I love Flat Stanley!
Such a wonderful project for young school children… and the people who are chosen to participate. Flat Stanley comes from a book about a little kid who gets squished flat and then travels the world in a mailed envelope. So when the kids read the book in school, they get to color & cut-out their own Flat Stanley. They then mail their own Flat Stanley to a friend or family member – whose job is to take some pictures of Flat Stanley around town and mail it back to the kid. I got my Flat Stanley from my cousin’s youngest kid up in Minnesota. Christopher is in second grade and chose me to help with his project. Good choice… I’m kind of a classic over-achiever when it comes to projects like this. Surprise, huh?!
So here goes… a rather lengthy blog post about Flat Stanley’s incredible adventures!!!
Of course when he first arrived… he had to go with me for a sunrise bike ride.
That evening, Flat Stanley went in to my pottery studio to check things out. Including one of my tool boxes filled with stamps, and my wheel filled with trimmings!
Of course, while he was there.. he had to go for a ride!!! DIZZY!!!
After the spinning stopped, back at my place, Flat Stanley decided to pose with his favorite – a whimsical teapot by my friend Cory McCrory!!!
That weekend, Flat Stanley went down to Navy Pier for the Shamrock Shuffle Expo. And he got caught up in some vines… and posed with the monster while I signed up for the Monster Dash Half Marathon.
We had wonderful weather for the Shamrock Shuffle. And Stanley was up for the challenge of his first official run. Forty thousand runners converged upon the downtown streets… including my friend Megan who spotted me in the crowd. And what “shamrock event” would be complete without a Leprechaun?!
Lining up at the Starting Line… Stanley and mass of humanity awaiting the start…
Then it was through Downtown Chicago. Past landmarks and plenty of Gatorade!
At the finish, we celebrated with friends… unfortunately, Buckingham Fountain had not been turned on yet. Still a bit too chilly for the famous fountain.
Plenty of “facilities”…
After the run, we decided to go for a walking tour downtown. It’s been such a long, cold Winter. Ans Spring felt liek it was never going to arrive… so the beautiful weather today was a welcome surprise. And we had to take advantage of it.
While walking downtown with Flat Stanley, we stopped to take a photo at the El Stop… and we ran into another Flat friend… Flat Fred from Sweden. Yes, kids around the world are playing with the Flat Stanley Project!
Then it was off to the Art Institute…
And more downtown attractions – like Sears Tower off in the distance.
Yes, I said “Sears”… it will ALWAYS be Sears Tower to me… not Willis Tower.
Then we made it to Millennium Park and decided to hang out at “Cloud Gate” for awhile. Sure, most people refer to it as The Bean… a reflective landmark that is always a great photo op!!!
While at The Bean, we ran into yet another Flat friend.. this time it was Flat Stella from Denmark! Kinda crazy to run into two other Flat Stanley projects in the matter of a few blocks downtown?!
All that walking was making people thirsty… and in need of a little pick-me-up!
Finally home, Flat Stanley was excited to have finished his first 8K run… and exhausted from his walking tour of Downtown Chicago.
The next weekend, Flat Stanley set off with me and my bike to do a tour of Chicago’s museums.
Starting at the Field Museum of Natural History. Complete with a Chicago Blackhawks jersey on the dinosaur standing outside while they are in the play-offs.
Next at the Museum Campus is the John G. Shedd Aquarium…
And the Adler Planetarium…with a crazy cool silver sculpture out front!
Then it was further south down the bike path to the Museum of Science & Industry…
Then headed back north past Navy Pier…
Along the lakefront, there’s this really cool sculpture made of miles & miles of crocheted rope! So of course we had to stop & play.
One last shot of the Chicago Skyline from Olive Park before we pedaled home…
After his travels around Chicago, Flat Stanley was pretty sure that there were other wonderful places to go see. So he hopped on a plane (with my friend Tracy) for a trip through Eastern Europe and the Czech Republic. Admiring all of the wonderful architecture & cathedrals in Prague, Slovenia, Hungary and so many other cool places!
Then it was off to Budapest… and the Blue Danube…
Spending some time for “splashin’ wet fun” in the Turkish Baths!
After Flat Stanley’s whirlwind tour of Eastern Europe, he went back to the place his adventure first started… my pottery studio! He hopped right into the ovals in mid-production.
But then it was off to one more running race (again, with my friend Tracy) down in Champaign, Illinois. After his fun time at the Shamrock Shuffle, he was more than ready to go for another run! Through rural countryside and some crazy Midwest attractions & oddities! Commemorated with another medal at the Finish Line.
Back in Chicago, Flat Stanley decided to go for another bike ride – this time up north to the Chicago Botanic Garden. Traveling through Caldwell Woods & Skokie Lagoons.
On the ride home, we spotted a few deer along the path… Flat Stanley’s brush with wildlife!
To celebrate the end of his adventures with Uncle Gary… we split a wonderful hot fudge turtle sundae with EXTRA homemade hot fudge!!!
After Flat Stanley’s adventures, I created a booklet for Christopher with all of these photos and some captions & descriptions. I’m sure most “photo participants” return like one or two photos… but not me! Christopher sure picked the right person to help with his Flat Stanley project. I had a great time doing it. I think Flat Stanley had a wonderful adventure. And I hope you just had fun reading of his exploits!!!
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As a follow-up…
I received this wonderful feedback from Christopher’s teacher…
Christopher just shared his Flat Stanley booklet. It was absolutely amazing!
Please tell Uncle Gary he got an “A+” from the second graders! Thanks.