Forced family fun

Our family has been pulled in 20 different locations lately.

We have been so busy and have hardly had any time together. At least, fun quality time instead of, "we have to get this,this, this and this done" time.

The usual fall back for us is a movie night. However, with Harmony having really different interests then the boys, the two older boys wanting to watch things that the two younger can't. So, movie night has become increasingly harder.

Same thing with going to a movie.

Thanks to a Groupon offer, we decided on a round of mini golf and an arcade. We hit up Golf -n- Stuff in Ventura.

I am not the best at mini golf, but it sure is fun. We had a blast going to each hole. We didn't keep score which made it more fun, since there was no competing at all. A lot of members of our family do not deal well with competition.

After the golfing we hit up the sweaty, hot and stinky arcade. Ben, Mason and I played a tough round of air hockey, Harmony loved the dance games, Ethan and Connor not only danced but also played Star Wars games. Ivan held onto his tokens until the very last minute. Then used them on Mario Kart.

We were all starving so we hit up Five Guys. We had never tried it before but had heard good things. While the price was steep, we really enjoyed it! Huge yummy burgers and fries. Of course, Mason just wanted a hot dog. Sigh.

It was so nice to spend time together. I enjoyed watching the kids laugh, play, work together, sit together, talk and just be.

I know it sounds dorky or cliché or...whatever. But I love my family & love spending time with them!

Den chiefs & den leaders

Even though I said I was tired of writing about day camp, there are two other things I want to mention.

FIRST: Den chiefs. The boys were volunteered to help at day camp. They need service hours and so I decided that this would be the perfect time. I am very thoughtful that way.

Even though they were volunteered, they were AMAZING! They were literally climbed on, wrestled on, forced to entertain, lead and be patient with the boys. They were just so good. Ethan was my den chief so I got to put him to work.

Connor was put in a group with kids he didn't know and totally rocked it. I was only able to catch glimpses of him but it was fun to see.

Although he is not my child, a friends son was there with us also. He too was amazing and I was so proud of all of them.

SECOND: Den leaders. All volunteers. A lot of us were with our own children but not all. "Mr. Patrick" was basically Mason's bff the whole week. Making sure he was ok and having fun, wearing sunscreen and drinking water. I would catch him holding his hand, walking and talking with him.

I really appreciated that he had someone to be with all week. Ben was gone on a field exercise and so I know it meant a lot for Mason to have a man around.

So that is it. The final, final installment of the day camp saga.

Day camp days 3,4,5

I am already tired of blogging about day camp.

So lets do the last three days in one post. I will try to keep it somewhat short...

 BB Guns round 2 was a huge hit!

Ivan was a huge fan of the "mustache suckers"

He also made no bake cowboy cookies, but he got to do his absolute favorite...Bottle rockets!

You fill somewhat with water, pump and let it fly. It is fun to watch them fly but also to see the boys reactions.

The camp brought in a nice big climbing wall, and although I didn't think he would want to do it...he did! He got up about halfway and then decided to repel back down. He ran off crying and I couldn't figure out why. He had done a great job.

When I caught up with him, he said, "the harness kept cutting into my legs!". So yeah that could affect your climbing!

The second chance at Archery also went 100 times better than the first. We made sure he had the right kind of bow, and told him to just shoot how he felt comfortable. So he was much happier.

The last day, I honestly could have strangled some of the kids! LOL. I was done and ready to go. We played games, did an old time photo booth and then of course...the water slide.

It had been built up and built up, and so when the kids were given one turn only. There was some major disappointment. From all sides.

We only had a half day on Friday so we did the wrap up, cleaned up camp and were gone. I kept home and slept for a good couple of hours.

Day camp is over for another year. We shall see what happens next year!

Day camp---> day 2

A week at day camp generally goes like this:

Monday & Tuesday everyone is excited and happy to be there. They are having fun and aren't too tired yet.

Wednesday & Thursday everyone is worn out and grouchy.

Friday everyone is happy because we just play all day aaaaand we aren't coming back the next day.

After trying very hard at archery, Ivan was very discouraged because he just.couldn't.get.it. Then we realized that he was using a left handed bow. Two different people were giving him directions. He dropped the bow, covered his ears, screamed, "this is too confusing" and ran off.

It was not the best start to our day but...after that he was in a great mood! Thank heaven cause I was tired!

Archery:

 

Soap carving:

They made (and ate) edible fire, practiced their whittling skills, played games and had fun.

Day Camp (Day 1 recap)

Last week, for the second year in a row, I got to spend some quality time at day camp.

8:30-4:30 in the sun, with 13 boys (ages 9-10), doing crafts, learning skills and running around like crazy.

It is NOT for the faint of heart. However, because of Ivan's...uh quirks, he really needs someone there with him. So I am up.

Day camp would have been one thing, but throw in Ben being on a field exercise, and Harmony being at summer school, it made for a busy week.

  I made Ethan and Connor come and volunteer at day camp, and threw Mason in to the tot-lot. Tot lot is for siblings and they get to go do some of the same things the older boys do.

Mason was a little unsure!

When the week was over, and I uploaded all my pictures, I had over 200 pictures. Between my four boys, the boys from our ward, friends boys and the boys in my den...it makes for a lot of photo ops.

Day 1:
Games, bb guns (Ivan's favorite!) crafts.

Ethan was the den chief for our den. He was amazing!

Tot lot was able to shoot rubber band guns. Mason loved it!!

Ivan was old enough to shoot a real bb gun! He did an amazing job!

 The trading post is always a hit and the boys loaded up on candy!

Making cool leather name tags...

The first day was fun yet long. At the end of the day, this is what we all felt like doing...