(Written by Trot-along and Cracker)

Part 3

Narrator: In the gym . . .

Chloe: Wow! This gym is awesome! I’m going to go practice.

Clara: Yeah, me too!

Dad: Wow! They’re awesome.

Mom: I know, right?

Narrator: In the car . . .

Dad: I wonder what that noise was. Well, I’m going to find out.

Spurgeon: Meow!

Dad: Oh, he’s so cute. I have to show Chloe and Clara.

Narrator: Back in the gym . . .

Dad: Girls! Girls! Girls! Look what I found!

Mom: Shhh, they’re practicing.

Chloe: Mom! (six second wait) Wow! Dad, what did you find?

Dad: A kitten! Go get Clara!

Jadon: Why do girls go crazy over whatever you have . . . .oh! A Cute little kitty kitty!

Chloe: Seriously.

Jadon: What? I like cats.

Chloe: Well, you can stay and snuggle with your kitty kitty. I’m going to go practice.

Mom: (whispering) Will Jadon ever grow up?

Dad: It’s not looking good.

Jadon: What are we all whispering about?

Mom: Stop whispering and watch the girls.

Narrator: One hour later . . . .

Dad: Let’s go home.

***Did the girls win the competition?

***Does the family keep the kitty kitty?

***Does Jadon get the cat in his room?

***Stay tuned for more adventures with the crew from Time to Shine!

(written by Cracker and Trot-along)

 

Part 2

Narrator:  In the car .. .

Chloe:  I’m so excited I can’t breathe!

Clara:  Do you need mouth to mouth?

Chloe:  No, Clara, it’s just an expression.

Clara:  Then why did I read all those doctor books?

Chloe:  Ummm . . . .

Clara:  Shhhhhhhh . . . sh!  I am not finished!

Chloe:  Yes, you are.

Clara:  No, I’m not.

Mom:  Are you guys okay back there?

Dad:  Yeah, girls, do you need a granola bar?  (tossing back two granola bars)

Clara:  Really, Dad?

Chloe:  Yeah, really, Dad?  Wait!  What were we talking about?

Dad:  Clara was talking about how crazy I am!

Jadon:  You know you guys are crazy, right?

Mom:  We like to think of it as unique.

Jadon:  Wait!  Pull over the car.

Dad:  And what would the reason for that be?

Jadon:  Because I think that’s my friend pulling his car over.

Spurgeon:  Meow!  Meow!  Meow!

Dad:  What was that?

Chloe:  Pull over the car, and I’ll see what it is.

Dad:  Fine, but make it quick.  We have to make it to your swim meet on time.

Clara and Chloe together:  GYMNASTICS!!!!!!!!!!

(Written by Cracker and Trot-along)

 

Chloe: (waking up) Wait! It’s the day of our competition!

Mom: Girls, wake up!

Chloe: (falling asleep) I’m already awake!

Mom: No, I’m serious. Get up!

Chloe: Fine. I’ll go wake up Clara. (walking to Clara) Clara! Clara! Wake up!

Clara: (half asleep) What?

Chloe: It’s the day of the competition!

Clara: No, it’s not. It’s tomorrow.

Chloe: Then why are you sleeping in your leotard?

Clara: Because I am!

Chloe: No, I’m serious. You’re sleeping in your leotard.

Clara: No, I’m not!

Dad: Girls, get ready for your swim thing!

Chloe: It’s gymnastics, Dad!

Dad: Whatever the name is, get ready for it!

Clara: Did he say it wrong again?

Chloe: Would you be surprised?

Clara: I don’t get it.

Chloe: Yes, he said it wrong again.

A form change poem

(with thanks to David Bouchard, “If You’re Not From the Prairie . . . )

 

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know rocks,

You can’t know rocks.

Round, gray, boring rocks,

Or that’s how it seems.

Black on the outside,

And bright on the inside.

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know rocks.

 

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know mud.

You can’t know mud.

Goppy, gloppy, yucky brown mud.

Splash!  Splash!

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know mud.

 

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know streams,

You can’t know streams.

Splashing, swaying, flowing streams.

 

If you’re not from Vermont,

You don’t know leaves.

Rainbow leaves,

Bright popping leaves!

 

You see,

My hands are the tree branches swaying.

My toes have touched the warm, wet Vermont ground.

My hair is the storms,

My eyes are the moon.

I’ve been born here.

I’ve been growing here.

My home is Vermont,

And I will stay here.

 

 

Red is the smell of roses in the summertime.

Red is the sound of the cling, cling of chimes.

Red is fire crackling and the s’mores when I do my chores.

Red is apple cider boiling over the cup.

Red is God saying, “Come on, flowers!  Wake up!”

Red is my grandpa when he gives me big hugs.

Red is the color of the ladybugs.

Red is steak sizzling on the grill

And being past winter’s chill.

Red is candy hearts melting in my mouth,

And the light of the lighthouse.

Red is popping out!

Red is popping out!

Red!

Dear Kasy,

I want to tell you what it was like to meet Zoe for the first time!  I was in the waiting room of the hospital trying to hold my excitement.  Finally, the door opened , and the doctor said she’s ready.  I was so excited!

When I went in, I saw a cute little baby wrapped up tight in a blanket, and she had a hat on that was the same hat that I had when I was little, my mom said.  Then she finally came home, and when we went to see her, the dogs went crazy.  They calmed down, and we got to see her room.

I love Zoe so much!

Love,

Cracker

If I Were in Charge of the World

(a form poem with thanks to Judith Viorst)

 

If I were in charge of the world,

I’d cancel bedtimes,

Homework,

And also eating all your vegetables before dessert.

 

If I were in charge of the world,

Ther would be more ice cream,

More sports,

And lots of TV!

 

If I were in charge of the world,

You wouldn’t have to eat Brussels sprouts,

You wouldn’t have to do school work (except for math),

And you wouldn’t have a bedtime.

 

If I were in charge of the world,

Ice cream, cookies, hot chocolate, and root beer floats

Would be a balanced meal.

All people would be amazed.

And a person who sometimes forgets to floss

And sometimes doesn’t brush her teeth

Would still be allowed to be

In charge of the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crystal . . . . Shimmery . . . . Gleaming . . . . Sparkling,

Twirling . . . . Dancing

Snowflakes

As they fall

To God they call.

Sparkling, dancing snowflakes.

 

They’re twirling round and round.

You can hear the glistening sound.

As they fall to the ground because

They’re sparkling . . . . dancing snowflakes.

 

Bling! Bling! Bling!

You can hear the snowflakes’ tiny wings.

Cling! Cling! Cling!

What a little thing!

Sing! Sing! Sing!

Say the sparkling . . . . dancing snowflakes.

 

When it hits the ground,

It hears a familiar sound.

It’s his friends and family

Gathering all around.

 

Can you see

All the sparkling . . . . dancing snowflakes?

When I woke up the morning of the field trip, I jumped out of bed and got dressed as quickly as I could! Then I got in the car and drove to school. When I got there, I got in the car and my dad drove. We were riding with Noah, Martha, Anthony, and Miss Blessing. When we were driving there, Noah was pretending to be the GPS. When we got there, he said in a GPS voice, “You are now arriving at your destination!” It was so funny!

When the other drivers got there, we had hot cocoa, and it was so yummy. (Don’t tell my mom there were marshmallows.) We got to see a person I think was a park ranger from the Army Corps of Engineers, and she talked about each of the animals. There was a bear, a coyote, an otter, an osprey, an owl, and a fisher. Oh, and the bear was a black bear. It got run over by a car, so it had a scar. The bear’s name was Lulu.

We also got to walk in a river. We found a lot of little animals called macroinvertebrates.

We went to the fire and saw something disgusting. Mr. Huebner was taking out the parts of a squirrel. At first, it was really gross, but after I watched a bit, it was really interesting. That’s what Lewis and Clark would have to do to eat.

Then we went to worship by the falls. Mr. Huebner made Martha and me try acorns, and they were bitter. When we got to the falls, we saw the rusting crystal blue waterfall, and we got to write in a thinking spot.

Then we went back and had lunch. We had bobcat and squirrel too. The squirrel was delicious, but I didn’t like the bobcat.

We went back to school, and my dad let us stay and watch the volleyball game. It was a fun day! I will never forget getting to climb that really steep hill or when I made the nature sculpture with my partner.

I read Who Was Dr. Seuss?  In this book it tells about Dr. Seuss.  It said that he loved the zoo, and he got more care because his dad worked there.  It also said that he was called a German American because he could speak English and German.  It also said he got rocks thrown at him and people called him names for being a German American because of World War II.

He went to Dartmouth College, and after he was a roommate with a friend, it was so dirty in their room that they had to make sure there were no rats or any mice in the house.

I learned he had 1,872 nail clippers.  Is that a lot or what?

It said sometimes he got found fast asleep at his typewriter.  He was a Boy Scout, and he was one of the ten winners for who could sell the most Liberty Bonds.  Ted’s grandfather bought $1,000 worth of it.

He also loved to draw a bunch of funny animals on his bedroom walls.  They had law that there is no more alcohol.  It was in the time of the Great Depression.

His phone number was one digit different than the fish store, and people called him instead of the fish store asking for fish.  He mostly said, “You have the wrong number,” but sometimes he just drew a picture of a fish and gave it to them.  But they didn’t want a picture.  They wanted fish you can eat.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes history and learning about people who like to draw funny drawings.