Peep and the New Egg
Peep loves being the only duckling on the bay — until Mama waddles over with news of a new egg. Excited, and a little bit unsure, Peep learns there's still enough love to go around.
What the story does
Peep's story is for the run-up to a new baby arriving, and the mixed feelings that come with it. Peep starts out excited about the new egg, then feels a flicker of worry — will there be enough love left over? — before finding a real job to do: helping the new duckling, Puddle, learn to waddle and swim.
Rather than skipping straight to a tidy "and everyone was happy" ending, the story sits with the wobble in the middle — the bit where Peep feels a little left out — before Mama reassures Peep directly, by name, as her own little helper.
It is short, warm, and rhymes all the way through, with one shared cheer for the whole family at the end.
At a glance
- Ages 2–5
- Rhyming, read-aloud, around two minutes
- Ten story pages
- Written and illustrated by Simone Fenn
- Notes for grown-ups below
“my little helper — have no fear.””
Inside the book
“Mama pulls Peep close and near, ‘my little helper — have no fear.’”
“Puddle hops along, wobbly and slow, with Peep close by — go, Puddle, go!”
“Hip, hip, hooray by the pond today, one happy family, come what may!”
You can also colour this very story as you read it. Click Read it free above, then tap Colour it in on the toolbar to turn each page into line art to colour on screen or print.
Free colouring book
Peep’s own colouring pages are still on the way — in the meantime, print “Colour Me In”, a free twelve-page colouring book starring Bo and Squeak.
Free to print at home, for childcare or classroom use.
For the grown-ups
What this story is quietly teaching, in plain terms.
Why the "unsure" page is in there
It's common for a child's first reaction to news of a new sibling to be a mix of excitement and worry, even when the excitement comes first and loudest. Peep's story deliberately gives that wobble its own page rather than rushing past it, because a feeling a child sees named and shown in a book can feel a little less alarming when it turns up in real life.
Giving Peep a real job
Rather than just being told to be happy about it, Peep gets something concrete to do — helping the new duckling learn to waddle. A specific, genuine "big sibling" role (helping with a small task, not minding the baby) is a common, gentle way to help an older child feel useful and included rather than replaced.
Naming the reassurance directly
Mama's reassurance in the story is specific and by name — "my little helper" — rather than a vague "I still love you." Concrete, individual attention and words tend to land better with young children than general reassurances, especially in the weeks around a new arrival when routines are already disrupted.
This page offers general, friendly observations about the story rather than clinical guidance or citations. If you're planning for a new arrival and want more structured advice, your health visitor, public health nurse or GP is the best starting point — this is not medical advice.