New York City

Today was AWESOME! I went to New York City with my best friend Catherine, her mom, her brother, Henry, and my mom. We took a ferry from New Jersey to New York. The ferry was fun and we got to see the Statue of Liberty! When we got to New York we walked around a little and then the moms wanted to go to Federal Hall. Federal Hall is where George Washington was inaugurated to be the first president of the United States. After that we got a cab and went to Chelsea Pier. We went golfing and then to the bowling area. We weren't allowed to bowl because a party was coming but we went to the arcade in the back instead. I played the dancing game and made it to the final stage. After Chelsea Pier, we all went to dinner and my dad and Catherine's dad met us at the restaurant. The restaurant was called Ninja. Ninja is so cool because some of the food is interactive. One dish you pulled out a sword from it and steam comes out of the bowl! Or one salad where you karate chop it to open it up. Some of the waiters (which are Ninjas) scare you and sneak up on you when you are at the restaurant. Spending the day in New York is something I will never forget!!

Click here to see a video about Ninja Restaurant!!

Ramona The Pest By Beverly Cleary

Romona The Pest by Beverly Cleary 211 pages

Ramona the Pest is about Ramona Quimby who is going into Kindergarten. Ramona has short, brown hair and loves to play but she occasionally gets into trouble. Ramona loves Kindergarten and especially her teacher, Mrs. Binney. My three favorite adventures that Ramona does is 1. when Ramona had a substitute and thinks that she is a stranger and doesn't like her so she hides behind the trash cans. 2. I liked when Ramona dresses up like a witch and said she was the baddest witch in the world for Halloween. 3. When Ramona touches Susan's beautiful curly hair and gets thrown out of Kindergarten. Romona comes back when she gets a letter from Mrs. Binney asking her to please come back.

I give this book 3 books because I liked all of Ramona's adventures but it wasn't my favorite book.

Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary

Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary 183 pages

Beezus and Ramona is about two sisters that don't always get along, but always make up. Beezus has long brown hair and is turning ten. Beezus also has to deal with her little sister Ramona. Ramona is four and has short, brown hair. She is also a trouble maker. My favorite chapter in the book was called, A Party at the Quimby's, because Ramona throws a party with all of her classmates without telling her mother and sister! Her mother and sister then have to deal with Ramona's pre-k class. Will they be able to give them refreshments and keep them occupied? Find out in Beezus and Ramona - now a movie in theaters!

I give Beezus and Ramona 4 books out of 5 because I liked all of Ramona's adventures and because they made me laugh out loud - lol!!

Aloha Part 2

In the last few days, I have done a lot in Maui. I learned to make a lei (It is really easy. You just get a string and needle and put the needle through a flower.) We went snorkeling at a place called Molokini Crater and Turtle Town. Molokini Crater was cool because I saw lots of fish and sea urchins. Turtle Town isn't a town. It is a reef where there are a lot of sea turtles. I saw 4 turtles! One turtle was a few feet away from my leg! Back at the hotel, they announced that they were going to have a splash contest and I came in 2nd out of 20 kids! I won a free shaved ice :) After Maui, we went to Waikiki, Oahu and I found pieces of coral on the beach by our hotel. Then we went shopping and I got a solar powered lucky cat that moves its paw and head. On the next day, we went on a tour bus and went to see Pearl Harbor and learned about how the Japanese attacked Hawaii in 1941. On our last full day we went to the North Shore where in the winter there are huge waves that surfers surf on. Hawaii was definitely the best trip of my life (so far!). I miss it!!!

We played Glow Put on our last night in Maui. It was really cool!!

One of the sea turtles we saw! This picture is for my Grandma!!

My 2nd place splash!!

Waikiki Beach

Pearl Harbor

This is a place that we just stopped at on our way to the North Shore. We pulled over and started to snorkel. We saw so many things like cuttlefish and angel fish!

ALOHA 'OHANA - THAT'S HELLO FAMILY

ALOHA!

It took me 24 hours to get to Hawaii (from wake up to the time I went to bed!) but it was well worth it!! In the past 3 days I have played in the pool (it has an awesome slide!!!), went to a luau (we had front row and daddy was chosen by a Maori warrior to be his friend :)), hiked to the top of a volcano and watched the sunset on Maui below, and today I learned how to surf! Michael, my instructor was awesome and I stood up after only a few minutes! My dad was surfing near by and my mom watched from the beach. Tonight we are going to a special astronomy show on the roof of our hotel to see constellations, planets, and maybe even the Milky Way. Tomorrow my mom is going to learn how to paddle board and my dad and I are going to surf again. Friday we are going to snorkel in a volcanic crater 2 miles out in the Pacific Ocean. I hope I can take pictures of Pacific Sea Turtles for my grandma - she loves turtles.:) I am having an awesome time. Hope you like the pictures.

Aloha and Mahalo!

xoxo

Daddy and I at 8,000 feet - it was cold!!

Mommy and I at 9,700 feet above sea level - it was really, really cold!!

We made it! 10,000 plus feet above sea level - it was freezing but beautiful!!!

It was so much fun catching my first wave!

Aloha!!!

I am off to Hawaii!!!

Stay tuned for trip updates!!

And don't forget to leave a comment!!

Love,

Carleigh

Zombiekins by Kevin Bolger

Zombiekins by Kevin Bolger 206 pages.

Zombiekins is a book about a boy named Stanley, a girl named Miranda,and a zombie named Zombiekins (who is part stuffed bunny, stuffed bear, and stuffed reptile). The story starts harmless enough when Stanley buys Zombiekins from a widow on his street. Hesoon finds out that Zombiekins is a real zombie who infects his school with other zombies by biting them. Everyone is turning into zombies!! Will Stanley and Miranda save the school?Read Zombiekins and find out!!!

I give Zombiekins 3 out of 5 books. I liked the horror, comedy, and action in the book but, I didn't like the story. I felt that the book needed more drama.

Mallory On Board by Laurie Friedman

MALLORY ON BOARD BY LAURIE FRIEDMAN. 175 PAGES

Mallory On Board is about a girl named Mallory who goes on a cruise with her best friends Joey and Mary Ann. Joey and Mary Ann's mom and Dad are getting married and this makes Mallory feel left out when Mary Ann and Joey do things without her like making T-shirts and swimming together. Mary Ann and Joey appologize for making her feel left out and not doing stuff with her. This makes Mallory feel better. For the rest of the cruise, Mallory, Mary Ann, and Joey got along great!

I give this book 4 out of 5 books for the drama, romance, friendship, and excitement!!

July 4, 2010

Today was the Fourth of July! My family and I went to my Grandma and Pop-Pop's house. I went in the pool but it was freezing. My cousin Rebecca and I played a game where you have a ball and only use the palms of your hand to hit the ball to the other person. Also, it was my Nana's 93rd birthday!! I call her "Super Nana!" I gave her a glow stick that had a flag on top of it, and a duck and a bunny statue for her garden. My Grandma gave her pretty shirts and matching pants. My Pop-Pop gave her a vacuum that only weighs 10 pounds. My Aunt Stacey gave her a gift card to Kohl's and coffee for her coffee maker.

We had hot dogs and corn for dinner and a pretty birthday cake that had blue and red roses on it. It had strawberries in it. It was delicious! I think it was Nana's best birthday ever!

July 3, 2010

Today my family and I went to the beach and we brought my friend Genevieve with us. After the beach, we had to get ready for a BBQ at Genevieve's house for the 4th of July (we celebrate the 4th on the 3rd in my town). My other friends from school came to the BBQ too. Their names are Erin, Emily, and Julia. We all played on the swings and played house. I was a squirrel and Erin was my owner. Emily was the mom, Genevieve was the older sister, and Julia was a dog of some sort. After we played for a while, the parents said it was time for dinner. I had some chicken, bread, and salad.

When we all finished dinner, we played with balloons and mine popped. Soon it was time for the fireworks to begin. We then got some glow sticks, and started to walk to the Grove to watch the fireworks. The fireworks that we saw were big, pretty, and colorful. I had an awesome time!

June 27, 2010

Today I went to the beach with my dad. I met this girl named Lauren. She lives in Tinton Falls and is going into fourth grade like me. We went boogie boarding and swam in the ocean. Then my dad went into the ocean with me and we swam out really far. Later, we got my mommy and we went to Barnes and Noble and I got 5 books to start reading. I will be writing about all of them under the Summer Reading tab above.

June 26, 2010

Today my family and I went to Aunt Denean's son's graduation party. I was really, really fun! She has a swimming pool and I swam in it FOREVER! I met a kid named Vincent and we played in the pool. The food was great and Aunt Denean made homemade chocolate chip cookies - my favorite! I had so much fun at the party.

At the Beach

June 25, 2010

Today I went to the beach with my mom. I saw my friends at the beach.We boogie boarded,swam in the pool,and played on the little playground.When we went boogie boarding we saw really big waves and tried not to get munched by them.We went into the pool and had a contest to see who could reach the bottom of the 10 feet deep area. I can't wait to go back!

Day 4 At Grandma's

June 24, 2010

Today was the day I got picked up from my Grandma's and Pop-pop's. I was sad :( but it was nice to see my mom and dad. I made a little village out of rocks and leaves. I also made a little rock dude to live in the village. Tomorrow I am going to the beach with my mom and seeing my friend Grace.

Day 3 At Grandma's

June 23, 2010

Today was so much fun! My Grandparents and I went to Seaside Park. I went on my first roller coaster that had a loop. It was a little scary, but mostly fun. We played a water shooting game and my Pop-Pop won the game and let me choose any prize. I picked a big, cute, yellow puffer fish. I named him taffy because we got taffy right after I got him. My Pop-pop and I went on the bumper cars. I bumped into him many times. We laughed a lot! I had a wonderful time.

Day 2 At Grandma's

June 22, 2010

Today was really cool! I caught 5 fish in the bay at my Grandma's. I named them: Hot Dog, Hamburger, Small Fry, Soda, and Nico. Hot Dog was my first fish and I found out that killifish (that is the type of fish I caught) like to eat or nibble on hot dogs. I also had a hot dog for dinner. My Grandmother went in the pool with me today. It was fun! I tried to teach her how to swim. It didn't work. She can only float backwards. She promised that she would go into the pool tomorrow. I hope she does.

Grandma's House

June 21,2010

Today was the last day of school. I was a little sad when I had to leave early, but I got picked up by my Grandma and Pop-Pop. When we got to her house, we had some lunch and went in the pool. It was so cold when I did a cannonball but it got warmer after some time. When it was time for me to go to bed, my grandma spotted TWO horseshoe crabs! I named them Romeo and Juliet. What a great first day at Grandma's!