Halloween happenings...

Another Halloween has passed and I do believe we have enough candy here to last us until next October. Usually we trade ours in at the dentist, but it didn't happen this year.  I think we will have to find somewhere else to send it.

We had a small Hoopla the week before Halloween.  I used to go all out with planned activities and games, but this year I didn't really do too much to get ready...working full-time kind of got in the way.  The kids are just happy running around and playing with each other anyway...

Those photos were taken before all the other guests arrived and then I really didn't take my camera out for a group shot...I'm kind of bummed out about that.

 I did plan a couple things; one was a scavenger hunt. I took photos of various decorations in my house and the kids had to find them.  

And then there's the ole Donut on a string game.  I'm pretty sure E is undefeated in this event. I can't even get a picture of him because he is able to grab the donut off the string faster than I can take the photo.

This photo was taken on the night of Halloween.  Right after I snapped this photo, there was a line of people standing there(I'm not exaggerating) to take a picture with my nephew who was like a celebrity with the "holding his own head" costume.  Fun times! 

If human beings had genuine courage, they'd wear their costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween.

Douglas Coupland

I Spy...

Today while I was at Physical Therapy for my monthly check-in and lymphatic massage, I thought it would be fun to do a short video of the space.  Because I didn't want to seem like a complete whacko (I know I'm slightly whacked already...), I didn't narrate the video.  So....I thought we could play a game of I Spy instead....

I Spy:

a pillow

a lotion dispenser

a pink orchard

ceiling tiles

a "triangle" I look through when on my stomach

a cd player

patterns for mummy wrapping

a lymphatic system diagram

a butterfly

Hope you had fun with this edition of I Spy.
Please don't judge my blog based on this post alone...

The least amount of judging we can do, the better off we are.

Michael J. Fox

Minecraft Party Recap...

If you're tired of hearing me talk about Minecraft, this is NOT the post for you...sorry!  If, however, you are planning a Minecraft Party, keep on reading.  E recently turned 9 and this year he was all about having a Minecraft Party.  When he told me that was what he wanted, I began my online research.  I found this blog and then I got started.

I purchased some digital papers and banners from Creative Creek Studio on etsy and made some Creeper "Juice" labels for water bottles

as well as some labels for milk chocolate bars, which we used as prizes for the games.

I also made E and Little Miss Creeper shirts using freezer paper....super easy and they came out great.  

I covered a boring pinata to suit the party theme...but, I didn't spend too much time on it since it would be destroyed in less than 5 minutes.

I made a Steve and Creeper head along with various foam tools.  They were easy to make, but somewhat time consuming.

For games we played
Pass the TNT.  The music played and when the music stopped, whomever held the TNT was out.

We had the pinata.

The kids made Creeper Bags for their pinata loot.

And, we also played block games in teams...given a set number of minutes (using a timer), build the tallest, biggest, most creative, etc...

Thankfully, my mom came to help with the cake.  Although I'm a fan of cupcake cakes, E requested a "real" cake this year.  I must admit, the cake baking/decorating thing is not all that fun for me.  I'm excited to see the end result, but I really don't enjoy the process in getting there.

It seemed like I was making paper Minecraft things for weeks and then the party was over so quickly.  Although I wasn't all that familiar with the game, I had fun preparing for our little man's ninth birthday, and it appeared that a good time was had by all.

E got this great Creeper blanket from my cousin...she made it!  I'll have to get a better picture and repost; E loves it, of course.

Other Minecraft posts here and here

Resources:

TNT boxes here.

Steve head template here.

Foam sword and pickaxe printables here.  Online tutorial here.

Cake here.

Freezer paper stenciling here. Freezer paper purchased here.

"In the end, you know it's all about blocks."

Old made new...

When E picked out his lunchbox at the start of this past school year, we were quite sure it wouldn't make it a month.  The cheap plastic would never stand the wear and tear and abuse from our 7 year old 2nd grader.  When E came home the last day with his lunch box still in tact, it was nothing short of a miracle (slight exaggeration). 

"Wow E, your lunchbox survived the year!"

"Do I get a prize Mom?"

"Yes, you get to use it again next year."

grumble, grumble.... 

I still struggle to part with some things because I don't like to be wasteful, so I re-purposed E's lunchbox into a case for his Nintendo DS and all its belongings.   

The label on the lunchbox had already peeled off several weeks ago, so really, there was little preparation for this project and it took   probably a total of 5 minutes.

 I let E pick out some paper he liked, cut it to size and glued it onto the lunchbox.

I added some stickers.

 And filled it with the D.S and all its paraphernalia.

Of course E is quite pleased with the finished project because now he can easily transport his gaming supplies wherever he goes.

"Video games are bad for you? That's what they said about rock-n-roll."

Shigeru Miyamoto

Tubers and Zots

Have you ever heard of them? Such a fun toy...for all ages! Here is a link where you can get more details about them.

Let the creativity begin.

"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes and having fun."

-Mary Lou Cook

Miscellaneous Lovely

E did very well over the weekend at his Cub Scout Pinewood Derby. He placed 1st for the Tigers and 2nd Overall. He'll be doing the district race in a couple weeks. He's lucky he has a dad who likes to do R & D (Research and Development) on what makes a car fast. Later this week, I'll do a post with a picture of his car....

Del's opened over the weekend. It was sunny and a comfortable 60+ degrees here on Friday, and today....SNOW, with more expected on Thursday...not so Lovely!

I'm finally getting around to hanging things up. I've had this Raggedy Ann and Andy (from my room as a little girl) waiting for some space on Little Miss' wall. They've made their home above a shelf in the corner of her room. The red shoes are a gift from her birthfamily when she was a baby and the photo is of her with her birth parents when she was a few months old.

We also spent some time Geocaching this weekend. It's so fun discovering the things that you didn't even know existed so close to your own home.

Like this, Mackinac Disaster. What a sad story.

I typically end with a quote, but today's is from www.websters.com

LOVELY

adjective
1. charmingly or exquisitely beautiful.
2. having a beauty that appeals to the heart or mind as well as to the eye

3. delightful; highly pleasing
4. of a great moral or spiritual beauty

I'm linking up with Heather today at Life Made Lovely Monday. Go check it out.

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Lego Star Wars Party PART I

When we finally decided on a date for E's birthday party, I had to kick it into high gear. Typically, I feel comfortable having a good month to plan for a party and toss ideas around in my head. This time I had barely 2 weeks...not really ideal when you have an almost 7 year who is counting on his mom to pull together an "awesome" party with a Lego Star Wars' theme. We managed to pull it together and I am pretty sure everyone had a great time.

E actually had 2 parties on the same day, a friend party from 10-11:30 playing laser tag and a family party that followed starting at noon. It was a LOOOOOOng day, but super fun!

As favors for the friend party, we made pool noodle light sabers. I found this idea online; search "pool noodle light sabers" for other how-tos.

After finding pool noodles during this off season and a trip to Home Depot's plumbing department, we were ready to begin.

We folded the noodles in half and marked where to cut with a marker. A serrated knife worked well to cut the noodle.

Using 2 pieces of shiny silver tape, I covered the bottom of the noodle.

Next, I covered the end (about 6 inches) of each noodle with the tape.

I added the details with the black duct and electrical tapes; every light saber was a little different.

We even threw a couple of pink ones into the mix for the girls....they were happy!

During the afternoon party, we played a game. E helped set it up. He pulled apart 16 lego mini figures and put 4 in each of four glass jars. Then he mixed them up with other random legos. The kids worked with a partner to dump the jar of pieces and assemble the 4 mini figures. The fastest team to put together the mini figures and stand up, won the game.

I intended on blogging all the details of the party in one post, however I'm ready for bed and this is just taking too long. So, I'm going to do it in two parts. Consider this Part 1

Check back in tomorrow for Part 2

**Updated: Click here for Part 2

“The Force will be with you, always.”

-Alec Guinness

I'm linking up with Heather today at Blessed Little Next.

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