Hey kids, I told you LB was still at it. He just got home from his last trip for a while, a week in Chicago, Illinois. Now, LB's been to Chicago before (briefly) and I'm sure that many of you have been there too, being that it is so close. But I haven't, so most of what LB saw was new to me. First of all, LB got to take the train. It's the second time he's ridden one. I think LB just has to go on a cruise ship and he'll have experienced pretty much every type of transportation there is. And he got to meet Sue. Have you met Sue? She's big and has a very nice smile. She's a T-Rex skeleton at the Field Museum. And he spent a bit of time exploring Nacy Pier where he rode a ferris wheel and he went to the top of the Willis Tower. Apparently LB is not afraid of heights. He's been lots of places way up high! But I think he's ready to stay put for a while. I'm glad because it's been lonely around here without him.

Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Γεια σας παιδιά! Now don't adjust your screen — that's just "Hi Kids" in Greek. Yup, LB just got back from exploring Greece. Looks like he had lots of fun eating lobster, seeing ancient art and swimming in the ocean. I bet you know more about Greece than you think you do. The Olympics originated there, and you know all those gods in the Percy Jackson books you like? Yup. They're from Greece too. And if you like Baklava, they make it in Greece. Yum! Sounds like a place I'd like to go. Keep you eyes open.

Hey Kids. LB is tells me his winter coat has started growing in because it was cold up in Mackinac City when he visited last weekend. Mackinac City is right at the tip of the Mitten where I-75 turns into the Mackinac Bridge. There's a lot to do there! LB spent a day biking around Mackinac Island. And now, he's curious about the kids who live there. So we looked online and found Mackinac Island Public School's website, which has lots of information about what it's like to live on the island year round. He went to the Fort on the island too and tried to fire the cannon, but decided it would be better to leave that to professionals.

Hi kids, LB wanted to share some pictures from his trip to Prince Edward Island with you. If you didn't know it already, PEI is the home a red head who has a tendency to get into trouble. Nope. Not Pippi Longstocking. I'm talking about Anne of Green Gables. You can actually visit her house (which is where LB is in this picture). LB also visited some other places in Canada and Boston on this trip. And narrowly avoided a tropical storm.

Ciao ragazzi. That's Italian for "Hi Kids". LB is at it again. He justreturned from a pretty amazing trip to Rome and Venice in Italy. You know, the birthplace of pizza and gelato. Mmmmm. Course there are lots of other neat things to do and see in Italy besides eat. You can visit things like the Coliseum and the Pantheon in Rome that were built way back in Roman times (a long long time ago — before even your grandparents were born). You can ride a gondola in Venice like LB did. Venice has more canals then streets so gondolas are special boat taxis. Looking at LB's pictures is making me hungry. I think it's time for lunch.

Hey Kids!
LB went to Chicago for the Memorial Day weekend. Look at the cool sculpture LB is standing by in this picture. It's called Cloud Gate, but most people just call it the Bean. Mmmm. That makes me hungry. Unfortunately, this bean isn't edible. Guess I'll have to check out some books about beans from the library and learn how to grow my own. Have you ever done that? It's pretty easy. And a fun thing to do over the summer… which is almost here! Yay! It's certainly felt like summer the last few days. I can't wait for it to get here.
Until next time!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids!
Did you guess where LB was headed next? He just got back from the Dominican Republic! It's half of an island in the Caribbean. He's been there before, because Miss Ruth's sister teaches there. But everytime he goes he has a new adventure. This time LB went to the country and got to see some pretty cool stuff growing! Like Pineapples. Did you know you can plant a pineapple at your house? This website tells you how. He also saw some banana trees and a Cacao tree. That's the kind of tree we get chocolate from! (But take note, Hershey bars don't just grow on trees).
LB got to try a lot of the fruit he saw growing down in the Dominican Republic--Mangos, Pineapples and Bananas. They sure have a lot of yummy food to eat in down there! I might have to try my hand at some Caribbean cooking. Good thing CPL has some books on that subject that I can check out!
LB is so lucky to go to all these neat places that I'm beginning to think his initials stand for Lucky Bear instead of Little Bear. Until next time!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids!
Now that it's getting warmer out, LB has gotten restless. Good thing he's getting to go to lots of different places! In fact, here are some pictures from one of his recent adventures. He traveled to Bonita Springs, FL with Miss Michele! He had a great time! He told me it was warm and sunny down there. So he did lots of swimming.
Looks like he also tried his hand at some alligator wrestling. But don't worry kids. I don't think that's a real alligator. I even checked out some library books about alligators to make sure. Yup! Alligators don't have handles.

Hey Kids!
I've got new pictures for you! LB just got back from an amazing trip with Marta, who works here at the library! Why was this trip so amazing? Well, first of all, LB went to Phoenix, Arizona. It's sunny there. You probably know about the Grand Canyon, right? well that's in Arizona! And they have Cactus and Grapefruit!
Secondly, LB got to try all kinds of musical instruments at a museum he visited. Makes me want to play an instrument. Maybe I'll learn to play the drums!
And then finally, and most excitingly, LB got to travel by train, car and plane on this trip! He rode the train all the way to Arizona! He told me the train has beds that are like bunk beds. You can see the picture of LB getting ready for bed in the picture up above. He also went to a special train car where you could go get food! I think that would be my favorite spot on the train! That sounds like a pretty fun way to travel. Makes me want to check out some train books right now! Maybe I will… but I'll save some for you too!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids!
LB's at it again! While it was snowy and freezing here in Michigan, LB went to sunny, warm Key West, Florida with Miss Marianne! LB must stand for Lucky Bear! There are lots of fun things to see in Key West — Lighthouses, Libraries, Post Offices, Fish, Butterflies and Cats! And you can eat lots of Key Lime Pie! One of the neatest things LB and Marianne did is they went to the most southern point of the whole United States and got their picture taken. You can almost see Cuba from there! Key West is also where Ernest Hemingway lived. Ernest Hemingway is an author who wrote books for grown ups. Some of his books take place in Michigan, because he lived here for awhile too. Then he moved to Key West and ate lots of pie and owned lots of cats. Make sure you check out all the pictures from LB's trip on Flickr! It sure sounds like he had fun! Until next time…
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey kids!

Well, LB is at it again. This past weekend he went to a wedding with Miss Ruth in New York. On the way home they stopped at Niagara Falls. This means that LB has been to Niagara TWICE and New York TWICE this year! Wow! What a lucky bear! But since there are always new things to try, he had some new adventures. Miss Ruth introduced LB to Yogen Fruz, which is really yummy frozen yogurt. It's hard to explain really, so he took lots of pictures. Basically you get to pick the flavors of your frozen yogurt from the fresh fruit provided, and then they blend it all up! The result is cold, fruity, pink wonderfulness! Sadly, there isn't any Yogen Fruz in Michigan, so I doubt I will get any soon. But it is located in other cool places! Maybe someone will take LB to California or Iowa or Minnesota or Hawaii or Bulgaria so he can get some more. Wow! Yogen Fruz is in a lot of places!

I can't wait to see where LB ends up next! Until then...
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey kids!
Thorndyke here! Reporting again for LB. He's just returned from his latest adventure. Did you guess where he was headed? If you guessed Boston, you were right! But that's not the only place he ended up on this massive road trip. Stay tuned and find out!
LB started his journey in Boston. There's a lot to see there and in the surrounding area. In the City of Boston, LB toured the Mapparium, a big glass globe you can walk through, the Harvard Museum of Natural History and the New England Aquarium. Boston has some pretty crazy transportation though. Did you see LB's picture? He's in a truck that can drive on roads or be a boat in the water! How crazy is that? It's called an amphibious truck. It must belong to the same family as salamanders and frogs. LB also saw where Paul Revere rode to warn the colonists that the British were coming and where the colonists defeated the British at Concord.
Some of the other things LB saw around Concord where Henry David Thoreau's house. Did you know there's a bear named after him? And that there are books written about this bear? Thoreau must have been a pretty cool guy. And LB saw Orchard House too. Have you read Little Women? The lady who lived at Orchard House, Louisa May Alcott, wrote Little Women.
Then LB spent an afternoon in Rhode Island touring fancy houses. Lots of rich people used to go to Rhode Island for vacations and live in big houses. Now they just go to the Caribbean. What do you know about Rhode Island? Did you know it's the smallest state?
And then LB went to New York! There are lots of neat things to do there! And not just in the big city! LB saw the Art Museum, and Ellis Island and...the LIBRARY! New York City has a lot bigger library than CPL. LB met the Statue of Liberty too. If you've never read about how the Statue of Liberty was built, it's a pretty cool story!
LB finished his tour of New England with some more fancy houses and a mountain. One of the houses was a house made of glass. Better not play Baseball there! But LB did get to sit in a pretty special chair. Those fancy houses sure are BIG! And they have lots of fancy furniture. And lots of grass to run and play. The mountain is named Mt. Greylock. It's a pretty big one. It's the tallest one in Massachussetts. But I think at that time LB was getting a little homesick.
Which is why he's home for a while now. LB has loved going on adventures with all his library friends. But he's glad he made it home in time for the end of Summer Reading. He's got to turn in his reading log (he did a lot of reading on all those car trips!) so he can get his prizes. Have you finished YOUR reading log yet? You only have until Wednesday to get all your prizes! Don't forget to look at all the pictures of LB's latest adventure! Until next time,
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke.

Hey Kids!
Thorndyke here! I am so enjoying seeing all of you here at the library! I hope you are having a great summer! As promised, here's the latest update of what LB has been up to. This time he went some where local, the Toledo Zoo! And he got to see some REAL bears! Did you know that the Toledo Zoo has a new polar bear cub? In fact, he's the only polar bear cub in the whole US! And there's a whole website about him! Isn't it cool to have something so neat so close to home? Makes me want to check out some books about polar bear books! Sometimes the librarians say that they work in a zoo, but they're just joking... I think.
LB's been here at the library for a week or so, but he's gearing up to go on another big adventure soon! The people here at the library sure love taking him on their trips! He's a pretty popular bear! I'll give you a hint to where he's headed next. It's not in the USA, but you can get there by car! Where do you think he's going? Tell me your guesses!

Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids!
As promised, here's an update on where LB has been! Did you make a guess about where he was headed? He just got back from Williamsburg Virginia! Were you right? LB came back with this really great letter about where he'd been, which he said I could share with you...

Wow! It's only mid June and I've already become a well-traveled bear! I had a great time up north with Ms. Ophelia and after a short stop back at CPL, I was on my way south on a road trip with Ms. Jeanine and her daughter. We left June 10th and drove all the way to Williamsburg, VA, in one day (about 12 hours driving)! We stayed at the Patrick Henry Inn, just a short walk from Colonial Williamsburg. (Patrick Henry was the patriot famous for saying, "Give me liberty or give me death!") The next morning, we visited the Yankee Candle "flagship" location in Williamsburg. They have a really cool room that looks like a starry sky at night, and every 15 minutes it "snows" right in the room! I made myself right at home in the shop full of stuffed animals. Needless to say, there are a lot more than candles at the Yankee Candle complex!

In the afternoon, we stepped back in time and walked through Colonial Williamsburg. It looks a lot like it did back in the late 1700s, around the time of the Revolutionary War. At the town hall, Ms. Jeannine put me in the stocks (where they used to punish convicted criminals), but it was just for fun, because I'm a really good bear! We also visited the campus of William and Mary College, the second oldest college in the country and the place where Thomas Jefferson earned his law degree. We later had dinner at Christiana Campbell's Tavern, where George Washington himself often dined! Then at night, we took a "Ghosts of Williamsburg" candlelight tour — kinda scary, but I'm a really brave little bear! No ghosts were spotted that night...whew!

Saturday morning, we were back on the road, this time to Kill Devil Hills, NC, which was the location where Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first successful airplane flight and literally "flew" into the history books! They picked Devil Hills because it's a flat, sandy and very windy island on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It's a great place to fly kites, too! I got a taste of salty air and ocean breezes on the beach and wanted to stay all day, but unfortunately, they don't make sunscreen for bears. :-( . Ms. Jeanine's daughter gets to spend all summer in Kill Devil Hills (she has a summer job there), but Ms. Jeanine had to get back to Michigan and CPL, so we flew Monday evening from Norfolk, VA, to Detroit. Hmmmm, maybe I should sign up for frequent flyer miles so I can get a free airplane trip later in the year!

love,
LB

Wow! What a fun adventure! Thanks Ms. Jeanine for taking LB with you! Now I've got a whole bunch of new places to read about. Remember, you can see all the pictures from LB's adventure on the library's flickr account. LB left on another fun adventure almost as soon as he got home. This time it was somewhere more local. I'll give you a hint, there's lots of animals and it starts with the letter Z! Can you guess?

Until next time!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids!
Well, LB just got back from another fabulous adventure! And now, you can see all the fun he's having on the library's Flickr account! Thanks Miss Laurie for showing me how that program works! I'm getting to be quite a tech-savvy bear.
LB just got back from Grand Traverse Resort and Spa in Traverse City! It sounds like such a neat hotel — there's a pool, and the Aerie Restaurant that has a revolving floor so you can see all the pretty scenery!
LB also got to see the Bay (too cold to go swimming) and climb the Sleeping Bear Dunes! Have you read the legend about those dunes? We have it here at CPL. You should check it out. But bring kleenex. It always makes me cry. I'm such a softie.
And then he "checked out" the Petoskey District Library. (Get it? Checked out? Just a little library humor.) That library's been around a long time! The original building was built way back in 1909 and funded by Andrew Carnegie. He's a rich guy from a long time ago that funded lots of libraries across the United States. Anyway, it's a very neat library. But no cool bears like Your's Truly! They did have a special exhibit on Lewis and Clark. Now there's some interesting history. And we have lots of information about those guys here at our library too!
So that's what LB's been up to. Of course, he wasn't home long! He left on Wednesday for another fun place! So keep watching and see where LB goes next. I'll give you one hint...It's Historical, and in a state named after a ruler of another country! Where do you think he's going? tell me your guesses! Let's see if you get it right!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke