Day 1: Denver
Posted: June 28, 2010 Filed under: Gulliver's Travels 3 CommentsWe left this morning around 9am, after much frantic (on my part) dashing about the house trying to make sure we had everything. It was almost an hour later when we got on the freeway – thanks to stops at the library (to return a book), the post office, the grocery store, and Burger King (twice – since they messed up my breakfast sandwich).
The Bwun took a decent nap while the Romgi drove. When he finally woke up, we were in Colorado and ready to stop for lunch. The Romgi spotted a sign on the side of the road: Dinosaur adventure exhibit! It was only a few exits ahead, so we decided to make that our activity for the day. Lately the Bwun likes dinosaurs a lot – a LOT. We call them dinos and he says they go STOMP STOMP. (It comes out more like “gwah gwah,” but he tries.) He absolutely loved being out of the car, surrounded by dinosaurs. We walked around the gift shop and the exhibit for about 45 minutes and then ate lunch at a nearby rest stop. I was glad we’d brought good food – herb cheese and crackers, delicious watermelon and honeydew, and some Izze sodas. We ate enough to be full but not stuffed with heavy, greasy fast food.
Once we were back on the road, the Bwun was happy for a while, but being in the car all day takes its toll, especially on little guys. He finally fell asleep again an hour outside of Denver. It was really weird to suddenly come down out of the mountains and into the flat, flat, flatness of Denver – I’m so used to having mountains nearby, or at least plenty of hills.
I’ll post pictures tomorrow. The camera cable is in the car and believe it or not, I’m ready for bed.
But day 1 was a success, since we got to our destination safely and even got to see some dinos along the way!
The Hunger Games
Posted: June 25, 2010 Filed under: Book of Sand 7 Commentsby Suzanne Collins
{ 2008 | Scholastic Press | 384 pgs }
I seldom think a book deserves the hype it gets. The Forest of Hands and Teeth, for example, just didn’t live up to the rave reviews I read (in my opinion, that is).
However…
Can I say that I was completely blown away by The Hunger Games? I read it in about 4 hours – thankfully the Bwun went to sleep early so I had a chance to read uninterrupted! The plot was so captivating, the narration perfect, the characters identifiable. Off the top of my head, I’d say The Hunger Games easily ranks among my top 10 favorite books, and I put it about equal on my list with Ender’s Game. Did you hear me? Ender’s Game! I’m serious!
The very basic premise of The Hunger Games is that in a post-everything North America, the ruling government has established complete control over its citizens and asserts that dominance by holding a yearly “Hunger Game” where 24 teenagers fight to the death.
Ok, maybe that doesn’t sound appealing, but I don’t want to give away anything else. I’ll just add that the complexity of the plot and characters is simply unbelievable. I am quite seriously considering buying the sequel (Catching Fire) to take on our road trip.
Of all the reviews I’ve done, I hope this one has inspired you to read a new book!
Bears, bananas, bugs
Posted: June 22, 2010 Filed under: Dangerous Book for Boys, Little Women 5 Comments(…and babies! Keep reading for exciting updates on my life.)
You thought I’d never come back, didn’t you?
The Romgi has been back for about two weeks. Just before he got home, I had a not-so-fun experience with the Salt Lake City police: they towed and impounded my car after it was parked on a public street for less than 24 hours, because a neighbor thought it had been there for “a few days.” Thanks to a lot of help from my aunt and uncle, I was able to get my car and the fees back, but what a hassle! Things have been nice and calm since the Romgi’s return, though.
Want to see some of the souvenirs he brought?
an adorable Bwun-sized bear hat
a variety of cool stationery packs, including DONUTS
an adorable almost-Bwun sized Korean soccer outfit
a banana pillow that cries when you peel it
Of course, there were lots of other cool things too, but right now I don’t have pictures or I’m too lazy to upload them. It’s really late, so don’t judge me too much.
We’re gearing up for our big trip – we leave in just a few days for North Carolina! It will be a fun experience (I hope). I figure we’ll never have the chance – or never want – to do such a big road trip once we have more kids, and I definitely don’t want to send the Romgi off on his own again.
Oh yeah, and did you hear the fantastic news?
Baby Girl coming this fall! We had to go buy some sandals for the Bwun yesterday (one from each pair we own has mysteriously disappeared), and while we were at Babies R Us, I got this cute little outfit for $5 just in case we found out today the Oeuf is a girl:
Bright colors and bugs? Yes, I’m sold. And so excited for a girl!
I don’t know how often I’ll have internet access once we leave next week, but I’ll take lots of pictures and write updates to post whenever I can. First stop: Denver.
Jarom
Mika
hilleries 