A Clever Homemade Toy - Faux "Find-It"

I've been quiet here because I've been in the summer doldrums. I can't blame the weather.

 Most years by August we are all hunkered down under the nearest A/C vent glowering at each other like trolls because we CAN'T-TAKE-THE-HEAT one more minute! Not the case this year; we had one of the longest winters I have had in my 36 years of Texas life. I did not send the kids to school in shorts until May. We couldn't swim without freezing until well into June and even then it was too cold for me. These past couple of weeks have had very warm days but the evenings and mornings are tolerable, even cool.

Just as it started getting good and hot, we headed. to vacation. Yep that's right! Months ago we planned a fun family reunion at a campground in Colorado and we just got back.

We have taken many a road trip so we have good coping skills, but something new is always fun, right?  I sat down with Pepper to order car bingo and sketch books and she suggested "Find It" which we'd seen in the doctor's offices. It's that clear tube filled with beads and there are tiny objects hidden within it.  We did find them online but they are $20 each. That was more than seemed reasonable. Pepper immediately said, I can make one -- and devoted her day to doing so.

Here is the result. She decided to make it into a robot. Isn't it adorable?  She used little stuff we had around, like keys, pencils, buttons, etc. She used beads from her collection and one day she can have them back! She found a little light that she attached to the top so when they shake it, the light comes on. The kids were wild about it!

Because they need a key for what to look for, she cleverly attached duplicate items to a ribbon to help them see exactly what they are looking for. Isn't it clever?

You could make an even simpler version by not trying to make it cute like Pepper did. If you make your own, be sure to let me know!

Summertime - Album 1

Very shortly after my last post on very short hair, the Littles, Pepper and I took off for Idaho and a visit to my folks.  Life has been a whirlwind ever since.  So rather than try to catch up, I offer you the first in a series of photo albums.

Our decorated car; somehow it makes all the hours in it more bearable.

The first time we got out the camera was this wonderful park in Springfield, Colorado.  We had a little scare driving up because I noticed a man following me and he pulled up right behind me at the park.  Turns out he was the local Church of Christ pastor and a former Texan.  He was super friendly and it was fun to meet him.

The park had a truly fantastic playscape but all our kids wanted to do was drive the tractor.   Here's The Blitz!   Look at that smile!

I'm pretty sure this is a pronghorn antelope, a truly native American species.  We saw a million in north-central Colorado and southern Wyoming

This is my great-nephew Indigo in Broomfield Colorado.  He'll be moving home to Texas soon!

This is his amazing daddy, Justin.

And his beautiful mommy, Juliette, with some of our gang.  We had a fun picnic in the backyard.

Pepper and Hannah.  Did I mention that we took Hannah along on our vacation?  And that we had to leave Sunshine at home to play ball?

This is our "new" house in Boulder, Colorado on Findley Way.  My parents built this house, I think in 1966.  

That tree in the front yard is HUGE!  But dad's brick walkway and the hedges are gone.

This is the "old" house on 31st Street.  The crabapple tree is there but the white picket fence is missing.  It's getting a bit ramshackle after all these years.

Some scenes from Northern Colorado

A fantastic play stop in Laramie, Wyoming.  

What follows are the good times in the car!

More to come!

Travelogue - "Out"

I can't believe we've already been home from vacation 6 days!  I just caught up on the laundry!  And it was soooo worth that mountain of wash.

We left home on Saturday morning bright and early;  I was so proud of all of us for getting on the road a few minutes before 8:00.  We headed out in a decorated car -- thanks, Bigs -- spending the morning on Hwy. 183.  We had plans for lunch in Friendship Park at Hords Creek Lake near Coleman, but it turns out the picnic areas are not trailer accessible.  Ooops.  We headed on toward Winters and had a fun lunch at Elk Creek Reservoir picnic pavilion.  It was fully shaded and paved;  made for a good game of bouncing ball.  There was also a playground close by so the kids got their road legs worked out.

We made it to Lubbock around 4:30 and stayed in the Lubbock RV Park off the interstate..  They had fantastic prices and warm friendly service.  It was "dirty" more than grassy so we may not choose to stay there in summer again.  The pool was clean and refeshing;  just what we needed for our last 100 degree day for a while.

Sunday was our "big" driving day and we took off for Pueblo, Colorado.  We decided to have a play stop to break up the long day.  There is a fantastic playground in Conner Park in Canyon City. Dad and Sunshine played ball in the shade while Pepper and I sat on a "porch swing and watched the Littles play.

Onward, we drove through the Rita Blanca National Grasslands (yawn) and stopped for a crazy hot picnic at Thompson Grove in the protected lands.  It's probably good to see the natural prairie but oh my gosh it was so uninteresting.  And did I mention hot?  Hot, hot, hot;  shade was of little help.  I am definitely not tough enough to be a pioneer and we will not make this stop again.  Bet it's cold, cold, cold in winter, too!

We passed through New Mexico and into Colorado in short order after Thompson Grove.  I was thrilled as always to cross the pass into Trinidad; a picturesque little town that says "Colorado" to me.  Woo Hoo!  The drive through New Mexico and up to Pueblo was peaceful as 4 out of 5 blissfully napped.

It was a 560 mile day.  Quite a lot with 5 kids!  We spent the night at Lake Pueblo State Park.  It was pristine, beautiful and quiet.  The "B" loop in Arkansas camp ground is the best with great lake views.

We had planned a short, straightforward drive to Loveland on Monday, where we'd meet up with the folks for some shopping before the final 30 minute drive.  However, we'd had a bad surprise the night before;  Paul noticed the driver's window had mysteriously disappeared into the door.  He was able to get the door panel off and after consulting with my amazing nephew, T J Schmidt, we determined a new window motor assembly was needed.  So on Monday, we detoured through Denver to pick up the part at a local dealer and got a great deal thanks to TJ's negotiating.

In Loveland, we met the folks at Sam's Club and Dad and dear Hubby took off to have lunch with the kids at Namaqua Park.  It was a pretty park, underutilized, with lots of space and shade.  The shopping took longer than we thought it would but we landed at Rocky Mountain State Park by late afternoon. It was good to smell the mountain air and though the locals were complaining about the 80 degree weather, it was bliss to us.

Those are the adventures on the way out.  More on the family reunion and the beautiful scenery next time!