Lunch With Jaqueline Guest Contest Winners

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Sawyer, Dryden and their mom, Amber Harding.
Sierra (age 10) and her dad, Todd Virostek.
Emily (age 8) and Erin Gilbart.

a STRANGE GRANDMA Christmas
We have a STRANGE GRANDMA in our family.  She lives far away and always sends us the most interesting Christmas presents.  Last year she sent us books that read themselves.  The year before that she sent us pencils that do all your homework, and before that, clothes that never get dirty.
After every gift, no matter how strange, Mom always says, “How thoughtful!  Write a thank you letter to grandma.”
Just before Easter (STRANGE GRANDMA gets her holidays mixed up) three packages arrived in the mail.  We knew they were from STRANGE GRANDMA. 
My sister opened her gift.  It was a card game of Go Fish.
“How thoughtful! Write a thank you letter to grandma.” said Mom.
We opened the box to play Go Fish.  Suddenly, a mighty river began flowing through our house and fishing poles appeared in our hands.  After we had each caught a few fish, we decided to open the next present.
My brother opened his gift.  It was a game of Candy Land.  
“How thoughtful!  Write a thank you letter to grandma.” said Mom.
We opened the box to play Candy Land.  Suddenly, we had gumdrop furniture and a peanut brittle floor.  After we had all eaten, or played, our share of Candy Land, we decided to open the final present. 
I opened my gift.  The box read, “Hungry, hungry Hippos!”
“I don't think so,” said Mom.
 That year, Mom wrote a letter to STRANGE GRANDMA and I don't think she said, “Thank you!”

Written by Sawyer, Dryden and their Mom, Amber Harding.

Play Games
Close my eyes and count out loud
Then open them up and look around
The boys and girls were scrambling…… when I could not see
Now they are all hiding and waiting so very patiently.

I found Johnny hiding secretly within the trees
But he is not alone ……there are lots of bees.

Then we found Amy way up in the loft
Behind the golden straw so soft, soft, soft

We found Tommy buried in the sand
We never would have found him….. but he had a lollipop in his hand

Down in the pig pen….. Sarah was really stuck
She was hidden behind the pigs and up to her knees in sticky sticky muck

Billy was finally found in the little garden shed
He was in the dark and didn't notice…….. the spider webs all over his head.

We looked and looked for Mary and finally…….. in the garden
Standing in the corn…….. she was almost forgotten

Mommy told us to play outside and not go in the house
But I knew Bobby wouldn't listen and found him in his room….. quiet as a mouse

We couldn't find Jimmy for real long time until we heard a little squeal
He was curled up like a kitten in a big old tractor wheel.

Down by the duck pond there was long hollow log
That is where we found Cindy hiding in the dark like a cute little frog

When the sun was about to set, Scout our dog found Andy sleeping…………….. on his blanket under the deck

Written by Sierra Virostek (age 10) and her Dad, Todd.

The Bored Game
“I'm so bored Jake,” Suzie grumbled to her brother. “Let's go down to the basement and find something to do.” Together, they tiptoed downthe steps. “Hey look at that!” exclaimed Jake. A shiny gold box called 'The Bored Game' lay before them. “Oh, let's play it!” said Suzie. They each took a game piece and spun the spinner. WOOSH!!! With a flash of light, they found themselves whisked into the game. “How do we get out?” Jake whined. “I guess we have to play our way out” said Suzie. She grabbed the spinner and spun it again. They moved to a space marked 'Battle the Clown'. “That doesn't sound so easy...” Jake whimpered. “Let's get this over with” Suzie har-rumphed. Suddenly a gigantic clown with flaming red hair, huge freckles and razor sharp teeth started to chase them. “Let's shut this clown down!” Suzie shouted. She dashed toward the clown, jumped as high as she could, twisted open the clown's bow tie and took out his batteries. “YOU HAVE DEFEATED THE CLOWN! MOVE ANOTHER TEN SPACES!” boomed a voice. They landed on a space that read 'Pick a card or miss a turn'. Jake snatched one off the pile. “We have to go the finish square and battle a dinosaur!” It lunged toward them but Jake grabbed it while Suzie tickled it under the armpit. Suddenly, the dinosaur shrunk into a stuffed animal and Jake and Suzie were back in their basement. “I'm not bored anymore!” they laughed.

Written by Emily (aged 8) and Erin Harding.

The Gateway Gazette Grassroots Editor and staff would like to congratulate all the winners and runners-up. We would also like to thank Michele Geistlinger for taking the time to submit these winners to us for inclusion in your local paper. You can’t get better “Good News” than this. The runner-up stories will be printed in future editions.