Dorktales Storytime
Be the hero of your own story with Dorktales Storytime, the award-winning podcast for kids and their pop culture loving grownups. Enter their Once Upon a Time world where hosts, Jonathan Cormur and Mr. Reginald T. Hedgehog, take you on a storytelling journey of curiosity and acceptance. You’ll explore reimagined fairytales and fables with social emotional themes, discover inspiring stories of history’s hidden heroes, and experience imaginary tales of boundless possibilities.
Recognized by Common Sense Media as outstanding entertainment with an official seal for quality and impact. Common Sense Selections include age-appropriate media with the potential to spark family conversations, entertain families of all kinds, and have a positive, lasting effect on society.
Reach out to us at dorktalesstorytime@gmail.com
Dorktales Storytime
Alice’s Birthday Bummer - A Wonderland Story for Kids
In Wonderland, nothing is ever quite what it seems, including Alice’s birthday. The White Rabbit, who promised to celebrate with her, keeps darting off in all directions. Even the Mad Hatter deflates her hopes for a special day when he un-invites her to tea—because it’s not her unbirthday. Feeling lost and forgotten, Alice wonders if anything can turn the day around—until the Cheshire Cat appears with a curious new path to follow. In a land where left is right and up is down, a day full of bummers might just bounce back into the best birthday yet.
Go to the episode webpage: https://jonincharacter.com/alices-birthday-bummer/
DOWNLOAD COLOR PAGE: https://bit.ly/dorktalesEP114colorpage
GRAB YOUR FREE PDF list of conversation questions for this episode:
https://dorktalesstorytime.aweb.page/ep114freePDF
PARENTS, TEACHERS AND HOMESCHOOLERS: In “Alice’s Birthday Bummer,” young listeners journey through the emotional ups and downs of a birthday that doesn’t go as planned. As Alice faces disappointment, confusion, and the chaos of Wonderland, she also learns the importance of expressing her feelings, leaning on her friends, and staying open to unexpected joy. The story gently encourages emotional resilience, empathy, and the idea that a “bad day” can still hold a happy ending.
IF YOU ENJOYED THIS STORY about Alice in Wonderland, you may like these episodes:
- Alice in Slumberland https://jonincharacter.com/alice-in-slumberland/
- Jabberwock This Way https://jonincharacter.com/jabberwock-this-way/
CREDITS: This episode is a Jonincharacter production. It was written by Monique Hafen Adams, edited and produced by Molly Murphy and performed by Jonathan Cormur and Sabrina Glow. Sound recording and production by Jermaine Hamilton at Pacific Grove Soundworks.
Join the Summer Listening Challenge—find out more and get your tracker: https://jonincharacter.com/summer-listening/
REACH OUT!
- Send us a TEXT: if your young listener has a question. Pls include their first name in the text. Your name/number is hidden so it's a safe way to reach out.
- Send us an email: dorktalesstorytime@gmail.com
- DM us on IG @dorktalesstorytime
- Library of Resources: https://dorktalesstorytime.aweb.page/Dorktales-Library-Card
- One time donation: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/dorktales
- Our Pod's Songs on Bandcamp: https://dorktalesstorytime.bandcamp.com/music
Now, go be the hero of your own story and we’ll see you next once-upon-a-time!
JONATHAN CORMUR: Hello Dork Squad. I'm Jonathan Cormur and you're listening to Dorktales Storytime, the podcast for kids and their pop culture-loving grown-ups.
THEME SONG: It's a beautiful day for a story, adventure and glory, new friends and old ones too. It's an excellent day to get swept away in a tail, so let us regale you.
REDGE: Come along, Jonathan! I believe it’s this way!
JONATHAN: Right behind you, Redge!
REDGE: It’s absolutely splendid to be back in Wonderland!
JONATHAN: As long as we don’t see any scary creatures like last time.
REDGE: Not a chance! We’re here for fun and frivolity only. (gasp, abruptly) Jonathan! Watch your step!
JONATHAN: Ah! What?!
REDGE: The flowers will not be pleased if you step on them.
ROSE: (with sass) And we aren’t afraid to let you know it.
JONATHAN: Oh wow! Hello!
ROSE: Hiya.
BOUGAINVILLEA: Hello.
DAISY: Greetings!
JONATHAN: I don’t remember talking flowers on our last visit…
ROSE: We sing too.
JONATHAN: And they sound as lovely as they look.
DAISY: How sweet!
BOUGAINVILLEA: I like him.
ROSE: He can stay.
REDGE: Well, we can’t stay long, unfortunately. We have somewhere we need to be.
JONATHAN: Yes, and we don’t want to be late.
REDGE: For our very important date! Let’s see…is it down the path to the left with the large oaks and strange birds…
JONATHAN: Or the path to the right with rainbow colored mushrooms and oversized insects?
REDGE: These directions aren’t exactly clear.
JONATHAN: Someone must have been in a rush when they wrote them.
REDGE: It’s always so easy to get lost in Wonderland.
JONATHAN: Should we ask the flowers which way to go?
DAISY: Sorry.
BOUGAINVILLEA: We can’t help you.
ROSE: We’re rooted to the spot.
WHITE RABBIT: Oh me oh my! Oh me oh my!
REDGE: The white rabbit?! What’s he doing here?
ALICE: White rabbit! White rabbit! Wait! Wait!
JONATHAN: And there’s Alice too?!
WHITE RABBIT: I’m late! I’m late!
ALICE: White rabbit!
WHITE RABBIT: No time to wait. I’m late! I’m late! I’m late!
ALICE: But it’s my…White rabbit! You promised…
REDGE: White rabbit! Wait!
WHITE RABBIT: Redge! Ah! Jonathan! Ah! I’m sorry! I’m. laaaaate! You understand. I’m late! I’m late! I’m late!
ALICE: (out of breath) White rabbit?
REDGE: Alice!
JONATHAN: Hello!
ALICE: (sadly) Oh hi, Redge. Hi Jonathan.
REDGE: Are you alright, Alice?
ALICE: It’s just…well, the white rabbit is always in a rush, but today he promised to slow down and spend the day with me. He was going to show me the new renovations to his house. It’s finally completed.
JONATHAN: How nice!
ALICE: But he keeps running away and won’t bring me to the house. I don’t know which way to go. It’s all so terribly disappointing because it’s a very special day…
JONATHAN: Is it?
REDGE: Yeeeeees, is it?
ALICE: Yes, it’s my birthday.
REDGE: Ohhhhh! Happy birthday!
JONATHAN: Yes! Happy birthday, Alice!
ALICE: What are you doing in Wonderland?
JONATHAN: We just…….came for a visit.
REDGE: Yes…Just a visit!
JONATHAN: It's very confusing getting around here.
ALICE: Don’t I know it. Now which way did the white rabbit go?
REDGE: To the left. Through the oaks.
JONATHAN: No no. I believe it was to the right. Near the mushrooms.
DAISY: It was through the trees.
BOUGAINVILLEA: No, no. By the mushrooms.
ROSE: Don’t listen to them. They can’t see a thing past my thorns.
JONATHAN: What about you, Rose? Did you see which way the white rabbit went?
ROSE: Meeeeeee? No. The sun was in my eyes.
(A tea kettle whistles far in the distance.)
JONATHAN: Did you hear that?
ALICE: That must be the Mad Hatter. Maybe he’s hosting another tea party.
JONATHAN: I think the sound is coming from down this way. Through the oak trees.
ALICE: You know what? If anyone knows how to celebrate it’s the Mad Hatter! And if the white rabbit won’t be with me on my birthday, then I’ll make my own fun! Will you come with me?
REDGE: Of course.
JONATHAN: Happy to!
ALICE: Oh, thank you. The day has been such a bummer so far, but this might save my birthday after all! Let’s go.
(A symphony of tea kettles whistling and Mad Hatter giggling)
MAD HATTER (sings):
One lump two lump three lump four
Oh certainly certainly you can have more
Just open your mouth and I’ll give you a pour
Swirl it around and spit it on the floor
(Mad Hatter spits)
REDGE: Hello there!
MAD HATTER (sings not noticing them):
Stir it stir it stir it around
Stir with your foot and drink it off the ground
Lick it and lap it slurp it up right now
Spin spin spin then take a bow
MAD HATTER: Oh!!! Where’d you come from?!
JONATHAN: Just down the path through the trees.
MAD HATTER: My goodness! You gave me such a shock! Such a fright!
REDGE: So sorry.
MAD HATTER: Now that you’re here. Tea? Tea? Anyone? Teeeeea?
ALICE: Oh, yes, please!
JONATHAN: A cup for each of us, I think. Thank you.
REDGE: (quietly to Jonathan) Is there time?
JONATHAN: (quietly to Redge) I think we still have time…
MAD HATTER: There’s always time for tea!
ALICE: Are you in a hurry?
REDGE: No. No!
JONATHAN: Of course not. No.
ALICE: Great! Then there’s time for cake too. Do you have any?
MAD HATTER: CAKE?! CAAAAAAAKE?!
ALICE: Yes.
MAD HATTER: I ALWAYS have cake!!!!! Always, always, always!! Now, where did I put it? (Calling out) Caaaaaake?! Where are you????? Hmmmm. Cake? CAKE?! (Suddenly angry) This hat! I can’t think with it on!
JONATHAN: Oh!
REDGE: The cake!
MAD HATTER: The cake?! Where?!
ALICE: It’s on your head.
REDGE: It was under your hat.
MAD HATTER: Oh! Ha! I should have known. I do all my best thinking with cake on my head. Here you are.
JONATHAN: If there was a candle…
REDGE: Great idea, Jonathan! Then it’d be a proper celebration.
MAD HATTER: Celebration? Did you say CELEBRATION?! We must blow up balloons!
ALICE: Oh yes!
REDGE: What fun!
(Sounds of blowing up balloons)
MAD HATTER: And we must have games. Games! Games!
REDGE: Pin the tail on the…
ALICE: Cat! Just like my cat Dinah!
MAD HATTER (whispering frantically) Don’t say cat! Don’t say cat!
MOUSE: Did someone say…
MAD HATTER: No, no, mouse. Back to sleep.
(Mouse weakly yawns.)
ALICE: This is wonderful! You’ve all saved the day! Thank you for turning it around. Everything’s so much better now.
REDGE: Oh. Yes. Of course. Of course.
ALICE: Maybe it’ll be the best birthday yet!
MAD HATTER: Wait, birthday? A birthday?
ALICE: Yes. Today's my birthday!
MAD HATTER: Oh, no, no, no, no. No cake for you.
ALICE: What?
MAD HATTER: Give me that.
ALICE: Why?
(Mad Hatter pops the balloons.)
MAD HATTER: No balloons, no, no. Pop the balloons. Pop. Pop. Pop. No balloons. Not on a birthday. No, no. It’s all wrong.
(Pop. Pop. Pop.)
JONATHAN: What are you doing?
MAD HATTER: I never celebrate birthdays. Only unbirthdays. Then you can celebrate 364 days every year, you know?
JONATHAN: But what about the 365th day?
ALICE: Yes, what about your actual birthday?
MAD HATTER: Your actual birthday? That’s reserved only for birthday bummers.
ALICE: Birthday bummers?
MAD HATTER: Yes. Yes. The day when everything goes wrong. Will go wrong. Must go wrong. Has to go wrong.
(Pops one more balloon.)
ALICE: I don’t understand.
MAD HATTER: You can’t appreciate the other 364 unbirthdays if you didn’t have a birthday bummer, or two, or three…or twelve on your actual birthday.
ALICE: I think I’ve had enough bummers, thank you. The white rabbit won’t celebrate with me, and now this. There’s nothing to do now but wait.
JONATHAN: Wait?
REDGE: Wait for what?
ALICE: Just wait for this day to be over.
MAD HATTER: Yes. Bye bye. Go be a bummer somewhere else. Come back on your unbirthday. I’m happy to celebrate with you then! GOODBYE! GOODBYE!
JONATHAN: I’m sorry, Alice.
ALICE: Me too! I thought that was shaping up to be the best birthday party ever! And now we’re lost again.
REDGE: I just wish we could find the white rabbit’s house.
CHESHIRE CAT: If you don’t know where you’re going, any path will lead you there. Even this one.
(New path appears with a sparkling sound.)
ALICE: The Cheshire Cat!
JONATHAN: Was that path there before?
REDGE: Definitely not.
ALICE: Maybe the Cheshire Cat can help! Is this the way to go?
CHESHIRE CAT: You’ll know when you get there.
ALICE: Huh? But which way do we go?
REDGE: I guess we might as well try this new path.
JONATHAN: Might as well! Aren’t you coming, Alice?
ALICE: No. I think I’ll just wait here until my birthday is over. I don’t want any more bummers today.
REDGE: Oh, but Alice, please. Even a bummer on your birthday with friends can’t be all bad.
JONATHAN: One more try, Alice?
CHESHIRE CAT: Good or bad, the road always leads you forward, never back.
ALICE: (Sighs) Thanks, Redge. Thanks, Jonathan. I guess we can give it one more try. Just ONE. It is nice being with you, even if everything’s been going wrong.
REDGE: That’s the spirit! One more try!
ALICE: One more try.
JONATHAN: Let’s do it.
REDGE: This way.
CHESHIRE CAT: See you sooooon.
ALICE: I’ll never understand that cat.
(Sounds of hundreds of ribbiting frogs.)
JONATHAN: Lots of ribbiting frogs. I can hear them, but I can’t see them.
ALICE: I’ve never been down this path before. I think I would remember all the ribbiting frogs.
REDGE: There’s so much overgrown moss. The frogs must be hiding in there.
ALICE: Wonderland is full of surprises!
REDGE: Look! Is that…?
ALICE: It’s White Rabbit’s house!
JONATHAN: The froggy road led us straight here!
REDGE: It looks so nice! They did a wonderful job with the renovations. The house is in tip-top shape!
JONATHAN: Cozy yet modern.
ALICE: I can’t believe we found it!
REDGE: I just love what they’ve done with the garden!
JONATHAN: Is that a koi pond?
REDGE: Yes, but instead of fish in the pond, I believe those are little jingle bells…?!
(Light sounds of jingle bells)
REDGE: How cute! Isn’t it cute, Alice?
ALICE: Yeah. It’s cute.
JONATHAN: Come on! Let’s head in!
ALICE: I dunno…Does White Rabbit really even want me here? He ran away from me all day.
REDGE: Let’s at least knock on the door!
ALICE: Alright…
JONATHAN (calling out): Knock! Knock!
(The sound of a door creaking open)
CROWD: SURPRISE!
WHITE RABBIT: Happy birthday, Alice!
ALICE: White rabbit?! And all my friends in Wonderland?! What are you doing here?
WHITE RABBIT: Thank you, Redge and Jonathan, for stalling her. I was late for the very party I was meant to be hosting.
ALICE: Party?
WHITE RABBIT: Happy birthday, Alice! Surprise!
ALICE: For me? You didn’t forget after all?
WHITE RABBIT: Of course not. I just needed to put the finishing touches on the decor for your birthday tea party!
REDGE: Happy birthday, Alice!
JONATHAN: Happy birthday!
ALICE: Redge, Jonathan, did you know?
JONATHAN: That's why we were here in Wonderland.
REDGE: For the party! We RSVPed weeks ago.
JONATHAN: When we saw the white rabbit frantically dashing about, we knew he must need more time.
REDGE: And the Cheshire Cat gave us a hint that everything must be ready to go.
CHESHIRE CAT: I love dipping my tail in everywhere I can.
ALICE: I can’t thank you enough! How very special!
WHITE RABBIT: Now come! Anyone want some tea and cake?
ALICE: Oh, yes, please.
JONATHAN: Sure! Thank you!
REDGE: Certainly!
WHITE RABBIT: Oh wait. Oh no! Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no!
JONATHAN: Everything ok?
WHITE RABBIT: I forgot to boil the water for the tea. What a bummer!
REDGE: A birthday bummer?
ALICE: A birthday bummer?! How perfect!
WHITE RABBIT: Perfect? Did she say perfect?
JONATHAN: We’ll explain later.
REDGE: Let’s get inside. Happy birthday, Alice!
JONATHAN CORMUR: This has been a Jonincharacter production. This story was written by Monique Hafen Adams, and edited and produced by Molly Murphy. Special thanks to Sabrina Glow from Glow Girls Kid and Teen Voice Overs who performed Alice and Rose. All other characters were performed by Jonathan Cormur. Sound recording and production by Jermaine Hamilton at Pacific Grove Soundworks. We love hearing from you! Contact us at dorktalesstorytime@gmail.com or try our one-way text feature as a safe way to reach out. You can find even more ways to reach us in the show notes.
Now, go be the hero of your own story and we’ll see you next once-upon-a-time!
THEME SONG: So gather your squad for all to see. It's a universe that we've imagined. There's twists and turns and lessons learned. This is where the unexpected happens. Join our humble hosts and hit the trails of the wonderful, wacky, wild world of Dorktales.
© Dorktales Storytime 2025
