Kristi says...

Well, our family (3/4 of it anyway) has become addicted to reading.

Troy is hooked on a few different authors: W.E.B. Griffin, Vince Flynn, Ted Bell, Michael Connelly, and Daniel Silva are the ones who come to mind. I should know, I make a trip every week or two to the library where I pick up the lastest few he has ordered in.

Stacy loves reading the American Girl books, Magic Treehouse, and any other chapter book she can get her hands on. Of course she owns every shark book out there. And if nothing else catches her eye, she can be found reading (okay, this isn't exactly 4th grade reading material...) the Darwin Awards. She loves reading and sharing stories about the stupid things stupid people do. Her favorite story is Pecka Fights Back, about a guy who kicks a bear (Pecka) in the you-know-what to find out if it's a boy-bear or a girl-bear. Turns out, it's a boy-bear, and hence the title, he isn't happy about the aforementioned kicking (By the way, Darwin Awards are given to stupid people who take themselves out of the gene-pool (die) by doing stupid, stupid things). Like I said, not exactly 4th grade reading material, but I think it's important to let our kids read what THEY want to read (within reason), so they'll continue to enjoy reading.

Kristi gets hooked on certain books, too. Um... that might be an understatement. Right now I'm reading (again) the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Actually, I am reading book one and listening to book 3 on CD when I clean, cook, take Claire for a walk, or anything else that keeps me busy. It's hard to find time to just sit and read (that wasn't the case the first time I read all three books in 2-1/2 days... I'm still recovering from that one... thanks a lot, Kimi). My sister, Kimi, and I are both addicts, and my youngest sister won't join the club. She's just being a stubborn little stinker. Oh well, she's missing out. I also LOVE books by Debbie Macomber.

Kevin likes to read... not so much. It's not that he doesn't read, it's just that he would much rather be doing something else. He doesn't care so much for chapter books. He does, however, like to read books by Pat McManus (an outdoor, adventure, comedic writer), and magazines about hunting and skiing. His favorite book, I think, is one written by his Uncle Scott. It is a chapter book. I'm thinking of taking up writing, since he likes books written by family members... NOT! He also likes to read science encyclopedias. He doesn't have a great "reading attention span", as Troy puts it. He likes short stories and articles, instead of chapter books. Like I said before, we try to let our kids pick their own reading material, but sometimes we need to put certain books in front of him and hope he gets interested.