Spain!

 In June, from June 9th until June 26th, me and my family went to Spain! We went with our good friends, the Neilly's! It was so fun! First, we drove to Chicago, then flew to Madrid, then flew to Portugal, and on the way back, drove to Portugal, flew to Madrid, and then flew to Chicago!

On our plane ride to Portugal, Cora and Evaline got the window seat.

Our first stop in Spain was Ponferrada!

We first checked in at the hotel, then we walked around. It's so pretty! 

 In the morning, we went to a medieval castle! It was so cool and pretty!

After that, we went to Logrono, where we just happen to have stumbled upon a local
festival!

The next places we visited was San Sabastian! It was my favorite
place we went to in Spain - the big city aspect of it, the coastal, the food.
If you ever go to Spain I would recommend going there.

We spent a whole afternoon at the beach! It was super fun - it was 
the first time I've swan in the ocean since I was in Florida, when I was three!

We also spent a lot of time just walking around town - it was so beautiful! 

The morning we left, we went to France for a little bit, as 
San Sabastian is right on the boarder with France, and ate brunch there!

The next stop was the Asturias mountains, specifically Picos De Europa! 
We spent a week there - two different spots. The first spot, the Bufones de Pria (you
should look that up- it's so pretty, but even prettier in person!) was right
 behind our airbnb! There was a little beach there, too, that we spent a lot of time at!

We don't have any pictures of the other place, but we stayed right at the top of 
a mountain! 

The final place we went to was A Coruna! Again, it was a super pretty
big coastal town! We walked around a lot - it was so pretty! I know

I say that about almost everything in this trip, but it's true, it was!

We went to the Tower Of Hercules! It's the oldest still functioning Roman Lighthouse
in the world! It's from all the way back when Rome still had control over Spain.

We were in A Coruna during the time of San Juan, which celebrates
Saint John the Baptist. It's one of Spain's biggest festivals, with HUGE bonfires and
fireworks. 

Then, we left. On the plane ride back home to Chicago, my mom said I slept
the majority of the 8 hours we were on the plane!

Summer and Start of School

     I honestly am surprised that I haven't posted since June. I highly doubt that anyone still reads this, but if you do, sorry!

    Anyways, we've been pretty busy! For almost all of June, we were in Spain (I will post about that later).

Only a couple days after Spain, we went to camp wapsie!

Me and my friends Sarah and Ben did Tennis over the summer.
We made tennis bags!

Sometime in July, we went to see Waitress at TCR!

In early August, I had my 12 year shots, and after we went to Starbucks!

On August 23rd, we had our first day of school.

The next day, the 24th, we had my birthday party, then on the 27th, I had my 12 birthday!

Cora and Evaline started Football Cheer!

Sometime in mid September, we went to the Hibachi place with 
some family friends!

This past week was Homecoming week! I went to the parade with some friends and

football game, and Cora and Evaline went to Homecoming on Friday!

And then, on Saturday, I took a babysitting class and we went

to the Burning Red-Tribute to Taylor Swift concert at the Paramount! 

Beforehand, we went to dinner at the Black Sheet

Last Week Of School!

     It's officially summer! The last week of school was pretty busy for us. I had a singing recital, soccer tournament, and the 5th grade celebration.

On May 5th, my family went to go see the musical "Chicago"! It was so good!

Last weekend, from the 31st to the 2nd, my soccer team had our 
soccer tournament. We did really well - placed 5th! In the fall, we didn't
win any games or score any goals, but this year we won six games, and
scored a goal in every single one, except for one!

The first game we played on Saturday, it was SUPER rainy, but we won 
2-0!

Between the two games on Saturday, I had my singing recital. I sand 
Gary Indiana as a duet, Baby Mine by myself, and All For You by myself.

On the Monday of the last week of school, June 3rd, my school had our
5th grade celebration. Basically, everyone made a board celebrating and honoring
all the work they made in the 6 years of elementary school, and then you
get to show it off to adults and fellow classmates. Also, there are cupcakes,
water, and a slideshow about our favorite memory in the cafeteria. Next year,
I am going to a different middle school than all of my friends. I only know one
person who is going to the same middle school as me, but I am still 
super excited (and a little nervous) for middle school.

The day before school got out, the 5th graders had our annual water ballon toss,
which is just what it sounds like. You have a partner, and you throw a water balloon 
and try to catch it. If you caught it and it popped, you are out, or if you don't catch 
it, you're out. My partner was my mom, and one time she did catch it, but
it popped as soon as she caught it. She got soaked!

After that, we had a water balloon relay with only the 5th graders. I was standing
in line, waiting for my turn, when my mom grabs a water balloon and says
"Willa, think fast!", then threw the water balloon at me. I got even more soaked than
my mom did.

On Thursday, June 6th, was our last day of school. My sisters had to go to
school extra early for some reason. I'm pretty sure it has to do with them being in
Student Leadership. 

Yesterday, June 7th, my family and I went to a cute little ice cream parlor in Czech
Village. My mom and Cora shared their try four flavors thing, Evaline got a cherry
soda float, and I got Key Lime Pie ice cream in a waffle cone! We all agreed that
this place is super good!