Games
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
We had a wonderful Spring Break with the girls. Last week Jake had to work for a few days in the Charleston so we went with him. It was nice to hang out together with family and create new memories. This week we are back to the normal schedule with school back in full swing.
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
Read These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls (Book 8)- Read Imagination Station: Attack at the Arena by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 2) – almost finished, started reading it this past weekend
Ride bikes / scooters / skates / roller blades with the family– rode at home and took our bikes & skates to Charleston to ride as wellGo on a picnic with the kids– had a picnic with the girls at the Easter Egg Hunt & while in CharlestonPlay in the park together– played several parks in Charleston with the girlsVisit a Museum– went to the Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry and the Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon
Plan one special Activity with the Family– spent time together in Charleston doing special activities including the Cooper River Bridge Kids Run on Friday!
Go on a family walk– took walk through Battery ParkGet together with Family and/or Friends– had some family and friends overPlay a board game– played several games with the girlsGo on a special road trip– went to CharlestonSlumber partyGo out to dinner one evening– went out to eat while in CharlestonWatch a movie or TV show together one evening– since we finished reading the Little House on the Prairie books we introduced the girls to the TV show, they were sooo excited!
Personal Goals
Exercise at least 5 days this week– lots of bike riding, walking, and even a mile jog in the Kids Run
Drink 8 glasses of water each dayContinue my YouVersion plan(s)- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read)
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week – since we were traveling most of the week I didn’t plan out the menu
Pay all upcoming billsStart Spring Cleaning
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attentionWork completed for clients
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchWrite and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
Groceries $40 for 4- Payoff the Van – made another payment
- Pay medical bills in full – got one of the bills paid off, working on the other ones now
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Read The First Four Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls (Book 9)
- Read Imagination Station: Attack at the Arena by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 2)
- Plan one special Activity with the Family
- Play a board game
- Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night before
- Daily School Activities & Homework Completed
- Attend After School Activities
- Volunteer One Day at Girls School
- Prepare for Upcoming Visitors
- Finish the girls Bookshelf
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Continue my YouVersion plan(s)
- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read)
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Pay all upcoming bills
- Work on Spring Cleaning
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work completed for clients
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Write and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
- Groceries $40 for 4
- Payoff the Van
- Pay medical bills in full
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results.
Learning About Manners Picnic Basket Game by Noodleboro
The girls have had the Learning About Manners Picnic Basket Game by Noodleboro (Playskool) for several years now. They love it! It is a unique game with a picnic blanket board, a picnic basket, games pieces, a story they can read, and a cd to listen too. Many times as we are setting up the game someone will read the story and after playing the game the girls like to listen to the cd. It is a cute game about using your manners, being kind, and polite.
- Colorful with neat game pieces (how many games come with a cool picnic basket)
- Book to read during story time with fun character who are learning their manners
- Audio CD with more about the story and songs regarding using manners
- Easy to play (recommended for ages 4 and up)
- 2 to 4 Players
- Object of the game – use your manners and be the first to collect all the items you need at your picnic!
- Learning Benefits – social skills (say “please” and “thank you”), taking turns, listening, reading, and more
We love games! We have found that playing games is beneficial for many reasons. It gives us quality time together as a family. The kids learn that they will not always win (which is not always an easy lesson to learn), but the game can still be fun even if you are not the victor in every game. It provides opportunities for us to talk and create memories together. Games teach and help our kids practice a variety of useful skills like following directions, reading, writing, counting, taking turns, and more.
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
We had a great Easter weekend with the family. I am super excited about spending some extra time with the kids since they will be out for Spring Break this week. A lot of my goals for the upcoming week center around time spent with the family.
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
- Read These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls (Book 8) – still reading through with the girls
- Read Imagination Station: Attack at the Arena by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 2) – haven’t started it yet
Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night beforeDaily School Activities & Homework CompletedAttend After School ActivitiesPlan one special Activity with the FamilyVolunteer One Day at Girls SchoolEaster activity & celebrationGet together with Family and/or Friends
Personal Goals
Exercise at least 5 days this weekDrink 8 glasses of water each dayContinue my YouVersion plan(s)- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp – hoping to get back into it soon
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read) – reading through it
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned out for the weekPay all upcoming bills
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attentionWork completed for clients
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchWrite and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
- Groceries $40 for 4 – went a little over with the Easter items
- Payoff the Van – made another payment
- Pay medical bills in full – making payments
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Read These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls (Book 8)
- Read Imagination Station: Attack at the Arena by Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker (Book 2)
- Ride bikes / scooters / skates / roller blades with the family
- Go on a picnic with the kids
- Play in the park together
- Visit a Museum
- Plan one special Activity with the Family
- Go on a family walk
- Get together with Family and/or Friends
- Play a board game
- Go on a special road trip
- Slumber party
- Go out to dinner one evening
- Watch a movie or TV show together one evening
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Continue my YouVersion plan(s)
- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
- Finish reading Overcoming Dyslexia by M.D. Sally Shaywitz (someone gave me this to read)
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Pay all upcoming bills
- Start Spring Cleaning
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work completed for clients
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Write and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
- Groceries $40 for 4
- Payoff the Van
- Pay medical bills in full
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results.
The Ladybug Game by Zobmondo
Our family has been trying to play at least a couple games together every week. Sometimes we do it on a week day and other times we play over the weekend. The Ladybug Game by Zobmondo is one that the girls have had for a long time. We have played this game many times over the past few years. It is a cute, colorful, and fun game that we have enjoyed. The best part is you can play it with young children.
- Colorful graphics
- Easy to play (recommended for ages 3 to 8)
- Simple directions (reading is not required to play)
- For 2 to 4 players
- Object of the game – the first ladybug to reach home wins!
- Learning Benefits – math, colors, information about Ladybugs, Praying Mantis, Aphids, and more
I thought it was really neat that this game was actually invented by a kid! Each player gets a ladybug “Ella Yellow, Rickie Red, Tommy Teal, or Olivia Orange” and moves his / her piece based on the card that is drawn. You may go forward or backward or skip ahead. You may have to get a Praying Mantis pass to go on and you want to make sure your collecting some Aphids along the way so you can get past the ants. The game is pretty short (approximately 20 minutes) so there is no need to block off a large part of your day to play.
We love games! We have found that playing games is beneficial for many reasons. It gives us quality time together as a family. The kids learn that they will not always win (which is not always an easy lesson to learn), but the game can still be fun even if you are not the victor in every game. It provides opportunities for us to talk and create memories together. Games teach and help our kids practice a variety of useful skills like following directions, reading, writing, counting, taking turns, and more.
Travel & Vacation: Snow Days (part 2)
Karlie hanging out in the snow fort
The girls were so happy to have time every day to play in the snow while we were in Vermont. We went sledding, on walks, built a snow fort, started a little fire, had a snowball fight, made snow angels and more! We were thankful to have some time with family up in Vermont this winter. It was a relaxing time full of great memories!
Brina getting ready to do a snow angel
Karlie working on her snow angel
Brina sliding down this hill without a sled just on her bottom
Karlie collecting sticks
Travel & Vacation: Snow Days
Jake walking through the woods with his girls. This area had changed a lot since we had been there last (besides the snow) there was a clearing were the loggers had been.
The girls had a grand time exploring the area. We took several walks that let to the river or other places nearby. A couple times we stopped to take a break or they got pulled on the sled but for the most part they kept up. We even built a snowman this year which was a lot of fun. Little pieces of the snowman (mouth, nose, etc…) started falling off throughout the weekend but he remained standing even as we were getting ready to leave.
Grandma Kay and Irish leading the way
The river looks a little chilly! The last time we were in Vermont we were swimming and splashing around in it.
Daddy and Karlie chatting
Daddy and Karlie working on a snowman
Brina decided she was too cold so she went inside with Grandma and watched from the window
Karlie being silly!
Daddy and Karlie by the snowman
Travel & Vacation: Leaving on a Jet Plane
Leaving on a Jet Plane! Jake took this picture of an airplane flying over the ship earlier that day
We spent most of Saturday morning on the boat enjoying breakfast, walking around, and reminiscing before heading to the Fort Lauderdale airport. Our flights didn’t leave until later that afternoon so we had plenty of time to get to the airport, relax, and have some fun before parting ways and getting onto the planes. Half of us were heading back to South Carolina and the other half were going to Kansas. We ate snacks, read books, played games, slept, and were entertained by the wildlife that came to eat the crumbs the kids dropped on the floor. Probably the most entertaining game we played was Bean Boozled, we had some good laughs with that one (a couple times we even had the couple sitting next to us laughing).
Nicko enjoying his candy bracelet from Brina Bee!
Nicko enjoying his candy bracelet from Brina Bee!
Zach could sleep anywhere….here he is sleeping soundly on Grandma Penny’s lap at the airport
Reading books in the airport
Another form of airport entertainment in Fort Lauderdale, watching the pigeons come in and pick up the crumbs that the kids dropped on the floor. This one was right next to my foot! The birds came several times within inches from us. The kids would eventually get so excited watching them that they would scare the birds away but in a few minutes they would come back again. Although it was kind of gross the kids were entertained and fascinated by the birds (they kept wanting to feed the birds more).
This guy was right next to Amber’s boot and backpack. He wasn’t very scared of us, he was more interested in getting the crumbs off the floor.
Travel & Vacation: Rock Climbing on Independence of the Seas
Lee made it to the top and rang the bell! WooHoo! He made it look so easy and went up several times that morning!
The final full day on the boat we spent at sea. We had a lot of fun climbing the rock wall, going to a movie with Nicko, ice skating, swimming, going to the show, and so much more. The only thing that we did that wasn’t exciting was pack our luggage because we were heading home the next day. I didn’t get any ice skating pictures because we were not allowed to take the cameras on the ice.
Nathan made it to the top! Yay Nathan!
The girls were proud of Grandpa Russell for ringing the bell too. Way to Go Grandpa!
Karlie ready to go rock climbing wall
Brina was content watching all the family members climb the rock wall.
Brandon, Amber, and Nathan ready to go rock climbing
Brandon heading up the rock wall
Amber heading up the rock climbing wall
Lee and Amber both climbing up the rock wall
Grandpa Russell watching the rock climbers. Brina giggling at Mommy, I had just spilled one of the drinks because the cap wasn’t screwed on all the way (Brina thought it was pretty funny)!
Karlie listening to the instructions from the worker before doing the climbing wall
Karlie heading up the rock climbing wall
Brina all smiles peeking out at me from the basketball court. Is it windy B?
Karlie going up the rock climbing wall. She didn’t make it to the very top but she did get a good ways up and tried it twice.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Adventure Ocean’s Family Arcade Night
Found a fun one to play together!
Earlier today we were able to take a ferry off the boat to visit Grand Cayman Island, explored the island, took a chartered boat ride, swam with the stingrays, and snorkeled. When we got back to the boat later that day we had fun with all the activities on the ship. The older four kids really enjoyed the time they spent at the Adventure Ocean’s club specifically for kids their age. Normally, when we took the kids to the club activities you had to walk through a room full of arcade games (which you had to pay to play).
Tonight they had Family Arcade Night and all the games were free. Yippee! Since the girls had been wanting to play a few of the games we figured it would be a fun activity for them. They had a blast playing the games both by themselves and even a few together. It was a lot of fun having the girls with us on the cruise this year. We were able to do some different activities that we had never participated in while on other cruises. Little activities like this were a lot of fun for the kids and parents both!
Brina concentrating on her game
Look OUT Karlie!
Brina Bee playing a racing game now!
Karlie is concentrating hard and Brina looks concerned (maybe Karlie is about to crash!)
Daddy and Brina playing a game together!
Teamwork!
This one just makes me laugh! Brina and Karlie playing an arcade game together.
Travel & Vacation: Pool Adventures
Fun times at the pool
Our first full day on the cruise we had a full day at sea which was really nice because we got to do a lot of fun activities on the boat. The kids started the day early (at least our kids did), they were up at 6 am and ready to go! After eating breakfast with Grandpa and Grandma the kids thought it would be a good time to go for a swim in their pools. The adults caught up on conversations as the kids went swimming. They were bouncing from splash zone to pool to hot tub. Much to our surprise most of the pools on this boat were chlorine, in the past most were salt water. The kids tended to sit more still when they were in the jacuzzi so I noticed we got more of those pictures, ha!
One of the kids favorite places to swim. It was a circular pool with moving water. The kids loved it. Brandon, Nathan and Karlie are in this picture. If you look at the back of the picture you can see the ocean out the ship’s window (the water’s about the same color too).
Karlie loving the extra time swimming
Brina, Karlie, Brandon and Nathan getting warmed up in the jacuzzi next to the H2O Splash zone
Brina having fun
My nephews Brandon and Nathan. The girls had a blast hanging out with their cousins for the week!
Brina and Nathan in the jacuzzi
And there off to the next great adventure…
Someone’s tired…Zach did a good job keeping up with the group. Thankfully he can sleep almost anywhere!
Nicko playing in the pool!
