Books We are Reading

"I sat there with Sally. We sat there, we two. And I said, "How I wish we had something to do. Too wet to go out and too cold to play ball. So we sat in the house. We did nothing at all".

Luke is loving the Cat and the Hat this week. We read it every night before bed. Thing 1 and Thing 2 are the coolest things in town. With inside kite flying, messing up bedrooms, kicking vases and taking names, these guys have Luke written all over them.



"So the decision was made to abandon the town of Chewandswallow. It was a matter of survival".

I think I've read this 128,393 times in the past 2 years. I don't think we can ever get enough of flying hamburgers, tomato tornadoes, or pea soup fog. The movie did not do the book justice, however, it was entertaining and we saw it in the theater as well as on the big screen in Cudahy Park.



"Now where in the world is that poky little puppy?"

This one has been on Luke's list since he was at least a year old. Not sure why this fascinates him so much. I think he enjoys the poky puppy's independence.



"I was the saddest dog you could ever see, sad because no one wanted me. The pet shop window was my jail. The sign behind me said "For Sale". I was tied to a bare, hard floor of stone. I could not even dig for a bone. I was living all of my life alone, a dog that no one wanted to own. And then one day, at half-past four, Sammy Brown came in the door. Sam took one look at me a cried, 'Why are you tied up here inside? I've always wanted a dog like you, so I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'll take you out to the farm with me. You'll play outdoors where you should be.'"

Ahhh before I copy the entire book I will stop here! This is one of my favorite books from childhood. Luke really likes it too and has already memorized most of the book. It's a great story about a dog, his owner, a little freedom, overzealous digging, and redemption. I recommend it to any dog loving family.



"Many many years ago in Sorrento, there lived a small boy named Giovanni who had no mother and no father. He dressed in rags and begged his bread and slept in doorways. But he was happy, and he could do something wonderful. He could juggle."

This book is straight from Ron's childhood favorites. He even dressed as Giovanni for Halloween one year. I'd post a picture of that if I had a scanner or even the picture itself, but unfortunately I have neither. This book is a tearjerker. Aunt Carla (Ron's Sister) bought it for Luke at his baby shower. I made the mistake of reading it while pregnant. All of the pregnancy hormones had me balling by the end of the book. We love Giovanni's juggling act, especially the golden ball that he refers to as "The Sun in the Heavens". Luke is always asking to juggle burning torches now, but other than that it is a great read!

Vacation

The last week in June my little family and I traveled to the Northwestern area of Wisconsin. It was lovely. Well, except for the ticks. Oh, the ticks. Thank goodness I'm an Army Wife Chick who put up with Ft. Leonard Wood summers - chalk full with 90 degree heat, field excursions, wood ticks, and chiggers. I rarely stepped foot outside of our air conditioning in those days. I don't think I could survive real Southern heat. I really, don't think that I could.

Other than ticks, Up North is grand. We enjoy fishing near Minong with Mike and Carla. Garmisch USA us an Up North retreat for sore city eyes. Luke devours every inch of the play area. I fall in love with bar food again. We traverse Cable, WI by getting in touch with the CAMBA Mountain Bike Trail System, as well as the legendary American Birkebiner Cross Country Ski Marathon. We need to physically explore these areas. I make note of the beginner routes for future trips to the region.

Our favorite activity of the trip is heading down to Hayward, WI - home to the World Lumberjack Championships at Scheer's Lumberjack Show. We have a great experience at the show. Our Emcee and scorekeeper "Buck Johnson" shows similarities to world champion boom runner Will Hoeschler and son to 7 time world champion Judy Scheer Hoeschler. What do you think? Needless to say, I think the show was awesome, and I'm happy they allowed the children a run at the saw and a chance to get autographs. Will, (cough, cough)..I mean Buck, openly offered to take a picture with Luke. It was a great day all around capped off with miniature golf and dinner at Coops Pizza Parloure. Luke still tells me he is going to be a Lumberjack someday and wants to attend another show somewhere else in the U.S. Go Lumberjacks!

Our stay at Garmisch was held in a lodge room. Garmisch is beautiful! It is exactly what we were looking for in an Up North resort lodge. Lots of lakefront, beach, and recreational activities mixed in with a family traditional and historical atomosphere. I personally couldn't get over the "honeymoon walk". The Honeymook Walk is a square cement paved walk down to Lake Namakagon. Each paved square is engraved with names and dates of newlyweds who have spent their honeymoons at Garmisch. The romance has consumed me. I'm giddy with this hopscotch profession of love. "Maybe", I tell Ron. "We'll spend our 15th here." "Sure honey, whatever you think". Ron says. I mildly begin to calcute the odds of success each marriage stone represents in the current divorce ratio component in the U.S. I was finding myself wondering if Virg and Tom were still together and if Steve and Jennie hadn't already put the hooks to their relationship. I'm sorry you guys, but it IS the statistics. MAN! Honeymoon Walk, Garmisch USA... your stones are looking more stable than reality. Regardless, I will pretend that we're all married. Virg, Jennie, Kim, Denise, and I are with our stallions in the Northwoods. Life couldn't get much better.

While vacationing the majority of our meals are consumed at local restaurants. I am more than mildly impressed. The Hayward/Cable area has a large amount of great local/bar food. My favorites of the trip includea the Sawmill Saloon. The portabella sandwich hit the spot. It is grilled to perfection and the seasoned fries caps off my hunger for down home cookin - Wisconsin style. The last night of our stay we dine at the surprising Rivers Eatery. The pizza is out of this world. The stone fired pizzas are cooked perfectly. We choose a sausage and pepperoni. Ron leaves to take Luke to the bathroom early in the dinner. I have finished my portion by the time they return. "This pizza is gooooood" I say. "No kidding" says Ron. "I think half the women in the greater Cable area are here tonight". Sure enough, it is Girls Night Out, in which area women are encouraged to attend a book signing at Redberry Books (Located within the Ideal Market that houses The Rivers Eatery as well as the bookstore), and a dinner of stone fired pizza in the eatery. I think I can embrace Cable, Wisconsin. These women like to read. Reading is sexy. Move over wood ticks.