premium series, Capy and Tito, all ready to play. You'll also unlock over 500 episodes, all completely ad-free, ready whenever it's time to snuggle down to a bedtime story. No interruptions, just calm, cosy storytelling. But that's not all. Snaffle's has been busy planning the most magical birthday party in the Koala Kingdom, and he keeps asking if you'll be there. That's right, if you join our yearly subscription in the next few weeks, not only will you get a shout out on the show, you'll also be included in a very special birthday story, right here on Koala Moon. So, grown-ups, when you join our yearly subscription and send in your proof of purchase, along with your child's name by the 20th of April, we'll include them in a very special birthday story featured here on Koala Moon. They'll then be right there at the celebration, alongside snaffles and some very special Koala Kingdom guests. All you need to do after joining is to send in your proof of subscription to coco at koalakids.fm, along with your name by the 20th of April. This way, we'll know who to make a guest of honour. Grown-ups, if you're listening on Spotify or Yoto, you'll find everything you need to subscribe in the show notes. Or if you listen on Apple Podcasts, just tap Subscribe on your podcast player. See you there! In the mountains of Sleepy Forest, for there are mountains, even if you've never heard stories of them before, lie a series of caves and tunnels. The caves all disappear deep into the mountains, opening out into vast caverns that glimmer and glow by the light of fireflies. And in those caves lives a family of dragons. I wouldn't want you to think that they live up there because all dragons live in caves. No, there are dragons in Sleepy Forest who live at number 56 Willow Hollow Road, and another family are at 12 Dandelion Drive. And those are just two off the top of my head. This particular family live there because they like living there. And I wouldn't want you to think that just because they're in caves means they sleep on rocks and have a basic kind of lifestyle. Goodness, no. These dragons have sofas and cities, chairs and tables, beds and lamps, and ornamental mirrors and soft, deep pile rugs, just the same as anyone else might. They have photographs printed and hung on the walls, just as many other families do. Reminders of days at the beach or when the fair has come to town, or when they've gone on holiday and sat at cafes in Paris and danced the flamenco in Spain. This is the Flame Family, where we have Grandpa and Grandma Flame, and Daddy Flame and Mummy Flame, Mr. and Mrs. Flame to your eye, and the three children, Fira, Agni and Iggy. Iggy's the youngest of them all, and if you put the two names together, that's really quite something to live up to, isn't it? Iggy Flame. It sounds as though he should be very fast at running with a name like that. Although if you know anything about dragons at all, and I'm sure you do, you all know that running isn't their strong suit at all. Iggy goes to the Cookaburra Kindie in Sleepy Forest. At least he's starting there soon, and he just knows how all the first conversations are going to go. Wow, you're a dragon. Show us breathing fire. Go on, show us. It's always like that, and Iggy has to come up with an excuse, saying he has a sore throat or a headache, or he hasn't practiced for a while, or making up laws like it's actually not allowed for dragons to breathe fire unless they're standing right alongside a firefighter. The last one usually works to get big eyes and ooze and arse. But the thing is, Iggy can't breathe fire. Whenever he takes in a great lungful of air and sends it whooshing out through his mouth and nostrils, it just...well, it sort of...it comes out as bubbles. Shining, shimmery, rainbow dancing bubbles that float through the air and dance on the breeze. Of course, everyone in his family knows that he blows bubbles rather than breathes fire, and they say it makes him an extra special dragon. But the last thing Iggy wants to be is an extra special dragon. He wants to be your day-to-day, perfectly ordinary flame-breathing dragon that everyone expects to come across. Iggy has some pretty important ancestors who breathed fire. One of his great-great-lots-of-greats' grandfathers was employed by King Henry VIII of England to breathe fire for him. He lit candles and whole chandeliers in a single whoosh of fire coming from his nostrils. And one of his great-great-lots-of-greats' uncores was on one of Napoleon's ships, and he was used to breathe the fire that lit the cannons. He even had a relative employed by Queen Victoria, whose job was just to breathe fire just to make her laugh. Queen Victoria famously hardly ever laughed at all, or so people think. But that is just because they don't know the story of her and Firefly the Dragon, who lived out in the stables with her horses and really had a very nice life indeed. Anyway, Iggy is getting ready to head to the Cookaburra kindy for the first time, and he's following fear and agony down the mountain trail that will lead them to the river. He could do what many of the creatures do and catch the alligator bus, but dragons have the advantage of being able to fly, so instead they'll pop up in the air and fly along the course of the river to school. It's the best way of not getting lost, using natural landmarks such as rivers. Rivers always have to go somewhere, you see, and they usually go there via the same route every day. The chances are, if you follow a river one day to a particular place, you can do exactly the same thing the next day, and the next, and the next. That's a handy tip to remember and keep under your hat. Iggy has his lunchbox ready, fiery hot salsa and guacamole and sour cream in little tubs, waiting to be dipped into, and a super hot chilli with all the best beans and a great mountain of fluffy white rice. It shouldn't surprise you that dragons like to eat things that are really hot and spicy. And he has pens and pencils, and an eraser and a ruler and an apple as a snack, and a skipping rope. The skipping rope is to help make friends during break time, because who doesn't like skipping? The three of them fly in a line, one after the other, and follow the route of the river. Looking down, Iggy can see the alligator buses going back and forth through the waters, stopping to drop creatures off at supermarkets and offices and schools. And suddenly, Fyodor and Agni head to the left, so Iggy follows them. And then he sees the giant D for dragons, painted right next to the even bigger H for helicopters on the ground at the back of the Cucarbaric Indy, and they swoop down to their landing point. They have to get into a queue to land because other dragons are flying in from different parts of sleepy forest, and so they circle around and around for a while. Exactly the way aeroplanes have to when they come to an airport and they're waiting for a landing slot. Finally, it's Iggy's turn to land, and he follows the directions of a rabbit waving two bright orange carrots to guide him in. Bubble shows Iggy where to go and he finds himself in a class led by a fluffy, buzzy bumblebee who tells everyone she's called Mrs Bloomington. And Iggy can tell he's going to love it here. He's a bit distracted at first, looking at the beautiful mural painted on one wall, and sitting back and looking up at the clouds that hang around in the top of the classroom. Fluffy white piles of cotton wool suspended from invisible strings, but finally he's able to focus and he tries his absolute hardest to understand something called the two times table that makes his head hurt a little bit. Finally, it's break time and he's able to go outside and take the skipping rope from his backpack. And before long, Iggy's delighted to be holding one end of the rope while a cheerful koala holds the other end. And a line of animals is queuing up to take it in turns to jump as they swing it round and round and chant. Jump for one, let's have some fun. Jump for two, what else can you do? Jump for three, be quick, be free. Jump for four, and just one more. Jump for five, don't take a dive. Jump for six, bend, pick up sticks. Jump for seven, as high as heaven. Jump for eight, you're doing great. For nine, that's mighty fine. Jump for ten and start again. They swirl the rope around faster and faster until everyone's feet are just a blur as they fly up and down and in and out and Iggy's arm starts to ache, but he doesn't care because everyone is having such fun. And more importantly for Iggy, nobody has asked him about breathing fire yet. In fact, it's a whole week before someone asks Iggy to breathe fire. Unfortunately, they ask him just after he spent an hour singing with the choir, so it seems perfectly reasonable for him to say that his throat is more than a little bit sore. And then the next day, someone else asks him to breathe fire, but fortunately they ask him right after he's finished the cross-country run and he's absolutely exhausted, so Iggy is able to say that he's far too tired to breathe fire right now. The day after that, someone asks him to breathe fire right after he's finished eating his snack time apple, and Iggy tells them that apples are known to put out the fire inside a dragon and he's very sorry but then isn't a good time either. He's able to come up with an excuse every single time, but by the end of the second week of telling lies, he's completely exhausted. He's back at home one weekend, sitting outside the family cave alongside his grandfather. Grandpa Flame can tell something's wrong, but he isn't sure what. Iggy looks tired and his shoulders are hunched and his wings aren't glowing with that special glow a dragon's wings should glow with, so he asks Iggy if perhaps he will help him finish a puzzle. The little dragon and his grandfather have done puzzles together for years and it's one of Iggy's favourite things to do. He trots inside and chooses a puzzle with a picture of a farmyard, complete with a glorious shiny red tractor in the middle and surrounded by sheep and cows, chickens and pigs. They sit at the table outside the cave, occasionally looking up to see the view and watch as the sun starts thinking it might be time to set. And at one point, Grandpa Flame gets up and fetches a load of candles and sets them alight by breathing on them, popping them inside glass lanterns so they can carry on with the puzzle even as the light starts to fade. They sit in perfect silence for a couple of hours, content in each other's company, and Iggy starts to feel himself relax. It isn't long before he's able to start talking to his patiently waiting grandpa, who knows there is something to be said, but is giving Iggy the chance to find the right time. Grandpa, he says in a little voice, whilst he pops a piece of red tractor into place with a satisfying click. Why can't I breathe fire? His grandpa looks at him and sighs inside. Iggy has never been happy about this and nobody's managed to make him change his mind. Why don't you ask? says his grandpa at last. Why it is, you are able to blow bubbles. Instead of all the time thinking about what you can't do, why don't you think about what you can do? Iggy had never looked at it that way before. Can you blow bubbles grandpa? he asks curiously. His grandpa shakes his head and to prove his point, he takes a big gulp of air and breathes out flames that are bright against the dark of the night sky. And do you think you'd like to blow bubbles grandpa? asks Iggy. His grandpa looks at him. I'm not sure. Why don't you show me how you blow bubbles and I'll think about it. Iggy takes in a deep breath and then pushes the bubbles out through his nose and mouth and they dance and shimmer and shine as they get closer to the lanterns and then they sit and watch as the bubbles slowly rise into the sky and disappear into the darkness far, far above their heads. Your bubbles lasted a lot longer than my flames says grandpa and Iggy grins and your bubbles didn't nearly set the puzzle pieces on fire either says grandpa and Iggy has a little laugh and your bubbles are something truly beautiful and truly special because I don't know anyone dragon or otherwise who can blow bubbles like that. Iggy puffs up his chest and feels important for a moment then he remembers. But I think grandpa that life would be easier if I just breathed fire. His grandpa took off his little round glasses and set them on the table. He looked straight at Iggy. Now Iggy he said with a hint of very serious in his voice. Do you really want things to be easy? The little dragon looked down. Sometimes he said. The best things I've ever done said his grandpa have been very hard indeed and the best things I've nearly done were even harder. But they are all the things that make me smile the most. When we have to work hard for something it means an awful lot more when it finally happens. Imagine if we could do this puzzle in ten seconds what would be the point of that? Iggy looked at the puzzle still only half finished even though they'd worked on it for a few hours by now. He had to admit it would be very boring if they pulled it out of the box and it was finished in a flash. You take your bubbles and you be proud said his grandpa. It may feel hard some days but it will be worth it. The next day Iggy went back to the Cucaburra kindy walking down the mountain after fear and agony and flying with them along the river until they swerved to the left and swooped in circles over the giant circle D painted on the ground waiting to be directed by the rabbit with the carrots to come into land. And when in class he was invited to a birthday party the following day he felt a little surge of excitement in his stomach and not only because birthday parties meant cake. His mother helped him make some special spiced chilli cookies to take as a birthday present for the badger whose birthday it was going to be. And together they wrapped them in wax paper and tied a big red bow around the top and Iggy had a wonderful time licking the bowl and the spoon and feeling the mixture tingle and dance on his tongue. After school he followed all the others down to the play park where the birthday party was to be held. They played basketball with Iggy giving up and flying round the course rather than running and everyone cheering him on as he scored a home run for his team. Then they played past the parcel and Iggy was delighted when he got one of the prizes and it was a book called Magic, Mystics and Mayhem which sounded exactly like the sort of thing he liked to read. And they played musical chairs and Iggy got down to the last four players before missing out on a chair and having to sit on the table with the others and cheer the final three on. Then they played Pin the Tail on the Mongoose and Iggy managed to stick the tail on the creature's head. And finally the badger's mother brought out a great big cake, one that her sister Betty Badger of Betty Badger's Bakery had made specifically for the birthday boy. It was a huge three layered chocolate cake covered in thick chocolate swirling icing and it said happy birthday in giant letters on the top and behind the letters were six tall white candles waiting to be lit. The badger's mother was about to light the candles when the badger's father held out his paw and stopped her saying I think we can do one better. He picked up the cake and carried it over to the table where Iggy was seated and said there we have a real live dragon here he must light the candles and the cheer went up and everyone started clapping their hands and saying light the candles light the candles. Iggy wasn't sure what to do because everyone seems so convinced that when he huffed and puffed he would send out a sheet of flame that would set the candles alight and in the end they were calling so loud that there was nothing else for it. He took in a huge gulp of air and breathed out blowing bubbles pouring from his mouth and nostrils and sending them dancing across the tables their rainbow swirls catching the sunlight as they spun through the air. There was complete silence and Iggy held his breath dreading to think what might come next then he heard it again someone called and again then blow the bubbles blow the bubbles. Iggy took in another big breath and blew out another line of perfect shimmering bubbles these ones even bigger than the last so big that the animals could almost see reflections of themselves go dancing by as they looked. Everyone started clapping and cheering and Iggy felt terribly awkward because it was the Badger's birthday and they should be clapping and cheering him so he quickly took the matches and lit the candles and the Badger blew them out and they clapped and cheered for him instead but nobody forgot about the bubbles even though they were very distracted by the big slices of cake they were eating and creatures kept coming up to Iggy and asking him to blow bubbles again. Best party trick ever they all decided and Iggy felt a huge relief wash over him his secret was out it had felt awful lying about who he really was and now everyone knew the real Iggy the real bubble-blowing dragon and they all liked him and nobody had laughed and the world hadn't ended he flew back home a very tired but a very very happy little dragon that evening telling his grandpa all about it as they finished the puzzle together outside the cave and when his mother came and tucked him up in bed Iggy was sure to tell her to even though he'd already told her twice and she smiled and said of course they love the bubbles it was a beautiful thing that he could do and anyone would be lucky to be able to blow such wonderful bubbles. Iggy snuggled down into his bed and pulled the blanket right up to his nose giving one final little puff of bubbles from his nostrils and watching them drift to the roof of the cave before he closed his eyes and turned his head on the pillow to find the perfect spot. It wasn't long before he was fast asleep and he found himself in his dream flying over the river with the alligator buses far below blowing bubbles and sending them down to his friends who patted them on their hands and looked for their reflections inside and watched the swirling rainbows on the surfaces and then Iggy was inside a bubble and he was rolling through the air seeing everything through the special magic of a bubble's window so it all shone as if dressed with diamonds and sparkled like stars. Iggy smiled as he slept the odd bubble slipping out here and there when he turned over and took in an extra big breath and outside at the entrance to the cave his grandpa smiled too thinking about how wonderful it was that the only bubble blowing dragon in the world was right there inside the home they had created in the mountains. Sleepy forests slept and the bubbles floated free and Iggy flames life would never be quite the same again.