Rowan here!!

Hi, this is Rowan Isabella Garcia!

Yesterday wasn't at all like I had expected it to be. I was hoping for a nice quiet entrance, and a day to get settled in my boarding room.
I was surprised by the uproar that our arrival made. I spent the whole day shaking somebody's hand or introducing myself.
It was a long day.
Today was different though! I was able to sink into the background a bit, and enjoy my day at school.
Then I met a girl who calls herself "Kit". (She explained that it was short for Kaitlyn.)
After chatting to me briefly, she asked if I would like to post on her "blog". I hadn't heard much of blogs before, so she had to show me how to make it work.
I just realized that I have typed a lot, and you don't know anything about me.
You know my name, so I will skip that part. I used to live in Mexico, and I had a couple of horses. (They are my favorite animal!) Unfortunately, if the rest of my family decides to move here to be with me, they will have to sell my horses.
My favorite color is bright red. I like shopping. Kit, who is standing behind me, says that I am rambling and that I need to wrap this post up pronto. I don't quite know how she expects me to "wrap it up", it's virtual after all, but I think she means to stop typing.
To please her, I will post a picture of the two of us and her tiger, Tangerine.
Kit is saying that I need to work on my writing skills before she will let me post again. Maybe she is right.
Until next time!
Rowan Isabella Garcia (Kit also says that I don't have to use my full name every time I write it. She is a funny girl.)

New Girls

Hello, this is Kit, again.
It feels a little weird, posting two days in a row, but I couldn't wait very much longer!!
Well, the headmistress of our school was getting very impatient to meet the foreign exchange girls. After a lot of thought, she decided t start school early. Great idea, huh? Not! In an attempt to offset the collective disappointment of a whole school (employees included!) she decided that we would do half-days for about a month. Honestly, I would rather just have a real break.
I dragged myself to school this morning. (Why did she have to start it up again on a Thursday????)
At first it seemed that it would just be a normal day. (Well, semi-normal. I'm not usually back in school this soon after Christmas.)
Most of the students were milling about, trying to find their classes, when all of a sudden everybody froze.
I crashed right into Samantha, and wound up on the floor. I expected her  to say something about it, but she was staring towards the door. I looked too, although I couldn't see anything clearly from the floor.
I was quite surprised at what I saw. Standing in the doorway, looking slightly disorientated, were the three foreign exchange students! They weren't supposed to get here until tomorrow!!
The whole room was silent. I suppose that everyone was thinking exactly what I was, "Gee, they're tall."
Definitely not very intelligent sounding, but that's what my first thought was!!!
As Samantha rushed over to meet the new girls, I scooted over to where Josefina was standing by herself.
Just as I reached her, one of the teachers said loudly that their names were (From left to right) Mei Ling, Rowan Isabella Garcia, and Belen. I didn't quite catch all of Belen's name, or all of the teacher's speech, but apparently Rowan and Belen are cousins.
"Hi Josie!" I chirped.
She acknowledged that I had spoken with a nod.
I cocked my head at her curiously. She usually didn't pass up a chance to talk. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Aren't you excited about the foreign exchange students?"
I guessed from the withering glance that she gave me that she wasn't very excited.
I waited around for a minute or two, hoping for an explanation, but she wasn't offering one. I said goodbye quietly, and went to find Samantha.
Josefina sure is acting weird.
Sorry for the poor quality pictures and rambling post. Rainy days detract from my writing and picture taking skills. ;)
Kit

I'm Back!

Missed me, right???
This is Kit. :)
Sorry about not posting in a couple of days. Mimi has been so busy posting about her sushi tutorials I haven't had a chance too. (I don't like posting twice in one day.)
I tried to convince her that no one was interested in felt sushi, but she didn't believe me. Go figure. It's probably because she already knows that I detest sushi, and don't even like to look at it.
So to summarize, I would have liked to post this the day after Christmas, but didn't get to.
This will be something like a "Look what I got for Christmas!" post, just not quite the same, because there will be news at the end!
First of all, I got an adorable stuffed tiger from my mom and dad!! I named him Tangerine, even though my brother says that Tangerine is a girl's name.
My friend Rita sent a cowboy outfit for me. It came with a shirt, vest, pants, hat, boots, and a hobby horse. I was thrilled. My mom didn't want to buy me a pair of cowboy boots, so I'm glad that I finally got a pair.
I also got some boring school supplies. I am not going to go in detail on these.

My favorite present was probably a pair of Liberty Jane boots! They are so cute and comfortable. Mimi says that they were her present, not mine, but I didn't believe her. They wouldn't even fit her!
She's such a kidder.

I can't say what I got for the secret santa gift exchange yet, because we don't exchange presents until next week.

Anyway, now I will tell you about the big news!
The headmistress of our school sent out an email just a couple of days ago, announcing that we will be getting some new students pretty soon! A few of them are foreign exchange students, but there are some new enrollments too!
I'm so excited to meet them all. I wonder if they will be as nervous as I was when I came last year??

Sorry about the long, and practically picture-less post. I just needed to ramble for a while. ;)

What did you get for Christmas?

Sushi Tutorial, part 3

Box


Cut two pieces of cardboard that are 2" long, and two that are 1¾" long. They all should be ½" wide. 
Glue the two shorter pieces to the longer pieces ends and wait for them to dry. 
Once fairly dry, place on a piece of cardboard and trace around it. 
Cut out the rectangle, and glue it to the bottom of the already glued pieces. 
To make it look like wood, you can either draw or print paper with a wood grain design on it. 
Personally, I had my mother draw paper for me. 
Either way works just about as well, although printing may be slightly quicker. 
Here are two suitable pictures you could print. 
You may have to adjust the size. (Neither picture belongs to me) Darker wood Lighter wood
Cut strips of paper the same size as the sides, top, and inside of the box. 
Squeeze a small amount of glue onto the area you want to cover, and rub it around evenly with your finger, and apply the paper. 
Cover all of the visible cardboard, if possible.


Chopsticks


The chopsticks are admittedly rather underwhelming. 
For mine, I used two toothpicks (I recommend the flat variety.) and colored them with a permanent marker. Wait before they dry to touch your doll, or the sushi!!!! 


I hope you have enjoyed the sushi tutorials! If you make some, comment and tell me!! 


Mimi

Sushi Tutorial, part 2

California Rolls


To make the california rolls, cut felt as shown in picture one.
For all of you who prefer the exact numbers, cut a piece of black that is 1½" long, a piece of white that is 1¼" long, a piece of pink that is 1" long, and a piece of green that is ½" long. 
Stack them as shown.
Roll them together and pin as shown in picture two. 
You shouldn't have to pull to get the black ends to meet, and there shouldn't be a whole lot of extra room inside. 
If there is not enough room, cut the other colors slightly. 
If there is too much room, cut the black felt slightly.
With black thread, sew with a whipstitch where the black ends meet. Try to catch the other colors slightly as you go. 


Egg sushi


Cut a piece of yellow felt that is about ½" wide, and 1" long, a piece of white that is about ¾" long, and a little less wide, and a piece of black about 1½" long, and very skinny. 
Stack the yellow and white as shown. 
Wrap the black piece around the yellow and white, having ends meet on the white side. 
Sew through all layers with black thread, making sure to stay on the black piece.


Tomorrow I will show you how to make the box and chopsticks! 

Sushi Tutorial, part 1

The highly awaited sushi tutorial is now here!! Think of it as sort of a late Christmas present. ;)
I am going to post it in three parts, probably one part a day.
If you have any questions, feel free to comment below and ask them!

Pickled Ginger


For the pickled ginger (the pink flower-like thing) cut a piece of felt approximately 3 ½" long, and  ¼" thick. 
Wrap it up and stick a pin through it as shown in the first picture. 
Turn it over and sew into the bottom of it as shown in the second picture. (Please excuse the poor quality pictures.)

Rice balls 

My confession for the day: I forgot to take pictures as I made the rice balls. So, I made visuals on Photoshop.
As you can see in the first picture, you will need to cut a shape close to a lemon out of white felt.
The line across the lemon shape is the fold line.
The gray area represents the size of the black piece you will need to cut for the seaweed.
It should fit be able to fit on the folded piece of white felt as shown in picture two.
Before folding the white piece, pin the black piece onto the white as shown in picture one. Sew it down neatly.
Fold the felt in half with the black facing the outside. Sew around the edge of the white. (I used a blanket stitch, but a whipstitch or running stitch will work just as well.)
Before you finish sewing around the outside edge, stuff the rice ball with a small amount of stuffing.

Tomorrow I will show you how to make the Californian rolls and egg sushi!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

With love from Mimi, Kaya, Josefina, Samantha, Kirsten, Eliza, and Kit. 

Sushi!!

Hi, this is Kirsten!!
I don't think I've ever mentioned it on this blog, but I love exotic foods. Some of my favorites are chinese food and japanese food.
We don't have a lot of either around here unless there is a special occasion.
The other day I was complaining to Samantha because of my lack of Japanese food, and I guess Mimi overheard.
In an hour or so, I was presented with a beautiful little Japanese bento box!
I was thrilled. It even came with chopsticks!!
If any of you are interested, Mimi will post a tutorial on the making of the sushi, box, and chopsticks. Please comment if you are interested!
Well, I'm off to enjoy my sushi!
Kirsten

Winter Wonderland

"Come on Josie!" I yelled from the top of our steps.
As I waited impatiently, I realized for the millionth time that although we are twin sisters, Josefina and I are nothing alike.

Her idea of a fun day would be an all day shop-a-thon at the mall with our cousin, Tabitha Garcia.

My idea of a fun day would include being dropped off at an art museum with some money for food and a camera. Or, if that didn't work out, I wouldn't mind going to the park and playing with a frisbee or a football.

As our ideas of fun were so different, there was absolutely no way that Josefina wanted to spend her Saturday morning out walking around the neighborhood, which was what I wanted to do.
After a while, Josefina eventually dragged herself out of our bedroom very reluctantly.
"Kaya," she said. "I don't see why you think it will be so much fun to walk around. The only walking I really like doing is in a store."
I already knew that.
I just smiled, and ran down the stairs. I threw open the front door and let the crisp air rush into the house in a big blast.
Josefina made a face. "So there's no chance you want to stay home and watch movies?" she asked hopelessly.
I shook my head vigorously, and ran outside.
She followed me out. She had to, because our parents were at one of their dance classes this morning, and we were supposed to stick together.
As pleasant as the weather was, I couldn't quite believe that it would be Christmas in two weeks. It felt like mid September, not mid December.
"So," Josefina asked. "Where are we going first?"
I thought for a moment, and looked around. The sidewalk to the left looked very attractive, but to the right it was lovely. Leaves spilled off of the grass and onto the sidewalk. Trees, still stubbornly clinging to their remaining leaves, created a tunnel of color.
I started walking briskly to the right.
"Wait up!!" Josefina yelled indignantly as she followed me.
It was beautiful. The sky was bright blue, and the sun shone down brilliantly. The air was thin and chilly, but still quite pleasant.
I had a great time, walking in the winter world. I believe that Josefina was enjoying herself to, but she wouldn't admit it.
As we passed by the playground, we watched leaves swirling towards the already covered ground. The playground was quiet and still, except for one swing, which swung cheerfully back and forth.

It seemed that she and I were the only people outside.

"You know something Kaya?" Josefina said at a length. "We're walking in a winter wonderland of sorts."

I had to agree.

Secret Santa Gift Exchange!

Hi! This is Kit writing.
This year my school is doing a Secret Santa gift exchange. I'm pretty excited about it; I haven't ever been in one before!
My teacher announced it this morning. After quite a bit of explanation, she had us all write our names and interests on a slip of paper. Then we put the papers into a box.
She shook the box up, and passed it around so we could each take a slip of paper.
I carefully unfolded my paper. It said, in very tidy handwriting, "Molly McIntire". 
I was struck speechless. What are the odds that I would get the name of my friend??
I sneaked a sly peek at Molly, who was sitting across the room from me. She was staring absently into space and chewing on the end of her pencil. I cringed inwardly. I have always been disgusted by that habit.
I looked back at the tiny slip of paper that I was holding, and tried to think of what I knew about Molly. The paper said that she liked lizards, and that her favorite color was green.
From my experiences with her, I know that she has a dog and a lizard, and is fond of sports, games, and baking.

Any suggestions about what I should get for her?
Kit

Playing Wii Sports!

Hi, this is Kit!
In case you don't know, I love baseball. I play it, and watch it on TV every chance I get.
Today, my baseball team had a game. We lost miserably.
I was at home, watching baseball in my pajamas when Samantha called me.
"Hi Kit!" she said, a little too chipper. "I heard about your baseball game."
"Yeah." I said, looking out of my window at the rain washed world outside.
"Well...." she suggested. "Do want to come to my house? You can play baseball on my Wii!"
I was touched. Not that Samantha isn't generous, but she has never offered to let me play on her Wii. And also, Samantha isn't really a baseball kind of girl.
I didn't need any time to think this over. "All right, I'll be over in a little while!"
I hung up, and turned the TV off. I didn't mind missing the game, the team I was rooting for was losing anyway.
I ran to my room and changed out of my pajamas and into something warmer.
"Where are you going?" My mother asked curiously as I ran down the stairs.
"Oh I'm going to Samantha's house!" I explained as I ran out the door.
I breathed a deep breath of the crisp winter air. It felt great as it shivered down my throat and into my lungs.
I was filled with energy by the time that I had pulled my bike out of the shed.
It isn't too far to Samantha's from my house on bike. I was there within five minutes.
She greeted me at the door, and showed me to her game room.
We were quickly settled on the sofa, and set to work making Mii's. If you don't know what a Mii is, you might check this out.
Our Mii's turned out very cute.
We quickly moved onto baseball. I have to say, it is nothing like real baseball, but it is quite entertaining. I enjoyed myself quite a bit, although the Wii remotes are a little hard to handle.
Check out Mimi's album of pictures of us playing Wii!
I don't know if this afternoon will actually help my playing skills in the long run, but it sure did lift my spirits a little!!
Oh by the way, I won the baseball game. :)

Kit Kittredge, Wii Baseball Extraordinaire

The Snow Queen

On a cold winter's night, 

No snow on the ground. 

The vale was still and bright,

For none were around.

A thrill filled the cold air,

From a merry twinkling.

The Snow Queen was there,

Her sleigh bells all jingling.

The girl, she was quite fair.

She was clad all in white.

With her flowing brown hair, 

The Queen was a fine sight.

As she leapt from her sleigh,

The girl laughed, just for fun.

But she could not delay,

There was work to be done.

Without a single tune,

Without any routine,

She danced under the moon,

For she was the Snow Queen.

As if held by a string,

She pirouetted, pranced.

All through the evening,

The girl danced, and she danced.

Snowflakes swirled all around,

Chasing after her hem.

Until snow did abound,

On all the leaves and stems.

Two cliffs she danced between,

A spectacular show. 

All around the Snow Queen,

Danced the fluffy white snow. 

At the first morning light,

The Queen's large task was done.

She had toiled through the night.

A snow day had begun. 

She drove off, and left there,

A valley fresh and clean.

To stay, she did not dare,

For she was the Snow Queen.