I Spy Bottles

        I wanted to share something I made a few weeks ago for my neice's birthday. I made her an I-Spy Bottle. It's something I saw on Pinterest and on a daytime TV show called The View. My niece was turning 16 and she had asked for money this year. I hate giving gift cards or money, it just seems so impersonal.

As I was putting her money in her card it occurred to me that maybe this was something different I could include. She has always been my biggest fan on everything I create,giving me her opinion on what she likes, and what other kids might like. Lindsey is an awesome kid......kind of an old soul in away....grown up and very responsible. But what I love about her the most is she gets me....she really gets me!!

        So the hard part for me was narrowing it down to what items to include.I have seen several different versions on this so pretty much anything goes!

This is another version from a blog called Counting Coconuts

 Lindsey has always been an enormous movie fan and has lots of movie memorabilia in her room. Her main favorites so far have been, James Cameron's Avatar, Harry Potter, Twilight, Pirates, and most recently Hunger Games. We share the same favorites as a matter of fact! Yes I know I have proven over and over again on this blog that I am still a kid!

Can you see the tiny Harry Potter figure to the left of the purple stone?

So since I had trouble narrowing it all down I went a tad over board on her bottle. I probably could have made several with all the stuff I included. So consequently I had to up the size of the bottle. I ended up using a wide mouthed Gatorade bottle. My daughter-in-law Amy was my super shopper and boy did she find some great items.

We used some tiny erasers, some sparkly buttons, some little charms, even some doodads and some doohickeys......with glitter of course!
 On top of that we also included some flamingo stickers that we were able to stick back to back. We sprinkled in some bright colored sparkly confetti and of course a touch of glitter to make even more fun. It's amazing though what all you can gather up just from one household junk drawer. So look around your house you may have plenty of items stashed and saved that would be perfect for this.

Afterward I realized that these are just a modern day, handmade version of a kaleidoscope. Like the one in the photo below from Kaleidoscop Galaxy on Etsy.

I know I have always loved these? I use to think they were so magical and always wanted one. It could be how my addiction to sparkles started. If I have animal totem it has to be a crow since they are also attracted to sparkly things!

One very important tip to remember is be sure and glue the lid on your bottle. If you don't and it's opened..... well it could certainly make a huge, sparkly mess.

 
I had a thought after I finished my neices. What about and all black and white theme and add a few bright red items that your kids would have to find and keep track of. Maybe to win a special prize or treat at each rest stop along your car trip.

You could use any color variation or any items you want..... that's what makes this so much fun. We all know how hard it can be to keep kids happy and busy while your driving somewhere on vacation. So give it a try it is cheap, easy, and fun.....don't ya just love those three words!?!

You Are Never Too Old To Be Silly

         

               On Memorial weekend we had our annual family get together at our house. Every year I keep my fingers crossed that it doesn't rain and that it isn't blistering hot. Well I got one wish, it didn't rain but the temps were off the chart for southern Indiana. It actually broke all records at a ridiculous 97 degrees.

We found an American Flag floating in the creek and decided to save it

 

So I decided since we didn't have our pool set up yet (due to my husband having a minor knee surgery) I had better rent something fun for the kiddos, and it should have a water feature too.

The view from our deck.

I decided on a blow up water slide. It was a huge hit with the kids and the adults! Even though the sun was beating down all day on them they never seemed to notice. But boy did we go through the sun screen! The little ones barely left the slide to eat or drink. It was belly laughs and giggles all day. Plus moments we had wished we'd set up a hidden camera for some hysterical sliding moments that could never be re-created if they tried.

We rode go-carts, dirt bikes and 4 wheelers down to the creek and up the hill to the grave yard. The heat didn't stop our fun!

The kids love to hunt for fossils at the creek and thankfully there is never a shortage. Sadly though no one found any arrow heads. We have only found one since we've lived here and I can't believe that there aren't more in this area........oh well we will just have to keep searching.

Then later in the day we girls started our annual craft project. I had originally thought we would do a concrete craft,making a leaf bowl. But after further study I discovered that the leaf would have to sit for 24 hours to dry. On Pinterest I noticed a fun and easy re-do for cheap flip flops. The blog is called The Mother Huddle. The flips flops tutorial looked easy and was explained very well.....however this group just couldn't quite get the hang of it. Maybe it was the heat, it couldn't be from a lack of talent........could it!?!

So eventually my sons decided to come down and help us and thats when it all went so comically wrong.

Jason read the instructions and Will help aid the ladies when they couldn't quite understand the instructions.

Well in the end we may not have nailed this project but we all had a blast trying. I for one am not finished with this. I am determined to make a pair and actually wear them at the camp!

Another fun party item I had this year was a vase I set out of photo props. I found a fun little shop on Etsy who sells all sorts.  The shop is called PAPER and PANCAKES and they so many fun mustaches, glasses, hats and etc. Stop by their shop and check them out.

Old and young enjoyed these and I was able to capture some photos I will treasure forever.

This one took a group effort but after several attempts we finally got it!

I just wish I could wear glasses like this all the time! Glitter is my passion!!
Another fun family photo prop I used was an inexpensive card board matte. So many good pictures. Too many to share, but we all had so much fun using them.

Something happens when you set these out....even the quiet and shy will begin to strike a pose. It seriously can be a great ice breaker at any get together.

Not that our family needs any help being silly. I think we were all born this way actually. I just left them out and once one person does it before long everyone joins in.
Most everyone had their photos taken. However some of us couldn't quite master the whole matte pose. Or was it our photographer?

The kids have said we need even more photo props for the next family event. So now I'm on the look out for some new ideas.

At the end of the day our youngest grandson just couldn't leave the slide until he absolutely had too.

Oh and I forgot to mention it was also our sweet nieces 16th birthday. So we had to have just the right props for her. We have an on going joke with her about flamingos so that was this year's theme.

 So later in the day when the sun started to go down and we had to say goodbye to the blow up slide we brought out the glow in the dark balloons and glow in the dark straws. We walked out in the yard and looked at the stars and let our glow balloons go up into the air. We watched them for what seemed like forever. That was my favorite part of the day. That shared moment with my grandson watching the balloons float away.

                                                           Yes it was the best day!!!

Hungry For Games

           A few weeks ago my oldest grandson came up with an outdoor game for him and his friends. At first it was just an idea that he presented on his facebook page but it grew in popularity so fast that he knew he had to make it a reality. It was then that Hunger Games The Game was born!

No one had any idea how this was going to work....but we were pretty sure that Nerf weapons would be the weapons of choice. I must admit that spontaneous Nerf wars has been the norm for our family for years. We all own some pretty intense arsenals. My husband and I have been known to do surprise attacks on the grand-kiddos when we arrive for a visits. And our youngest grandson gets so excited when the wars begin that we have nicknamed him The General.....mainly because he will search through all the Nerf bullets (barking orders feverishly) looking for the black tipped ones he calls "The painshots" haha.....yes we get pretty serious!

So when the kids said the Hunger Games was set I knew I had to be there to photograph the event. At first I worried that I was interrupting the game, but then I remembered these are theater kids and photos of their performances is their passion!

Names were placed in a bowl and called out into teams of two. At the count of three and the shout of "GO" from the Game Maker Amy the kids take off from the patio using the strategy they think will work. Some chose to run and gather weapons while others decided to run and find a good hiding place hoping to find weapons from fallen tributes.

If a tribute is shot or struck in the arms or legs we felt that could possibly be a survivable injury.....but only if they could find a hidden medicine bag.

If a tribute was shot or struck in the head or torso, in an area deemed fatal than you were dead and out for this challenge.

The laughter and stories from these fallen tributes was so much fun. It was so hard for them to sit out and just be a spectator, but this gave them time to make new plans for the next set of games.

 Many were killed fast ( which was usually hysterical) while others found hiding places so good that we would have to force them out and back into play.

As often happens the rules evolved as the game did. We quickly learned what worked, and what didn't. So after the first evening of games everyone felt we had it rock solid. Once all of the photos were posted on Facebook Hunger Games The Game became huge!

The numbers grew from 6 kids to 20 in no time. So Hunger Games The Game ll was set. It was again a huge success and now the kids plan on a summer of Hunger Games.

 Most of the close neighbors sat out on the decks and patios to watch all of the fun. The next day one of the neighbors thanked my daughter in law for such a fun evening of festivities. The games went on for hours well past dark. Which allowed us to bring out the glow sticks, my favorite!

Strategies,weapons, matching shirts, and how to shoot silver parachutes to tributes have all been discussed for future games. Other parents have even asked to host the games at their houses. For the adults it brought back memories of innocent outdoor play. Back at a time when neighbors actually neighbored and street lights indicated it was time to go in!

 The important part of all of this was just good old fashion outdoor fun and laughter. Kids being kids! How wonderful too at a time when childhood obesity is at an all time high and many schools have had to work hard to encourage physical activity.
We all laughed till we cried and shared one of the best evening we've had in ages.

 So if your kids or grand-kids are bored this summer or have become couch/computer potatoes.....get them outside and create an outdoor game like this with them. It's safe harmless fun, and believe me there is nothing like being a kid again....... with your kids!!
Happy Summer everyone and have a wonderful Memorial weekend =)

Oh did I forget to mention it was also a surprise birthday for one of his friends......ya gotta love a bunch of kids armed with silly string!

Creating Garden Decor

       Memorial weekend is just around the corner and for us that means our annual family get together. I've been searching for a craft project that the ladies and I can do together. I've really been in the mood to add a couple of small flower gardens around our patio area. With 6 acres to mow and trim, flowers gardens have not been on our priority list.We have added lots of wildflower seeds which is perfect for larger areas and requires little or no maintenance. It's been so much fun watching the wild flowers spread year after year.

Now I'm ready to add some small flower gardens around our lower patio. This has become our favorite place to sit and relax when the weather turns steamy hot!
I've been looking at some decorative garden items and have had some sticker shock at the cost. Plus being a crafter my first thought is always how can I make this myself.

Today I found what I think could be a easy idea for some garden stones on a blog called Sunset Gurl Design. Plus what I like about this idea is it uses something everyone should have or can get easily find which is leaves. I really like how the bottoms of large plant leaves look with all their veins, and it really makes quite an impact in these garden stones.

It's very similar to a project I saw last year on The Martha Stewart show. Cement garden leaves, and once again using plant leaves. I have kept this idea on my "to do" list as a future project. Items like these at your local garden centers would not be inexpensive. So making them seems to me to be a cost effect idea.
The main ingedients are ready mix and sand and of course leaves of your choice. Wouldn't this be fun to do with your kiddos. My grandsons would enjoy a hike down the creek in search of a variety of interesting leaves, just don't pick the itchy ones! It's kind of like combining education with creativity as well as an outdoor experience.

If this ends up being the project that we choose I will share the process good, bad or comical as well as our photos. But really the best part of any project we choose is just being together, laughing and chatting and creating great memories!

What does your Memorial weekend look like? I would love to hear what traditions or activities you and your family enjoys on our nations very popular three day weekend.