OH MY HILLRISE. it is NOT my birthday!!

I don't know WHAT it is, but people on this blog thing have been wishing me a happy birthday. They are getting me mixed up with my old friend Anna Ventimiglia!! She was the one born on May 1st. But she was born in 1957, like me. No I was born on JUNE 17th 1957!! Just take a peek at my birth certificate! Ask Jaycee, Tracy, Ivy, or my parents! I wasn't born in 1966 otherwise I'd be 2 years old! I was 9 back in 1966!! (Well, 8, if you are asking about May 1st.) I WAS IN THIRD GRADE!!! The only person I know who was born in 1966 is my cousin Kellan. He was born on October 14th. It is really annoying how people in the future don't know my own birthday! No I was born in the fifties like my sister! Just ask her!! She was there during my birth at age 5!! There is a picture my aunt took of her holding me! It just makes me mad that people have been wishing me a happy birthday for no reason! I'm not Anna!! (Oh and by the way, today's date is March 15th 1969. So May 1st is quite awhile away.)
 Just wanted to clarify that for everyone.
-Julie

Just your average everyday 'What the Hillrise' moment...

Hi, it's Julie. Some weird happenings have been going on in our lovely Hillrise. For one thing, I woke up this morning and heard a big thump coming from the garage. I woke up my parents and they went in to check it out. I followed. We flipped the switch on the light in our garage, and right there was a baby cow! I was shocked-this had happened once before, but it was before our house was built. Apparently when you leave the garage door open, cows sneak into your garage! It was really cool! After my parents and I drove it back to the fields where it belongs, I tried to sleep but couldn't. It had to be about 4 a.m. when we heard that. I ended up watching the sunrise in my backyard (we have an amazing view!) with my pet rabbit Nugget, and then tried to go to bed after that. I still couldn't. So, I fixed myself some orange juice and sat outside some more. It was a really nice day, as usual. Since it was a weekend, I went and watched them build some of the houses on Softwind. After that I went to Jaycee's house (I imagined she was awake by then) and told her what happened. She told me that that had happened to her when she first moved in, too! I told her I was rather happy because I have always wanted to see one of the cows up close. And I got to ride in a car with one! That's something that would have never happened if I was still living in San Francisco. I'm so glad I moved to Hillrise!
-Julie

All About Julie!

You may recall me mentioning my Hillrise best friend and next-door neighbor, Julie Albright. Well, in this post you can meet her! Here are some fun facts about her!

• She was born on June 17th, 1957 at 3:39 a.m. (She was an early baby, I guess...)
• Her favorite food is strawberry Jell-O.
• She has an older sister, Tracy, who is 16 years old and was born in March of 1953.
• When she's not in Hillrise, her favorite thing to do is go to Disneyland or any other amusement park.
• She grew up in San Francisco, but she says she has always wanted to live in a place like Hillrise.
• EVERYONE, and I'm not kidding, everyone in her family has blond hair and blue eyes, including her.
• She has a pet rabbit named Nugget and has had rabbits in her family almost all of her life.
• She doesn't like to watch TV that much, but who has time for it anymore when you live in a place like Hillrise?? You're always doing something outside!
• Her favorite color is blue.
• She loves the holidays because then she can decorate around Hillrise and make it look all Christmasy.
• Her biggest pet peeve is smoking (and I have to agree with her on that one!)
• She loves to jump-rope and play ball in the streets of Hillrise.

Now that you've enjoyed meeting her, I would like to tell you that Julie is going to join my blog so we can be blogmates!! You never know what the next entry will be-it may be from Julie!

Revisiting My Past!

Today me, Julie and Ivy all looked through old pictures of me and Ivy back when we first met in kindergarten. We all talked about how we had all met our best friends back then. Mine was Ivy, of course! We were in the same kindergarten class back in the fall of 1962. I remember that year so well, it was the year our dog Skittles was born. I had bangs and wore my hair in pigtails almost every day. Every time I played on the local park playground, I always went on the circle that spins you around. Then, there was meeting Ivy. Our teacher had assigned us buddies on the first day and Ivy happened to be mine. She was shy at first, but then at recess we bonded over our love of the spinny thing on the playground. After that, we were fast friends.

Julie's was a girl named Anna Ventamiglia. She lived in the same apartment building as Julie and they met when they were about 3. She had jet-black hair that always poofed out at the ends and bright green eyes. They were also in the same kindergarten class. They stayed friends up until the end of fifth grade, just before Julie moved to Hillrise. She said Anna had accused her of stealing her favorite dress, even though she knew her mom threw it away because it had a tear in it. Sadly, they never made up. Julie doesn't seem to care, though. She has me and Ivy and she says we're much better than Anna ever was. (Apparently she had an attitude problem.) But now she has us, and I am so happy!! It was so weird seeing all of these old pictures and drawings, but isn't it nice to revisit your past sometime? You should revisit yours sometime!

-Jaycee

Campout Gone Crazy!

Last night, me, Ivy and Julie decided to camp out in the fields behind Hillrise. We had never done this before, and I was a little unsure about it all. Julie said we'd be 10 feet away from the nearest Hillrise home, so I felt better about that. But part of me was thinking this wouldn't be a great idea. So yesterday afternoon, we left for the fields and set up camp. For the next three hours, we played tag and hide and seek in the fields, and Julie and Ivy tried to ride a cow. I stayed away because I love animals and I'm just afraid of bull riding. Everything was fun and exciting, and I stopped being so unsure. Big mistake! After we watched the sunset, things got a little crazy. We went back to our tent, turned on our lantern for light, and told each other scary stories. The stories were really scary, and I was scared it might actually happen. So I checked out and tried to go to sleep. But Julie and Ivy kept telling scary stories, including one about a shadowy object that snacked on people camping-anywhere. All night, I kept seeing shadowy objects and freaking out. Then, long after Julie and Ivy had gone to bed, I kept hearing noises-like a wailing and screaming noise. I tried to stay calm because I knew that Hillrise would protect me from anything. Suddenly, I hear another wailing noise and footsteps. I scream and shake Julie and Ivy awake, trying to tell them what I heard. They get mad at me and say, "Jaycee, it's not a real story. Go to bed." But then the noise is heard again. More footsteps. The wail turns into a howl. I scream again, but Julie and Ivy don't say anything. "Jaycee! Shush! Don't let it hear us!!" Ivy shushes me. Her sea-green eyes are almost glowing. I just duck and hide under my sleeping bag. Then, all of a sudden, someone kicked the tent and we see glowing yellow eyes. I fled the tent and ran screaming back into Hillrise, with Julie and Ivy following behind me. But the wailing noise and footsteps didn't stop. They became fast. We ran as fast as we could back to my house (which was sadly 10 blocks away) and locked the door. Luckily the thing never caught up with us, but I am afraid to camp out in those fields anymore. That's for sure.

Jaycee

10 facts about me!!!

Julie suggested that I do this!! Here it goes!!

1. I was born on July 9, 1957 at 3:56 p.m.
2. I am the oldest of my two siblings.
3. I have a baby sister who is DUE IN TWO WEEKS!!!!
4. I love pasta!!! In any shape or form!!
5. I'm allergic to horses.
6. I have known my best friend Ivy since kindergarten.
7. I really really wish I could live in the fifties!!! I know I did, but I was younger than 2!!! How can I remember?!?
8. I have two golden retrievers.
9. My favorite show is Rowan and Martins Laugh In.
10. This one is kind of obvious. I love my neighborhood, Hillrise!!!!

HAPPY FEBRUARY 26TH!!!!!

Okay, y'all may not know what February 26th is, but me, Julie and Ivy know!!! We've been waiting for this day...HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY, HILLRISE!!!! How do we know it's Hillrise's birthday? Well, we were told that is when the first house was built. I can't believe it's been a year since Hillrise first started!! We celebrated last weekend at our weekly neighborhood picnics and sang a song! Then Julie decided to eat her mom's CARROT FLAVORED JELL-O!! Me and Ivy don't like the idea of vegetable flavored gelatin, so we went for the Cothrans' cookies. Yes, being their niece's (Julie's) best friends had its perks. I also got my hands on some pasta salad made by the Hendersons. Then the Lings (Ivy's family) brought their famous hamburgers to the patch. But I still think everyone in the Albright-Cothran families make the best food! (Maybe that's why Julie snacked on carrot Jell-O.) We celebrated in other ways too-at school, we just couldn't get our minds off Hillrise! (I just wish Mrs. Berg didn't get mad at us for doodling pictures of Hillrise on our notes! MIDDLE SCHOOL IS SO HARD!!) After school, Mom took a picture of us in front of someone's car. We were just too happy!!! You can see the picture at the left here. Hope everyone has a fantabulous February 26th!!!