The Extraordinary Sculpture Garden

A few weeks ago I went to DC to visit Grandma. On the day we went downtown to lots of museums, we went to the art garden. Phoenix looked at the headless women. He thought it meant that women are dumb, but Mom told him that maybe it meant that's how women are treated. I didn't believe in Phoenix's conclusion because the artist was a woman. Why would a woman make a statue saying that women were dumb?!

We saw a giant eraser next, although to me it looked like a giant pizza cutter. This is one of my favorite sculptures in the garden.

These aren't just park benches. They are a piece of art that had a sign that said, "You are free to touch this exhibit." It's cool that we got to sit on art. It's better to sit on a sculpture than a painting though, or else your butt would turn multicolored.

Dad and Phoenix also sat on the exhibit. Since it was rainy the day before we went to the garden, Dad is wiping off the seat before he sits down. Or maybe he's wiping off pigeon poop.

When Phoenix tried to look like the Thinker, he just looked like he was bored. He should get some bunny ears and a rabbit tail, and then he might look more like the Thinker.

It seems like the artists chose random, normal objects, like spiders, pizza cutters, and chairs, and made them into giant sculptures. It's so cool how they could make art out of anything.

Having Fun with Bronze

The Chinese seem to really like their bronze figures. They have them everywhere! The second time we went to Daming Lake (see Some Kind of Crazy if you want to know more about Daming Lake), we found a guy with a skateboard. He was riding wonky.

 

Another time we went to Daming Lake, it had rained the day before. It was cool, since the soup bowl was actually filled with something! Water!

In Xi'an, we found a whole family of Chinese people! I am the pig in the purple jacket checking on the eggs.

When we went to Shanghai we found a woman pushing a baby carriage. I stole the baby's carriage, and Phoenix pushed it. Well, he tried to. It was nailed to the ground, so it was had to push.

Back in Jinan we came across a bronze bread baker. His bread smelled like stinky fish!! The Chinese definitely have more bronze figures than in America, and best of all, they allow you to sit on them.

Compete with this Aquarium?!

Last week I went to the Shanghai aquarium. Seeing all the different ocean creatures was excellent! First, I went down an underwater escalator. It had only fish, but even that can be exciting when you're underwater!

The jellyfish were the next stop. The tanks had lights that changed colors so the jellyfish wouldn't be clear white. The biggest tank made the jellyfish look blue. (It made me look blue too.)

Soon after, we discovored the longest underwater tunnel in the world! It was full of interesting fish, especially the parrot fish! Dad said that parrot fish have beaks, but personally, I don't think that fish have beaks. It's a bird thing.

The best part was to be discovored next. Have you ever been so close to a shark that you could almost touch it? That's what it was like in the tunnel. I don't know why they put the fish so close to the sharks. They must lose a lot of fish that way. I think I can truthfully say that NOTHING can compete with this aquarium.

Pots + People

What are Santa and a pumpkin doing together? They are both pots! I made Christmas salt dough on the eleventh day of the advent. I painted it on the 3rd of January.

 

So now you see; Santa's magic sack is his guts!

This is the Great Pumpkin who will curse any parent who does not give kids candy on Halloween! By the way, his name is Dumbledore.

 

Beware, this is not Santa, this is his evil twin! Now you know why Santa and Dumbledore were together (and what their secrets are)

My Awesome Family

I have lots of family that live all over the United States! I, however, live in China. I was a grumpy troll for Halloween. I was a grumpy troll because trolls are mainly grumpy.

My brother also lives in China with my family. Often times I think that Phoenix's smile is weird. It looks a little like the elf guy's smile. You should know him if you have ever watched the movie Elf.

I have also been to Thailand with my family. My mom is feeding the pumpkins. You were able to feed elephants at the park we went to! Apparently, this elephant did not like pumpkin.

My dad is in China also. We bought a keyboard that dad is playing on. He has one of my books up, but he is playing by ear.

Warning: This newt is not part of our family. He is not in China either.

My grandma on my Dad's side, Grandma DuBravac (That's what I call her. My parents call her something different), is not in China. She is in D.C. It is awesome that she gives us candy!

Grandma Terry, my grandma on my mom's side, is at our house in America in this picture. She lives in Fullerton, California. She is a great artist. She paints chairs and they look awesome.

This is Scott and Irena, my new aunt. Beware of Scott; he is an ogre. I could not get a picture of Monkey on here though. In February, we will have to see what he looks like.

I have other family members, but I didn't have pictures of all of them, and they were not available to get pictures of right then. I am sorry if I did not include you.

My family is totally awesome and each person has different talents. I am lucky to have such a great family.

The Creation of the Swans

I know how to do origami! It's really fun. So far I've memorized how  to make swans, envelopes, and boxes. One day I decided to make origami swans, and when I say "make" I really mean it! I 1) cut, 2) colored, and 3) creased. Talk about  the three Cs!

Alas, I did not have a picture of the first stage! (cut). But I do have two of coloring!

This is my flock of swans. It's all finished! (For now)! I will make more! I will never be defeated!

p.s. Can you think of any names for these swans? They are all girls. Hey! Don't ask me!!!! Most of my animals are boys!!!!!!!!!!

The Greatest Dumplings Ever

A couple of weeks ago, I made dumplings with Phoenix, my brother, and Lareina, our friend. First, I mixed the filling for inside the dumplings.

 Next, I rolled out the dough for the skin of the dumplings. Nice rolling pin, ehhhhh?

Lareina helped me lay out already rolled dough so it doesn't stick together. We put flour over it so it didn't stick.

 

Finally, we put the filling inside of the dough and closed the dumplings up. We laid all the dumplings out on a big flappy plate. We had so many dumplings, and all we needed to do was cook them! They were some of the yummiest dumplings I have ever eaten!