Harriet and Mickey are very good friends and live in a house that is next to the beach. Their human friends take them to see the beach every morning.

On the beach is where Harriet and Mickey have all their adventures.

The very first morning that they were taken down the winding bush path that leads to the beach, they were so excited. They didn't know what they would see.

When they came out of the bush and into the open, they stopped, sat, and looked.

How wonderful it was!

The tide was going out and there were so many birds to see, big birds, small birds, all trying to find something to eat at the water's edge.

Harriet saw that there were many good sticks. Maybe her human friends would throw some for her to chase. She loved to chase sticks.

Mickey was thinking about which tree to climb first. He loved to climb trees.

They could see a small creek with the water flowing over the sand to the sea. They had heard their human friends talk often about a place called Charlie's Creek. Harriet wondered whether this was the same creek.

"Oh Mickey look," said Harriet. "Isn't this a great place and doesn't the sand feel nice?"

"Yes," said Mickey, not knowing which way to look next. "I wonder what all these birds are doing. I wonder if they will talk to us."

"Oh Mickey, it would be good if we could talk to them," Harriet said. "I think they are digging in the sand to find small crabs to eat for their breakfast."

"I'm hungry," said Mickey. "Let's go home and have our breakfast too."

"Tomorrow morning I'm going to try to talk to those birds and see if we can learn more about the beach," said Harriet. "What do you think Mickey?"

"Yes, but hurry Harriet, I'm really hungry."

"You are always hungry," said Harriet.

So they went back up the winding bush path to their house, thinking about their first visit to a special beach.

Will the birds talk to the two adventurers tomorrow?

Do you know which one is the dog and which one is the cat?

Here is a hint – Harriet is bigger than Mickey.