Our four children were usually in bed when my husband came home from work during the week. Weekends, therefore, were a special time when he would make up stories at bedtime for them. Now that we are great-grandparents, I have been inspired to use his ideas to write and illustrate these four stories. When our youngest daughter was two, she used to call bumblebees ‘Beebums’ – hence the name for the greedy bumblebee. I have written these stories hoping to encourage children to learn about nature in a fun way, keeping to the facts, e.g., where butterflies lay their eggs, the dragonfly emerging from the pond and giant pond snails coming to the surface of the water for air.

Originally, I wrote and illustrated these stories for the family. Those not yet able to read for themselves would love to look at the pictures whilst listening to the stories.