Our Fourth Day--Tennis Camp and Koubou Coming Home!--Izzy

     Our Fourth Day--Tennis Camp and Koubou Coming Home!

Izzy 

6.18.18

  (Koubou is pronounced ko-bo😁)   

     Today was Mom's birthday. Happy birthday Mom! It was also our first day of tennis camp and we got to bring Koubou home. Our tennis camp is at Lovelace park. Today was very exciting and fun.

     Momo woke us up and we got dressed. We had breakfast, and then put sunscreen and bug repellent on. Momo walked with us to Lovelace, and we arrived really early. We had 20 minutes to hang out before camp started. When camp started, we hit a ball around for a little bit and then did some drills. We took a break and went to the playground. Afterwards, we got to sit in the shade, eat a snack, and do some trivia. If we got a question right, we would get a starburst. I got one and so did Ethan. We played a few more games and then walked home. We had 5 coaches,  1 of which was just here in the morning, and then 2 other coaches came after we had played at the park. 

     When Ethan and I got home, we had lunch and then went to get Koubou from the vet. The vet was in Skokie, so we drove. We brought him back and put him in Momo and Jiji's bathroom, as the shelter had told us to. They said we should leave him in a confined space but leave the door open when we are home so he can explore. If we just let him roam free, he be freaked out and want to hide. We let him roam around, and we found out he is a very curious cat. He jumped up on the bathroom counter, roamed around the top floor, and liked sleeping on Momo and Jiji's bed. We played with hi the whole afternoon, and also had our Japanese lesson. We had dinner and are enjoying our evening.

Koubou sleeping on Momo and Jiji's bed!

Me and Koubou.

Third day--a new cat and exercise!

            Our Third Day--Getting a New Cat and Exercising! 

Izzy Villanueva

6.17.18

Me with Lala!

     Happy Father's Day! Today we got a new cat, exercised with Jiji, and more! Ethan and I exercised with Jiji. We played some ping pong in the living room without a table and did arm, foot, and lifting exercises. Then we drove to Orphans of the Storm and went into the cat wing. We were in a separate room where a bunch of cats were, waiting to being adopted. We picked out a cat named Google, and you can find out more about him and the experience on Ethan's blog post. We changed his name to Koubou, and he is named after the Japanese monk who spread Buddhism throughout Japan because Jiji thought Koubou was a Buddhist cat from the way he slept. I had a nice, friendly, one-eyed cat named Lala, who enjoyed sitting on my lap. Jiji treated us to lunch at Ridgeview in Wilmette. Ethan and I had crepes, and they were so oishii(delicious in Japanese)!!! Then Ethan and I cleaned out some of Koubou's things, like his litter box, travel carrier, and food bowls. We fed Stripey, the feral cat and then had leftovers for dinner. 

Me and Ethan with Lala, the one-eyed cat!

Momo and Jiji's New Cat: Google(Kobo)

Momo And Jiji's New Cat: Google(Kobo)

By: Ethan V

6-17-18

     Today we went to a shelter called Orphans Of The Storm to get Momo and Jiji a new cat and we came up successful!We  found a cat named Google and we renamed him Kobo. Find out how we renamed Google Kobo in Izzy's post if you want to. So anyway he is a white cat with orange splotches. He is very friendly and when we walked into the room he was in, he ran right up to us.He is very cute and gentle. Also Jiji called him a buddhist cat because of the way he sleeps!! the cat that I wanted the most was a cat named Cooper. He was a GIANT white cat with different colored eyes which I thought was very cool about him.  But Cooper was to old so we didn't get him. Sorry, I don't have a pic of Cooper but look below for a pic of Google, the cat we adopted.

Our Second Day in Evanston!--Izzy

Our Second Day in Evanston!

Izzy Villanueva

6.16.18

     Today was hot and humid. All day we prepared for Jiji's homecoming celebration. Ethan and I played on the Wii for a while when Mom was cooking. Sachi came over and we just enjoyed talking and hanging out. When all of the neighbors came over, I helped watch the babies. There was delicious food and lots of variety. Mom and I went to Old Navy after the gathering to get some tank tops for tennis camp. When we got back, Mom, Ethan, and I walked to Lovelace and played a little tennis. We didn't stay long because it was hot and the mosquitoes were eating mom alive! We came back home and wrote in our journals and wrote on the blog. It was a great day!!!

Jiji when he came home!

Jiji's Homecoming Party!!!

    Jiji's Homecoming Party!

By Ethan V.
6-16-18

     Today in the afternoon we had a party for Jiji's homecoming. A lot of Momo and Jiji's neighbors were there from about 2 streets and about 15 people were there which 6 of were kids.  All the food was in the dining room and there was stuff like sushi, cookies, different types of cheese, crackers and some desserts and salads. Izzy and I babysat Tommy and Hannah, the twins of Momo and Jiji's next door neighbors Matt and Stephanie. We played outside a little with them but it was very hot and they wanted to be with their parents inside. I had 2 servings of sushi and it was VERY good.

First Day of Evanston Trip 2018!--Izzy

First Day of Evanston Trip 2018!

Izzy Villanueva

6.15.18

     Today we arrived in Evanston at about 4:00 AM. We took a Lyft back to Momo and Jiji's house and took naps when we arrived. We had breakfast and then went out to run some errands. Mom, Ethan, and I went to Barnes & Noble,  Dick's Sporting Goods, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Jewel. We got some books, tennis rackets, a basket ball, 2 bath bombs, and some groceries. We went back to Momo and Jiji's house and ate lunch. Ethan and I tried Jiji's chairlift and it was fun. It's like a very slow carnival ride on the stairs. Ethan and I had our first Japanese lesson and learned part of a song.

     Later, we all went to look for a new cat at the Evanston Animal Shelter. Sadly, we didn't find one that was the right age and had the perfect personality. We are planning to go on Sunday to Orphans of the Storm to look for a cat. We had Chicago style pizza for dinner, and it was great-as always! Mom and I made chocolate chunk cookies. That was the end of our day!

Special Note: There was lots of cotton in the air because the cotton trees are blooming! You can find it anywhere--on the grass, in trees, or floating through the air!

Me and Ethan holding some cotton!

  

My First Day In Evanston Summer 2018

                           My First Day In Evanston In                                            Summer 2018

By Ethan V

6-15-18

     Today was my first day in Evanston, Illinois with my grandparents Momo and Jiji. My sister, my mom and I took a redeye to Evanston. We got in at about 4:05 a.m. It was FREEZING in the airport.  We took a Lyft back to Momo and Jiji's house. When we got there I took a nap.

     When I woke up, I went downstairs to eat breakfast. After breakfast we had a Japanese lesson with Jiji. We learned 4 lines to a song in Japanese and before our two weeks are done in Evanston, we will hopefully know the whole song. After the Japanese lesson we went on a big shopping run.

     The first store we went to was Barnes and Noble bookstore. Izzy ended up getting a book called "A World Below" and I got two Warriors ( Fiction series about cats) books and a cat named Socks from a Japanese ipad game called Neko Atsume, which means gather the cats.

This is me holding socks the cat and my two warriors books.

     After Barnes and Noble we went to Dicks sporting goods. I got a tennis racket for my tennis camp and a basketball for basketball. When we got home we got right back in the car and went to the Evanston animal shelter to look for a cat  for Momo and Jiji but we ended leaving empty handed sadly but we are going to look for a cat at a different shelter on sunday. For dinner we had pizza and that was my first day in Evanston summer 2018.