Super Sunday Leaves Me Super Sad

Good Morning Everyone.

What a fantastic, phenomonal, wonderful weekend I had.  I played softball all day Saturday...and we won--twice!  That was exciting and fun but the best part of the weekend was spending the day with my long lost best friend, Mark.

Mark and I were best friends and in the same class together when, all of a sudden, he and his family moved away.  And when Mark's family moved, they didn't move a town or two away.  No, when Mark's family moved, they moved three states away.  We wrote letters, sometimes talked on the phone and after reading "Ola Amiga" at the Cafe, we now email each other too.  (That helps with fast communication because you don't have to wait for the mail to get to the other person.)  Still it is really hard not to see each other.

Well, Mark stayed at his grandmother's house this weekend and Sunday we had the chance to spend the whole day together!  It was so awesome.  We caught up on books (he's read the whole "Magic Treehouse Series" over the past four months), our activities (softball for me, soccer for him), and I learned that he is working on a super project.  Mark volunteers at the Humane Society, working each of the Humane Society fundraisers in his town.  Sometimes he sits at a table and collects donations.  Sometimes he hands out information about the group and sometimes he even gets to share stories about the animals the society helps.  Isn't that cool?

Krumbs, of course, loved that Mark was helping animals and he found something really neat to share with us.  Krumbs brought us to the Cafe and showed us  a really cool "Weekly Special".  The story is a new one at the Cafe--I can't believe I hadn't seen it already.  It is all about a girl who participates in a fundraiser for the Human Society!  The story is called "Daring to Try" by Lisa Hart and we loved it because it was about something so close to us.  (Of course, Krumbs had some extra dog treats as a reward for showing us the story.)

It was such a great weekend and it ended way too soon.  Mark is on a plane right now, flying home and I'm really sad.  I've already emailed him twice.  It's really hard to have your best friend so far away, but I'm really happy I had the chance to spend the day with Mark.

Check back soon!

Hola Amigo...Finally!

Hello Everyone,

Guess what?  Remember my friend Mark?  (A quick recap, just in case you forgot—Mark is one of my best friends who moved three states away.  I wrote about him on Monday when I read Hola Amiga! at the Café.)  I just found out Mark is going to be right here this weekend visiting his grandparents and we’re going to spend the whole day together on Sunday.  I don’t think I have ever, ever been as excited as I am right now-pinky swear!  I can't wait to say, "Hola Amigo!"

We’re going to spend the day at his grandparents’ house and Krumbs is going to come too.  Mark’s grandparents have a dog, so Krumbs can hang out with a friend too!  Of course, we’ll visit the Café, but Mark said he has some awesome book ideas to share with me and a backyard big enough for us to draw a whiffle ball diamond—So COOL!!  (No softballs or baseballs because his mom is afraid we’ll break a window.)

Krumbs and I went to the "What's Cooking" page of the Café to look for something good to share with Mark on Sunday.  We loved the yogurt parfait, but it would be messy to bring and hard to keep cold on the ride.  We came up with the best idea! Krumbs and I are going to make S’mores Trail Mix!  It’s perfect—no mess, stores in a baggie and has two of our favorite tastes, marshmallows and chocolate chips.  Mmmm, mmm, mmm.

It has been a very good few days.  No more hair disasters (ugh).  No late wake-ups (zzzzzz).  And, (dun, da, da, dun) I get to see one of my very best friends again! 

 Have a great weekend everyone and check back soon!

The Great Hair Horror

Good Morning!

Ugh!  Did you ever have a day when everything goes wrong?  Yesterday was one of those days in my house.  I woke up really late with no time to take a shower.  I raced into the bathroom and grabbed two brushes, one for hair and one for teeth.  I started to run the hair brush through my hair when I looked in the mirror-AHHHHHHHHHHHH!! 

I must have done some terrific tossing and turning in my sleep because my hair was in knots and sticking out everywhere!  It took a lot of yanking, stretching, wetting and spraying of leave in conditioner to get it all straightened out…while Krumbs sat back and tried not to laugh.  I can’t wait until the next time he comes in after rolling around in the prickly bushes—I’ll try not to laugh too!

I made it to the bus stop with 30 seconds to spare after the "Great Hair Horror" and of course, Krumbs was waiting by the door when I came home.  I’m sure you realize by now that Krumbs has an interesting sense of humor.  As soon as we walked in, he led me to the Café where he had a great article up and, you guessed it, it was all about—HAIR!!!  I learned all about how much hair we have (Hint: it’s in the millions!), how it grows, when it grows and the longest hair in the world (Hint: It’s longer than three of me put together!  Can you imagine hair that long getting tangled?)  It was a great article...and it did make me smile.

Krumbs is a little crazy but then again, so am I.   Our “little bit of crazy” is part of what makes us such a great pair!  I bet you have at least one friend like that too.

Check back soon!

Keeping In Touch--The Cafe Way!

Hey Everyone,

Have you ever had a good friend move away?  That happened to me earlier this year and it was really sad.  One kid I did a lot of projects and work with in school moved away last November.  He moved three states away, so there was no way to even see him never mind work on school stuff.  We kept in touch writing letters for a while but it took a long time for the letters to get back and forth. By the time I wrote and sent a letter with my news and questions and he wrote and sent a letter back, everything I wrote about had already changed!  It was really frustrating.

I'm thinking about all this stuff because the "Weekly Special" in the Cafe this week is about two friends who are separated when one moves to Spain for a year!  (Geez, and I thought three states away was bad.)  It's cool how the two friends keep in touch and stay friends...with really fast communication that doesn't cost a lot-GENIUS!!!   I can't believe I didn't think of it first.  I'm going to talk to Mark and see if we can do the same thing.  Check out the story of those two brilliant friends at the Cafe.

Talk to you later, everyone.  I'm going to start my letter to Mark right now--It may be my last letter to him!

Dog Allergies and Accidental Discoveries

Hello Everyone,

Are you sneezing and sniffling?  Is your nose tingling?  I know when it’s springtime because springtime allergies make all those things happen to me.  Krumbs is a lucky dog.  He doesn’t have any allergies at all!  That made me wonder...can a dog suffer from allergies?

I couldn’t get the thought out of my head.  I really had to know whether a dog can have allergies. Krumbs and I visited the ASPCA website (the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) to find some answers.   Guess what?  Some dogs can suffer from allergies!  Krumbs really is lucky that he doesn’t have itchy skin, watery eyes and a sneeze-y, tickly nose!  The idea that dogs can have allergies is my new discovery for the week.

My discovery was definitely made on purpose.  I was looking for the answer to a question.  But do you know how many discoveries happen by accident?  I bet you didn’t know that some of your favorite foods and toys were discovered by accident!  Krumbs and I were reading about those kinds of discoveries in the Café.  Popsicles, ice cream cones and even Frisbees were discovered by accident.  Check it out in Michele Barone’s Café article, “From Idea to Invention”.

That’s all for now!  Have a great weekend and check back soon. 

The Frog Said, "Kwak! Kwak! Kwak!"

Hello Everyone,

It is Wednesday and my school vacation is half over-Boo! Hoo!  I like school.  I really do, but there is just something so amazing about staying up late, sleeping in and having no homework and no schedule.  I love it!  Krumbs and I are enjoying just lounging around the house this week.

Yesterday we were out in the yard with some friends and we heard “ribbit…grrrribit….grrrribbbittt!”  We snuck back into the woods and followed the sound to a small, shallow pond.  Guess what we found?  Frogs!  It was awesome.  So, you know we had to try catching the frogs.  It was a really good thing that the weather was warm because we got dirty and wet.  The bonus was that we managed to catch three frogs and, of course, we set them free right away.

Did you know that in the United States we hear frogs saying “Ribbit! Ribbit, RIbbit” but in the Netherlands frogs say “Kwak! Kwak! Kwak!”? Krumbs and I read a great article called “AnimalSounds” at the Café. I can't believe how different people around the world hear different animal sounds--how bizarre. Here are some of the animal sounds we discovered:

Check it out and check back soon!

Ahhhhh! He's Back!!!

Good Morning!

All the lounging around Krumbs and I did this week definitely gave me back my energy.  We had a great weekend!  Krumbs was happiest of all but I think that was more because he was going CRAZY!! stuck in the house all week while I was trying to get better.  He is an outside animal!

We spent most of Saturday outside.  Out in the yard, the squirrels and chipmunks were super lazy after a whole week without Krumbs running marathons chasing them.  You could almost see the shocked looks on their faces when Krumbs came barreling around the corner of the house. I drew a picture to show you.

The smarter ones disappeared up a tree or down a hole, but a few brave (or not so smart) animals raced around and around with Krumbs.  With Krumbs here, I bet my yard has the healthiest squirrels and chipmunks in the whole state! Does your dog chase squirrels and chipmunks too?

Boy, sometimes I wish we could harness Krumbs’ chipmunk chasing power and use it for something cool.  Do you know different animals around the world are used or have been used as vehicles?  I couldn’t believe it, but we read about it here.  Birds, dogs and even llamas have been used to bring messages, people and supplies from one place to another. AWESOME!!!   I think, with Krumbs' racing power, he could probably be famous…but I’m glad he’s just my dog!

I’m heading over to the Café now to see what other amazing things I can find.

Check back soon!

From Bottom to Top in the Cafe

Hello Everyone,

Hey, I don’t feel like my stomach’s a washing machine anymore.  My stomach is fine and I beginning to feel back to normal.  Krumbs is relieved to have me back to myself again too.  We’ve slowed things down for the rest of the week so I can get my energy back  though and that gave us some extra time to hang out in the Café.

Our first visit to the Café brought us to an article on scatology.  Are you curious?  Well, let me give you a hint…my stomach virus kept me quite busy worrying about my own “scat”—and it wasn’t pretty, friends.  Click here to find out all about scat and scatology! 

Krumbs was in a very interesting mood yesterday because we went from an article about “scat” to an article about taste buds in one Café visit—crazy!  I learned some fun facts about how and what I taste. Do you know you have over 10,000 taste buds camped out in your mouth?  Yowza!!  You can see the picture I made of my mouth, but I didn't make 10,000 taste buds!

Well, all that talk about taste buds made me hungry and even the talk about scat can't keep me from wanting food.  I’m going to go get some snacks and build up some energy for the weekend.  It sure feels good to want to eat food again.

Enjoy the weekend and check back soon!

Tummy Trouble!

Hello Everyone,

What a week so far!  On Monday night my stomach was swishing around like clothes in the washing machine and boy, was I sick on Tuesday morning.  I woke up with my head spinning like a wind-up toy—I even looked like one because I swayed around whenever I stood up.  This is my second day of no school so I'm spending lots of time lying around the house.

Yesterday, I was feeling so awful I really couldn’t do anything.  I ate some B.R.A.T. foods to help stop the rumbling in my stomach.  Have you ever heard of B.R.A.T. foods?  No, Krumbs and my mom weren’t trying to stop me from turning into a brat… B-R-A-T are the first letters of four foods that help an upset stomach… Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast!  Of course, those aren’t the only foods I ate, but they were a good start for my tummy.  What do you like to eat when you're sick?

Today I’m feeling better, but I still can’t go to school.  I visited the Café already this morning.  I found a really cool recipe for Rice (Krispies) Cupcakes.  I tried to get Krumbs to make them for me since they do have Rice (Krispies) as an ingredient, but he’s not buying it!  The good news is that Krumbs knows I'm getting better because I'm asking for sweet treats.  That still means no Rice Cupcakes for me, but you can give them a try.  Get the recipe right here!

Okay!  I’m off to read my book, visit the Café and get better.  Check back with me soon!

Broken Window By-Law

Hi Everyone!

This weekend was all about softballs and baseballs.  I played two softball games and watched one baseball game this weekend!  Our team won both games but the baseball game was exciting too.  One of the players hit the ball out of the field and just missed hitting the window of the house across the street!!  While we were thrilled to see a home run, we were very nervous when the ball didn’t stop and just missed the window.  It would have been a disaster for the first game of the season!

Krumbs was really crazy after the game and couldn’t wait to get home.  I should have known he had something to show me.  As soon as we walked through the door, he visited the Café and showed me a really cool article called the “The Broken Window By-Law”.  The article was about a Massachusetts’ law from 1791.  Baseball players were charged money for playing baseball near a public building—because they might break a window!  The law is super important because it tells us the year baseball was officially played in the United States.  Check out the Café to find out where the law was passed and some other cool facts about baseball.

This was really fun to read—I  never know what I’ll find at the Café, but it’s always something good!

Check back soon!

Oh No! Spring Fever!

Hello Everyone,

Krumbs and I are feeling a little strange this week.  The weather is warming up, the trees are budding up, the grass is greening up and we can’t concentrate.  Krumbs thinks we have a terrific case of Spring Fever! 

 I bet you’ve felt it too…dreams of running around outside with the sun shining and the wind blowing until you wake up and find out you’re in the middle of math class—Oops!

I did get my work done this week.  I finished my book report and studied for my math test.  I did my homework and practiced math facts, but it was really hard to stay focused.  All I wanted to do was play!  To help me focus, Krumbs and I set up a “Homework Haven”.  We gathered all the things we needed to do homework, along with a few snacks and treats to reward ourselves during homework time.  We learned all about setting up a Homework Haven on the Café.  It's just the trick to keep us on track with school while we fight off spring fever. 

We hope you can fight off spring fever too.  Do you have special things you do to stay focused when you really want to do other things?  We’d love to hear about them!

Enjoy the weekend and check back soon!

Information Treasure Hunt: Finding Fabulously Fun Facts

Hello Everyone,

I finished my book and started my book report.  I’m doing a biography report on Abraham Lincoln.  I drew a picture of his face on a paper doll shape and added yarn hair and a yarn beard and a tall black hat.  I also turned material scraps into clothes for him.  That was the fun part…now I have to write about Abraham Lincoln’s greatest challenges.  I already read the biography so I know a lot about him, but the Café has some great fun facts I didn’t find in my book.  I’m going to add them to my report for a little extra credit.   Check out the Café’s article on Abraham Lincoln to find some really unusual and fun facts about our 16^th President!

I’ll tell you a secret—I kind of like reading and researching.  It’s really cool to find interesting and unusual facts about someone or something.  The Café made the work a little easier this time, but I really  do like searching for information.  It’s kind of like a treasure hunt where you never know what you’ll dig up.  I guess it helps that reading is my favorite subject…enjoying reading makes it fun to dig up the best facts!  Do you like reading and researching or are math facts and equations more your thing?  Or do you like both subjects?

Okay!  I’m off to finish writing up Abraham Lincoln.  Check back with me soon!

A Sushi Party

Hi Everyone!

It was another cold weekend here, especially Saturday.  Krumbs and I hung out with friends and visited the Café.  We were searching for something fun to do and guess what we came up with?  We read the article on sushi and decided to have a sushi party!  I know…amazing, right?  We’ve only had sushi once at a fancy restaurant, so we asked to take a trip to the grocery store, bought the ingredients and met back with our friends for a sushi making party!  It was easy and fun to do.  You can try the recipe too.    We made  rolls with imitation crab and rolls with cucumber, carrot and avocado.  Have you tried sushi?  Do you like it?

 On Sunday, I had softball practice and then Krumbs and I spent some more time outside.  We had fun with the pogo stick, raced after squirrels, and rode bikes.  Can you guess which one of us pogo-ed and rode a bike and which one of us chased squirrels?  Having no ice…is nice!  No ice meant the only sliding I did this weekend was “sliding into home” during softball!

 It will be a busy week…I have a book report due and a math test.  Study, study, study…write, write, write. 

Wish me luck and check back soon!