Flat Stanley

The kids were so excited to get a letter from their friend with a special request... take care of his "Flat Stanley." Flat Stanley is actually a book, which I was familiar with from my teaching days. Flat Stanley fits in an envelope, which means he can travel far and wide, exploring new places and enjoying time with a host family. It's a great project for the classroom because it allows kids to explore different places without having to ever really leave. Here's our letter that we sent back to him (and his class) about Flat Stanley's travels.

Dear Ricky,
Thank you so much for letting Flat Stanley come and visit us! Crue checked the Flat Stanley book out from his school library so we could read all about him. We’re so glad he didn’t get hurt from the bulletin board! We also thought it was pretty cool that he flew like a kite!

We had such a great time showing him around northern California. We live in the small rural town of Garberville, which doesn’t even have a stop light! It’s about 200 miles, or four hours, north of San Francisco and home to many deer, wild turkeys, cattle ranches, horses, and Redwood trees. We have the south fork of the Eel River that runs through our town, and is lots of fun to swim in during the summer months.

When Stanley first arrived, we took him on a hike through the Redwood trees. He loved balancing on the fallen logs and hiding behind some of the large ferns. We had to warn him of the poison oak that was around, and would make him REALLY itchy and give him a horrible rash! We also took him to see the river, which was really full and muddy from the recent rains. After awhile, Stanley’s legs got tired from all of the walking, so he hitched a ride on our dog Cali’s back.

Next, Stanley got to visit Redway School and spend some time in the third grade. He watched the students take a multiplication test and then got to go out to the playground for a little fun.

That afternoon, we took Stanley over to Bapa and Nanas’ (our grandparents) house and Stanley met their goat and horses. They have five miniature horses and one regular horse. Stanley couldn’t stretch his legs around the horse in the normal riding position, so he rode on the horse’s ear, which he fit perfectly on. I think he might be allergic to hay, because Stanley could not stop sneezing! He was also a little afraid of the goat’s horns!

On his last day with us, Stanley came to Crue’s first basketball game. They are called the Lakers, and they won 22-12! Stanley sat in the stands with Summer and Broc and cheered for Crue. After the game, we took Stanley for a walk around the campground near our house. Stanley went down to the river and we tried to teach him how to skip rocks.

We’re so sad we have to mail Stanley back because we’ve been having so much fun with him. I hope your class learns a lot about other places and enjoys the pictures and postcards.

From,
Crue, Summer, and Broc

It's actually kinda fun to have even fake visitors join your family because it forces you to get out and explore what you take for granted on a daily basis. I don't think we take it for granted, it's more that we get to see it from a different perspective. Flat Stanley was such a fun project and it was actually hard to see him go!

Mt. Shasta

Last weekend, after the basketball tournament, Chris was excited to see that there would finally be some snow! He has been waiting and waiting to go snow boarding, so in his typical fashion, he decided we should go...right now! After a little convincing, (and complaining about how I would have to pack for four, not one person) we decided to leave the next morning (Sunday). On the way to the mountain (about a 5-6 hour drive)we stopped to get some snow attire that the kids had outgrown, then got to experience it really snowing. It was so neat to see lake Shasta, where we're usually wake boarding in the summer, with snow-covered banks and white shorelines. The kids were so excited when we got to the hotel and couldn't wait to swim. Chris dared them to go from the hot tub to running outdoors to make a snow angel...in their bathing suits! Of course, they all did it! For dinner, the kids still think it's a special treat to have pizza delivered, since we don't have that at home, and it was ice to just relax in the hotel room for a quiet night in.

The next day, they were layered in tons of clothes, uncomfortable snow boots, and mittens that kept them from being able to zip or tie or buckle anything, and were loaded in the car heading for the mountain. Crue and Broc both decided to snowboard for the first time. They tried skiing two years ago, but were not really into it. Summer wanted to ski again, so we rented equipment and practiced with them. Chris went for a few runs on his snowboard, and I was fine just hangin' with the kids. Crue and Summer both did ski school for an hour, but Broc was to young, although he was the one catching on the quickest. I stayed on the mountain with him as he begged me to let him go down alone...until he crashed! After being checked out by first aid and determining that his arm was NOT broke, I decided that maybe just playing in the snow and building a snowman would be less stressful and worrisome for Mom! I love that the kids want to try all of these fun activities, but after Crue's wake boarding accident, Summer's recent concussion, and Broc being taken off the mountain by First Aid, I feel like sitting on the sand on a warm beach sounds like a much better idea!






My lil' snow bunnies!


Broc


Summer


Sweetie


Sweetie


Sweetie


Crue


Broc


Crue


Crue


Broc

Broc


Broc


Broc


Daddy and the kiddos

Broc


Broc


Broc


Snow kids


I made this snowman with the kids while Chris was still on the mountain


Snowball fight!

Basketball Begins

Chris is coaching Crue's basketball team, and when asked what team they'd like to be, of course he said the Lakers! Somehow I was talked into being "Team Mom," which is actually a nice break from coaching. Scheduling the snack shack, making phone calls, and even keeping score once in awhile sound pretty good. What I would really like to do is just sit on the sidelines and snap photos and watch the game, but somehow I know that won't happen!

It's the first year Crue is old enough to play, and at this age, it's co-ed. Last weekend was the opening tournament, and with only two practices prior, the team did pretty well. Today is the first 'real' game, as well as picture day, so we're looking forward to the big day! We'll be busy every Sunday for the next few months... until baseball begins! It's funny how our life is not measured by the actual seasons, but rather by the youth sports that are going on at the time. This season will be pretty "easy" if I dare say so, since Summer and Broc are both too young to play and there's not really anything else going on for them during the winter months. Let the basketball begin...

Sunday Freeze

Yesterday we went up north and went for a bike ride along the coast. It was freezing and we were tempted to turn around, but we decided to go for it. It started sprinkling right as we were headed back to the truck, but by that time our fingers were already numb and our noses were red. After the ride, we warmed up in the movie theater watching "Alvin and the Chipmunks Chipwrecked" and then went to dinner before heading home. It was so nice to get out of the house for the day!