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Several weeks ago, my cousin (yes I have a cousin that is in second grade) sent me a “Flat Stanley” in the mail.  Flat Stanley is a character in a book that his class read.  The class started a project, where they all made their own Flat Stanley’s and sent them out to see the world.  I thought I would post the photos that we sent back to Jake’s school showing the adventures that his Flat Stanley went on while visiting Virginia Beach.

We also had to include a letter when we sent Stanley back:

Dear Jake,

Thank you so much for asking us to participate in your Flat Stanley project.  Kaiden and I had so much fun deciding where Flat Stanley should visit in Virginia.  Many of the places that Flat Stanley went are places that you have visited when you come to visit us here in Virginia Beach.  We also decided to show some of the places that are close to Virginia Beach.  We have included pictures of Flat Stanley’s adventures while in Virginia Beach.  Each picture has a description of where he is that you can share with your classmates.  Make sure to tell your classmates about when you visited these places.  Here is a list of the photos included:

• Flat Stanley at the “Welcome to Virginia Beach” sign.
• Flat Stanley on the Virginia Beach boardwalk-3 blocks from our house, remember we walked there?
• Flat Stanley on the Virginia Beach Fishing Pier.  Remember this is across from the big Ferris wheel and amusement park that you went to?
• Flat Stanley on the Virginia Beach boardwalk during the Christmas lights.
• Flat Stanley at Mount Trashmore, which is near Aunt Betsy’s house.  You and Kaiden like to go to Kid’s Cove and play.
• Flat Stanley at Ocean Breeze Water Park.  You and Kaiden went here last summer.
• Flat Stanley at Busch Gardens, this place is lots of fun!
• Flat Stanley in Colonial Jamestown, where the colonists set up the first colony in America.
• Flat Stanley in Jamestown with the three ships that brought the colonists to America, the Susan Constant, Godspeed and Discovery.
• Flat Stanley in Colonial Williamsburg, which is filled with old historical buildings and some great shopping too.
• Flat Stanley in Washington D.C., which is our Nation’s Capitol, home to the President of the United States and is only 3 hours away from Virginia Beach.
• Flat Stanley at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, which is the bridge that you travel across every time you come to visit us!

Hope you have lots of fun sharing with your class!  We love you and can’t wait to see you soon!

Love,
Misty and Kaiden

I cannot wait to see this movie!!!  It is a remake of the 1979 version starring Carol Kane.  This movie scared the ever-loving shit out of me when I was younger, and was babysitting.  I am so happy that they chose to remake this, I hope it is not a disappointment - you know you will be going to see it with me!

My friend Dena has asked me several times to go see the movie Brokeback Mountain and I have NO desire to see this movie.  This movie is about two gay men, and I just do not think that I can sit through it.  I have NOTHING against gay men, or women for that matter.  But, for some reason, I cannot watch two gay men together.  I can watch two gay women together all day long, and on occasion, even enjoy it a little - but not two men.  I do not know why.  I think it has something to do with masculinity and the lack thereof when I see two men together kissing.  I just can’t stomach it.

Now I have had, and still have PLENTY of gay, male friends and can sit and laugh and listen to stories all day long, but I do not want to see it.  So for now, I will have to read up on the story and let others tell me what they thought of it.  Here is the storyline:

Brokeback Mountain tells the story of two young men—a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy—who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys, and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love.

Early one morning in Signal, Wyoming, Ennis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) meet while lining up for employment with local rancher Joe Aguirre (Randy Quaid). The world which Ennis and Jack have been born into is at once changing rapidly and yet scarcely evolving. Both young men seem certain of their set places in the heartland – obtaining steady work, marrying, and raising a family – and yet hunger for something beyond what they can articulate. When Aguirre dispatches them to work as sheepherders up on the majestic Brokeback Mountain, they gravitate towards camaraderie and then a deeper intimacy.

At summer’s end, the two must come down from Brokeback and part ways. Remaining in Wyoming, Ennis weds his sweetheart Alma (Michelle Williams), with whom he will have two daughters as he ekes out a living. Jack, in Texas, catches the eye of rodeo queen Lureen Newsome (Anne Hathaway). Their courtship and marriage result in a son, as well as jobs in her father’s business.

Four years pass. One day, Alma brings Ennis a postcard from Jack, who is en route to visit Wyoming. Ennis waits expectantly for his friend, and when Jack at last arrives, in just one moment it is clear that the passage of time has only strengthened the men’s attachment. In the years that follow, Ennis and Jack struggle to keep their secret bond alive. They meet up several times annually. Even when they are apart, they face the eternal questions of fidelity, commitment, and trust. Ultimately, the one constant in their lives is a force of nature – love.