Bond . . . Landon Bond
Our school had a harvest festival with lots of booths and games. In this game I shot a pellet gun to knock over little army men. It was fun. I'm wearing safety glasses, in case you're wondering!
Raisin Spittin' Contest
Because Garfield loves all foods EXCEPT raisins, Landon decided to have a raisin spitting contest at the party. It was hysterical!
After a few practice spits, the raisins went pretty far. Juan Puablo (darked headed boy in red shirt) spit the farthest for the kids. Stan spit the farthest for the adults, which made our friend Frank (the one in the hat) try about 30 times to beat Stan's record!
Finding Seashells
We were at the beach this summer. I found lots of seashells. I found a humongous one and if you look at it one way it looks like a skeletan. The waves were humongous so I lost some shells, but we have a whole entire jar in our frog bathroom. The big one is on a shelf by a fake frog.
Let's go for a ride!
We went to see whales at the beach. We took a boat and we almost left South America.
Floatin' Boatin'
This a pool, only I wasn't able to touch, so I had to float. I could touch on one end, but I didn't want to.
Landon and Janette
This is Janette, my friend, who is working at the seminary for 4 weeks this summer. She is really nice. (Good thing I'm not her brother, then she might not be as nice to me!) I'll miss her when she leaves next week.
Landon heading the ball
Landon attended soccer camp last week . . . 3 1/2 hours each day for 5 days straight. Here he's learning the proper way to "head" a ball.
Landon shooting for a goal!
Although Landon didn't make this particular shot, he made several other shots this week at camp.
Hippity Hop
I'm at field day at my school. I got first place in the hippity hop. The ball I'm on reminds me of Chicken Little's head because it's big. I had to wear a dumb nametag.
The Terrific 3rd Grade Class!
This is my class. I'm in the middle even though I should of been in the front row.
Landon's Kayberry Medal
I got an award at school, called the Kayberry Medal, for writing my own story. As you read my postings, look for the story called "Ben and the Dodgeball Tournement." This is the story that won the award. Happy Reading!
Landon with Bull
Some dancers picked me to be a part of the dance circle. I didn't really understand everything, but there was a man dressed as a bull who charged us while we were going around in the circle. In this picture he charges the woman on my right. There were also these men dressed like hunters, so I know it was about hunters chasing a bull. My sister is right across from me in the circle.
Landon with blow gun
A long time ago the indigenous people used blow guns to hunt and kill animals. They also used them to kill enemies. The blowgun in the picture is the longest one I've seen. It's huge! If you ever go to this museum, you'll see it's about 4 times the size of what you see in the picture.
My trophy
Our team won the league championship game. I helped by throwing a runner out at first when I was the pitcher. My coach said that I was the most enthusiastic cheer-er for the team and that I improved a lot in all areas of batting, throwing and catching.
(For you St. Louis fans, note that I'm wearing my favorite Cardinals cap!)
Landon at Bat
Landon played baseball this year for the first time in a long time. He really improved a lot. Of course, being the team comedian is where he really excels!
Landon as Pitcher
This league is machine-pitch which means that when you play pitcher, you're fielding the ball. Also, the other children stop the play by throwing it back to the pitcher. So even though you're not actually pitching, it's a very busy and fun position to play.
Just a swingin'
I'm just hanging around my old swingset. All of a sudden, my mom took my picture. Moms!
Landon as Michael in Skit
Landon's 3rd grade class put on a skit in chapel at school. The skit was about being brave. Landon had the main part, and Dad says he was very funny.
Ben and the Dodge Ball Tournament
Landon wrote the following story for a writing contest at school. We don't know yet if he won, but we think he's definitely a winner!
==================================================================
Ben yawned as he woke up. He was only three inches tall. He was wandering through the house and a boy named Tyler found him. Tyler decided to put Ben in a mouse cage. He even gave him a little wheel to run on. Two days later, it was show-and-tell day at Tyler’s school. Ben thought, “Maybe, I could be show-and-tell. It would be a good idea, but I have to find a way to tell Tyler since my cage is outside. Now, how do I get inside the house? My wheel, of course! I’ll get on top of it, and climb out of the cage to get to Tyler before he finds another show-and-tell. That way, I could be his show-and-tell.”
Ben yawned as he woke up. He was only three inches tall. He was wandering through the house and a boy named Tyler found him. Tyler decided to put Ben in a mouse cage. He even gave him a little wheel to run on. Two days later, it was show-and-tell day at Tyler’s school. Ben thought, “Maybe, I could be show-and-tell. It would be a good idea, but I have to find a way to tell Tyler since my cage is outside. Now, how do I get inside the house? My wheel, of course! I’ll get on top of it, and climb out of the cage to get to Tyler before he finds another show-and-tell. That way, I could be his show-and-tell.”
Ben tried to get on his wheel, but of course, it kept moving so he fell and it almost ran over him. It stopped just in time. He tried again and again. Finally, he thought of a new idea. He climbed up his rock-climbing wall since he’s human and he got through the wires. Just when he had escaped the cage, he fell close the cat’s bed on the porch. The cat woke up and saw him lying there. “Oh no,” said Ben as climbed through the open window and landed on the couch right by Tyler who had just found a bouncy ball to show at school.
Ben asked, “Tyler, could you take me for show-and-tell?”
Tyler answered, “No, the potion you drank to make you small also makes you confused sometimes. I don’t want you to get lost in my giant school.”
When Tyler and Ben sat down for breakfast, Ben got stuck in the cereal box. He was looking for the toy that came in the box. Then he got an idea. The toy in the box looked kind of like him. He opened up the bag and changed places with the toy. Maybe Tyler would think he was the toy and bring Ben to school for show-and-tell instead of the toy! Of course, Tyler didn’t think he was the toy.
Tyler did decide to bring the real toy instead of the bouncy ball. So, when Tyler was about to put the toy in his backpack, Ben snuck into his backpack instead. He was on his way to school for the first time!
Ben began to explore what was inside the backpack. He found a green folder, a red folder, a blue folder and a lunch box. He hid the toy in the lunch box. He then found a bag marked “Show and Tell Bag” in the backpack. Can you guess what Ben did next? If you guessed that he snuck into the bag, you are right!
The bus came to a stop. Tyler went to his classroom and put his backpack into his locker. Now it was time to explore! “But wait,” wondered Ben, “how am I supposed to get out of here?” Mrs. Bubbles, the bubbliest teacher in the world, said, “It’s time for handwriting. Get your red folders out.” When Tyler and the rest of the class got their folders out of their lockers, they had to open their backpacks. So Ben escaped when Tyler opened his backpack.
Once Ben was in the school hallway, he heard a weird ring and then a giant door opened. A man said, “It’s about time you get here, you slow elevator!” Ben wanted to know what an elevator was, so he jumped into it before the doors closed. Suddenly they started moving down. A minute later, the doors opened and they were in the basement of the school. He almost got crushed by the elevator doors as he fell trying to get out. Ben was dizzy!
Ben followed the man through another door which led to the gymnasium. “Wow!” said Ben. If he was as tall as you and I are, you would have heard an echo. But since he was only 3 inches tall, only the man heard the small voice. When he turned to look at who or what made the sound, Ben ran under the bleachers to hide just in time. Boy was he surprised at what he saw since everything was so big to him.
Now we must go back to Tyler. It was finally time for show-and-tell. Mrs. Bubbles said, smiling, “Time to get your show-and-tell if you have one.” Tyler had already found his real toy in his lunch box at lunch time. Tyler figured out that Ben must be loose in the school because only Ben would have hidden the toy.
The man that Ben followed, who turned out to be the gym teacher, came into Tyler’s classroom. “Mr. Jonathan!” everyone seemed to say at the exact same time. Mr. Jonathan lined the students up and took them to the big gymnasium where Ben was still hiding.
Under the bleachers, Ben met a mouse named Zach. “Hello!” said Zach in a screechy voice, “What’s your name?”
Ben answered, “My name is Ben. What’s yours?”
“Zach,” answered the mouse.
Ben asked, “Hey, where is the bathroom?”
Zach answered, “Down the hall and to the left.”
Ben asked, “How do I get across the big room to get to the hallway when the big kids are playing dodge ball?”
Zach said, “Run for your life!”
Ben answered, “My name is Ben. What’s yours?”
“Zach,” answered the mouse.
Ben asked, “Hey, where is the bathroom?”
Zach answered, “Down the hall and to the left.”
Ben asked, “How do I get across the big room to get to the hallway when the big kids are playing dodge ball?”
Zach said, “Run for your life!”
So that’s just what Ben did. He ran until he could run no farther and fell right in front of the kids. Then a big ball flew in the air and landed beside Ben. “Augh! Help me!” screamed Ben. More and more balls flew above Ben’s head. Finally, he got up and dodged all the balls. Right, then left. He was dizzy! He was so dizzy he decided to slide on his back all the way to the bleachers across the room. He made it. “Finally!” said Ben. But there was still one problem. He couldn’t get through the doors because they were too heavy for him to open.
Back with Tyler’s class, the game of dodge ball had ended. A girl named Martha had to go to the bathroom. When she opened the gym door to go to the bathroom, Ben got through . . . just in time! “What did Zach say again?” asked Ben out loud. He couldn’t remember. He thought he was following Martha to the bathroom, but he followed another girl to the science lab instead.
When he entered the science lab, it was like a different world! On one counter there was a dish with green bubbles going up and down inside the test tube. There was another test tube with yellow bubbles shooting fireworks. Ben was curious about the yellow fireworks. Just as he managed to climb up on the counter, the yellow fireworks exploded and he fell off the counter into a purple solution. Splash!
Suddenly, Ben started to grow! and grow! and grow! He had to get out of the science lab before anyone noticed a kid that they didn’t know who was growing and growing and growing. By now, he was a foot long so he could open the lab door to escape. When he walked outside of the school, he stopped growing and was normal size! “Finally!” said Ben, smiling proudly. “I always wanted to be a normal boy.”
He didn’t know the way home. He knew that his street had a sign that said, “F-e-r-g-u-s-o-n.” He wished he knew what that spelled. He decided to take a bus which let him off right by his house. When he knocked on the door of Tyler’s house, Mrs. Shaw (Tyler’s mom) came to the door.
“How did you get big, Ben?” she asked him. Ben told her the story of show-and-tell, how he got into the gymnasium, how he got into the science lab, grew big and took a bus home. “Oh my cow!” said Mrs. Shaw.
The Shaws decided to adopt Ben and they sent him to kindergarten since he was 6. Tyler liked having a brother who went to school with him. One day, a piece of paper came home in Ben’s folder. It said, “Dodge Ball Tournament: Kindergarten against 1st Grade! See who will be the best dodge ball player!”
“Mom, can I sign up, please?” asked Ben.
Tyler said, “Yeah, I’ll play against you and beat you!”
“None of that,” said Mom. “Okay, you can play, just play nice.”
A week later it was time for the tournament. Ben and Tyler were excited and a little afraid of losing. Ben had a lot more dodge ball experience when he was small so he just pretended he was small again and was running for his life. In the final round there were ten first graders including Tyler and five kindergarteners including Ben. Ben threw a ball at Tyler but blocked the ball with a ball in his hand. The blocked ball went the other direction and got a kindergartener out.
When there was only two left in kindergarten, including Ben, and six left in first grade, including Tyler, everyone on the first grade team threw their balls at Ben at the same time. But Ben knew what to do! He didn’t duck. He jumped, landed on his hands, caught one ball with his feet, and blocked all of the other balls. It was amazing! He got all of the first graders out except Tyler. Tyler got the last kindergartener out except Ben, so now it was just the two of them!
Tyler and Ben each had one ball. Ben dropped his ball and most of the kindergarteners thought their team was going to loose. Tyler threw the ball at Ben and, at the last second, Ben caught Tyler’s ball. Tyler was out and Ben was the winner!
The Shaws were so proud of their two sons for getting first and second place in the tournament. Whenever they went home, a bird crashed into the family room window. The family went outside to find the bird lying on the ground in pain. Next to him laid Zach the Mouse because the bird was carrying Zach as his supper when he crashed into the window. The family decided to bury the bird when he died but they kept Zach as their pet mouse. He got to live in the cage that Ben used to live in. Zach didn’t like the wheel much, but he loved the rock climbing wall.
At first they didn’t know what to name the mouse. Even though Zach could talk, no one in the family could hear him except Ben because he was used to mouse talk. He could hear the tiniest sound. “Zach!” said Ben all of a sudden.
Ben was so happy that Zach was his pet mouse. Ben told his family about how Zach helped him in the school when he was still three inches “short.” When his dad starting talking for a long time about how God’s plans work, Ben wasn’t listening because he was thanking God for his new life.
The End!
Trying to Get Away
My Dad, Mary and I played Carnival. Here, I'm trying to get away from a big splash of water. We got soaked, but it was a lot of fun. Can't wait until next year!
Howdy Partner!
This is me dressed up as a cowboy when my family recently visited the leather town nearby. Yee-hah!
Welcome Home!
When Landon came home from the hospital, Mary had this welcome sign ready for him. We also printed out all of the bunches of emails we received and hung them up for Landon to read. Thanks to everyone who has prayed and continues to pray for him!
Nick Tooley Mouse and the Attack of the Giant Japanese Crickets
Characters: Nick Tooley Mouse, Donney the Clown Spider, Marsey the Alien, and the evil Japanese giant crickets.
Nick Tooley Mouse crossed a golden bridge while taking a walk. Under the golden bridge, he found a big map that lead to treasure!
Nick, Donney the Clown Spider and Marsey the Alien decided to follow the map to the treasure. Nick said, “This map leads to Japan. How can we get there?”
Marsey said, “We could destroy the Earth’s atmosphere, take Mars out its orbit and fly on Mars to Japan!”
Nick responded, “What in the universe are you thinkin’? You’re always full of dumb alien ideas, aren’t you? Aren’t you? AREN’T YOU?!! Now, let’s only have practical ideas that can really happen! My perfect idea is that we go to a mall, buy 3 paper airplanes, fold them up, jump on them and fly to Japan!”
“What?” said Donney. “Neither of your plans would work. I’ve got the best plan ever. We need to spin webs, hang them on the clouds, swing on the webs like George of the Jungle and if you want you can yell, “oye-oye-oye-oye-oye-oye-oye!” as you go! Now that’s a good idea!”
“I wish Mr. Bear was here.” said Nick. “He would know what to do! He would let us use his camper car to fly to Japan.” “I’ve got it,” said Marsey. “I have some other alien friends who would let us borrow their rockets to fly to Japan. How ‘bout me askin’ them?”
Nick Tooley Mouse asked, “How big is your rocket, Marsey?” “It’s bigger than Mr. Bear’s camper car plus 5 spaceballs!” said Marsey. Donney said, “Can’t we all just go in your rocket?” Marsey said, “Of course we can. There’s enough room for all three of us.”
Donney then asked, “We’ll need to eat. What should we pack?” Marsey answered, “My rocket is full of food. But except for five baloney sandwiches, the rest of the food is alien food. So if you don’t like alien food, you’d better pack your own lunch because the trip will take us about 10 hours.” So Nick and Donney packed lunches while Marsey put gas in the rocket and prepared everything else. Now they were ready to go!
When they went into the rocket, Nick asked, “I wonder what’s going on here?” He wondered because it seemed like Marsey not only owned a rocket but he also owned a space station! His rocket was actually a space station that flies! First, Marsey gave the other two lessons on how to fly the main rocket boosters which is what launches the rocket into space. Next, Marsey went to the flight deck and steered the rocket while Nick and Donney watched the rocket boosters. They were off on their adventure to find the treasure!
Using the treasure map and his directions to Japan, Marsey put the rocket on auto-pilot so that he and the others could have some fun. But Nick and Donney had to do one last thing. They had to put an auto-monitor on the rocket boosters. Now it was party time! First Nick danced the “wedgie wiggle.” Then Donney jumped out of a cubby scaring Marsey because Marsey didn’t know where Donney had hidden. Marsey is an alien from Mars who can breathe normally in space, so he left the rocket to catch a star because aliens love to eat stars as dessert. And, of course, everyone knows that stars taste better than the Empire State Building!
Suddenly, all three heard something very strange that made a really, really, REALLY loud cricket chirp. When they went to the window of the rocket they saw a giant cricket. The cricket was so big, it started eating the rocket for supper. Quickly, Nick and Donney put on their space helmets and all three jumped out of the rocket into outer space. For a while, they were “falling with style.” Then they landed in Japan. At first they were unconscious from the fall. But when they woke up, they discovered they were surrounded by 500 giant Japanese crickets!
Then Marsey called 911, but instead of getting emergency services he got Pizza Hut. Marsey said, “Help! There are giant Japanese crickets all around us!”
But the Pizza Hut employee of the month named Bob Esmanatee said, “I am the greatest employee of Pizza Hut. Who dares to interrupt my work when I’m creating the biggest pizza in the world?”
Marsey answered, “Who dares to make pizza at the police station, weirdo!”
“I’m at Pizza Hut. Don’t you know anything?” Bob asked.
Marsey started to ask, “Then what’s the emergen….. Ahhh, a cricket ate my cell phone. Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!”
Donney was soon captured by the second biggest cricket because he wanted the spider for supper. Soon Donney was in the cricket’s pocket heading for the cricket’s house. Another cricket captured Marsey and threw him into the ocean. But Marsey, being an alien, had a button on his one arms that turned him into a big boat. So Marsey was safe for now. Marsey told Nick to first go save Donney and then all of them would ride the boat to find the treasure.
Meanwhile at the second biggest cricket’s house, Donney remembered that he could spin spider webs and swing from the clouds. He looked around and saw a hole in the roof (since he was considered awfully small to giant crickets) so he spun a web, and tried to throw it to the clouds but it didn’t work. Especially since it started to rain and the rain knocked him off the web. He could barely move his arms and legs and his antennas were zig-zaggy. He could barely even talk.
As for Nick Tooley Mouse, he began his journey into the mountains looking for Donney, the bravest clown spider of them all. Nick saw something on a branch in a tree on the very tip-top of the mountain. That something turned out to be a big owl that zoomed down to pick up Nick but instead he knocked him off the mountain. As Nick was falling, he landed on the roof of the second biggest cricket’s house. Then Nick saw a hole in the roof. As he looked down into it, he saw Donney laying there in pain. Quickly, Nick jumped through the hole, grabbed onto a counter and he survived. The giant cricket picked them both up with his greasy claws and put them on separate plates. Just as the cricket was ready to stick Donney with a fork, Nick Tooley jumped across the table and knocked the fork out the way. Then he grabbed Donney and carried him out of the house through a mouse hole that he quickly made. The cricket tried to go through the hole too but his arm got stuck. He’s still there today.
Nick had to walk around the mountain to find Marsey waiting in the sea. Nick saw Marsey and jumped into the sea to swim to the boat. He almost lost Donney while he was swimming so he had to hold Donney with one hand and swim with the other one. Finally he reached Marsey. Then they all went to find the treasure. Soon they came to the cave that had an “X” spot. Marsey pressed another button on another arm and he went back to being an alien. Then he helped Donney and Nick dig for the treasure. Then they saw it . . . the big treasure chest full of gold! Soon Marsey turned back into a big boat and they loaded their gold in the boat. As they were leaving the cave, big claws came out of nowhere to try to stop them from keeping the gold. But Marsey was fast and sailed out before anything could harm them. Soon they were on their way back to America.
When they reached San Francisco, they went to an airport and flew all the way home to St. Laughter which everyone knows is a city by St. Louis. Once they were home, the rest of their friends (Alyssa Dog, Dr. Weird, Mr. Bear and The Fox) came to visit them. Nick, Marsey and Donney told their friends about their crazy adventure. Then Nick received phone call. His Aunt Lucy told him that his favorite mouse cousin, Ruthie Tooley Mouse, had disappeared! To be continued!!!
Nick Tooley Mouse and Mystery of Mr. Bear and the Camper Car
Characters: Nick Tooley Mouse, Alyssa Dog, Mr. Bear, Donney the Clown Spider, The Fox, Marsey from Mars, and Dr. Weird.
One day Nick Tooley went to tell Mr. Bear the good news. Nick, Mr. Bear and the rest of the gang had always wanted to take a long trip but didn’t have a way to do it. Now, Mr. Bear’s house was destroyed but everything was safe. Nick, the luckiest mouse of all mice, went to tell Mr. Bear that the gang bought him a camper car! Nick also said, “I have good news. I just saved $50.00 on my car insurance by switching to Geico!” The seven friends went inside the new camper car . . . and it was weird! It was even weirder than Dr. Weird. And here’s why.
Inside, they went on a rollercoaster called “Sponge Bob,” then on a trampoline, and then on the couch to watch television. All of these events were in the camper car that also had 19 bathrooms! Next, they started their dangerous trip to Tree Limb Mountains in the camper car. But no one drove them there or did someone? Alyssa Dog went to the front of the car.
“No one was in the front!” screamed Alyssa. Nick Tooley, the most particular mouse of all mice, said, “You mean no one IS there.” “So what!” said Alyssa, trying to drive. What she didn’t realize is that the wheel was moving by itself. Or was it?
As they drove up the mountain, they accidentally turned a bunny into road kill. Oops. Then they had a picnic inside the camper car and they ate bunny stew. As they were eating, they flew off the top of the mountain. Everyone screamed, “ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
The camper car landed on the ground and all seven friends survived. Next, they headed to Sue Town, the city where people sue a lot. You get sued a lot here especially if you are a playground bully. So beware.
Once they reached the jungle of Sue Town, the engine on the camper car broke. Then the evil emperor pirates came to get them! They had nasty, bad, rotten teeth that smelled worse than dog poop! Their eyes were yellow and shiny and their noses were big and buggery. Their fingernails were sharper than their teeth.
Nick Tooley Mouse, the smartest mouse of all mice, wanted to fight the pirates but he had to fix a problem first. Since the engine was broken, the door wouldn’t open so he had to break a window with an iron ball. The ball had thorns everywhere. Nick had to replace the window and it cost $300.00. After the window was fixed, Nick went out of the camper car to fight the evil emperor pirates.
Nick punched a pirate and stole the sharpest sword the pirates had. Then Nick, the bravest mouse of all mice, punched the captain with his big fist. The captain fell in the deepest whole. Donney the Spider crafted a huge spider web over the hole so that the captain could never ever get out. Marsey from Mars, one of the seven friends who had been invisible up to this point, now became visible to everyone. Hmm . . . could he be the invisible driver? He called 911 and a mechanic, the most mechanical mechanic of all mechanics, fixed the camper car with his handy ratchet and scissors. Now Marsey was ready to drive home to St. Laughter.
On the way while they were still in the jungle, the friends saw a large “X” in a dirt patch on the ground. Suddenly, Marsey, the silliest alien of all aliens, stopped the camper car. They s-l-o-w-l-y opened the door and stepped out of the camper car.
They began to dig on the spot marked with the “X.” When it began to feel like they had been digging forever, all of a sudden, Dr. Weird (one of the seven friends) discovered treasure! IT WAS GOLD!!!!
Out of nowhere, the scariest earthquake out of all earthquakes hit the jungle. All of the seven friends shouted, “ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” They went back inside the camper car and the earthquake shook them all the way back to St. Laughter.
Once they where in St. Laughter, Mr. Bear decided to drive them to St. Louis. In St. Louis, they used their gold to go to Six Flags. Here they discovered a ride, the most fun ride of all rides, called Mr. Freeze. They rode on Batman. It was the second most fun ride of all rides (barely).
After leaving Six Flags, the seven friends returned to St. Laughter. It was Nick Tooley Mouse’s 38th birthday so they decided to have a birthday party in two days. Then one of the seven friends, Mr. Fox who is a weather fox, warned them that a cyclone was headed their way!
Would Nick Tooley Mouse, the cutest mouse of all mice, have his birthday party? To be continued.
Landon in Indigenous Mask
Grrrrrrrrrr! Did I scare you? Huh? This mask was made by an indigenous person. There's another face on the back of the mask. I like the colors in it, especially orange and green!
My Reading
Now I'm reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." I liked Digory and Polly in the first book, "The Magician's Nephew." I thought the English accent in the book was weird especially the word "hullo". Write and tell me what you think!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)