On Top of the World!

Hi everyone! I hope all is well with you!

I have been very busy this summer and have not had time to update my blog. But I had to share with you the pictures from one of my most recent adventures!

Last weekend, my friends Keith and Kristin and a few others took their friends from Kosovo back to Chicago before they headed home to Kosovo. In Chicago, we visited Navy Pier, the Field Museum and a HUGE park with lots of cool statues and fountains. But my favorite part of the trip was our visit to the Sears Tower. Did you know that the Sears Tower is the tallest building in the United States? It is also one of the tallest buildings in the world. I had no idea!

Guess what? I got to go to the TOP of the Sears Tower with Kristin, Keith and their friends. How cool is that!? Here is a view of the Sears Tower from the street. Can you how tall the building is?


And here I am on the floor called the "Skyline Observation" deck. This is one of the top floors of the Sears Tower. We had to take a very big elevator to get to the top of the building. The elevator was VERY fast. It was so fast that my ears popped like they do on an airplane!


It is hard to tell from this picture but trust me....it is a VERY long way down to the ground. Thank goodness the observation deck is surrounded by glass. I think it would be very scary to stand outside and look down from this spot!

Here's a view of Lake Michigan from the top of the Sears Tower.


See the tallest building in the photo? It's called the Hancock Tower. It looks really tall, doesn't it? It is tall but it is still SHORTER than the Sears Tower.

I had a great time in Chicago with Kristin and Keith and their friends from Kosovo. I am going to miss my new Kosovo friends. Thanks for everyone for being so nice to me.

Until my next adventure.....

My Chicago Surprise

Hi everyone! I hope all is well with you.

I am back in Iowa now from my trip to Washington DC and I wanted to share with you the "surprise" Kristin had planned for me yesterday.

Kristin told me when we left Washington DC yesterday that she had a surprise for me when we reached Chicago. It was REALLY hard to be patient on the entire plane ride from Washington to Chicago! But, it was worth the wait.

When we got to Chicago, I thought we were going to get on another plane and fly to Moline. But Kristin told me we were going to meet a group of her friends at the airport and then DRIVE home. I didn't think that was much of a surprise. But then Kristin told me that the group was coming from Kosovo.

That's when I remembered that I met someone who works in Kosovo on one of my other trips to Washington DC. Kristin reminded me that her name is Liz Shropshire and she runs a music training program in Kosovo. Last summer Keith and Kristin and a big group of people from Muscatine went to Kosovo to visit Liz and her students. So this summer Liz is bringing a group of her students to Muscatine for a few weeks. I think that's pretty cool!

So, I waited with Keith and Kristin in the business lounge for a few hours for the Kosovo group's plane to arrive. Kristin even bought me a bear to play with while I was waiting.

After waiting for a few hours, we walked a REALLY long way to the gate where the Kosovo group's plane was going to park at. I could tell Keith and Kristin were really excited when the plane arrived. They both gave big hugs to Liz and all of her students. I can't remember their names but they are all very nice. Here is a picture of the Kosovo group right after they arrived.

I don't know much about Kosovo but Kristin told me there was a war there several years ago and that the war made her students (and all of the children in Kosovo) very sad. So Liz went to to Kosovo to teach them music and help make them happy again. I think that was a really nice thing for Liz to do.

I think I am going to have to learn more about Kosovo now that I have met Liz's students.

Unfortunately, not all of the Kosovo group's luggage arrived so we had to wait while Liz filled out paperwork for the delayed luggage. Then, Kristin, Keith and the entire Kosovo group got into 3 vans and we drove to Muscatine.

We stopped for food along the way and all of Liz's students wanted to eat at McDonald's. Kristin told me there isn't a McDonald's in Kosovo. Can you believe that? I can't imagine living in a place and not have a McDonald's!

Here I am having McDonald's with Liz's students.




All of Liz's students speak English but sometimes I couldn't understand anything they were saying. Kristin says that's because the main language in Kosovo is Albanian. I had no idea! Kristin says they speak both English and I was probably hearing them speak Albanian. Maybe I should learn to speak Albanian.

We didn't get to Muscatine until 1AM (but I did sleep in the van). So I am very tired today. But I want to thank Kristin and Keith for taking me to Washington. And, I want to thank them for introducing me to their friends from Kosovo.

Until my next adventure....

Surprise...I am in Washington DC!

Hi everyone. I am SO excited to be writing to you from Washington DC.

Kristin asked me on Saturday if I wanted to go with her and Keith to the nation's capital for a "quick" trip. Of course I said YES!

We left Moline on Sunday morning and flew to Chicago. We then got on another plane and flew to Reagan National Airport in Washington, DC. I've actually been to this airport before so I recognized it right away. How cool is that?

Keith and Kristin are here to meet with people who are helping the Stanley Foundation with a big meeting later this year. So yesterday (Monday) we went to this BIG building called the Reagan Center. Guess what? It is named in honor of President Ronald Reagan. I had no idea!

Anyway, Keith and Kristin were very busy most of the morning talking to people about their big meeting. They were also taking pictures so they could show their friends at the foundation. So, they didn't have time to take a photo of me. :(

But, as soon as the meeting was over Kristin told me we were going to see their friend Simon Marks at his office. I was really excited because I got to play TV anchor at Simon's office when I was in DC with Keith and Kristin earlier this year.

I thought we would take a cab but Keith and Kristin decided to take the Metro. Then I was REALLY excited. Do you remember me telling you about the Metro on my other trips? It's a FAST underground train system. I LOVE to ride the Metro. It is so much fun!

I played TV anchor while Keith and Kristin talked to Simon for awhile. Then we took the Metro back to our hotel so Keith and Kristin could get ready for dinner. I thought we were just going to eat somewhere near the hotel but Keith and Kristin got very dressed up. That's when Kristin told me we were going to an awards ceremony at a place called The National Press Club.

WOW! Kristin says their radio program Security Check won another award and they were going to the dinner to pick up the award.

There were LOTS of people at the award dinner. And I was really surprised but I even knew someone in the room! It was my friend Michael from the Chicago Tribune. Michael is one of Kristin's journalist friends from our trip to Egypt. How cool is that?!

The dinner was very nice and Keith and Kristin talked to lots of people who looked very important. Here you can see me with Kristin and the award.

Outside of the room where we had dinner, there is a wall FULL of award plaques. Because Keith and Kristin's radio program won an award, the foundation is now listed on the broadcast plaque for an award called "The Edwin M. Hood Award for Diplomatic Correspondence." Whew! That's a really long name for an award!


I don't recognize any of the people who are also listed on the plaque but Keith told me they are all very famous journalists. I think it is awesome that the foundation is listed on a plaque with famous journalists (even if I don't know who they are), don't you?

After the dinner, Keith and Kristin decided to take me to the White House. It is only a few blocks from the National Press Club. I was SO excited. Do you remember Kristin and Keith took me to see the White House earlier this year? And, do you remember know who lives in the White House? (Hint...it's the President of the United States).

The White House was dark but Kristin managed to take a picture of me. How cool! Now I have a photo in front of the White House during the day AND at night.

I need to get going now. Keith and Kristin are headed to the airport. We are flying to Chicago today and then headed back to Muscatine. But, Kristin tells me she has a big surprise for me when we get to Chicago. I wonder what it is? I can't wait to find out.

Until next time.....

Goodbye Sedona

Hi everyone. I am home now from Arizona.

I have been so busy telling everyone about my trip that I haven't had time to write.

On the final night of the conference Kristin was attending, she let me come with her (in her purse) to the big conference dinner. Kristin wore a fancy dress and all of the other people there were dressed up very nice. Here you can see a few pictures of me with Kristin in her fancy dress.




I couldn't understand what most people were talking about at dinner but it was fun to watch people talk. Many were very excited while talking. Kristin later told me they were talking about politics. Sounds pretty boring to me!

After dinner, I went to bed and Kristin worked on packing up all of her equipment and clothes. The next morning (Wednesday), Kristin got me up REALLY early (before 6AM) so we could go on a walk. I really like exploring the trails near the resort but I wasn't so sure I wanted to get up so early! Now I am glad that I did. Kristin and her friends Jeff, Betty, Susan, and Julie walked ALL to a place Kristin called the "vista." It is REALLY high up! It's hard to see me but here I am with Kristin and her friends at the "vista" (Kristin is holding me).

And to give you an idea of how high we had to walk, here is a photo of the place where we were. Kristin took this from near our hotel. The rock we climbed up to is the one on the far right hand side of this photo.


I also got see some more of the fire that is still burning near Sedona.

After our walk, I went swimming while Kristin finished her conference work. Then, Kristin took me to the gift store and let me pick out a t-shirt to remember my trip. She also let me buy a few small things for my family and she ordered me a special book about the javelina. Javelinas are animals that I learned about at Camp Coyote. I never saw one in person but they look like ugly pigs in the photos I saw. But I learned javelinas are NOT pigs and the book Kristin ordered for me is called, "Don't Call Me Pig." I can't wait until it arrives.

Around 3:00PM, a car service came and picked up Kristin and her friend Jeff to taken them back to Phoenix. They didn't get to ride in the big limo this time. Instead they rode in a regular car. :(

When we got to Phoenix, Kristin told me a friend of hers was going to take all of us out to dinner. Guess what? It was Kristin's friend Kathleen. Kathleen is one of Kristin's journalist friends that I met in Egypt. It turns out she lives in Phoenix. How cool is that? Here you can see me with Kristin and Kathleen at a Mexican restaurant in Phoenix.

Now that I am back in Iowa, I want to thank Kristin for taking me on another great trip. I also want to thank Kristin's friends Jeff, Betty, Susan, and Matt at the Stanley Foundation for being so kind to me during the trip.

Until my next adventure.....goodbye for now.

My Ride In a Pink Jeep!

Hi everyone. I hope all is well with you.

It is still very hot and dry here in Sedona. The fire is still burning and it is VERY big news here. I can no longer see the smoke from Kristin's room. But the sky is hazy and I could smell the smoke in the air this morning.

Kristin told me on Sunday night that I needed to get plenty of rest because she had a special trip planned on Monday. She wasn't kidding!

When I woke up, Kristin told me to make sure to put on lots of suntan lotion, bring my hat, and bring an extra bottle of water. She said I needed these for a surprise trip. Then, right after lunch, several Jeeps showed up right outside of the room where Kristin's conference is being held. They were the funniest Jeeps I have ever seen! They are painted PINK!


If you look really close, here you can see me in a pink Jeep with Kristin's friend Susan.

It turns out that Kristin and all of the people attending the conference were going on tours of Sedona in these pink Jeeps. A few of the Jeeps went to see area Indian ruins. But the Jeep Kristin was riding in went to a place called "Broken Arrow" in the Coconino National Forest near Sedona.

At first I couldn't understand why we needed a Jeep but right after we left the hotel, our driver told us we were going to be driving on a very bumpy trail. He wasn't kidding! There are no real roads on the Broken Arrow tour....only red dirt paths that looked like they have have been carved out of the side of a mountain.


The ride was VERY bumpy and I had to make sure that my seatbelt was fastened tight at all times! The Jeep didn't go very fast but the ride was really cool! It was like being on a rollercoaster.


The Jeep was really cool too! It was open with a canvas top. And, just as we started on the rocky road, the driver stopped and put the windshield down so we could get a better view. Did you know that a Jeep's windshield could fold? I had no idea!

I was sitting in the front seat with Kristin and because the windshield was folded down I got covered in lots of red dust! My mom isn't going to be very happy with all of the red dust when she washes my clothes!

We were able to stop in a few places to get a better view of the national forest. Here I am with Kristin at one of the stops on the tour.


Do you see the big cloud behind us? That's the smoke from the fire. Here's a better view.


It was really cool to see the view of the red rocks but it was also kind of scary. It was windy and we were up REALLY HIGH. I was afraid I might fall and never been seen again! Kristin made sure to hold me really tight so I didn't blow away.

During the ride, we saw lots of different trees and plants. I really liked looking at the cactus plants I could see all along the road. During our second stop, I decided to get a better look at the cactus. But, Kristin told me not to get too close. The cactus leaves have LONG needles and Kristin said the needles would really hurt if I touched one. This is as close as I got to one of the cactus plants.


Can you see the needles? I am glad Kristin warned me not to get closer.

The best part of the Jeep ride was toward the end when the driver drove us up the side of a small hill and then drove us SLOWLY down the other side. Kristin didn't go on this part because she had to take photos of the Jeeps as they were going down the hill. But I got to stay and enjoy the ride with Kristin's friend Betty. It was SO COOL!! I thought I was going to fall forward! It's a good thing Betty was holding me!


After the tour ended, the pink Jeep drove us to a nearby ranch for dinner. It was a very nice place with a small pond and another hill where we could watch the sunset. Here I am with Kristin just before the sunset.

I wasn't all that in that interested in the sunset. I was more interested in watching the fire. We had a great view of it at this location. Just before we left, the fire started to come over the big mountain. It was neat to see the flames. But Kristin told me it wasn't good to see the flames because that means the fire is spreading and getting closer to homes.


Look closely below and you can see some flames behind me.

I know there are lots of firefighters and planes trying to put out the fire. I sure hope they can get it out soon. It would be bad if someone loses their house.

That's all for now. Until next time..

Wildfires and Native American Dance

Hi everyone. I thought I should write to give you an update on the big fire.

Kristin was able to find some information on the Web after my last update. The fire started in an area known as Oak Creek Canyon. One of the hotel workers told Kristin the fire was 8 miles away from us earlier this afternoon but now it is moving AWAY from the resort. Whew! It sure looked like it was really, really close.

Kristin says no one is sure what started the fire. She says the fire started just after Noon. So that means I first saw it not long after it started.

By late this afternoon, I could tell from where the smoke was in the sky that the fire was moving in a different direction. Here are two photos of the fire from late today. You can see the smoke cloud had moved left of the lone rock formation that was in the earlier photos Kristin took.




Tonight Kristin told me that I could go to dinner with her. But, I had to promise to be VERY quiet and good. That's because several really important people were at dinner. Kristin says some work at the United Nations in New York. Yes, they work in the same building I have visited in New York City. How cool!

The dinner tables were set up in a large field at one end of the resort. There was a place to have a campfire. But, we didn't have a real campfire. Instead, the hotel had a fake campfire. It was a machine that looks like a real fire but it is electric and isn't hot. Here I am near the "campfire."


I wasn't hungry because I had a big lunch so I basically listened to the adults talking from inside Kristin's purse. I have NO idea what they were talking about. I couldn't understand the words but they must have been talking about something very important because everyone was very serious.

Right after dinner, Kristin let me take a peek outside of her purse just in time to see a Native American dance. Did you know that Native Americans are also known as Indians? I had no idea! Anyway, I saw something called a "hoop dance." The dancer does stops his feet and jumps around while another man plays a traditional drum. While he is moving, the dancer picks up hoops with his feet and moves them all around until they finally form what looks like a big globe. It was very cool.

Here's a photo Kristin took of the dancer.


And here's the one I took (Kristin says this is a very "artistic" photo. I don't know what that means but I think it looks really cool!).


That's all for now. It is well past my bedtime and Kristin says I need to get to bed. I guess we are going to explore the area some more tomorrow so I need to get some rest.

Until next time....

Hot, Hot, Hot!!

Hi everyone. I hope you are having a good Sunday.

I am having a great time here in Sedona. Kristin is working most of the time but I am definitely NOT bored. Kristin has let me attend Camp Coyote here at Enchantment Resort. This is the kids camp program I mentioned the other day. I've been swimming, hiking, putt-putt golfing, and listening to nighttime stories by the pool.

I really like swimming but I like the hiking even more... even though it is really HOT outside. I have to bring extra water and stop often to take a rest before walking father. It is really hard to walk up the hills around the resort! I sure am glad I brought my tennis shoes!!

I like hiking because I get to see lots of cool plants and animals. I have seen lots of birds, a few rabbits and even a huge deer (on the golf course!). I wish I had photos to show you but Kristin needs her camera for the conference and I didn't bring one.

But, my favorites are the little lizards that I see all over the resort. They run really, really fast. Plus, they are the color of sand so sometimes it is hard to see them. I did ask Kristin to take a picture of a lizard. This one was just outside of our room.


Today has been a bit more hectic than usual. There is a BIG fire very close to the resort. I don't know when it started but Kristin noticed it around 12:30PM when she was walking back from doing a radio interview.

Here's a photo Kristin took this morning near our room.


And here's one she took right after she noticed the fire started.


Pretty scary, don't you think? I've seen fires in the ditches along the roads near Muscatine but I have never seen anything like this!

Kristin says she doesn't know how the fire started and she hasn't seen any news about the fire on the internet. But, it is very HOT and very dry outside. Kristin says that the weather makes it even easier for a big fire to spread. I had no idea!

There are many airplanes flying over the fire area. Kristin says the planes are watching the fire so the people on the plane can help direct the firemen who are trying to put the fire out. I sure hope they get the fire out soon.

Kristin told me not to worry. I am going to try not to worry but I think I will sit outside and watch the fire for awhile just to make sure everything is OK.

I'll keep you posted. Goodbye for now!

Greetings from Arizona!

Hi everyone. I hope you are having a good summer vacation.

This week, my friend Kristin asked me if I wanted to take a break from my summer vacation to travel with her to Arizona. Of course I said YES right away!

Kristin told me she and several of the people she works with that I haven't met are going to be in a place called Sedona, Arizona attending a conference. See if you can find Sedona on the map.

I always have great adventures with Kristin and so far, I have not been disappointed.

Kristin was supposed to fly from Cedar Rapids to Chicago yesterday. But, while she was driving to Cedar Rapids she got a message on her cell phone that our flight was cancelled. Oh NO! Kristin immediately called United and before I realized what was going on, Kristin turned her car around and started driving to Moline. I guess Kristin was able to get us a seat on a flight from Moline to Chicago but she had to hurry to make it on time. I'm so glad Kristin is a good driver!

Once we got to the airport, Kristin saw her friend Matt. Matt works with Kristin at the Stanley Foundation and is one of the people going to Arizona. Guess what? He was on out flight too! Here you can see me watching the workers get our plane ready in Moline.



Once we got on the plane to Chicago, the rest of the trip to Arizona went smoothly. We actually landed at the airport in Phoenix. Phoenix is the capital of Arizona. See if you can find it on the map.

Once we landed in Phoenix, Kristin and Matt found another one of their friends from work. His name is Jeff. Kristin says he is one of the "big bosses" at the Stanley Foundation. I think that means he is really important.

I thought we were going to take a cab to get to Sedona but it turns out that Sedona is more than TWO hours away from Phoenix. So Kristin said we were going to have a special ride to Sedona. It sure was special! It was the biggest truck I have ever seen!


Kristin says this truck is a very large limousine or limo. I say it is AWESOME! And if you think the outside is cool...you should have seen the inside! It has a HUGE couch...one of the largest couches I have ever seen! There was also a few small televisions and a refrigerator in the floor that was filled with cold drinks. How cool is that!!! Here you can see me sitting on the couch.


I have never been to Arizona so I didn't know what it would be like. Guess what? It is mostly desert just like Egypt, Qatar and Dubai. I had no idea!

It was cool to see the desert as our limo drove us toward Sedona. At first the land was very flat. But then I started to see mountains like the ones I saw in Luxor. In fact, at one point I thought I was in Egypt. The view from the car looked very similar to the Valley of the Kings with one small exception. The sand was covered with lots of twig-like green bushes.

Just before we got off the big highway to head toward Sedona, the mountains started to look like someone took a paintbrush to them. Instead of being just sand colored, there are BIG lines of red and gold. It is really neat! Kristin called the mountains "red rocks." She says the red color is the result of thousands of years of wind and water hitting the mountains. Who knew?


When we finally made it to the hotel, more people that work with Kristin at the Stanley Foundation met us in the lobby. Once Kristin had her room keys, one of the hotel workers loaded her bags onto a super-sized golf cart (it had THREE rows of seats) and took us to her room. I got to ride in the second row with Kristin. I really liked the golf cart. There are many here at the place we are staying so I bet I get to ride in one again before I leave.

We are staying at a place called Enchantment Resort. All of the rooms are in buildings that look like small houses that look sort of like sand castles. They are painted the same color as the rocks near the resort. Kristin's room has a living room area, two TVs, and a really cool deck. Here you can see me sitting outside on the deck. Check out the cool rocks behind me.

Kristin tells me she will be in meetings most of the time while I am here. I think she is worried I will be bored. But, this resort is huge. There are lots of trails to walk on and there are NINE swimming pools. They even have a camp for kids like me during the day. So I think I will spend some time outside on the deck and at the pool with other kids who are staying here. There will be plenty to keep me busy while Kristin is working.

Until next time....

Meet My Class

Hi everyone! The school year is almost over so my class took the time this week to help me keep my promise to the class I visited in Egypt. Do you remember that Kristin and her journalist friends promised to try and send a photo of my class so the girls I met in Egypt could see an American classroom? Well, here is my class! To be more specific, this is Ms. Beenblossom's 3rd grade class at Louisa-Muscatine Elementary in Letts, Iowa.

Can you see me? I am in the front row. Thanks everyone for taking the time to have your photo taken with me. Happy summer!

Until next time....

Back Home Again

Hi everyone.

I just wanted to send a quick note to let you know that I am back home in Iowa after my trip to Detroit, New York City, and Atlantic City.

Man...I am REALLY tired but I did help Kristin unpack some of my things from her suitcase.


I want to thank Keith, Kristin, Amy and all of their friends for another great trip. I learned SO much and I got to see lots of new things.

Until next time.....

Saturday in Atlantic City

Hi everyone! Sorry it has taken so long to give you an update but I have been VERY busy this weekend!

Yesterday, Kristin woke me up early and told me we were headed for Atlantic City, New Jersey. See if you can find it on the map.

I was shocked we were going to ANOTHER city. I’ve already been to 4 in the past three days (Chicago, Detroit, Charlotte, and New York)!

Kristin told me this was a very special trip. She and Keith were going to Atlantic City to get their big award for their radio program. Do you remember Kristin found out about winning the National Headliner Award while I was with her in Los Angeles? I was hoping Kristin would take me along for the event.

I thought we would fly to Atlantic City but Kristin told me it was going to be easier to drive. Kristin had reserved a rental car at a place just around the corner from our hotel in Manhattan but there were NO cars! Keith and Kristin were NOT happy about this. Luckily, there was another car rental place next door that had only one car available for us. It was a white mini-van. I thought it was cool because I got to ride in the back of the van all by myself! But Keith and Kristin didn’t seem all that excited about the van.

But, I was starting to question the plan to drive to Atlantic City when Keith actually started driving. Traffic is VERY BAD in New York City. Kristin had a map she printed from her computer to help guide us out of the city but it was VERY HARD. Keith had to drive like a taxi driver to get us through traffic. It took 40 minutes to go 15 blocks! I am NOT kidding.

To leave Manhattan, we had to take something called the “Lincoln Tunnel.” It’s a long, dark tube that reminded me of the Metro in Washington, DC. But Keith told me this was a special tunnel. This one is UNDER the Hudson River. How cool is that?! We drove UNDER water!

Once we made it safely out of the tunnel under the river, it was a fairly easy drive to Atlantic City. We had to take several toll roads. These are like the toll roads Kristin drives on to take us to Chicago. But one section was very different. At the start Keith had to get a special ticket. When we reached the end of the road, he had to hand-in the ticket with money. Very strange!

The highway goes past Newark, New Jersey. See if you can find it on the map. I thought this was cool because there is an airport right next to the highway. I got to see BIG planes take off and land as we drove by. Here you can see a BIG plane landing. How COOL!

Not long after I saw the big planes, Keith stopped at a place along the side of the road so he and Kristin could get something to eat. There were several mini-restaurants in one building. It is similar to the food court at the mall in Davenport. I think this is really neat to have this on the side of the road for drivers. And guess what? Keith says the place is called an oasis! I had no idea! I bet my camel from Dubai (named Oasis) would like to visit the oasis I did.

Once we arrived in Atlantic City, Keith and Kristin checked into their rooms at the Sheraton. The hotel is very nice and Keith and Kristin both got a gift bag when they checked-in. I thought this was strange. They’ve never gotten a gift bag at a hotel before. But Kristin told me the bags are a gift from the Headliners Awards. Wow…they won an award AND they get a gift bag! Kristin told me if I was really good, she might let me have some of the items in her gift bag. I promised I was going to be REALLY, REALLY good!


Keith had a really COOL room. Here I am looking at the view from Keith’s room.


If you look closely, you can see water behind the tall buildings. Keith told me that was the Atlantic Ocean. Cool! I got to see the Atlantic Ocean while visiting Atlantic City! I’ve flown over this ocean with Keith and Kristin but I have never seen it from land!

I think Keith knew I wanted to get a closer look at the ocean, so he and Kristin walked down the street to something called the “Boardwalk.” It is a LONG sidewalk made out of wood. It looks like a really long deck! Anyway, there are shops along one side of the “Boardwalk” and the ocean is on the other side.

Kristin kindly took off her shoes and walked through the sand so I could get a closer view of the ocean. Here I am with Kristin.


And here I am searching for seashells (although I didn’t find any good ones).

Do these photos remind you of something? They look very similar to the ones Kristin took of me at the Pacific Ocean in California. I thought the oceans would look different but this one looks the same to me!

After my visit to the beach, Keith and Kristin walked along the “Boardwalk” for awhile. Suddenly Kristin stopped and said I needed my photo taken with the street sign. I said OK but I had no idea why. The street was called Park Place. I think there is a street with the same name in Muscatine. But Kristin said this is a special Park Place. THIS is the Park Place listed on the game “Monopoly.” Wow! I had no idea!


Kristin later told me that the person who started Monopoly liked the names of the streets in Atlantic City and put them on his game. Cool! I am going to have to pay more attention to Monopoly the next time I see the game!

Before we left the Boardwalk, Kristin stopped at a small candy store to buy some salt-water taffy. Kristin told me Atlantic City is famous for salt-water taffy. Wow…another thing I didn’t know! I guess I must have been behaving because Kristin bought me a small box of taffy. BUT…she made me promise to share it with Aunt Lynn. So I guess I am going to have to wait until I get back to Muscatine to eat my candy.

Keith and Kristin’s hotel is on a street named “Miss America Way.” And, the hotel lobby has LOTS of photos, dresses, and jeweled crowns on display. I was starting to think we were staying at a special “girls” hotel. So I decided to ask Kristin why there were so many dresses on display in the hotel lobby. She told me that the Miss America pageant started in Atlantic City. She says this is a very famous beauty pageant and it is shown on TV every year. I had no idea! I really wasn’t interested in seeing all of the Miss America stuff. That’s for girls. But, at least now I know why there are so many Miss America items in and around the hotel.

The award ceremony was held in the convention center that is connected to Keith and Kristin’s hotel. We arrived just after 6:30pm. Our first stop was a room where several photos and large notebooks were on display. Kristin told me the photos were the pictures that won awards in the photography category. The notebooks were from the newspaper and magazine winners. There was also a TV in one corner of the room that played small parts of the winning radio entries.

After awhile, someone arrived that I knew. It was Mr. B! I met him on my first trip to New York. He is the host of Keith and Kristin’s radio program. He was also the host for the winning program. I like Mr. B…so it was nice to see him again.

Soon we walked into another room to sit down for a fancy dinner including salad and steak. While we were eating, people who helped pick the winners of this year’s National Headliner Awards talked about the program. One said there were over 1700 entries this year! WOW….Keith and Kristin’s radio program must have been REALLY AWESOME to beat that many other photos, newspapers, magazines, TV stations and radio programs!

The awards were handed out after dinner. I started to get worried because almost all of the awards had been handed out and Keith and Kristin still hadn’t walked up to the front of the room to get their award. Kristin told me not to worry.

I soon learned this is because the radio program won the BIG radio award and so it was presented near the end of the program. It was very cool to see how the awards are handed out. First, they put up pictures of Mr. B, Keith, Kristin and their friend Simon on the screen.

Then, one of the judges talked about the show and played some of the show for the people in the room. And there were LOTS of people in the room. I didn’t understand everything the judge talked about but I think it was all GOOD things.

Soon, Mr. B, Keith and Kristin walked up to the stage to get a special wood plaque. All three then told the people in the room about the program. I was too afraid to go up on stage with Kristin and Keith so I stayed at the table with Mrs. B. Afterwards, Mrs. B took my picture with Keith, Kristin and Mr. B holding their award. Thanks Mrs. B!

Whew! It was WAY past my bedtime when the award ceremony ended and I fell asleep in Kristin’s purse as she walked back to the hotel.

Until next time….