What We Did Together: Week 1--Top 3 Board Games

For a game-loving family, this Christmas we hit the JACKPOT!  Ca-ching!  Santa and my parents really knew what kinds of games our kiddos and the big kiddos (that being my husband and me) would really love.  Games are probably our favorite way to spend family time.  We are all somewhat extremely competitive and I can already see that brewing in our children.  (Flash-forward to our 4 year old smugly grinning at her Daddy as she lays down a "skip" card in Uno.)  We literally spent hours laughing, conniving, and secretly keeping a running tally in our minds of who had the most wins.  I think I must sadly admit defeat to my husband--I WILL beat him at Boggle or die trying!

We played some really great games, but in an effort to save your and my sanity of an extremely long post, I'm just going to tell you about our Top 3.  Drum roll please....And the winners are, in no certain order...

 

Why we love this game:

• Everyone can play, even our 4 year old and have a legitimate chance of winning (parents-you don't even have to let your kids win!)
• The teacher in me loves the number sense that is built with this game.  My little Peanut was getting pretty good at recognizing if the answer should be a 1, 2, or 3 digit number.
• It doesn't take very long!!

 

Christmas Crafting in about 10 minutes

Mark Twain said it best when he said, "There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages."

I think Pinterest proves that to be true.  We don't have any new ideas, we just take what we see and make it our own.  I found an incredibly cute Christmas tree during my hours of searching and the kiddos and I decided to try it out!  

Here's how we pulled it off:

1.  Select whatever Christmas themed paper you like.  I chose to get a whole pack of Christmas scrapbook paper because 1. I am not the best at mixing patterns and 2. I knew that I would be able to use what was left for a ton of other projects.  AND 3. it was 50% off at Hobby Lobby...I absolutely love that store!!

2.  Select the patterns you want to use.  We decided on the darker prints so that it would show up better on our tree.  


3.  Take your paper and cut it into strips about 1x6.  TIP: I found it easiest to start with an already striped pattern and use that line as a guide.  Cut off one strip and then cut that one in half.

4.  Using sewing pins, fold each strip in half and press it into your styrofoam form.  Start with the bottom layer and work your way around.  TIP: I found it covered best to create one layer and then go back and add another strip of paper where the other pieces met.

5.  Continue with this method working your way up the tree.  

6.  We added 3 cute little pompoms to the top for a tree topper.

Have fun!!  We loved doing this together and the finished product will look cute on my mantle once we pull out all of our other decorations!

Do you have any cute suggestions for us?  I'd love to hear them!

Summer Bucket List

Did you hear that?  In case you missed it, it was the sound of teachers running out of the schools and this year I may have been leading the pack!  I love summer break, all 74.5 days of it--but who's counting?!?--, for all of the reasons you may imagine, none of which may top the freedom of being the boss of my own schedule!  Summer vacation also allows this mama to cater to her traditional side and do all of those things I often wish I could do during the school year--be with my kids all day long (ask me at the end of August if I'm still enjoying this ;) ), make all of our meals, have the hubby come home for lunch, and keep our house running at a much more relaxed pace.

This is my 7th summer break with children and now with those babies being 6 and 4 we feel so much more freedom to do some of those things I loved doing as a child.  However, somehow the heat, sun, and lure of air conditioning can have a numbing effect on you and make you lay on the couch all day long and accomplish absolutely nothing, which is perfectly fine for a few days, but not 74.5.  This summer we are breaking through that feeling and making sure when that school bell starts ringing we can say, "WOW, look what we did!!" instead of, "WOW, we watched a lot of television!"  Intentionally planning activities allows us to accomplish a whole lot more!

For starters, the kiddos and I brainstormed everything we would like to do.  Everything was written down, even if it was a little off the wall.  However, these kiddos are pretty smart and had some awesome ideas!

Our Summer 2014 Bucket List
hike the Cascades (a local, amazingly FREE hike to a waterfall)
S'mores
float the creek
attend a Salem Red Sox game (local minor league baseball)
spend a week with Nana and Pops
the beach
pool, pool, pool
READ
potato stamps
colored ice drawing
create a ninja warrior course
water balloons
catch lightning bugs
feed the cows
watch the stars
deliver cookies to elderly relatives and friends
make peanut butter S'mores
$1 movies
pick flowers
"Sun cake" (some creation of Colton's...)
write a book
long walks
fishing
make a fort
homemade jelly jam
homemade popsicles
long walks
picnic
scavenger hunt
tye dye shirts
drive-in movie
finger paint
grilled pizza
dress up
blow bubbles

Whew...do I have enough energy for that?!?!  I sure hope so!  Most of these activities are cheap or even free--you don't have to spend a lot of money to have a good time!

To remind us of what we wanted to do this summer, we made this:

Nothing fancy, just a cheap poster board decorated by the kiddos.  It hangs in our downstairs hallway and we pass by it multiple times a day.  Our plan is to have the kiddos pick an activity a few times a week and then check it off when we finish!  Check back to see all of the fun we're having this summer!  What are your plans to have an intentional, fun-filled summer?