Letter #274 from California

Letter #274 comes from Everett in California.Everett is named after his great-great-grandfather and lives in the Mojave Desert in Southern California.He is fifteen years old and a sophomore in high school.He has one sister and one brother and a chihahua named Jane Doe. :)

He likes to read,write,travel,write letters,act and learn languages (he thought that it may sound bizarre to us as a hobby,but we don't think so at all).Everett can speak German and is learning Swedish on the side and will be taking Russian in school next year.Go Everett!I think all kids should be encouraged to learn another language,it will definitely make travelling to another country much more enjoyable and less stressful when you know the native language.Plus, you can communicate with the people that live there and find out things that you may have missed out on if you didn't speak the language.It will also open the door to many great jobs if you can speak several languages.I find it fascinating when people are tri-lingual (or more) because I think it's great when people do something extra they don't have to do,but do it to gain more knowledge.

Everett likes to collect coins,banknotes (he even graciously gave us a $2 bill!) and stamps (we love those,too).He says he was in four plays last year and had another audition...hope he got the part!The play was Robin Hood....wonder if he was trying for the lead role?

He says that he lives in the desert,where the temps have been in the 100's!He talked about it cooling down and that was to 102°! :) He also mentioned that he lives where there are Joshua Trees,which grow nowhere else in the world.The only thing I know about them was from Pearl Jam,I think,or was it another group that had the cd called The Joshua Tree.

Everett typed our letter on his grandfather's old typewriter from the 1950's.He calls it a dinosaur. :) I happen to love typewriters,too and have a small collection myself.I think they are great for letters since it's something people don't expect others to use anymore.Everett loves writing letters so much that he thinks that half the mail that comes out of Southern California is from him!Way to go....wish everybody was as loyal a letter writer as him so we can save our beloved postal system.I love letters and writing so you won't see me tweeting or texting (never did both) and I don't really care for email as my main communication with people.I think when you write a letter to someone it shows a real concern about that person and that you can form a deeper relationship with that person than by reading emails which can sometimes be interpreted incorrectly,unless you were to put a sad or smiley face by the comment to help the reader know what you meant. :)

Everett included a picture of a Joshua tree,another one that shows the area he lives in,one of the state flag,a $2 bill for us to start our own collection,some bubble wrap for us to have fun with and his little sister wanted us to have a beautiful green feather.Thanks Everett for your letter and goodies...we love them all!Also,best of luck to you in school and learning different languages.Keep working hard,you sound like you will be a very successful adult!Enjoy pictures of his letter and goodies below:

Letter #262 from California

Letter #262 comes from DeeLee in California.DeeLee's real name is Deandra and she is half Chinese,half Caucasian.She was born in Vancouver,Canada and moved to California as a child.That's so funny because our previous writer lived in California but moved to Vancouver,so it's just the opposite. :) She said that her favorite childhood memory is camping up in Big Bear Mountains.

She says that the area she lives in currently started out very rural and unknown,but is now becoming a new "hot spot" in southern California.It's full of lush vineyards,pretty views and well kept agriculture/gardens.There is also a marvelous school system there and a lot of nice trails to walk on.It's also home to the biggest casino in California- Peehanga.DeeLee saw the musical, "Hairspray" there and one of her fave bands,the Goo Goo Dolls play there.

Thanks DeeLee for your lovely letter,brochures and goodies,which can be seen below:

Letter #255 from California

Letter #255 comes from Samantha in California.Samantha says that she will be moving to the east coast soon to start college,where she will be studying journalism.When I was in high school,that was one of the things I wanted to be in the future since I loved writing.She says she also loves to read and do creative things such as crocheting.She loves vintage things and even typed her letter on a vintage typewriter that belonged to her great-grandfather.I think vintage typewriters are so cool,I have a small collection myself,but they need some new ink ribbons,so we haven't been able to use them. :(  Samantha also enjoys swing dancing and the "big band" music that goes with it.She goes dancing at least once a month with her friend and they have a blast!

Samantha is a wonderul mix of Cuban and Italian and grew up speaking Spanish and knows more about the Cuban culture.Her family went to California after the Communist Revolution in Cuba in the 1960' ince it wasn't safe anymore.One of her favorite things about Cuban culture is the food and she is worried about missing her food when she goes to school.Hopefully she won't be too far from any Cuban stores or restaurants so she can have her fave foods such as natilla,a dessert that is similar to creme brulee,which she even gave us the recipe to,so that should be fun to make.

Samantha describes her family as being very big and loud...sounds like a fun family to me. :) She said that on Christmas Eve,the whole family gets together for a big dinner party with traditional Cuban foods like lechon,platanos fritos,frijoles negros and cafe con leche (roasted pork,fried bananas,black beans and coffee with milk).They also enjoy playing their favorite Cuban music,such as Celia Cruz,who enjoyed living life and was very optimistic.

Thanks Samantha for your lovely letter and recipe,which can be seen below.We also want to wish her the best when she starts college.

Letter #253 from California

Letter #253 comes from Jennifer in California.Jennifer lives in southern California and works at Disney so she let us know ahead of time that the letter will include a lot about Disney since it is her life. She has been collecting Disney items since she was four years old,so I guess it makes sense that she should have a job there. :) Jennifer is the ultimate Disney fan....how do we know that?Well,she wrote to us on Mickey Mouse stationery using a Mickey pen on top of a Cars lapdesk while wearing Buzz Light Year socks...ok,maybe that was a little too much info,but I told you she was a true fan,right? :) She is even fortunate enough to have an annual pass to Disneyland so she goes often.She says she tries hard to be a grown up,but she loves cartoons and Disney too much.I'd like to know who said adults can't watch cartoons because I still love cartoons,too. :)

Jennifer also enjoys cooking,writing letters,hanging out with friends and family and reading biographies.She also loves to travel and has recently visited the Grand Canyon,which is only a six hour trip from her house.She said that when you stop and look out at the canyon,it looks like a huge painting because it seems to never end.We've never been there but it's on our list of places to visit one day.

She loves where she lives because there are countless places to eat at.Within just 10 minutes of her house,she can get any type of food you can imagine.Her favorites are Japanese and Italian,while her fiancé prefers Mexican food.

Jennifer also gave us a quick run down on how close she is to everything....

20 minutes to the beach
20 minutes to Hollywood
55 minutes to Disneyland
1 hour to see snow
3 hours to Las Vegas,NV
20 minutes to downtown L.A.
15 minutes to the zoo
3 hours to San Diego
4 hours to Mexico
6 hours to San Francisco
6 hours to Sacramento...the state capital

Along with the letter,Jen sent us a couple of postcards,which can be seen below.Thanks Jen for the letter and postcards! :)

Letter #186 from California

Letter #186 comes from Gail in California.She sent us a short,but sweet letter telling us about her hometown of Oakland.She says that she thinks/knows it is one of the best places in the world and that it often gets  bad press,when there is more to the city than what you hear on tv.She says that the crime is in a small area and that their mayor is addressing the problems to make it a better place for families to live.

The city is very bike friendly and Gail has been without a car for three years now due to this.Can you imagine the money she saves on gas?She also says that the weather is wonderful!While they do not have distinct seasons,if you are in the mood for a particular "season",you can drive a few short hours to see snow,the desert or take a 30 minute drive to the ocean.It is really sad when areas are portrayed as bad places when they have small pockets of crime as do many places,you just have to know which areas to avoid.I'm sure Oakland must be very beautiful....has anybody known the landscape of California to be anything but breathtaking?

Thanks Gail so much for your letter and Oakland stickers.It can be seen below:

Letter #133 from California

Letter #133 comes from Stephanie in California.Stephanie lives in the California Bay area,which is 20 miles from San Francisco.The land and residents of the Bay area is very diverse.She says that when she drives through Berkeley,there are tiny concentrated areas of great diversity of which you can find anything you want,from kosher foods to Spanish foods to Japanese foods due to the diversity of the area.Stephanie considers herself very lucky to have easy access to a variety of food.We miss that about Michigan,here in Virginia,where we live,there isn't that much diversity when it comes to grocery stores and we really miss that.

As many already know,California has many geologic faults.One thing I didn't know,is that they get earthquakes every day,but most are only 1.0 on the richter scale,so she doesn't even notice them,but says that when she does notice them it feels like a big truck has drove down her street.I think I would always be worried that it's the big one,but I guess after living there a while,you get used to it and realize it's nothing.She says that these tiny quakes are actually good,which is something I didn't think about,but it's true.It's better to have many small ones,than one big one.She compared it to a stretched rubber band,it's much better to release it slowly instead of letting it go quickly so it doesn't snap back so hard.

Stepahanie loves to do needlecrafts,some knitting and quilting.She says that even though quilting is quite tedious work,the end result is very satisfying.She also likes to garden and is experimenting with some new things this year,such as a plant called a ground cherry,which has fruit that grows nestled in leaves like a Chinese lantern plant.She says it tastes very sweet and tropical and hasn't been able to find the fruit in any stores,so she has decided to try growing it herself so she can enjoy this fabulous fruit.I hope she is able to grow it successfully.Last summer my husband planted some squash seeds and he was so succcesful,I think we could have fed a few families since it was so huge!

Stephanie enjoys volunteering in the animal husbandry department of her local aquarium.She gets to play with a variety of animals,including chinchillas,turtles,tortoises,kingsnakes,and more.Of course there is a down side to this-cleaning the cages,which is not fun at all,but overall,she feels that she gets to do what most would consider "goofing off".She enjoys playing with the animals.

Along with her lovely letter,she has enclosed some great Japanese paper and some tea bags.Thanks so much!You can see her letter and goodies below:

Letters #92-115 from California

Why so many letters you ask?Well,we had a wonderful fourth grade class from California in Mrs. B's class write to us.Unfortunately, due to privacy rules the schools have,we cannot tell you the name of the school or show their letters,but we will show you the envelopes so that you can see that they did write to us.They know who they are and I hope that they get to see this post with their letters on it! :) I can tell you about some of the wonderful things they wrote about so they know we did read their letters and so everybody else can know a little more about their class.

A couple of the students told us that they like the book titled, "Wayside School" because it is funny and they like how Mrs. B reads it.Another book they read in class that was liked is called "Stranger".Another student told us that they have recess three times a day.My daughters also had three recesses in Michigan but here in Virginia,when you had PE,you didn't have recess on those days.I thought it was terrible that the kids weren't allowed out for a few breaks during the day.

Another student of hers told us that they liked the idea of getting Domino's Pizza if you had perfect attendence,so he hasn't missed a day of school since third grade.Good job!We also had some letters that told us they like "free reading" time because you get to read a lot of books and use your imagination.I think just about every student said they liked reading,so that is really great to hear!Keep up the great job reading!

In another letter,the student mentions that she likes to sing math songs because the songs help her remember better.When I was in third grade we used to listen to records that sang the times table to us and I can remember loving it,too.

Another great book recommendation was a book called, "Marven of the Great North Woods".In the story the boy goes to lodging camp on his own, without his parents.I'm curious to see what happens to Marven in the story.

A couple of the students also told us that they are looking forward to missions because they get to make projects.Another said she is new to the school and loves the new school and thinks Mrs. B is the best teacher in the whole wide world!She also asked us why we wanted 2,011 letters.Yes,your teacher was right,we wanted the same number as the year we are currently in,2011. :)

Another student wants to grow up to be a singer and be wonderful,beautiful and nice,just like Mrs. B.Aww,isn't that sweet?In another letter,they mentioned their favorite game was heads up seven up.I can remember playing that a lot in my classes and it was always our favorite.Any time the teacher gave us free time,all of us would request to play heads up seven up.It was really fun!Other students told us they liked drawing and building,another told us she likes cheerleading and knitting.

We have another book recommendation,a book titled "Heat Wave",she says they read it in class and she liked the part when the plants go under the porch.We are really getting some great book recommendations from this class and love it!The next recommendation is for a book called "The Last Dragon".She said that they even got to make a dragon in class.I wish we could have seen all of your beautiful dragons!We also can't forget the student that gave us a lovely Discovery Education bookmark.We'll have to visit that site one day.Thanks!

So,from all the letters we have read,we have gathered that this class likes two things,reading and being creative.Those are both great things one needs in life to be successful.I think this class has some very smart students and that Mrs. B must be a wonderful teacher!I can still remember my fourth grade teacher,her name was Mrs. Campbell and I went to a school called Katherine Drexel Elementary in Louisiana.It was a great school with some of the best teachers ever.I know that these students will probably always remember their teacher Mrs. B,too because she sounds like a great teacher!

We want to give Mrs. B.'s class a great big THANK YOU for taking the time to write us a letter and tell us your favorite things.We really appreciate it!You even helped us get past 100 letters which we think is amazing!Thanks so much and look below for your envelopes.I'm sorry we can't show your letters but we loved them!

**Update-I can post their first names to give them a proper thank you!Thanks to all of these students below for your wonderful letters!

Joshua
Katelyn
Jesus 
Ebony
Eddie
Brian
Danaisia
Brian
Rafael
Melissa
Cross
William
Iyanna
Armando
Andy
Tommy
Mayreni
Miguel
Elondria
Kayla
Priscilla
David
Frankie
Matthew
Andres

Letter #79 from California

Letter #79 comes from Beverly in California.She says she is retired and loves writing letters.She lives in Davis,which is a university town about 20 miles from the state capital,Sacramento.Her town is known as the city of bicycles because the town is flat and since there are wide bike lanes,everybody likes to ride bikes.Her town has about 60,000 inhabitants,but she says it feels like a small town.She also says that the university has one of the best veterinary medical schools in the country.They were even able to uncross the eyes of Clarance the cross-eyed lion there.

She has enclosed a postcard of one of her favorite national parks,Sequoia Kings Canyon,where you can find the oldest and biggest trees in the world.She told us that the tallest trees are the California Coast Redwood trees.She also told us something really cool that we have seen on tv,the sequoia trees are so big that if you cut a hole in the middle of the tree,you can drive a car through it!I just find that so amazing as did my girls.Can you even imagine seeing a tree that big!She says that cutting a hole in it doesn't kill the tree because the growth of the tree comes from the outside.Another interesting fact we didn't know. :)

Beverly currently works as a theatre critic.She says that many people think it's a great job because she gets to see all the shows for free,but she says the hard part of the job is that she has to sell all the shows,whether she wants to or not.When she gets home from the movies,she has to write the reviews so people can decide to watch it or not.I think it sounds like a great job (at least when the shows are good) and a helpful job because in our economy,I don't think anybody wants to spend their hard earned money on a terrible show,so reading the reviews could help people make a better decision about whether to watch a certain show or spend their money elsewhere.

Beverly has three grown children and one grandchild.Her and her husband also have three dogs that came from the SPCA.She fosters dogs for the SPCA and has watched more than 150 dogs go off to their forever homes.She loves the little orphaned puppies that she has to bottlefeed.Aww,that sounds so cute.

Thanks Beverly for your lovely letter and postcards.Please see her letter and postcards below:

Letter #67 from California

Letter #67 comes from Ciara in California.She lives in the foothills of Northern California in a city called Paradise,with a population of 10,000 people.Her city got started back before the Gold Rush as a lumber town.She says it's rumored to have been called "Pair-o-dice" for the gambling that went on there.She says that the closest thing to gambling that her city has to gambling is Bingo at the senior city. :) She says that her city is a retirement community but now more families are moving to the area since it's cheaper and the communte is easier.

She has included a copy of a special newspaper called "Dogtown Nugget",which is published annually for her town's Gold Nugget Days celebration.She has also included a support pin,museum pin, and a packet of replicas of money throughout California's history. (I had a hard time convincing my youngest daughter that is wasn't the real thing.) :) Along with those items,she included a postcard that she made from a photograph she took of the ridge along Skyway,which is the road most people take to get to the city of Chico.

She says that she moved to Paradise when she was in 7th grade.It was only a two hour move,but she said the city was so different than the one they moved from and it was a hard adjustment to get used to.She recalls a time she was reading during lunch time like many kids did in her old school,but over here,kids were really confused why she would be reading during lunch time,so the kids were quite different in her new place.She says it took time to get over the culture shock but she has grown to love the city and says it's a safe place to live with lots of wonderful people.It has been a big culture shock to us too,moving here and it's a hard adjustment but you just have to focus on the good things.Anyways,with all the complaining she did about the area,she wound up finding the love of her life there...they both worked at the local coffee shop.I always believe that things have a way of working out for the best. :) They were married last year in an old art deco movie theatre in Chico.Congrats Ciara!

Ciara currently works at her church and does many different jobs,such as graphic designing,resident artist and administrative assistant.She really enjoys it but hopes to start her own freelance design and illustration business some day.

She also says they will probably be leaving the area soon for her husband to start grad school,but says they will both miss Paradise,especially since she loves being surrounded by trees and not the suburbs.Thanks for the letter and goodies!
Below you can see her lovely letter and goodies below:

Letter #55 from California

Letter #55 comes from April in Los Angeles,California.She has lived there for about a year now but has lived all her life in Southern California.She says she loves living in Los Angeles because there are so many culturally fun places to go.Last summer she had a to do list and visited many places,including the Mummy Exhibit at the California Sciencenter,the mammal exhibit at the Natural History Museum,visited the zoo and also went to the Griffith Observatory.There are some places she didn't get to see,so she will be doing them this summer..

April is currently working on her Special Education teaching credential at California State University.After this quarter,she has one student teaching left to do then she will be credentialed.She has also received her bachelors and masters degree,so she will be happy when school is over.She currently works as a unit secretary in two different emergency rooms.She says it's very exciting and fast paced.She says she will miss ot once she starts teaching.

She also enjoys reading and is currently reading a book called The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera.She is reading it as part of her book club along with a doctor at one of the ER's she works at.Last year she read 42 books!That's amazing! I need to set a goal and stick to it.My only problem is finding books that I like and I am usually bad at judging a book by its cover,which is a bad habit to have because I know I have missed out on good books because of that.She doesn't watch much tv,but loves all kinds of movies.Her favorite is a French film called Amelie.

She is thinking of moving to Colorado Springs this summer since it's going to be very tough to get a teaching job in California with their bad economy.I wish her all the best since most cities have been cutting a lot of teachers jobs,which,in my opinion should be the very last thing that should (if even) be cut.With our education system so bad in our country,the last thing we need is less teachers for our kids.

Thanks April for your lovely letter,postcards and pictures.Also congratulations on the birth Logan who was born on 2-12-2011!

Enjoy her letter and goodies below:

Letter #33 from California

Letter #33 comes from someone simply known as "The Fruid" in California.It's quite interesting when they don't say their name...makes them seem mysterious since you try to figure out who they are by the alias they pick.I do know this about her,she has amazing handwriting!It looks like she stamped each word on the letter,that's how neat it is!

Anyways,more about her letter.As stated,she lives in California in a city called Livermore.She remembers it being a small town of 25,000 people but now has around 85,000 peoople.She writes about having a few shops downtown when she was a child,but now things have really changed with even more houses and an outlet mall opening up soon.

Her favorite thing about her city is its natural beauty.She lives in a valley surrounded by hills (so are we).There are also many vineyards in her area....our backyard has a lot of vineyards,too...the previous owner used to make wine in the backyard.But we don't really care for the grapes...they are usually pretty sour.I think I have a picture of our vineyards I will post below.

She also says the Livermore is known for 2 things-their wineries and their national labs.She is really concerned about living so close to nuclear labs.

She enjoys hiking on the trails that look out over the valley.She often sees many different animals,such as deer,turkeys,coyotes,turkey vultures and hawks while hiking.There are also many warnings about mountain lions,but luckily she has not come across one of those yet.I think I agree with her,that it may be best just to see them at the zoo. :)

Livermore has a lot to do and is close to San Francisco...it's only 50 miles east of the city and 45 minutes from Six Flags and Great America and only a few hours from the city of Monterey.Seems like she lives in a great area.

Below is a picture of her lovely letter,picture of Cresta Blanca hillside which if you look carefully,you will see 2 gnomes shaped out of the crevices....do you see it...it actually shows up great here,when I was looking at the picture in my hand it took while for me to see both of them. :) 

The Fruid also made a really cute mini scrapbook which I am sharing below:

This one shows a farm in Livermore:

Below is a vineyard and some windmills on a hilltop:

Here is a lake and a sign for the rodeo:

Below is an airplane from an airplane show and a small museum:



This below is the coolest thing,a lightbulb that is 110 years old and still works!Sheesh,most of my lightbulbs don't even last 2 years! :) To the right is a picture of downtown:

And below is the end of her notebook which is so cute...it reads, "But what Livermore is really missing is YOU!" Aww,that is so sweet!

Many thanks to "The Fruid" for your wonderful letter and picture and the adorable scrapbook that you made....we really loved it!Thanks so much for participating and sharing about your city!

Ok,well,I found a picture of our backyard showing the grapevines but this is a winter picture,so no beautiful grapes to look at right now.It's on a big hill so that is why the picture looks like that.We also need to work on making it neater...we've just been busy with our house repairs.We have 5 rows of grapevines plus some that cover this clothesline that you see closer to yourself in the picture.

Letter #16 from California

The mail has been amazing! Letters and sign ups are coming in abundance and we are thrilled!Yesterday we had 4 amazing letters sitting in our mailbox...now that's what we call a good mail day! This letter comes from Kimi in California.She is a teacher (one of my dream jobs).She teaches 4th grade and she will actually have her class write to us...isn't that so cool!She really loves her kids...she says this is the best class she ever had,so they must be pretty special kids.Thanks Kimi for taking the time to write us a letter and to have your students participate.We are looking forward to their letters!Here is her letter below: