Benjamin’s Birthday Party

Text & Photos by Ann La Mar

My Yarm bears sort of live in secret being rotated from the top of a chest of drawers to the drawers in the bed…. and other hiding places so no one except me actually knows how many there are! 

Benjamin is celebrating a very big birthday this year so Honey our bear cook wanted to have a little party for him. Auntie Miki sent a picture of some Teddy bear cupcakes so she decided to try and make them. Honey worked her magic in the kitchen and very soon the little cupcakes were baked and transformed into little teddy bears. 

Honey invited Benjamin and a few of his closest friends to the party. He was so happy that  Honey had made Teddy bear cakes especially for him, they even had candles 1 for every decade he has been with me. After the party and eating the cakes they all went for an afternoon nap. 

Guess who did the washing up? 

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Valentine’s Bears

Text & Photo by Miki de Goodaboom

I live in Spain. Here is Teddy Bear culture, unfortunately, not developed at all. You can find some in the toy shops, of course, but even there, they are rather rare. In the meanwhile, due to the increasing number of English tourists and residents, you can see sometimes Teddy Bears appearing in charity shops.

And yet: in the town where I am right now, Benidorm, I have seen the most beautiful Teddy Bear setting ever! To compensate the economic effects and the sadness of Covid, the town hall has organised a context among shops, bars, hotels, etc, for the best Valentine decoration, under the motto “Benidorm Te Espera” (Benidorm is waiting for you). Even closed businesses can participate… what most of them are these days!

Each participant receives 500 euros, and the first 3 winners will win a nice amount too. 3000 businesses have subscribed, with the result that thousands and thousands of red hearts and love words are beating all around Benidorm. I have to say: you like Valentines or not, this is beautifully uplifting the mood.

I could not believe my eyes as I saw that cafe – Cafeteria Uliana, Avda Mediterraneo- decoration. At the 4 coloured tables by the window are sitting big Teddy bears, little ones too, all having coffee, tea, cava even, with all kind of yummy pastries, all served in beautiful dishes. It really looks like a cafe exclusively fir Teddy Bears, and the bears seem to have such fun and enjoying it so much!

Bad Hair Day

Text by Kev Le Chat,  Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

Arthur Bear was a very particular bear. Everything had to be just so. He was very proud indeed of his green velvet waistcoat with its bright shiny buttons that he polished every morning. He was proud of his trousers and used a ruler to ensure that the turn ups on each were equal and perfect.

And his beautiful white shirt with starched collar completed his ensemble. He admired himself in the mirror.
‘Yes, Arthur’ he thought. ‘You are very particular and look particularly smart today!’
He chuckled at his own little joke.
But then, he looked again. Goodness gracious! He’d forgotten his tie! His beautiful pink tie!
He spent at least thirty minutes looking for it.
Eventually, out of ideas,  he shouted to Molly Bear  in the bathroom.
‘Where’s my tie?’ He grumbled, irritably.
‘No idea’ came Molly’s reply.
For her part, Molly was in front of the bathroom mirror, trying to stop giggling.
She’d washed her hair and it hadn’t gone well. She had accidentally used the laundry detergent instead of shampoo and it had ended up looking like an explosion in a mattress factory. Molly was resourceful though. She’d sneaked into Arthur’s wardrobe and borrowed his lovely pink silk tie.
She managed to fight the hair into place so you’d never guess she had a problem and finished it off with a lovely big pink bow on the top of her head.
Eventually she emerged from the bathroom.
Grumpy Arthur, minus tie, suddenly softened as he saw Molly on the landing.
‘You look lovely my dear’ he said, beaming.
‘I love the new bow! You’ve changed your style!’
‘Oh, ‘ said Molly, trying hard not to laugh
‘Bad hair day’
Arthur shook his head, thinking how pretty she looked and reminded himself he must look for that tie when he got home from work.
Bad Hair Day S
(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

The Woman

Text by Teddy Truffy McFurry,  Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

Today I want to show you our new Teddy ‘The Woman”. My Mom got her from my Dad for her birthday, together with her husband, “The Man”. Together they are “The Man and The Woman”. I start with “The Woman” today, because she is quite an old Lady, and old Ladies, says my Mom, still like to be treated like ladies, and to come first.

They are part of the “Inspirational Teddies” club, all these Teddies in the house who tell us lots of deep truths.

My Mom says it is important to have them, because so many people are telling lies and one does not always knows.

But The Woman, she always knows what is happening!

 

The Woman Who Knows What is Happening S

 

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

If We Can Put A Man On The Moon

Text by Kev Le Chat,  Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

Doris was upset.

Very upset.

Her husband had taken her favourite parasol , turned it upside-down
And used it as a planter for his petunias.

Now the summer had come, and she’d been looking for it. He’d panicked and
Washed it out and emptied it, and it was now an unattractive soggy mess.

Fed up with men, Doris decided to go on strike.
Every day for a week, she went and stood outside the local co-op with this sign around around her neck.
It was a bit boring, but better than having to talk to her idiot husband.

If We can Put A Man On The Moon S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

When The Going Gets Tough…

Text and Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

Now, we have today a very proud bear in our family!

It is that little beautiful bear woman, from the “Inspirational Teddies” club,  going shopping, and wearing around her neck that slate on which is written

“When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping!”

Well, she is proud and a really inspirational Teddy because yesterday, somebody in America decided to buy a mask against the Coronavirus, with the painting of her on it!

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(Mask available online, press on the image above)

Somebody on the other side of the big pound will go around wearing that mask and show it to everybody… if that is not a reason to be proud!!!

She is a bit scared to become a celebrity now because she is a bit shy. But I assured her that America is very far away and nobody here in Spain will recognise her… that is, if they don’t buy her mask here too!!!

When The Going Gets Tough S

 

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

If We Are Kind And Polite

Text and Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

(Illustration being a copy of a painting by R.W.ALLEY)

Hello, Paddington here!

In these crazy times of Witch Corona making us all suffering so much, all over the world, everybody has something to say and advise about it. Especially all the celebrities come out and say something clever!

This is why I am here today, I am a celebrity too and I have something very important and clever to say. Well, it is not me who said it the first time, it was my Auntie Lucy in Darkest Peru. She said:

“If you are kind and polite the world will be right!”

So, PLEASE, everybody, and you too, Witch Corona, be kind and polite!

If We Are Kind And Polite S

Lifes Too Short For Ironing

Text and Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom

 

I could not agree more with my beautiful teddy:

“Lifes too short for ironing!”

I have an iron though… but I cannot remember last time I used it!

Except… it was yesterday!

I used it yesterday to iron my newest watercolour painting! When they are painted with lots of water, there is hardly anything you can do against them waving when drying. Clever people advice to wet the paper before, let it dry, and then do the actual painting. Well, it never worked for me! My waters are probably wilder than theirs… or is it my painting style?

The only thing that works a bit is ironing them. The waves don’t really disappear, they just get flatter. But it is a very delicate  task, as you can imagine: I have already brunt some of my paintings as I was not well-experienced in that domestic work!

Lifes Too Short For Ironing S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

Bear Hunt Trail For Children

Seen in CamdenNewJournal, The Independant London Newspaper, 25.03.2020

“Sweet Idea” to lift spirits.

RESIDENTS in West Hampstead are lifting sprits by putting teddy bears in their window for children to spot during their times of permitted exercise during the coronavirus lockdown.

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The soft toys can be seen in windows in Gondar Gardens, Agamemnon Road and other nearby streets to create a neighbourhood ‘bear hunt’ during precious outside moments.

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“This is something uplifting during this crisis,” said Fortune Green councillor Lorna Russell. “Lots of lovely residents have put teddy bears in their windows to create a bear hunt for children that walk by. What a sweet idea for children…

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Miki de Goodaboom:

It reminds me of that beautiful vintage Winnie The Pooh that I saw in a window in Fowey, Cornwall, while I was on a painting trip through Devon & Cornwall, in May 2018. I wonder if he is still sitting there, i so much hope he does!

Please let me know if you spotted him!

Or is you spotted Teddy Bears in a window!

 

Fowey Winnie The Pooh S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

Wilfra Cakes For Bua And Truffle McFurry

by Miki de Goodaboom

You saw it probably, Ann La Mar recently baked Wilfra cakes from Ripon and shared them with us here. They looked gorgeous!

Truffle wanted to try them and Ann was so kind to send him some. Under the pretext too of needing help by the quality control.

Truffy invited his cousin Bua to share them with him, as Bua was with us as we visited Ripon during our Tour Of Yorkshire in September 2016. We were delighted to see him again and to share Ann’s cakes and apple with him. Bua looks always a bit sad, but he is not sad. He is originally a German bear, and he tends to think too much, and always gets that expression on his face when he thinks…

You might wonder how we do it… but we, The Urso Majors, have invented another kind of internet, where we can send each other not only words, but also food, drinks, bears, etc… It works fantastically! But it is not a world wide web, it works only between Planet Goodaboom and Planet Boomerann’.

Wilfra Cakes For Bua And Truffle McFurry S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)