Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Rollin` down the hills

Today… was pretty fun. We went to the rolling hills water park, which is in a county which`s name I can`t remember but it started with a “w”. Before we got there, we went to little Caesar’s to get lunch, which we had when we got to the water park (IT WAS AWESOME!!)*. My favorite thing is probably the wave pool (WAVE POOL!!! WOOHHH!!!!!!)By far. I was hanging out with my friends Dennis, Robert, and two girls, Who I can`t remember their names,(why does that happen?) but one`s Chinese & Japanese, while the other is Indian. All the things we did were: the lazy river (the boring part (snore), the play scape, (not so bad,) also the slides (ditto as the p.s. (play scape) wave, (WAVE POOL!!WAVE POOL! )Pool. What Dennis and I would do is while the wave pool was not doing the waves, we would swim out, then as we were on the back wall when the bell rang, we would start to swim away and then ride the waves back to the shore and then start fighting the waves (WHICH WAS AWESOME!!!) and wait until it went down again. I really enjoyed this, (yah really!) and it was not at all too bad.
Ekul=Luke
* I am two people in this, one is my calm side, and the other is my excited side (this). Thank you!

Monday, July 27, 2009

Camp Mirage Splashes of Time

I had a good time today. My counselors were Brighit and I can`t remember the other counselor`s name but I think it was Ann or something. I made friends with 2 people, Robert, and Dennis. After we went to the canteen, we got into the van, and started driving. When we got there I was starting to get really excited! The first thing they did was tell us what we were going to be doing, which was a test to see if our equipment was working, and if we sunk when we pressed a button and if we needed weights to help us. Then after that they taught us regulator recovery which was if you lost the regulator, that you could get water out of it and continue breathing. Then they showed us the air gauge which showed how much air you had left. After that, we got free reign! (We just had to make sure we didn`t run into somebody) I swam to the bottom, and I saw a little window that let people look into the pool from below, it was awesome! The only bad thing that happened was I dived down and forgot to put my regulator in, but I remembered the regulator recovery and did the action and was able to stay underwater. After that awesome thing, we got lunch at Tom`s root-beer stand I got a cheese-burger with fries, and then we left and then I was left waiting for tomorrow to come and the adventure it`ll bring!!!
The other exciting thing that happened today was my dad came home from France and it was really, really a nice surprise! I forgot that he was coming home today.
Ekul=Luke.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Party, Party, Party!

Today we went to Maeve and Kenny’s birthday parties. At Kenny’s we played hide-n-seek and shot bubble rockets. (Rocket, actually.) Then we went to Maeve’s party. It was a carnival! And there were games, you could go swimming plus, a bounce house. I swam, then went in the bounce house. After I played a second of a game with Rory. After a second, I did games. I played:
· Whipped bubble gum
· Bean bag in the mouth
· Duckie
· Lollipop tree
Explanations: Whipped bubble gum: you put two pieces of bubble gum on a plate, cover it with whipped cream, then see who can blow a bubble first. Bean bag in the mouth: try to shot a bean bag in the alien’s mouth. Duckie: Try to get a duck with an orange spot on the bottom of it. Lollipop tree: Same thing except lollipops. Then we had to leave.

Also, last night, I was taking a bath, we had the door open, so pierre came in.[he escaped]. He climbed up on the ledge of the bathtub, went to the corner, and jumped in. Can you belive it?!??????????????! Pierre is one weird cat.

bye!

Olivia

Carnival + birth-day+ b-day= MASSIVE FUN!!!

As the title reads I had two birthdays to go to, and one was carnival-based. During the first one, my cousin Kenny`s, didn`t have a theme. What we did was: I played power rangers, with Tyee & Kenny, then we all played hide and seek, (even Sadie and Livi). I was it most of the time though. Then the second one was with our mom`s friend`s daughter`s birthday (who is also our friend, weird how it works, huh?). We mostly went in the pool, but also I played a certain game twice, it was where you had to get some gum out from under whipped cream and blow a bubble. There was also a game where you pulled a sucker out of a “tree” and if it had an orange spot, you won (you got to keep the sucker.). I earned three tickets and got a gift card to target. So really today wasn`t bad at all!!!

Ekul=Luke

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Star wars: Jedi alliance

A crumbling Republic, massive clone armies, and lots of Jedi hacking, droid slashing, monster beatings. What else could a star wars fanatic wish for?? Only the perfect story for the game, that`s what!! The story of the game is that a cargo shipment, full of Jedi crystals, has been attacked, and a team of two Jedi go to investigate. That is not the whole story, only a small fragment, but the whole game revolves around the mystery of the crystals and the new foes, the night sisters. All the major characters are: Anakin skywalker, Obi-wan Kenobi, Ashoka tano, Mace windu, Plo Koon, and Kit fisto. The minors are: the clones and the droids. The point of the game is to find out who took the crystals, why, and how, it takes you across various worlds and planets sometimes even a few times! So in all it`s one of the best games I`ve played.

Ekul=Luke

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

North America?!?

Today (at Zoo Camp) we did North America and the art gallery. At the art gallery, I drew Sedna, a raven, a woman with wings, and a inuit shape-shifter who was a walrus. Here are they’re stories. Sedna married a hunter who had really a raven. He took her to his nest. She called to her father. Her father pushed her of the boat. She clung on, and for fear she would capsize the boat, he cut her fingers off. They became seal, walrus, fish, whale. Then we went to north America. We saw: wolverines, bald eagles, scarlet macaws, byson, and elk. After drawing a bit, we went home, so BYE! BYE!

Olivia

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

JUMANGJI



Dart shooting plants, crazy monkeys, a wild stampede, and a magical board game called Jumangji. Also, a gun toting lunatic. If you ask me, It`s TOTALLY WICKED!!! In the beginning, A boy named Allan, and a girl named Sarah, find a game called Jumangji. Allan gets sucked into it and Sarah is attacked by bats. 26 years later, a new family moves in and the children, Peter and his sister Judy, find Jumangji. Once they started, Peter rolls a 5 and Allan returns, They find Sarah, to finish the crazy game. That`s all I`m gonna` spill, so watch the movie and you`ll see how it ends! (p.s. IT`S AWSOME!!) The characters are: Peter, who turns into a half monkey late into the movie, Judy, Peter`s sister, nothing bad happens to her except at the end, Allan, one of the original players of the game, and Sarah, Allan`s girlfriend, and the other original player. Things to notice: Monkeys, lots and lots of `em!! Crazed explorer. Straight from Jumangji, and, he wants to kill Allan because he rolled the dice. So really it`s a good movie if you like jungle adventure and near death experiences. WICKED!!!!!!!!!!
Ekul= Luke!!!!!!!

PS- Have fun playing with the monkey-you can make him swing from branch to branch by pointing to branch with the mouse and then clicking on it. Mom added it-isn't it cool?

Monday, July 20, 2009

Huh?

Today we went to the zoo. I had zoo camp. My camp is called gator strator. What we do is draw pictures of the animals. Today we did amphibians . we drew what our favorite amphibians were.I drew the hellbender.It’s like a newt or salamander. We also looked at the amphibians. Then it was time to go home. I love zoo camp!



olivia

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Awesome!: Meadville gazette

Super Mario 64 DS

A damsel in distress, 4 brave heroes, and a big fat, Japanese kappa monster. What else could a Mario gamer ask for? Nothing except for an awesome finish to a perfect game!! The game that I am talking about is Mario 64 for DS, it is one of my favorite games and I am at the end of this game. The story is: peach invites Mario to tea with her, but Luigi and Wario end up coming too. Then all three get trapped inside of rooms, there special are paintings in other parts of the castle that hold the keys to the rooms. You are probably wondering who you play as in the beginning, the answer is Yoshi! He is a dinosaur who can use Mario, Luigi, and Wario hats to transform into the bros and anti-plumber! The objective is to rescue peach by using all 4 heroes (though Mario has to be used for the last battle) and collect all the stars! I think it`s a great game and so you gamer people out there get it because it`s awesome!!!!!!
Ekul=Luke

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Kittys!

Today we might be getting a new kitten. Mom and me were at camping when the idea came up. One of the houses by the vineyard that we were going to had free kittens. So we went inside and the kittens we saw were too young, and she couldn't find the ones that were old enough, so we decided to get a kitten. So we searched online and found a couple we like. So now we're going to maybe bring a kitten home!

LATER..........................

We got the kittens! The names are Pierre and Charlette. They are both gray. The only difference is there collars.


Today we went to Mrs. Marys. We played in the pool and held kittens. The game we played was where Maeve was a princess and me and rory were Shape-shifters and us and Luke were tring to save her from her Uncle Hades who puts her in the underworld. Actually before that we we playing a game where our father put us on a ship because of a war; then Maeve got kiddnapped and we did the whole Atlantis-Underworld thing. Afer that we had dinner it was corn, pork and pom fretes (for your information, means french fries in French.) I like it. Then we had to clean up and leave. I hope we go there again. It's really, really, really, really fun goning to Maeve and Rory's house. I hope we go again soon.

Cat Call! X Fun!


Today was the best day ever! First, we got two new cats, Pierre and Charlett (see picture). Then we went to Maeve and Rory's house with P. and C. When we

there we played a game. In the game Maeve was a daughter of Posiedon being forced to marry Hade's oldest son, Nicko di Banshalno. The character are: Ekul (me): a half-Phantom who will protect his firends fiercly. Alex (Maeve): Posiedon's daughter, forced to marry Hade's oldest son, the otter twins (Livi and Rory): I have no story for these two. What happens is Alex is abducted, and we have to save her and deafeat Hades. So really, it was AWSOME!!!!

Ekul=Luke

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Life Is A Highway (with gamers too)

As the title says, we drove for most of the day. While we were driving, I was playing a video game called Final Fantasy, Olivia was reading a book, Bella was, er, singing, and the adults were talking. As in the subtitle I had played my game as mentioned earlier which in it I am on the final level. In the characters I can play as and are playing as: Ekul: a male selkie who is my main character, Juliet a female selkie who is one of my favorite characters and is a bow fighter, Arn is a male clavat who I like to think of as Juliet’s bodyguard, and then finally there is Novice who is another male selkie who had started out as a mage but I turned into a pretty good fighter. The main objective is to defeat Larkeus who resides at the top of a tower and is inside of a library. Once I defeat him, I’ll have beaten one third of the game. So really when we were driving home, the ride wasn’t bad. I loved it except for leaving Uncle Mark, Aunt Amy, Nana and Bumpa and Alex.
Ekul=Luke

Camp Fun

Two days after we got home from France we went camping. Who we were camping with was: Aunt Amy, Uncle Mark, Alex, Nana, Bumpa, Uncle Ben, Aunt Sarah, and Bella. And of course: Rosland, Napolean (I'll tell you that story later), McDuff, and Quail. The reason for Sky being called Napolean is this. Sky kept barking at anything that passed by. He would go exceptionally crazy when a dog would go by. SO nana shouted at him one time" NAPOLEAN" and it stuck. On the first full day, we went to go to the winerys. We almost got a kitten that day. That relates to today because we were just looking at kittens. We found one we like. Anyway, back to camping. So we went to Michigan Select and wine, Clairessa, and a few others that I don't remember. The second day was more exciting that the first. We picked blueberries and found the chocolate place. Their stuff is the best in the world. The third day was swim in Lake Michigan, play Apples to Apples. It wasn't funny as the last time though. Fourth, GAME DAY!!We play cribbage, boggle and that was pretty much it. Then we had to leave :( And now, I'm sitting here writing my blog!

Olivia

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Mom note

They will continue to write thier blog but we will have to update the site after July 17th. With the laptop in France, we won't have a way to update it while we are camping. Wish us no accidental 9 miles hikes! Until then. . .

Paper Mario

Okay hold on, I got a really good beginning piece “When a world is on the brink of destruction, only one hero can save it all,(different pictures of people saying the same name different ways.) “Mario?” “Mario.” “MMAAARIIIIIOOO!” “Mario bros. go!!!” “Curse you Mario, you filthy plumber!!!!!!!!”. In Mario the thousand year door! (Available only on Nintendo game cube. rated E for everyone.) Okay, not really a good starting piece but I wanted to do it. I was helping mom pack today and playing with K.c. one of my friends. Then I asked my mom if I could play a game and she said yes. The game I had Chosen was an old one called Paper Mario the thousand year door. It was really fun and I was really good at it because I was far in the game close to the end. In the game the characters are: Mario: the brave plumber is rescuing Peach (yet again.)Peach: captured by the infamous “x-nauts” she befriends T.E.C a super computer who want to help save Peach From his master Grodus`s evil plans. Bowser: with a brain the size of Kammy koopa`s teeth(she has none.) he wants to steal Peach, the crystal stars, and a ”legendary” treasure which nobody except Grodus knows is an ancient demon to destroy the world!(muhahahahahahahhaaaaa!!!) There are 6 individual sidekicks that have special powers. It all revolves around the crystal stars which can imprison the demon and, release it. I am so close I might win!!!
Ekul=Luke

Friday, July 10, 2009

Mario Bros RPG (BONZAI)

Today when I was reading Nintendo Power I saw a new game for Mario called Bowser’s Inside Story. It is for DS and it has funny lines, funny characters, new people, and a lot of 2D platforming RPG action. Speaking of which these are the people I know of in the game: Mario a main character, Luigi Mario’s brother, and other main character Bowser the third main character a big brawny doofus, finally Fawful that guy is a cuckoo person who looks as if he is a robot on a floating platform but very, very smart. In the game a mysterious disease called the blorbs is invading the kingdom and even Bowser wants to help with the research. After a quick fi1ght in the beginning Bowser meets Fawful , eats a special mushroom that turns his breath intake into a hurricane and sucks every single person that was in the meeting into his stomach (ewwwww). The objectives in the game is for the Mario bros to save Peach and get out of Bowser’s stomach while Bowser has to work with the Mario Bros to defeat Fawful, get his castle back and get rid of the disease. Really I think this is a good game and so I think I might want to get it because it looks very interesting and kind of challenging which I like my games sometimes. So completely I am going to hope that I would get this game when it comes out because it seems really interesting and I think I would very much like it.
Ekul=Luke

ZZZ.......Tired

Yesterday we went home. I was sad about leaving France. I was really, really, really sad about leaving Dad. When we got home, it was 4:45. In France, it would have been 10:45. We were tired, so that was the reason we were tired, because we were used to time in France. When we got home, we had lunch, which was mac-n-cheese. I lay down on the couch. Then I got my pjs on. I got in bed and that all I can remember after t hat. After I woke up, I asked Mom how long was I asleep? And she replied, “A long time.” This Sunday we’re going camping with Uncle Mark, Aunt Amy, Alex, Nana, Bumpa, Uncle Ben. Aunt Sarah, and Bella. Mom said that we were having a game day, so we bought some water balloons. I would like to hit Uncle Ben with a water balloon. That would be fun. Hee Hee!

Olivia

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

France

Today was our last full day at France. Today, mostly all we did was pack, read, pack, game, read, game, pack, pack, pack, write blog. We had to stay inside today because it was raining. After packing a bit, we went to the 39 Clues hunt online. We are Ekatarinas. There are four branches of the Cahill family, Lucian, Tomas, Janus, and last but not least, Ekatarinas. These are the traits of each branch Tomas: strong but dumb. Rivals: Janus/everyone. Ekaterinas: smart and brainy, not strong. Rival: Lucian/everybody. Lucian: smart, have other people find their clues for them. Rival: Ekaterinas/everybody. Janus: very crafty, love art, I guess most artists are Januses. Rivals: Tomas/everyone. So we went online and then put our cards in the gallery and then played some games. What the games were were missions. We matched card pairs, charmed a snake and went submarining and flying. That was basically all we did.

The thing that I will miss most about France is Daddy.

Olivia

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Mom’s turn- My reflection on visiting France

When looking at the blog the other day, Olivia commented that it was a family experience and that I should have a turn at writing. Well, it’s been a rainy day and since we’ve been hanging out inside all afternoon and Ted just called to let me know that Mike would be late, I thought I’d give it a go. Be forewarned, I tend to be a bit verbose, which Olivia, means I will write a lot.

The kids have written everyday about their “adventures” and I believe that this really is a misnomer. We have not found the “adventure” that many of my friends found on their trips. In fact, I’m sure it seems as if the kids aren’t doing much, although I can tell you that they are quite content. What we have been able to create here is a little piece of home for all of us, complete with our normal routine. At home, we would spend our time reading, swimming, visiting, and running errands before Mike came home to join us for dinner. We have the same life here. Every day we run the errand of getting bread or postcards and then head to the playground. We go for a hike (unfortunately one time it was accidentally for 9 miles!). We also read and have got to do something that we have not been able to in a long time. We have taken the time to read aloud and enjoy a book together, 2 so far. We swim and, thanks to Skype, get to visit with friends and family every day. And each evening, we are able to spend time with Mike.

In many ways, I feel as though I have cheated my children out of that fabulous European trip. No sightseeing, no museums. I know that there is an issue with my own discomfort and also with having the money to pay for admissions, a car, gas, etc. . . We are also at the mercy of Mike’s work schedule. The first 4 days we were here, he was working nights! And our main objective is to see him, no matter how much we would have liked to spend a couple days in Paris seeing the Eiffel tower and visiting the Louvre. But I also know that I have done much better at the one thing Luke said I was not good at, doing nothing.

I am thankful that I had this opportunity. I have been overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of the people of La Petite-Pierre. People have said that the French are very rude. This must have been a reflection of the person who said it because everyone we have met has smiled and wished us “Bon Jour!”. In a part of France where the two language options are French and German, we learned ways to understand each other. Like the little boy who couldn’t understand why I was telling him that I couldn’t speak French, when I was speaking French and who attempted to tell us his name (which much to his horror we completely mispronounced) or the wonderful old lady who wanted to tell me something about my children as we were walking down the street but after learning that I only spoke English had to just shrug and smile. Or the waitress at one of the restaurants that we frequented who would bring the English menu and the French one so that I could find what I wanted and then show her on the French menu. And the hoteliers! They have been so kind to give us 2 bedroom suites at the same rate they were giving Mike his one bedroom room so that we could be more comfortable as a family.

While here, I read our July book The Glass Lake, Mom said that that’s what I was doing, vacationing in a town like Lough Glass. Oui! I have enjoyed our trip here. I don’t think I will look at it with the wistful look many of my friends have. I most definitely did not take in the exotic tastes of France but I have loved the bread! I do think someday I would like to come back and travel as a tourist with Mike. Someday, I would like to see the Louvre. But for now, I’m excited to be heading home and will anxiously be awaiting Mike’s 2 weeks(hopefully) with us before he heads to Germany.

Micke D's place

This part of yesterday was rather, interesting. Mom and Dad had wanted to go to an Italian restaurant, but it was closed. There was a McDonald's near by right next to it so we went there instead. Apparently they actually do have McDonald's in France (WooHoo!) I had saw that they had 1. a play structure like in America. 2. was way more crowded. 3. Even the menu was French! I ordered a happy meal which had 4 chicken nuggets, french fries (we are in France people!), and applesauce (I gave that to Dad). Mom said I could have ice cream if I ate my applesauce. I didn't. But when we got back to the hotel, the Concierge came up and gave us some ice cream. That was awesome! Then today we walked down to the bakery for the last time because it is closed tomorrow and we are leaving Thursday. I had an escargot vanille which is a pastry that looks like a snail shell. I liked it except for the custard inside in the middle. I'm really going to miss France.

Ekul=Luke

Monday, July 6, 2009

One hour hike-->5 hour hike


Hmmm. . . . .Bon Jour , or, Bon Soir? Today we didn't go for a walk/hike. Know why?. . . . .Yesterday?. . . . .BINGO!!!!!!! What happened yesterday was this. We were playing and Mom said "Let's go for a hike." So we went down a trail that we had never been down before. We didn't know where we would end up. So we get out at this random place, and go the wrong way. We went hiking for at least 1 to 3 miles before Mom realizes that we're going the wrong way. So. . . . .hehheh.


Today was pairs day. I saw two cats, slugs, snails, and everything else you can imagine. Altogether, there were 164 pairs, mostly trees. We even bought 2 postcards and we mailed them today.


I look forward to seeing everybody when we get home. Au Revoir!


Olivia


PS Happy Birthday Mrs. Mary and Millie!!!

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Ow?

Today wasn't very agreeable. It started out okay, but after the hike, unnnn. NOT good. We decided to go down a trail. At the end of the trail, we went the wrong for about a mile. Then it looked a little brighter when we started heading the right way. This is the not so bad part I got a blister which popped and pain in my foot then all of us got "somehow" cut by blades of grass (does that even make sense?). Then we got so tired I have no idea how I could walk that far, that long but when we finally got back here we washed our feet and ate some lunch. I really wish we hadn't gotten lost in the first place, but hey, that's what happens.

Ekul=Luke

PS-Happy Birthday Uncle Ben!

Saturday, July 4, 2009

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. . . .


Today was . . . .boring? BINGO! (you have now earned a million dollars :) ) Most of what we did was read. We read Percy Jackson and The Last Olympian. We found out several things like who was the spy, who was the oracle, and who was the hero, who was not-the-hero, who the clue giver was, and who Charlie was waiting for (S). After we read the rest of Percy Jackson, we went for a hike. We found the actual castle this time. YEA!!!! We had to go back after that. For a little while we read Beyond The Grave while the lady cleaned our rooms. That was all we did today. Au Revoir!

Olivia

Friday, July 3, 2009

Walk, Walk, Walk, Rain, Read

As said by the title, we had a long walk and read. Dad had left early so we walked to the bakery for some bread because that is usually what we have for dinner. This time we had it for lunch. We also walked some trails, and after that we played on the swings which was pretty fun. When we got back we read some Percy Jackson which is a book. So far in the Percy Jackson series, Silena from the Aphrodite cabin made the Ares cabin follow her in the battle against the drakon dressed as Clarisse. Then the real Clarisse (the real one) killed the drakon, but Silena had died because it had spat poison in her face. In the book, I’m hoping she goes to the hero’s place in the underworld where Beckendorf her boyfriend is because he had died from an explosion on the Princess Andromeda. Except for the rain mentioned in the title, today was an absolutely fine day and it stopped raining now.

Ekul=Luke

Thursday, July 2, 2009

NEW HOTEL

This morning we went to a new hotel, (in France, of course). We were staying at Au Lion d'Or. The hotel we are staying at now is La Clariere. Here, they have two pools. At Au Lion d'Or they only had one (une). This hotel isn't under construction at least. For a while we read The Last Olypian. Then we had lunch. We had salad (the salad was dandelion leaves, tomatoes, alphalfa, cucumbers, carrots and a little decoration thingy which we tried to eat but tasted really bad), soup with alphalfa in it, hamburgers with onion in it, fries, and ice cream. I love France!

*#:)1! Olivia

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

HIKE!

Despite the title, today wasn't football. (Do we have football in France?) We went for a walk (hence the title), played a game and ate French pizza (whoo hoo yum!). After Dad left we read some Percy Jackson, which I enjoyed. Then I played FFCCEOT because I wanted to beat something. Then we went for a walk which had a good part and a bad part. I don't want to talk about the bad part but the good part was that we got to play and we found a castle. So today wasn't so bad bad because we did what we wanted.

Ekul=Luke