The view from our porch

This week we've had some "crazy" weather, which is actually typical of most Springs and Falls in Utah. We had a couple days that reached 100 degrees, then a few with lightening and rain and strong winds. We love the rain and wind and the awesome scenery that sometimes follows after.

This is the first full rainbow any of us had ever seen. Theses pictures show it from right to left. 

 Mason and Gage posing their cute and crazy faces

Secret Agent Birthday Party

Tucker turned 8 last week and he had his very first friend party ever. This was the first year since his birth that we haven't been traveling or at a family reunion, so he was pretty excited. Tucker received some spy toys for his family party so I thought doing a Secret Agent theme would be fun, and luckily he did too. We sent out invitation in manila envelopes marked "Top Secret".

 The premise of the party was that he and his friends were training to become Secret Agents and the games all centered on skills they would need to become spies. Gabe made this poster for our front door.

When the guests arrived they each received a passport with their training course

Next they were given Secret Agent code names, these were created by drawing two slips of paper from 2 jars: One with a color or adjective, like spinning, jumping, lightening etc. and one with a noun, like ninja, tiger, rider ... then we wrote their names inside their passports.

OBSERVATION SKILLS:

We played a memory game where you put several objects on a tray and let everyone look over it for a minute or two, then you take away the tray, remove 2 items, then bring the tray back. The kids had to figure out which items were missing.

ART OF DISGUISE:

The kids designed their own secret agent disguise on a sturdy paper plate, then we cut out eye holes and fastened the plates on with yarn. The kids had a fun time choosing their mustaches.

Disguise Kit by The Project Girls

TARGET PRACTICE

Using nerf guns the kids took turns shooting at the target that Tucker helped to make, which we created on a piece of styrofoam  from a refrigerator box.

LASER COURSE

I got the idea for this game from the internet, so I can't claim creative license, but it was a big hit and the kids had a lot of fun. They had to go through the course without touching the laser beams, retrieve an object, then come back through.

CLUE IDENTIFICATION

The final mission was to locate the loot. We put the loot bags in an old briefcase that looked very spyish and hid it. The objective was to find and decipher the clues that would lead them to the loot bags.

We used this QR code generator to create printable codes that would be the clues. I then downloaded a QR code reader onto my cell phone for free. When the kids found a code, I would scan it with my phone and it would generate the text clue that would lead them to the next QR code. Here is the link if you want to view the clues I created, http://goo.gl/RMSxJ

SPY CUPCAKES

Rather than making an elaborate, time consuming cake, I let the kids create their own spy cupcakes. We used the following supplies: regular and mini m&m's, jelly bellies, licorice string, chocolate sprinkles (for the stubble), and chocolate frosting to pipe on details.

(I didn't get a picture of the cupcakes we made, but this is where I got the idea from)

If you want to see any more ideas for creating a Secret Agent party, then check out these two websites frugalfamily and chickenbabies

Happy Birthday Mason

Mason has been anticipating this day for months! He was so excited to turn five and was equally as excited to celebrate his birthday in Washington with his grandparents and cousins. Because he loves the beach so much, I made him a sandcastle cake. Everything was edible on it except the little seashells.

Even the "rocks" were edible

 He was excited to get binoculars

And overjoyed to get a cash register just like the one grandma has

Earlier in the day we met my friend Tristalene and her kids at the Harbor view park in Bremerton. It is right next to the Naval museum by the shipyard and ferries. This park is so interesting, it has 5 submarine tops (the kids like to call them volcanoes) out of which water spouts from the tops and comes raining down like a waterfall. It also has lots of things carved out of rock as well as huge boulders that the kids could climb and play on.

Fun at the Beach

I don't normally keep up on my blog as frequently as I have been, but that's one of the great things about being on vacation, I don't have much cleaning to do : )  One of my kids favorite spots to go in Kingston is the Arness park, which we called the Slough when I was growing up. Hayden's main focus was swimming, but the other kids were content to play in the sand. Hayden caught a crab in a bucket, but was afraid he would get pinched if he held it. Kaitlyn on the other hand is fearless and just picks them up. So after Hayden saw how effortless it was for a 2 year old he "manned up".

Kaitlyn would bring home all sorts of creatures

if her mom would let her

It took awhile, but Hayden finally picked up the crab

 Crab close up

Hayden is truly in his element at the beach

Tucker is still trying to figure out his element

 Mason and Abi are practically joined at the hip!

Ahhh, the Insanity!!!

Tonight was a rough night for me and some of my children. During the evening Hayden kept getting in trouble for not listening and then was emotional and a bit physical about the consequences. The other boys were doing fine until it was time for bed (not a big surprise). But by the time they were in their pj's and teeth brushed, my patience was gone. (As a side note: Mason thinks it's his job to report any and all misbehavior and he thinks he should be rewarded for reporting to me, rather than be scolded for "tattling".) After I had finally gotten the 3 older boys in their beds and lights off, I went to rest on my bed. A minute later Mason came in and said, "Mom, Hayden is out of bed!" I hesitated because of the irony of the situation, then replied, "Mason, do you need a spank on your bum because you are out of bed"? He quickly replied, "No, it's Hayden who's out of bed!". I gave him a look, the one with the raised eye brows, and then he connected the dots. He quickly ran back into their room and I didn't hear from him again... I almost wrote "and he was never heard from ever again". Ha-ha, if only... I'm just kidding, may be... ugh, I just need to go bed and start fresh again tomorrow!

Wild Waves

Yesterday I took Brianna, Tucker, and Mason to Wild Waves. It's a water/amusement park that I went to as a kid and wanted to share the experience with my children. My mom stayed home with Gage, for obvious reasons, and Hayden who decided he didn't want to go. I knew he would have a lot of fun, but I also knew it would be soooo much easier if he didn't, so I didn't try to convince him : )  We met up with my cousin Naomi and her two older kids, Noah and Kaylani. Luckily she had 3 friend passes we could use, so it was great that we didn't have to "break the bank".  I wanted to travel as light as possible, so I used my phone to take pictures, which is why they aren't crystal clear. But for a phone camera it isn't too shabby.

There weren't very many people at the park, so a lot of times we would be the only people on a ride and if they kids wanted they just stayed on and rode as many times as they wanted, which made the experience even better! In the last picture of the slide show Mason is riding "Silver Lightening". I thought it would be fun to name our horses on the carousel : )

"Point No Point" Beach

We spent part of the day at Point no Point beach in Hansville. Mason, Cody and Abigail spent most of their time exploring the beach away from the water. The driftwood was all they needed for their imaginations to run rampant. Gage was not as excited about the beach as I had hoped. He didn't like to get sand in his sandals and he refused to walk in the sand bare foot. He wouldn't even let me put his feet in the sand. From his screeching and wailing you would have thought I was trying to lower him into a vat of boiling oil. So he spent most of the time on my lap and some on Grandma's. Hopefully when we go to the ocean next week he'll be more willing to explore the sand. I'm planning on dressing him in socks and shoes and hopefully that will make a difference.

When we arrived at the beach we found a cool driftwood fort someone else had made.

Mason and Cody log jumping

 Gage and Grandma... he really does know how to smile. You can also see

Tristalene Morgensen and her daughter Capri in the background.

We Love Washington!!!

Three days ago on Friday, I left for Washington with my five kids. I had originally planned on making the 16 hour trip all in one day, but luckily I wasn't able to get all the packing done and get adequate sleep, so I split it up in two days.  Friday evening we stopped in Middleton, which is west of Boise, and stayed with our good friends the Holmsteads. My kids had so much fun that they wanted to stay and have our vacation there. I think it was their huge above ground pool that dazzled them. They also have a large game room upstairs with a ping pong table and soccer table. They even have a secret door in one of the kids closets that leads to a hidden play room that then has another little hidden door that goes into the game room. Mason told Lorena (the mother) that he wanted to keep their house. May be he has a secret shrinking machine I don't know about.

We arrived in Kingston the following day at 4:30 in the afternoon after traveling for over 9 hours. While the driving wasn't too bad, nor the wails from my 2 year old who couldn't find his binki, the Washington drivers did give my patience quite a try. No offense, but the left lane on the freeway is not the "Mosey Lane"!

This morning my dad took my older 3 kids, Brianna, Hayden and Tucker backpacking to Lena Lake for an over night camping trip. They were excited about the prospect of a lake and packed their swim suits. They were told it is very cold and could still have some snow, but it didn't deter them. Hopefully my dad gets some good pictures : )  Meanwhile, Kristi (my sister-in-law) and I decided to take the rest of our kids to "Jump" in Gig Harbor. I was a little skeptical of driving 45 minutes for a blow up slide and bounce house place. We have one near us back home and my kids tire of it after 30 minutes. But this one was well worth the drive. Mason and his two cousins Abi and Cody ran around sliding and jumping for an hour and a half nearly non stop. Gage and his cousin Kaitlyn, who are both two, also had a lot of fun and no one complained of being tired, bored or hungry, which is almost mind boggling if you know my children.

This is a slide show of the pictures I shot, most with the fast motion shutter, so it may look like a choppy video, but it's not.

New Header Photo

(double click the photo to enlarge)

I've been wanting to update our photo for awhile, but it's nearly impossible to get a picture of us all together AND have everyone be happy and cooperative. This was the first version and we got the best of nearly everybody (you can decide on your own who looks like they may have been sitting on nails).
Later I took another photo and created our header photo as you now see it. Although it was a hassle for some and I did have to use m&m's as a bribe, that's how family photos usually go, but as I told a "certain someone", it's only once a year so it's not all that bad.

Lights, Camera, Action!

This is the invitation I made for Brianna's birthday. YES, they are awesome, and YES, I did spend way too much time making them. But it was fun and I'd rather be doing something crafty as opposed to say, laundry and dishes : )  I was proud of Brianna for going outside of her comfort zone and inviting "friends" that she isn't joined at the hip with. One of the activities I planned was a skit where your head is upside down and you put googly eyes on your chin and then cover up everything from your nose to the top of your head. I provided lots of supplies for the girls so they could each make their character an outfit. It was really hard not to laugh when we were filming them. Gage thought it was hysterical and laughed his head off the whole time. Afterwards we watched the skits in the backyard after it was dark with a projector I borrowed from a friend. Everyone had so much fun watching themselves, the neighbors were probably wondering what the giggle fest was all about.

 

The girls chowed down on pizza and bread sticks after playing some games

                                                                    Film Reel birthday cake