Evelyn was playing with her toy boat in the bathtub, making it zoom across the water. "Look, Mommy, my boat is sailing to find a treasure!" she giggled.
Mom smiled, "What kind of treasure, Evelyn?" She was drawing a picture of a sparkly fish, her favorite thing to draw besides Evelyn's sweet face.
"A giggling goldfish!" Evelyn declared. "He lives on a Pirate Ship!"
Suddenly, the bathtub drain seemed to gurgle and swirl. Before Evelyn could even blink, her little boat was sucked down the drain!
"My boat!" she cried.
Mom rushed over. "Oh dear, that's strange! Don't worry, honey, we'll find it."
Mom looked under the bathtub, but the boat was gone! Then, she noticed something else. There, stuck to the bottom of the tub, was a small, wet, golden button! It had a tiny crown on it.
"Evelyn," Mom said excitedly, "This button wasn't here before. I think it might be a clue!"
Evelyn’s eyes widened. "A clue? Like a detective?" Evelyn loved helping Mom find her lost keys, pretending to be a detective.
Mom nodded, a playful gleam in her eyes. "Exactly! Let's follow this clue and see where it leads us!"
They followed a trail of glittery bubbles, which surprisingly led them out of the house and all the way to... a giant pirate ship! It was docked at the park, its mast soaring high, a black flag with a skull flapping in the wind.
"Wow!" Evelyn gasped. Could this be the Pirate Ship where the giggling goldfish lived?
On the deck, they saw a friendly-looking parrot perched on a barrel. "Ahoy there, mateys!" the parrot squawked. "Lost, are we?"
"We're looking for a giggling goldfish and a lost toy boat," Evelyn explained.
The parrot bobbed its head. "Well, climb aboard! Captain Lily might be able to help you. She loves finding things!"
Evelyn and Mom carefully climbed onto the ship. They soon found Captain Lily, a girl with a bright smile and a pirate hat perched on her head. She was playing a fun game with her crew, pretending to sail the seven seas.
"Captain Lily," Mom began, "We're looking for..."
But before Mom could finish, Evelyn spotted her boat! It was bobbing in a bucket filled with water, right next to a small, golden fish. And what do you know, the fish was giggling!
"My boat!" Evelyn squealed, scooping it up. "And look, the giggling goldfish!"
Captain Lily giggled too. "That's just Goldie, our lucky ship fish! He loves to play!"
Evelyn realized that playing with Goldie and Captain Lily on the pirate ship was just as fun as finding a treasure. She learned that playing can take you on the most amazing adventures!
As Evelyn and Mom walked back home, Evelyn clutching her boat and the golden button, Mom said, "See, Evelyn? Playing can lead to the best discoveries!"
Evelyn giggled, "And giggling goldfish!"
