One day the three boys decided to buy their mother the perfect birthday present—a pair of red shoes. They set out to earn some money. Snipp painted a fence; Snapp cleaned a chimney; and Snurr worked in a flour mill. Things did not go exactly as planned, but in the end, Mother was very surprised!

When a kindly neighbor gave the boys some money to spend, they went straight to the bakery to buy some gingerbread—and they fell into the batter! Now Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr looked just like three gingerbread boys who had come to life. A beautiful princess picked them up in her coach and took them to her palace for a party. When the party was over, Mother knew just what to do with her children.

Each of three young brothers works hard to earn his share of the money needed to buy a special birthday present for their mother.

Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr want butter for their bread. But Mother can't make butter without milk. Aunt Annie's cow, Blossom, can't make milk without good grass to eat, and the grass won't grow without the sun to shine on it. And that means all the ingredients for a classic cumulative adventure here.

One their way home from school one day, the boys saw a wonderful yellow sled in a shop window. The next day, they started doing a lot of extra work around the house so they could earn it. The boys soon earned enough money. But when they arrived at the shop, they found a sad little boy whose family could not afford a sled. So Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr thought of a wonderful surprise.

When Mother leaves to visit an old friend, Snipp, Snapp and Snurr decide to plan a big surprise for her return. With Nanny's help they decide to get her a new chair. Since they don’t have any money, they earn the chair by working for all the people who help make it. Mother is so thrilled when she sees her fantastic surprise!