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Happy New Year Everyone,
The big news is that I moved into my new house in Morro Bay. The bigger news is that I AM GOING TO FRANCE for 6 month! I just finished filling out the paperwork or application (there is a lot of that). I will be going to France with a group called Enfamille and when I return I will be bring back a French sister with me. I am very excited. Of course I will post more and more about it as it gets closer and I hope to be able to keep posting while I am there. I have know for a while that I wanted to go, but now I am finishing the paperwork so it seems so much more real.

Since Christmas has just passed, I thought I would give you a few details about the holiday at my house. My favorite two gift were an ereader (like a nook thing) and my new bedroom. Since we were just moving and since I haven't really had a regular bedroom for at least a year, my parents gave me (along with my my Grandma and Papa Green) a new decorated bedroom. My room is beautiful and romantic. It has a chandalier and a swirIy purple comfortor and white airy curtains that have little holes in them. There are a lot of other great things. I can tell that my parents worked really hard on this room. I gave two gifts that made me really happy. The first was a toy stuffed Garfield cat. My sister wanted it so badly! She was very surprised when she opened it. My sister and I gave my parents $50 for Christmas to go out to a nice dinner. We gave it to them early so that my grandparents were in town and they were able to go out without worrying about us. They had a really nice evening.

It has really been a great month at my house.

Au Revoir,
Gigi

Busy as a Bee

Happy late Thanksgiving and early Christmas. I am sorry I haven't posted in a very long time. I have been "Busy as a Bee" as you can see from my title. I went to my grandparents for Thanksgiving in Southern California (5 hours away!). It was a pretty car ride because we (my mom, sister, my dog, and I) got to drive along the ocean where it meets the hills. We spent some time with my dad's family having a soup and sandwich get-together which was lots of fun. I got to see my cousins which I hadn't seen for a long time. My cousin Taylor and I sat by the fire, roasted marshmallows and talked. It was delightful! We had Thanksgiving with my mom's parents (my grandparents) and I made a discovery. I like MASHED POTATOES! I learned that you peel the potatoes, boil them, put seasoning in them and eat them. Yummy, yummy, yummy! Up till now, I thought I hated them. I never ate them anywhere. Maybe I had made a mistake and eaten the box kind, I don't know. But my grandma's mashed potatoes were delicious! They make a pretty good mountain on your plate.

Did you know that I am good at geometry? Ok, not so much, but recently I played the part of Euclid in an historical tableau at my school. I don't really know what geometry is except for shapes. I know what a circle, square, triangle, and octagon are, but I don't really know what geometry is other than that. So, I was Euclid in the painting School of Athens and was located at the bottom right hand corner. Euclid is an old, grumpy looking, over weight, almost bald man in the painting. When I chose Euclid, I thought I was choosing the student next to him which was a young, handsome man dressed in a green cloak with brown long hair...exactly like mine. But alas, I got the old grumpy looking Euclid. So I dressed up in a dress that my Grandma Wathen made me (this dress has really been put to great use and gone a LONG way) added a toga, and put some nylons on my head so I would look bald. In the tableau, there was actually a boy who shaved his head like a monk for his part, but I would not go that far. History Day was a wonderful experience. Next year, I will be more careful who I choose!

Coming up in my next post, I will be telling you about some important changes in my life. Stay tuned. Watch your computer all hours of the day. You never know when I will post and you don't want to miss this.

I promise I'll post soon- hopefully Wednesday.

Goodbye my friends!
Gigi

Wooo Hooooo!

I did it! I finished Jane Eyre this morning in bed! Wednesday, October 19, 2012 I finished it! Ok, I'll stop tooting my own horn. Beep beep, beep beeeeep! It was a sweet ending, as sweet as it can be. It was as sad as a dead puppy at times, but at the end it showed beauty. Just when you thought that this book was going to end in tragedy, it ended in beauty. It was a wonderful book.

Jane Eyre is an amazing women. She was headstrong, had fortitude, and persevered through tragedies. Her life was filled with sadness and hardship but also the beauty of God shown through her. She never hated the people who mistreated or deceived her. Her whole life she just wanted someone to truly love her. At the end, it finally comes true and even grumpy, creepy Rochester is changed by her love for him. Jane Eyre, the book, has many good examples of "man verses self" a literary devise I am learning about in school. Mr. Rochester, St John, Mrs. Reed, all seem to be fighting themselves. Jane herself, seems to be an example of "man verses world" because she's fighting with the world that she can't control, trying to make things better for everyone else and to find someone who will love her.

The book Jane Eyre was great. I recommend this book for older readers not only because it is hard, but also because of some of the things that happened. For those who have read the book a long time ago, I encourage you to read it again. You won't be sorry.

Just as Charlotte Bronte ends the book, Jane Eyre...

"Amen, even so, come Lord Jesus."
Grace

SLO Running and slow reading

Yes, yes, I am sorry I have taken too long to write again. I am busy. Here are the things I am doing: homeschooling, fencing, reading, eating, sleeping, churching, running, beaching, singing, friendsing, and buncoing. I know, I am breaking the rules of grammar. Don't worry, I am not crazy (I don't think I am anyway, but it sounds so much more cool to keep all of the ings). So, please forgive me.

Besides fencing, I have been running. On the same day even! It's not just running by myself. I am running with a few middle schoolers and high schoolers at SLOCA. We are getting a team ready so that hopefully next year, we will be able to compete. Our runs are 2 miles that take us through Cal Poly, SLO. It is exciting running through the college because there is lots to see. I don't really think about college very much except for culinary school, so it is interesting being there. My dad is the coach and he is a very good one. Weirdly enough, I am not the last/slowest runner, unless I get a cramp. THEY HURT! It's embarrassing in front of college students to be as slow as a turtle, so my goal is to be in the middle of the pack.

I am 100 pages from finishing Jane Eyre. For those who know Jane Eyre, as a friend, I am at the part where she is a school teacher for St. Johns School. I have passed some of the scariest and saddest parts of the book. I wish she could have married Mr. Rochester---ooops I am giving away too much! It's sad but true. Ok, I have a friend who is reading Jane Eyre too and she needs to get a move on. We are planning to watch the movie together with our moms when we are finished, but she is a slow poke. (She isn't even from SLO!) So this is my nice way of saying to my friend, "Move it!". I am prepared to use force or violence as Mr. Rochester would say. In the book he says to Jane, "Listen to me or I will try violence!" Mr. Rochester is creepy and weird, and I will try to not follow in his footsteps. I highly doubt I will, but dear friend "read on, read on!"

This Wednesday is my Grandma Gogo's birthday and I want to wish her a happy birthday- blog style. SO..."HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA GOGO! Thank you Grandma for being there when I need you, celebrating with me all of the good things that happen, praying for me, and for making delicious ribs. Three cheers for Grandma! GO!GO!GO! (Make sure Grandpa Gogo makes you a cake! Probably on the barbeque since that's what he knows how to use.)

A Bientot (See you soon),
Gigi

Bed, Bread, and Jane Eyre

So, today we are going to go in alphabetical order, starting with bed. Last night, I got a queen sized bed. Bye bye to the twin! My sister gets bunk beds now, so when friends or family come over, we have more room. The queen sized bed will make the grandmas happy too and maybe they will come and stay more often. A queen sized bed made me sleep better last night except for the fact that I am scared that there may be bed bugs. I got the bed from a neighbor and I'm sure that it is clean, but I'm still kinda scared about it. I saw a very frightening TV show about it. Who wants bed bugs crawling in their ears? YUCK. I'm hoping Christmas comes quickly because the bed isn't all that cute. Right now, it has a quilt on it with no dust ruffle or matching pillows. Boys would say "So what!", but it's not so what. I want things to look nice and not kinda nice or sorta nice, but really nice. I guess I COULD be happy with some matching pillows. Honestly, I would really like it to have a red canopy, a white dust ruffle, a red comforter, and white pillows. If that's too much, I would really just like a canopy. My mom had one when she was my age and I want to follow in her footsteps. Wink, wink (ok, maybe that's not so sincere.) I just really want the canopy. Maybe the grandmas could team up on that?

Now to bread. I helped my mom make my first bread today. We made homemade yeast buns. We like to eat these with honey and butter or use them for sandwiches. I thought it was fun, but you have to be a little daring in the middle of it. You have to pour a sticky mess of batter on the counter and use the paddles to mix it with the flour. Right now it's rising and then we will cut it into sections to make the rolls. My mom likes to weigh each bun to make sure that they are all the same. (It's a great math lesson in disguise!) When my dad and sister come home, our house will smell, not heavenly, but super heavenly! Tonight we are going to have hot turkey sandwiches on them. Turkey is nice, but honey is even better. Oh well!

Jane Eyre! I am reading the fiction classic Jane Eyre. My dad had to find it for me in the adult section of the library. Shocking, since it says it's a children's book. I guess the library doesn't think so. I guess children in 1847 were better readers than they are now. Random thoughts run through my head like natives sometimes. Everyone has that, right? Hopefully for me, I'm not the only one. I wonder if I'm crazy...oh, back to the topic. (Sorry!) So I was randomly thinking about Jane Eyre and I asked my mom if I could read it. She said it was a chunky sad book, but she agreed I could read it if I finished the entire story since there is redemption at the end. My mom loves the book and has seen all of the movie editions (I think). My dad doesn't get why she has to see every single re-version of the movie. She thinks they are all better than the last one, but my dad somehow didn't let her see the last version. Mystery? yes. Coincidence, NO! My dad is sneaky sneaky. When I finish the book, my mom will get what she wants. She will get to see the newest movie. I will too! Yipppeee! Girls win, girls rule! Hmmmm, lets see if my dad notices this. Does he actually read my blog like he says he does? We will see. Detective Gracie is on the case. My last thought about Jane Eyre is that it does seem kinda dark. I am hoping to finish the book soon so that I will get to the redemptive part. It's the kinda book that you have to force yourself to read at the beginning because it's hard. I'm really not lying,it is HARD. But, I will carry on to the end!

If my moms computer decides that it's a lucky day, you will get to see pictures. If not, I hope that we can add them later. Sorry about the missing picture from my last post. They were ready to go, but it just kept telling us that they were loading. I'm concluding with a blessing instead of a curse this week. I hope that it actually comes true for you.

May you eat fresh, delicious warm bread until your heart's content!

Gracie

Exercising the brain, snoozing and other homeschooling thoughts

Today I had a wonderful time doing math. Math isn't always easy while you are homeschooling. Occasionally my teachers (Mrs. Wright, mom, and dad), think that I am part Einstein. You should look at my math (see picture!). A genuis could do it in 10 seconds flat, but I am nowhere near that. I am learning about factors and multiples with large numbers. They take a lot of time and get confusing and take a whole lot of exercising of my brain. It's like a marathon going on in my brain. "What is the lowest multiple of 12,10,and 6?" "What are the factors of this or that?" It's like the biggest workout for my brain! Will I even have a brain left after all of this workout? By the end of the year will the blood have disintegrated my brain and I'll be left with a brain the size of a pea? Or will I have an enormous brain, like big bulging muscles, from all of this working out? I'll go with option number 2. I will have to remind myself that I am choosing this option. I'm hoping that it will make a difference when I don't feel like trying.

Now about snoozing. It wasn't me who was snoozing. I have been up since the crack of dawn (not really), but I have been working hard. My dog, on the other hand, decided last night to stay up and party in her kennel. Therefore, she has been snoozing all morning. Sleep, sleep, sleep with an occasional ear push up is all she does. Later, she may perk up and expect us to take her to the dog park. No way, Jose. Why does she get to sleep in when she wants to and I don't? Don't tell me that it's because she is a dog and I am a person. What's the point of having a dog if they don't do anything? I guess she is cute and cuddly occassionaly. But that's not the point. She loves to bask in the sun and sleep while I am slaving away, basking in my misery. Are dogs heartless? Of course they aren't, but sometimes it seems like it. Just like people. Dogs are sweet animals when they want to be. How are they supposed to know when it is the right time? When they were pups, perhaps they did too many math problems and their brain disintegrated to the size of a pea. That's my excuse for all of dogkind. But no more excuses. I want her to get up and at least patrol the house, maybe even do a little of my math for me. Dogs would get more treats if they did math or homework for their owners. Don't they know this?

It was great hearing from so many of my old blogging friends. I've missed you dearly. Why would someone blog without any followers? Thank you for being one of my followers? I'll try to post another recipe soon. My mom has been thinking about all things pumpkin, so that is a hint about my next recipe. Say hello to the pumpkin! I personally hate pumpkin seeds but that's another story. I'll save that one for Halloween.

May the Red Plague rid us all of math!
Gracie

PS I twisted a curse from the Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt for my closing.

PSS If you haven't read that book, you must! It will become a family favorite.

My blogs new name and lemons!

I thought I would tell you about my new blog name. It seems only fair. Why is the new name "The Cute Girl Who Pokes"? I earned that name with blood, guts, and glory. Too bad, I actually didn't. It would make such a nice story. Here is the real story. I was at a fencing tournament a few years ago, and I was stretching out with my mom. One of the other fencers walked up to me and said "I wish I had my mom to help me stretch". We talked a little bit and then she said "Hey, you are cute and small and I am going to squash you like a fly!" Then I said, "I am cute, but I poke." So she dubbed me, "The Cute Girl Who Pokes". Dunh dunh dunh! That's how it all came about. By the way she was kinda right. I almost beat her, but then her sword had a technical difficulty and she ended up with a longer sword. No fair!

Do you see the picture of me? Of course you do! This week I am going to make lavender lemonade for my class. I went to a concert and while I was there, I had a popsicle that was a lavender lemonade flavor. I liked it so much, I thought I must learn how to make it myself. So that is what I did. I only really like the best of the best, so I have to have fresh lemons and fresh lavender. Luckily, both are easy to find in my neighborhood. My mom and I went searching for lemons. At first, it wasn't going so well. Then we found a tree covered in lemons but the people who lived there weren't home to ask if we could pick them. Then I asked a neighbor who was outside, about the lemons and he showed me a better lemon tree in the backyard of a vacationing home he was taking care of. Could you imagine that forging could be so easy and fun? I think I saved a lot of money by just asking. Now, we are headed to San Luis Obispo (SLO) to forge for lavender. It's everywhere so I don't think anyone will mind if we take a few here and there. Below you will find my recipe for making the lavender lemonade. It is my first original recipe and I hope you like it too.

Gracie


Lavender Lemonade

To make the syrup:
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of water
8 heads of lavender

1 cup of fresh lemon juice.
3 cups of cold water and ice to taste

Boil water then add sugar. When dissolved add lavender. Steep for 10 minutes. Take out the lavender. I like to save this super sweet delicious treat to suck on like candy. YUM! Combine remaining ingredients and pour over ice. Drink it up and enjoy!

P.S. Be careful not to drink too much lemonade because it takes the enamel off of your teeth. I learned that from my uncle who is a dentist. Thanks Uncle Scott! (Scott Wathen DDS in case you need a great dentist!)

New Beginnings

I'm back! I know there is no excuse, but a lot has happened since last December. Shall I fill you in on a few of the details? First you should know that we have done a bit of moving. The details are kinda boring but here is the exciting stuff. We moved from Denver to Austin in January and then in July we moved to the Golden State (California baby!). Morro Bay is my hometown now.

Morro Bay is a very interesting place to live. My town has its own pet rock, great cafe's (Top Dog), a good library, and great neighborhoods. Our new house is a perfect house for my family and it is so close to the ocean that I can walk there. I have my own room! From my balcony, I can see a little window of the ocean and it is breathtaking when the sun is going down. We even have fun neighbors. Morro Bay seems to be a pretty safe place to live.

Last week was my first day of school. I say first day, because I will only be going there two days a week and I homeschool the rest of the week...yipeee! On Friday, I had a fabulous bonfire at the beach with all my new school/church friends. I enjoyed the night thoroughly except when I got hit in the head with a sand ball!! The nerve of those boys! I am excited about school and the kind of year it is going to be.

Another good part about my new life is that I am back into fencing. I have a fabulous fencing club that I joined. They have good equipment and the people are as nice as fencers could be. You see, fencers can't be too soft or else they will end up being loosers.

So here is the deal with my new blog. I'm still reading, so you are still going to see new books listed at the top but you might not see as many because I am now reading harder books because 5th grade is in middle school and there won't be any real quickies (for the chickies). So instead, you may hear about my cooking. As part of my homeschooling, I will be cooking with my mom 2 days a week. Forget the old brownie mix, I will be making things from scratch. One of my favorite things to do is ride my bike to the farmers market, so I will be sharing glorious foods for your eyes to feast on. Sorry I can't give your stomach any, I'm planning on eating it myself. I also will be writing about fencing which I am sure you will enjoy. Lastly, you will be hearing a lot about my dream to go to France which I am hoping to do next year as an exchange student.

Again, I'm sorry for not writing for the last few months. I hope my new and improved blog will make up for it. Don't forget to leave a comment, pretty please with sugar and lavender on top.

Gigi

zero, my hero

I would just like to say that I am sad, but excited that I am finished. I can't believe that I have actually done it. In the middle of the challenge, I had moments when I thought "I am not going to finish, I might as well not read any more. " I shouldn't have doubted myself. I love to read! I was having a lot of fun doing the challenge. So why did I doubt? I doubted because I was anxious and sometimes in a bad mood too. Did you see the title of my post today? I titled it "zero, my hero" because I have zero more books to read to complete my challenge. (This is also the title of a funny little song that my parents grew up with.) It feels like today is like an ice cream day that has turned into a sundae. It's just a better day than every other regular day.

The pictures that I am posting today were a lot of fun to take. My favorite one is me laying with all of the books on top of me. Those books made me itch. They poked me and I had to stay still. It was still fun and I like the way that the picture came out. The picture with the stack of books? It only contains 50 of the books that I read. The other 50 were from the library, friends, school, or some of them I have loaned out. Can you believe how big the stack would be if all of the books were there? I think it would probably be taller than I am. This morning, to celebrate, I convinced my dad to make his special cinnamon rolls. They were "Yummy, yummy, yummy, I've got love in my tummy". (That is a song reference for those of you who love 60's music!) Thanks dad for making them. We are also headed to the library again, because I am out of books. Then off for ice cream to end today's celebration. What a great day, don't you think?

So I have some surprises for you. The first one, was of course, that I finished 100 books in November. November! I was worried about finishing by New Years. I decided to go skiing, which I already told you about. I can't wait! The second surprise for all of you Texans, is that we are moving to Austin next month. My dad will no longer be working in Denver (it was not the right school for any of us!), so we are going to be spending some time in Austin while he looks for a new job. I'm excited that we will be closer to our Houston friends. Austin is a wonderful place. We have been there to visit before, and I like that they have these cute little vans that sell food in them. The cupcakes I had there were huge and delicious. So, since we will be so close, please come and visit us often!

Now, I do have a question for you. Should I continue my blog? I was actually going to continue until the year was over, but what about next year? I might need some new ideas. Should I change what kind of blog I am doing? I just don't know. Will you give me your ideas?

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. Thank you for reading my blog and for supporting me. It made me proud to have people actually reading about my challenge and caring about me. Thank you again!

Love,
Gracie

Five

That's right, five more books. I can't believe it. I decided to celebrate by going to the mountains and learning to ski. My mom's friend Cathy has a house in the mountains that we can stay at. It's all set. I am going to learn to ski! I am so excited! I haven't decided yet, but I think I am going to ask my sister to go too. If you know her, you know that things can get more exciting and fun when she is around.h

My last five books have to be ones that I am really going to like. I don't know what to read. I think that these should be the 5 best books that I am going to read. I need your help. I need your very favorite books to help me end my challenge well. All of you have given me lots of great suggestions. I can't believe that I have already been through a whole year of reading. I have loved all of the books that you have suggested.

Thank you to Lesley (Ms. Police Officer I should say) for suggesting Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing. I loved that book and continued to read a few more Judy Bloom books although my mom has said, "No More Judy Bloom Books!" Lorin, my cousin, gave me a few books by Julie Andrews that I really liked. Thank you to Grandma Gogo for giving me the book "Out of the Dust". It was a great book, even though it was sort of a grown up book. Grandma Wathen sent me "The Night of the Twisters" which was interesting to learn about what tornado's can do to peoples homes and houses. It was nice to have it in a "true story version". Thank you to my third grade teacher, Mrs. Hawkins, for picking such good books for my class to read. Miss Laura sent me "Alanna" and it gave me some fantastic ideas about being a girl knight (even though nobody else knew it). Now, since I can't remember everybody right at this time, and really, there are so many books to remember and who suggested them, I want to just say "Thank you so much!"

It's time for me to go to bed, which actually means that I am wanting to go get in bed and read. first my dad will read "Cheaper by the Dozen"- hilarious, and then I get to read my own book. I haven't decided what exactly that is going to be yet.

Vale (sung in a very sing-song-y voice), au revoir, and goodnight!
Gracie

I'm so excited!

We have been having some trouble with my blog. I know, I shouldn't make excuses for not writing in my blog, but when we finally got around to writing, my mom forgot the email address that was needed to sign on. Today however, we finally figured it out.

Today, after adding all of the books that I've read, I now only have 9 more books in 54 days. Earlier this week I told my mom that I wasn't going to reach my goal. I was feeling grumpy about it because I had been at my grandma's houses and hadn't been reading a lot. The tv was a big temptation! I changed my mind though, and I started reading. I've finished 3 books this week! Can you believe it? Well, I can't, so moving on!

At the beginning of the year, I felt pretty confident. Then, there were times when I didn't really think that I could make it. You know, even if I didn't reach my goal, I have filled up with a lot of knowledge and I have really enjoyed it. I am not just reading these books because I have to, you know?

My half-way goal was to go and have tea with one of my friends. We had a super-duper time. We were a little bit loud at the tea place. While everyone was sipping their tea quietly, Teah and I gave each other high fives and were laughing, talking loudly and slurping out of our tea that we put too much sugar in. It was a blast. For my 100 book goal, I had planned on having a book party. I wanted to invite all my friends to dress up as a character from their favorite book. Now that we have moved, I don't have good enough friends to do that with yet. So, I have been thinking about ideas for celebrating. I was thinking about going to Disneyland with my cousins or going and learning to ski with my dad. I'm not sure if either of these ideas are really possible, so I need your help. Would you give my ideas for celebrating. Remember I am a 9 year old girl, I'm not allowed to get my ears pierced yet (so don't make that one of your ideas although I really would like that!), my parents aren't really rich, and please make it sensible and fun.

Another thing! I am reading for school Voyage of the Dawn Teader. The movie is coming out December 10! I can't wait! People, you should read the book quick before the movie comes out. If you want to go with me to see the movie, you'll have to come to Denver. Remember to bring a coat because it's getting a little nippy! If you already live here, I would love to have you join me. Remember it's December 10th. I don't want to see it in 3d because it ruins it, so I hope that's ok with you too.

We have people coming to our house soon, so I better tell my mom to get off the computer because I am just the dictator you know! (**I think she was aiming for "I'm only dictating for this blog") I'll try to write more as I finish my last 9 books. It's getting close to the blog titled, "I did it!" You will know what I mean when you see it, right? 100! I can't wait to see the list of all my books!

Wa ha ha!
Gracie

A.P, H.S. and STRESS

Let's begin with my big news. I am home schooling. It is great. Here is what my days look like. In the morning, my mom, my sister, my dog, and I all go for a walk. When we get home, we head up to the Learning Loft in our house and we do our subjects. We are finished by lunch. Depending on the day, I might practice my recorder, do Latin, go to fencing, go to Jams (my choir), or play in the afternoon. I love homeschooling! My mom is a fantastic teacher and I think other kids should be jealous. On Fridays, I have a special day. Fridays are my cooking day! Last Friday, I made mini apple pies! I did almost the entire recipe myself. The crust was the hardest and my mom helped me roll it into a ball. The recipe made 4 pies, just my luck. My sister got to eat hers first and she went "goo goo" over it. The rest of the family had to wait because we were leaving so we ate our for breakfast. (Hey it is not as bad as sugar cereals and it had fruit!) They all agreed it was delicious. Shhhh, here is a secret, I didn't really like the crust. My mom said it was flakey and great. You should also probably know that I do not have a sweet tooth, but I like making sweets for other people. Actually, I don't really like making things for myself at all, but it's fun to make things as presents for other people. This Friday, I think I am going to make Chex Mix from scratch because we might be going camping in our new camper and can bring it along. You know, you can't bring cupcakes along on a camping trip. Lastly I want to talk about STRESS. I hate it. I wish it never came into the world. I wish the word didn't even exist.. It's terrible. It makes your mom, your dad, your brother, or your sister and even you, grouchy and mad. Nobody likes a stressed person. Stress is like the devil, it can play with people and make the whole family feel bad. But stress always starts from scratch. It's a little bit like a food that you make. It starts with something simple and turns into this terrible thing, like you put too much salt or cinnamon in your apple pie. It goes from ok to bad. Nobody likes stress at all. I think homeschooling might help with our family stress because we are all together more, can encourage each other, and maybe have more time so we don't have to go running our heads off. It's getting late and I have to go to bed soon, which really means that I want to go read. But if you haven't figured it out already, the letters at the top stand for what I wrote about. A.P is apple pie, H.S. is home school, and STRESS is what you all know-stress (Yuck!) I have been reading some darn (my mom isn't sure that I should be using that word yet) good books. I hope you have been too. Vale, Grace PS Vale is Latin for ? (look it up yourself!)

Sorry!

I'll say is again, I am sorry. First I should undecode the puzzle that I gave to you in my last post. The answer is "I might move to Colorado". As you may know, moving is very busy so I didn't have time to tell you, but I think that you might already know. We have moved to Denver, Colorado.

Denver is very different from Houston. In the morning it is chilly and I have to wear a sweatshirt. Can you believe I have to wear a sweatshirt in August? Another thing that is different here is that people bring their dogs everywhere! For example, I went to a fencing camp and the owner had 3 dogs that just hung around while we fenced. It was awkward. Another awkward thing is that we live near a prison. It has razor wire and electric fences that nobody could literally get out of. My mom says that those things are just the way they are when you live in the city. The altitude is very high and that also has made our family not feel very well. I have to drink 2X the amount of water that I normally drink in Texas. Some things I like about my new town are: the Farmer Market I can walk to on Sunday mornings, we live in a gorgeous neighborhood, I can see the mountains all the time, and there are not as many mosquitoes.

Even though I haven't been able to post for a while, I have been reading. Did you notice that I have finished 70 books now? I am on target! My mom took us to the Denver Public Library. It is ginormous! It has three floors and each floor was about the size of our library in Texas. This is the big library that is downtown and it is fabulous. While we were there, the librarian helped me find a really good book and also helped me order some other really great books. These were the books I got. "Holes", "Dragon Slippers", and "The Capture: Guardians of Ga'hoole". So far, I have liked "Dragon Slippers" the best, but they are all totally different and I am only on chapter 5 of "The Capture". I think you might want to know that the "Guardians of Ga'hoole" will be coming out as a movie sometime.

The pictures that are at the top are of me enjoying my new town. The picture of me with the purple flowers is in the front courtyard and you can see the house where I live. We are just renting it, but we really like it.

Have a good rest of your summer. Keep reading. I want y' all to know, that I miss you and would like to hear how you are doing.

Love from Denver,
Gracie

My week in Aspen, Colorado.

Even though I had a lot of fun in California, I was really excited to get to Aspen. I was tired of being in the car and I knew that in Aspen I was going to get to stay in a really great town and a really special house. At the Aspen house, which was not ours, there was a really cool tv that came out of the ceiling. It was awesome!

This was my first time going to any mountains. Did you know that the air in Aspen is dry and thin, so every time I ran up the stairs, I was tired and fell on my face. Ok, I am exaggerating, but it was close and I was pooped. I would like to tell you some of the highlights of my week.
I got to:
go on a gondola up a ski run
hike
play in a freezing creek
go in a deliciously warm jacuzzi
explore ice caves (My dad fell, hit his head, knocked himself out, and hurt his tailbone but I thought the place was beautiful!)
hold my first snow ball
eat my first snow (I thought it was good.)
jump off a cliff that was 30-40 feet high into freezing snow water
meet my dad's college friends, the Jackson Family
go mountain biking and get a huge blister (I wasn't very good and ended up on the fire road instead of the trail. I don't think I want to do that again but it was a great experience.)
attend an Harry Connick Jr. concert that my dad got us into for free. The music was so boring I slept through it! My parents thought it was good, but I didn't really agree.
go to the Aspen Farmers Market and meet an author (more about that in a minute)
watch my dad and sister rock climb way up in the Rocky Mountains and
stop at an old ghost town and mine

Then we went to Canon City, Colorado Springs, and Denver. I went to:
Garden of the Gods
visit my mom's friend
Focus on the Family
Yogurt Land
Toy Story 3 (it was sorta intense but cute)

All that's left of our trip is a wedding and a long long long drive home. It's really not that long, only a day and a half.

So, let me tell you about the book that I bought at the Aspen Farmers Market from author Jill Sheeley. First, I got to meet her, and she signed my book. Jill writes books about her yellow dog Fraser who is an amazing dog. The book that I bought was about the world according to Fraser. This book told about his adventures working at a hospital, visiting schools, and having his home ransacked by bears. I really really enjoyed the book and I think I will keep it for my children to read someday. The book taught me aboutwhat it is like to live in Colorado, and I like it. It is totally different than in Texas, I can tell you that.

As you can tell, my vacation has been really great so far. I hope that you are having a great vacation too. Keep reading! I am almost to book 60 and I am about 10 books ahead of my goal right now. That makes me really excited!

So long,
Gracie

ps. I have a puzzle for you. You will have to unscramble the letters to find out my secret. Please DON'T leave me a comment with your puzzle answers. It will give it away! You can send my mom an email at swathen@pcsclassical.org if you think you know the answer! Who knows, maybe I will give a prize to anyone that can figure it out. Sorry that it's a hard one, but it's a really great secret.

mmvooooodattrgheiilc
The last hint- it is 5 words. Happy puzzling!

Tea with Teah

Today for my 50 books celebration I got to go have High Tea with my best friend Teah. We met in Long Beach, CA and I had peach tea. We had five courses which were delicious and we were there for three hours. It was a delightful date with my friend. Teah is a loving and charming friend and I have missed her.

I've noticed something about Roald Dahl that I want to share with you. The main characters in his books, are ususaly children who have something sad about them. For example in "The BFG", Sophie was an orphan. Charlie from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was very poor. James from "James and the Giant Peach" was an orphan who had to also work for his evil aunts. My mom and I wonder if Roald Dalh may have had some sad things in his childhood. Let's hope he didn't have a fat and skinny evil aunt problem! Roald Dahl has become my new favorite author. I like that he uses made up words like "whizpopper" which is the word he uses for tooting (gas) and "snozcumber" which is a little like our cucumber but it's bigger and tastes like rotten fish. I think that this is hilarious.

California has been fantastic. I have enjoyed everything. We still have another week here and I have so many great plans. Did you know that vacations are a great time to read? My favorite place to read so far has been on the porch at the grandma's house with the sound of the hummingbirds and the wind chimes. It's beautiful and fun.

California...you can see I'm too busy to post right now!

50 Books Yahoo!

I did it! I finished 50 books. All year I have been working on this goal and my award for getting half way to 100 was going to be a new blue blazer. You know the kind that Lucy Pevencie wears in the Narnia stories? Now that it's time however, my mom pointed out that it's hot and I won't be able to wear it until the fall and school is back from vacation. So, I chose to have High Tea with my friend instead. Teah moved to California last year and I haven't seen her since last summer when I got to visit her at her house. All year long, I have been talking to her on the phone and praying for her. I have missed her very much. We decided a few weeks ago, that we were not going to talk on the phone anymore because we wanted our heads to burst with ideas. I can't wait to see her and have tea together. I'll post pictures after we go.

I am now on my 52nd book "The Beloved Dearly". I just started last night and I am on page 62. There is a second book in the series and I have that ready to read on my long car trip to California. I get car sick really easy, but I think I am going to be able to read this when we get on the long highway and after I take my car sick medicine. It is going to be about 24 hours of driving. Can you believe 24 hours of being able to sit and read all I want? Oh I had better not be feeling car sick!

Summer officially starts on Tuesday afternoon for me. I am planning to do a lot of reading during this time. Here are the places that I am planning on reading in: in the car (jostle, jostle), on my Grandma Gogo's porch near the pretty hummingbirds (hmmmm), at the pool with my Grandma and all of the Wathen cousins ("Marco?....Polo?"), in the Colorado woods (whoot, whoot) , in the airplane ("fasten your seat belts"), in a cabana on the beach in Mexico (whish, whish), in the hammock at our house (hehe hehe), while I am waiting for my bouts at Summer Nationals in Atlanta (beeeep beeeep), and in my favorite place of all, my mom and dad's bed (silence, shhhhh). See what a fun summer I am about to have!

PS...Please give me move suggestions for great books. Hurry ! I am running out of ideas!
PSS... My passport already came and I recieved my birth certificate back in the mail! Whew!

Passports!

I applied for my first passport. I am thrilled to be going to Mexico this year and Italy and France next year. This is my sister and me at the post office. She wanted to be in my picture too. As you can see I was a little shocked. So, I did what any sensible person would do and I smiled. Now I just have to wait for my passport to come. I am praying that they don't lose my birth certificate!

Did you know, a book is like a passport? It can take you almost anywhere you want. The only place it can't take you is Heaven, because Heaven is so much better than you or any author can imagine or think. Books not only take you to different places, but they can take you into a different time, a different life, a different view or thoughts, and it can even help you get to know different people. Books are almost exactly like passports, but you don't have to send your birth certificate in and you don't have to worry about the paperwork or swearing that you have told the truth. Books are wonderful and easy.

This week I read the last book in the series, "Ten Girls Who...". It was called "Ten Girls Who Don't Give In". There were some sad parts because all of these women were killed but still trusted in the Lord to the very end. It is very hard to imagine how scared these women were. If I was one of them, I would have to keep praying that I would not deny Christ. But, it makes me worried that I might. So, I am praying that God would give me the courage to do what is right.

Happy reading to all of you!

Girls Who Make A Difference!

Hi again. I am back. On Thursday, I had a medieval feast. I dressed up as Sabra from St. George and the Dragon. See me. I am in the brownish orange dress on the right. I am with my friends Sabra and Sabra (Charisa and Madison). We got to eat everything with our hands...everything, including cherry pie.

This week I have been reading Ten Girls Who Made a Difference. I would like to tell you about one of the girls who made a difference. Her name is Monica and she prayed for her son named Augustine for him to convert to Christianity. If you are not a Christian, and you are on this blog, email me and I would be happy to answer questions. I don't have all the answers, but I have some. Now back to Monica, her son Augustine didn't care much about anything...just to have fun. She prayed for at least ten years for him. He finally converted to Christianity and he became a saint. So some of the worst people who are not Christians can become the best Christians of all.

Today my dad built a super cool zip line in my back yard. It is super duper wooper cool zip line that goes from our pine tree to our club house. It is made out of steel cable that is pulled real tight. We are still working on getting it perfect, but it is very good. If you are a dad and reading this blog (I hope not only ladies are reading this blog), you could build a zip line for your kids. They will love you. You can call my dad for the plans from his head.

Keep reading!

Pandy Gets Vain

My best friend, Teah, suggested a book called "Pandora Gets Vain". I found it at the book store but didn't buy it because the back of the book said, "a totally adorable boy/bodyguard..." I told my mom that I didn't want it because I thought it was going to be about boyfriends and girlfriends. That kind of book really isn't the best book for me.

So my mom bought the book as a surprise for me a few months later. I had a choice between reading "Peter Pan" and "Pandora Gets Vain" and I just didn't feel like "Peter Pan" at the time, so I started the other book. From the first page, I loved it.

This book is funny, scary, strange, and cool. It's about 3 girls and a boy named Homer (you know he's the one who wrote books). These 3 girls are trying to capture Vanity, which is a mirror. Vanity has escaped from Pandora's box. Ooops. I think you already know the story of Pandora and her box so I won't tell you all about that. If you don't, you can find out about it on the internet or find a book at your library, which is full of books.

One of my favorite parts is when Pandora is almost skewered by a long pole, so that an Egyptian god may eat her. Pandora, however, has one "power". She is able to throw burning coals out of her hands. Instead of being skewered, she burns all of the poles. I loved that part because she out smarted them. It's great when the little girl out smarts the evil old god!

The ending of the book is a really good one. I won't ruin it for you but it's also a little sad. There are 2 more books in this series. They are "Pandora Gets Jealous" and "Pandora Gets Lazy" I want to get the lazy book next. Thank you Teah for the suggestion, I really loved the book. You are a loyal friend,. Teah Marie and I will trust you next time with your book choices.