Giga Pet

I was taking with the boys one day about the technology I played with when I was their age and I told them about giga pets. Since then they have wanted one. I tried to tell them over and over that they aren't as cool as they are making them out to be but they don't believe me. It was made even better by the boys discovering Ebay. Camden found one for $1 and just had to get it. so far he thinks it's pretty sweet although it came with the wrong instructions so we aren't sure what some of the commands mean. It does re-set any time it is bumped, but I told him he got a cheap one with '90s technology so don't expect it to be too awesome. He will get his moneys worth at least. 

Seuss Update

We have finally added onto the bonus room walls. While we still have a long way to go, but it is look really cool. 

This wall will be near our books and have a quote about reading above it. 

This section of wall is about done. We need to finish up the Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz in the corner and some shading. 

 It's been one of those weeks with the kids. Since we are painting the bonus room there is paint left out. We always set it back next to the wall so the kids can still play and not spill it. I went up stair to take these pictures and noticed this sweet mess. Surprisingly no one knows how it happened. I guess good thing that this carpet is the old. But this just shows that we won't change it until the kids are either older or out of the house. 

Reunion

We had the Barnes' Reunion a few weeks ago in McCall and it was a lot of fun. We haven't been up this way, so it was fun to see something new. One of the activities was a white water rafting run, but some of the kids were too young for it, so Teresa and I took them to this old small town. The kids thought it was cool seeing and playing with all of the old  gadgets they had. Jacks thought the type writer was the best thing ever. 

An old post office box that even had letters in it. 

The switch board, which made no sense to them at all. 

Then we went and walked through and old school. The best part was the books. Just how old they were and some of the teaching that they used to do. Some of them I think may be good to be back in schools. On the teachers desk there was even a paddle for the kids who were being bad. 

The lake was ok. It was very cold, and the beach part was really small, but water is water and the kids loved it. 

Everyone loved the rafting trip. No one fell out until the last possible spot, then Grandpa Barnes lost his balance and fell. Thankfully Josh helped him out of the water and every one was safe. The boys can't wait to go again. 

Just the Kids

In the winter we bought these big balls that you can fit in and run into each other for fun. We filled them up once then put them away. Since it's warmer out the kids wanted to fill them up again. They made for a fun movie night seat for the kids. Too bad they take up a lot of room. 

All of the kids have been working on their reading BINGOs and 3 of them have gotten 3 prizes. The only one left now is a blackout for them, which they are trying to get. One of the activities is to make your own "How to" book. Emery did her's the other day and I loved it. It makes riding a bike without training wheels so easy. 

The 4th Fun

We had a good 4th this year. Brad and I tired to have lots of things for the kids to do to keep them busy so they'd have fun. We went to lunch and wished Grandma Barnes a happy birthday. By the time we got back home it was HOT out, so we had a water party. The best invention for summer is Bunch O Balloons. They fill up so fast and easy, so we were able to have a lot in the pool. 

This is probably only half of what we actually had. They threw them about as fast as I filled them up. They couldn't throw them at me while I was filling them up, so they made up for it once I was done. 

We told the kids no balloons at the house and a certain oldest twin, who won't be named, decided it was a good idea to not listen and throw it at Emery's window. The silver lining is it's a double pane, so we can wait till after Disney to fix it. The mystery child now gets to mow the rest of the summer without pay and had to take a little out of his Disney money. Yay kids...

You can kind of see it, but the crack goes all of the way up the glass as well. 

They we lit off a few fireworks with our neighbors. I have to say I hate fireworks. I worry too much that something bad will happen. This was made even better by Brad trying to make Whistling Pete's explode.Thanks to me having 4 brothers, I knew how to do this better than him. The boys thought it was pretty sweet, and now they know how to do it. 

Projects

We have had another few weeks of projects. Ones I didn't get pictures of is swimming and going to "Cars 3" with Grandma Arrington and some cousins from Boise. The kids loved it. I'm not sure how my friend and I could spend hours on end at the city pool; now I have a small tolerance for a pool full of people. We tried to draw using prospective. First the kids outlined their hands and feet then had to draw themselves. The kids didn't quiet get it, most of them have huge hands and arms that only are attached to half of their hands. Brad tried to show what they should do but lost focus and made a hand man. The green on Jacks' is him tooting...

We made ice cream cone smores. The added marshmallows and chocolate  and PNB chips the cooked them for a bit. They were pretty good, but way too sweet. 

We also did a project on the 4th with paint. I was going to do melting crayon art, but the more I looked into it, they less it seemed like they all would enjoy it. So we did splatter painting, which will be used when I re-do the kids bathroom. Having only one go at a time really helped it not me as messy. Emery and Jacks went first and didn't get a drop on me (I held the paint bowl), then Beck went and got paint all over my legs. 

Even though it had to be random, It was interesting to watch them try and to get the paint to go where they want. Camden seemed to have more of a method then anyone. He is more of a perfectionist when it comes to art, like his dad.  They all turned out really well, I'll show the end product with the finished bathroom. 

Fun Weekend

This past weekend was really fun. Sometime before Christmas we got tickets to go and see "Phantom of the Opera" on stage. I love the music and the movie and couldn't wait to see it. It was worth the wait, it was so good. The movie doesn't do music justice, live it sounds so much better. The stage props moved around, but the chandelier was my favorite part. I defiantly want to go again and to take the kids to it someday.

While we were in Boise for that the kids went camping with Grandma and Grandpa Arrington. The did projects, hiked, biked, ate food and got dirty. The kids loved it and it makes them ready for G&G camp. 

 Cam needed new socks and he requested ones that go to his knees. I'm not sure why he likes these so much, but we sent searching for long songs. Which him being so short didn't make that search too tough. 

 Jacks in front of the church cabins that Grandpa helped build. The kids thought that was pretty cool to see. 

 Zander and Beck found this walking stick on their hike and carried it all the way back to camp. They used a saw to cut it down a little bit though. 

They were all, and still are pretty worn out, but had a lot of fun. I love all the memories they are making.