Dee's Birthday, Reading, Flat Stanley, and More...

Happy 2013!  I can't believe the last time I posted was last year.  :-)  We were completely busy with all the holiday festivities.  As much fun as they always are, I am thrilled to have them behind us at this point.

Starting this year, we are keeping track of every single book that we read.  We each have an account on Shelfari, which lets us easily keep track of everything as well as see what our friends are reading.   It's really neat and very easy.  If you are a reader, we'd love to have you join us.  You can follow us, then we can follow you back.  Delaney is Dee44, Kyle is Sopts4, Ken is Soccer22 and I'm just under Danielle Benich.  So far Kyle has over 500 AR points; he's currently reading the Lord of the Rings trilogy and enjoying it.

Delaney is now officially 14 years old - yikes!  So hard to believe, honest.  She's going to be in high school next year.  I'm not sure that anyone is ready for that.  She decided she was too old for a "birthday party" and instead just had her birthday meal at Olive Garden (again - her favorite).  We even let her open her gifts early, so she could enjoy them over Christmas break.







Delaney and some of her friends went ice skating a few times over the break at Deep River Waterpark.  One day it was pretty warm out, and we had to call and see if they were even open. (They were, they have a way of keeping the ice cold.)  They had a lot of fun and pretty much closed the place down each time.  Kyle went once, and he decided that ice skating wasn't his thing.  :-)







Kyle did get to help out a friend of his, Max.  He was doing a Flat Stanley project at his school (in Illinois), so Kyle and Flat Stanley got to go visit a few of Crown Point's more well-known spots and even Kyle's school.  He had fun with it, but he hopes that the next time Flat Stanley decides to visit... it is warm.  :-)











Have you ever seen the cartoon Phineas and Ferb on Disney?  The kids and I just love that show.



It is so cute, so funny, and they aren't afraid to use words with more than one syllable.  (For that alone, I would love it.)  Here is an excerpt from the last show that I just had to share:

Phineas:  Well, the inspiration for today’s activity manifested as we performed our morning ablutions.
Isabella:  I love it when Phineas uses unnecessarily long words for common things like brushing your teeth and washing up.  
Baljeet:  Yes, it is gratifyingly erudite.  
Isabella:  It’s not as cute when you do it.  
Baljeet:  Ah…  I am cognizant of that fact.
  
Seriously?  Is that awesome or what!  If you haven't seen it, check it out.  It is good for all age levels.

And last, but definitely not least, my Grandma Imogene turned 91 this month.  We had a yummy meal celebrating with her.  Here's a picture with some of her grandkids (mine and Danah's):



We love you Grandma!!!

Love,
Ken, Dani, Dee & Kyle