Finishing the Tree!

Finishing the Tree!

Izzy

6.31.19

     Yesterday, Saturday, we finished painting the tree! I had started my design on Friday, the 29th, but didn't get to finish it so we continued yesterday morning. Ethan and I were originally going to each get half, I would get the top fourth, Ethan the middle two, and then I would get the bottom. But since my design was taking a lot longer than I had expected and Koko wanted to help, we split it into thirds. I was thankful that I didn't have to do another part with my design, because the process took FOREVER. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, it just took too much time and we only had two days left in Evanston. I did a scale-like design with three different colors, cerulean blue, ultramarine blue, and cadium yellow. Ethan did a collage of his stuff, and Koko did a pattern with dots going around the tree in the different colors Ethan and I used. Throughout the process, I learned how important it is to prepare for big projects like this one, especially when Momo and I had to get two more tubes of paint for the base coat. You also have to have a plan for what you're going to do for your design, which makes the job way faster and easier. Overall, I really liked how the tree turned out and I hope it lasts a while considering how much effort we put into it!

The tree before

The tree with the base coat

The finished tree!

Koko Comes

Koko comes!!

Izzy

6.28.19

     Today Koko arrived in Evanston! Her flight was supposed to be at 1:15(here), but ended up being at 3 because of storms in the area. Koko took a Lyft to Momo and Jiji's house from the airport. When she got here, we had sushi for dinner which was AMAZING, as always! After that, we relaxed for a little bit to digest. Koko, Ethan, and I walked to Hartigan's ice cream shop. We stopped at the elementary school on the way there, Willard. Ethan and I made up a obstacle course on one of the play.structures, and had Koko time us to see who was faster. We ran up one of the slides, ran across the play structure, down another slide, through these metal bars, and over onto a platform. I ended up having the fastest time at 16.71 seconds. We kept beating the previous records but ended on this one. At Hartigan's, I got cone of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, and Ethan got firecracker, which is strawberry with pop rocks. We walked home and saw fireflies, so Ethan caught one firefly when we got home. It was the first time we had seen fireflies this summer. Tomorrow we hope to go back and do the obstacle course and set some new records!!

This is the playground we did the obstacle course on at Willard

Hartigan's

Central Street With Koko!-ETHAN

Central Street With Koko!

By Ethan V.

6-29-19

       Today Izzy, Koko and I went down Central Street. Central street is like the main street in Northern Evanston and it has a ton of great shops. Now here's what we did.
       First we stopped at Willard School to set some records on their playground equipment and on my first run I got 15.04 seconds!! That was the record until Izzy went and got 14.77 seconds. Every time I had set a record Izzy set a better one the run right after that. It's SOOOO annoying. After we got super tired and sweaty from the obstacle course, we started walking down Central.
       The next place we stopped was a shop called Notice. We bought a 500 + piece puzzle about women in science. Koko got a planet bath bomb with a charm inside. The whole time we were doing this, I was watching The Women's World Cup on Koko's phone and Sweden was playing Germany( Sweden won 2-1).
       Next, we went to Paper Source, my Mom's favorite shop on Central. I got a (fake) Ramen thing that is a pencil sharpener and eraser in one. The other thing I got was a dog park playset for a desk which I'm going to put on my desk at home. Koko got a bullet journal and some pens and lastly Izzy got stamps and a bullet journal for her next one.I used my ramen pencil sharpener/eraser amd it is crazy good quality.
       The third and best shop that we went to is Oliver's Toys and Trains. It is the best toy shop in Evanston and there Izzy and I each got a Crazy Aarons Thinking putty. I already had(and still have) a Milky Way putty which you put a UV light on and it looks like the Milky Way. I also had a Amethyst Blush putty which is a color changing one with heat. It's origanlly purple but with heat it's pink. The new one I got is called Northern Lights and if you shine a UV light on this one it turns to the color of the Northern Lights.
       This was a very fun trip down Central street and if you are in Evanston I highly suggest to grab some money and walk down Central street.

       

NBA Awards-ETHAN

NBA Awards
By Ethan V.
6-25-19

     Yesterday was the NBA Awards. The NBA Awards is the NBA award ceremony for the best in the NBA that season. Here are some of the Awards.
     The first award that I will be talking about is Most Improved Player. This is a player who had a good or better season that came off a not so good season or maybe an injury. This year Pascal Siakam 
won it because he didn't have a remarkable season last year but this season he won the championship with the Raptors and helped them a lot.
     Another big award is Rookie of the year.  This is given to the best rookie in that season. This year it was tough to tell if either Luka Dončić or Trae Young would win it. But in the end Luka won the award and I think because he had a better first half of the season than Trae.
     Bench warmers listen up! You have an award just for you! That award is the Sixth man award which is basically an award for the best bench player. Like last year, Lou Williams won the award because he chooses to come off the bench and he is 100% the best bench player. 
     The lifetime achievement award is the award for a former player that did something great during his career. For the First time ever this year two people won the award. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, who both won the award are both considered  Some of the all time greats. This award has been around only 3 seasons and Micheal Jordan has not won it!It has to be coming for him soon because he's basically the G.O.A.T(Greatest Of All Time).
     You might have heard of Robin Roberts before. If not, she's on Good Morning America. She used to be a sports reporter and a great basketball player in high school and college. She was honored for the Sager Strong award named after a sideline reporter who died of cancer. She won because she has survived cancer and another life threatening disease. She survived both of these and  now we can honor her today. 
      The last and greatest award you can get at the NBA awards is the NBA MVP. This stands for Most Valuable Player and it basically means you were the best in the NBA that year and this year James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo were neck and neck but Giannis won.
The reason for this is Giannis was better on Defense and made it deeper into the playoffs then Harden.
      In conclusion, the NBA awards is a great award ceremony and next year I recommend that you watch some of it (If you care about basketball).  

Tree Project-ETHAN

Our Tree Project
By Ethan V.
6-27-19

       Today we got our supplies for the tree project and here's what we did.
    First we went to Blick Art Materials to get paint and brushes. I got orange and black paint for my design(Learn more later) and Izzy got Navy and Light blue. We also got white for the trunk base. When we got home we started painting the trunk a white so that we can do our designs over it. Izzy and I split it into fourths so Izzy got the first quarter, I got the second quarter and so on. But halfway through we ran out of paint. So Izzy and Momo had to drive to Blick
and get two more tubes of white paint. This was funny because the person who was helping us when we got the paint said that one tube was enough but we needed three.
     We finished the white backround today and tomorrow we are doing our designs. We decided Izzy gets the top half of the tree and I get the bottom half. I am going to do meaningful things to me as my designs. I am doing a basketball, the Japan flag, my initials, the bears logo and a peace sign. Another thing I'm going to paint is the number 27 which is my favorite number because I was born on July 27th, 2009.We will post again about the tree while we are here.
     In conclusion, this will and is a very fun project and you will definently want to see the product.

Afternoon in Chicago!

Afternoon in Chicago with Sachi!!!

Izzy

6.26.19

     Today, Ethan and I spent the afternoon in Chicago with Sachi, a family friend who is kind, funny, and super fun to hang out with. After tennis camp, we took the train to downtown Chicago and had lunch at McDonald's. Then we stopped at Walgreens to get some snacks--Airheads that are soft filled bites, and Lays sour cream and onion chips. We saw the famous Chicago "Bean" and took some pictures (not our first time, but still awesome). We walked to Maggie Daley park, which was just across the street. Ethan and I went on these nest swings, which could fit two people and were kind of like a nest, hence the name. Sachi pushed us, and then I went by myself too, and it was really fun! Ethan and I went on the play structures for a little bit, and went down the slides, but my shoes would stop me from sliding and made a horrible screeching sound on the metal slide, both times I went. We also took off our shoes and put our feet in water at his area near the street and the garden.  The water was cold and refreshing in the heat! We also went to the water area which has these giant structures that have water falling down the sides and a picture of a face on the wider sides that every five minutes or so shoots out water to look like the person spitting out water onto the people below. The faces change afterwards, and it was a cool way of cooling off although Ethan and I didn't get soaked.  We just walked around the two buildings because there was water on the ground. Ethan and I also got a little wet from all the kids running around, splashing the water everywhere! We started walking to Water Tower place and stopped for donuts at Stan's Donuts and Coffee. Ethan got the rainbow donut (for Pride month),  I got a vanilla one glazed with sprinkles, and Sachi got a pistachio donut, which were all great!! We continued walking to Water Tower place and looked in some stores when we were there. We had dinner at the cafeteria downstairs, which turned out to be pretty good! I got penne with vodka sauce and sautéed veggies, Ethan got a rainbow roll, and Sachi got stir fry. We took the train back to Central St. where Momo picked us up. I had a great time and definitely hope do this again!! I am very grateful to Sachi for taking time to spend with us.

Riding the train into Chicago

Lunch!

The Bean!!

Riding on the nest swing

On the slide

Dinner at Water Tower Place

Cat Puzzle

I Finished the Cat Puzzle!

Izzy

6.23.19

    Today I finished the cat puzzle!! I have been working on it a lot the past few days and I was finally able to finish it! I really enjoyed doing this puzzle, even though it was more difficult than the eagle puzzle, and I did most of it by myself. These puzzles are really fun as well as being very artistic.  I would recommend getting one to do with family or friends. There are many designs to choose from and you can even get a custom puzzle with a picture of your choice on it. There is so much detail in each puzzle as in this puzzle that has over 90 cats with each cat being unique!!

The finished cat puzzle!

Toy Story 4

Seeing Toy Story 4!

Izzy

6.24.19

     Yesterday Ethan and I saw Toy Story 4, which was great! It was pretty funny and there were some new characters introduced that I thought were cool and funny and added to the story. Some of these characters are Ducky and Bunny (played by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele) who are really funny stuffed animal prizes at the carnival. Also introduced is Gabby Gabby, an old doll played by Christina Hendricks, who is actually kinda creepy. This movie has a deeper meaning: the toys are trying to find out What is a toy's purpose? and What makes a toy, a toy? When a new toy, Forky, that Bonnie (the girl who owns all the toys) makes, joins the gang, Forky doesn't understand what his purpose is and why Bonnie needs him. The toys go on an adventure where they realize their purpose and meet up with their long lost friend, Bo Peep. Bo Peep helps them get Forky out of trouble and also helps them realize there are many other kids in need of toys, too. The ending was incredible--emotional, real--but I'm not going to spoil it by telling you the ending.  Overall, I really liked this movie because it was funny and adventurous, and was a great way of ending the series. I got to see what the life of a toy might be like and also understand how toys have been an amazing part of my childhood!

Gabby Gabby

Ducky and Bunny

HIGHWIRE LIVE-ETHAN

Highwire Live
By Ethan V.
6-23-19 
                                                Before it Happened
     Today a crazy event is happening in Times Square, New York. Nik Wallenda and his sister Lijana Wallenda are going to walk across a 25 story high wire.
Also in 2017 Lijana fell from a very tall structure with some of her coworkers while doing a practice performance on a stage. This makes it even more crazy that she is going to do it.

     This story has been on Good Morning America for the past week and there are commercials on TV sometimes. We are going to watch it and since the walk is pretty long you can watch for 10 minutes. It's on ABC and I'm excited to watch.I just hope they don't fall because I really don't want to see that today.Also I do not think I would have the guts to do that because #1, I don't hate or like heights (I guess I'm in the middle), and #2 I don't like the feeling that I could fall 25 stories on TV in front of tons of people.

                                                       After It Happened
     The show just ended and both Lijana and Nik made it across safely. The show was supposed  to start at 7:00 and it did but ABC showed tons of ads and videos about Nik and Lijana, although they didn't show stunts. Finally, after an hour and twenty minutes, they did it!They walked the wire and they actually had harnasses so that if they fell they wouldn't die. 

     The whole walk took about 37 minutes and they both made it across with out difficulty and what's cool is that they had mics so the whole time Lijana and Nik could talk to each other and we could here them. Lijana even sang a little.

     This stunt was very cool and hard to watch at some points but it was memorable.

Tree Sculpture

Tree Sculpture!!

Izzy

6.22.19

     In Momo and Jiji's backyard, they had a Weeping Cherry Tree that is now dead. It died from a disease called fire blight which kills trees instantly. This tree is loved by the birds and they love perching on it. Now we have decided to turn it into a sculpture that the birds can continue to hang out on. Today we bought some spray paint that we are going to use to cover the trunk. Momo thought of a great idea--Ethan and I each get to decorate a part of the tree trunk with paint by hand. We get to be creative and do whatever we want! 

     We even hung two bird feeders from the tree today to test out if the birds would notice the feeders in a new spot, but so far it hasn't turned out how we hoped. Some of the birds saw the feeders but  not many were eating from it. We will decorate the tree either way, even if the birds don't want the feeders hanging from it. If they don't catch on to the new placement of the feeders, we'll just put them back in their old spots.

    This tree used to be my favorite tree when I was little. I would hide underneath it because it had long branches that draped to the ground. In the spring, it was covered with pink blossoms. I am sad that this tree is dead, but I'm happy that we will get to turn it into a beautiful sculpture that will hopefully last for a little while!

    Due to the weather, we don't know when we will get to decorate the tree, but I will do another post to update you on the finished sculpture.

This is a weeping cherry tree (not the one in Momo and Jiji's backyard)

This is a dead weeping cherry tree, but ours has fewer branches

Koubou The (AMAZING) Cat!!-ETHAN

Koubou, the (AMAZING) Cat!!
By Ethan V.
6-21-19

     My grandparents have a very entertaining cat named Koubou.He's very funny and here's what he's like.

     First off, last summer on June 17th we officially adopted him from Orphans of the Storm. He was 4 when we got him and we learned that his birthday is February 19th.He is very curious and always has to know where everything is so when he first arrived he checked EVERYTHING out in the house.

     Koubou is also very playful, and if you put a string in front of him and run he will usually try to chase it with you. He will play or exercise with the bottom of your chair by lying under it and kicking it with his back paws. He will play with your foot and one time he even untied Momo's shoes by playing with its laces! He 100% is a very playful cat.

     Of all the cats I've known, Koubou is the most entertaining cat I have ever seen. He just does funny things naturally and you can't do anything but laugh. Momo told me one time when she went down into the basement she heard meowing from above her. She looked up and Koubou was stuck on a vent close to the ceiling and had dust webs hanging from his face.  Another funny thing he did was he took down the curtains!! Yes, he took down the whole curtains while trying to look through the window.

Koubou is the one on the far left.

    Koubou is a crazy funny cat and if you met him you would laugh and be entertained just as we constantly are.We all love Koubou!

Liberty Puzzles!!

Liberty Puzzles!!!

Izzy

6.20.19

   Momo got me and Ethan each a puzzle from Liberty Puzzles, but they aren't ordinary puzzles. Each piece is made of wood and is like a work of art cut into an amazing shape, sometimes a person, animal, or just a very unique shape. Ethan's puzzle portrays an eagle and has many different pictures on the wings and body. Mom, Momo and I already finished it before Mom left on Monday, and we are now working on mine. Ethan's is 375 pieces and mine is 513. Mine is definitely more difficult, not only because it has more pieces, but because the pieces have more of the same pattern and color, so it's difficult to get a section going.  These puzzles are pretty pricey, but definitely worth it for the fun you will have doing them and the resulting work of art.

Here is the link to their website if you would like to look at the different types of of puzzles they have: https://www.libertypuzzles.com

Stage 1 of Ethan's eagle puzzle

Stage 2

Finished!

A picture of the finished cat puzzle

Izzy's cat puzzle!

                                        

Japanese -ETHAN

 Japanese Lessons With Jiji!
By Ethan V.
6-19-19

     Like every year Izzy and I have Japanese lessons with Jiji. They are very fun and I learn a lot. Here's what we've learned so far this summer.

     The first day we had lessons was Monday and we learned the time but just in basic hours. For example, if it's 2 o'clock you would say it's niji. One o'clock is ichiji. We did this all the way up to twelve because there is no 13 o'clock. 

     Yesterday we learned more specific time like minutes.We learned   time like 1:15,1:30, and 1:45. For example: 1:15 is ichiji jugo fundes. We also learned how to say the date and today would be Qo wa roku gatsu jukyu nichi des.

     Today we learned the days of the week in Hiragana. Today is suiyobi or Wednesday. Tomorrow will be mokuyobi and yesterday was kayoubi. Japanese class is really fun because we learn a new language in a fun way with Jiji. I love these lessons and I look forward to the next one.