Barnaby Bear was getting ready for bed in his cozy little den. He had brushed his fur (all squeaky clean!) and fluffed his pillow just right. But his tummy rumbled just a tiny little bit. Hmm, thought Barnaby, a little snack before sleep would be perfect! He decided the very best snack would be honey toast.
He padded into his small kitchen. He found a slice of bread and popped it carefully into his little toaster. Then came the important part: the honey! He reached for the jar on the shelf. It was a lovely jar, shaped like a beehive, full of golden, sticky honey.
Barnaby grabbed the lid and twisted. He twisted again. And again! Oh dear, that lid was on tight! Barnaby held the jar with one paw and twisted with the other, putting all his bear-strength into it. He wobbled back and forth, concentrating very hard.
Suddenly, with a little POP! the lid came loose. Barnaby wasn't quite ready for it! The jar tilted, and a little blob of golden honey flew out, right through the air, and landed... splat! ...directly on Barnaby's nose!
Barnaby giggled. "Well hello there, honey nose!" he chuckled. He tried to wipe it off with one paw, but his paw instantly became sticky. Then he tried to wipe his sticky paw with his other paw, and now BOTH paws were sticky!
He looked at his sticky paws and the jar of honey. How was he going to get the honey onto the toast with sticky paws? He decided to use a little butter knife. He held the knife carefully (or tried to!) with his sticky paws and dipped it into the jar.
But because his paws were so sticky, the knife wobbled and went in too far! It was completely covered in honey, all the way up the handle! Barnaby tried to pull it out, but it was heavy with honey and stuck just a little bit.
With a gentle pull, the knife came free, but oh my! Honey dripped everywhere! Drip, drip, splat! On the counter, on the floor, a tiny bit even landed near his ear. Barnaby stood in the middle of a little sticky, golden mess.
He looked at the honey on the counter, the honey on the floor, the honey on his paws, and the honey-covered knife. For a moment, he just stared. Then, a little chuckle started deep in his chest. He started to giggle. It was quite a funny mess he had made!
He took a deep, careful breath (making sure not to accidentally breathe in any honey). Okay, he thought, maybe it's a bit messy, but I can fix it. And it *is* kind of funny! He carefully held the sticky knife again.
Slowly and patiently, he spread the honey onto his piece of toast. It wasn't the neatest honey toast ever, with a few extra sticky drips, but it looked absolutely delicious. His toast popped up from the toaster at just the right time.
Barnaby carefully put the honey toast on a plate. He licked his sticky paws clean (yum!) and then washed them carefully. He washed his face too, getting rid of the last bit of honey nose.
Finally, Barnaby sat down and ate his slightly messy, very delicious honey toast. It was sweet and warm and just perfect for a bedtime snack. He smiled, remembering the funny sticky adventure he'd had.
Tummy full and paws clean, Barnaby padded back to his bedroom. He climbed into bed, pulled the covers up to his chin, and snuggled into his pillow. He closed his eyes, a happy, slightly sticky smile on his face, ready for sweet dreams. Goodnight, Barnaby Bear.