Travel & Vacation: Visiting Our Grandparents
Playing in the sun room
We recently had an opportunity to go to Vermont and spend some time with Jake’s family. The girls had a blast playing games, doing puzzles, reading books, and more! They thought it was awesome having a dog in the house too and loved leading Irish around as well as learning how to give her various commands. It was a nice relaxing weekend with Jake’s Mom and grandparents. Thankful for a chance to spend time with them and have fun.
Brina hanging out near the stove with Irish. Hmmm….seems like Irish should be the one in that bed? She thought Irish’s bed was a soft place to sit. Irish was a good sport and didn’t seem to mind sharing.
Craft time! The girls loved doing crafts and were often found at the table cutting, gluing, coloring and more!
Jake and Gramps – Wonder what they are up to now!?
We made a stop by Eatons Sugar House in South Royalton, Vermont
Glad to see the bridge is back up and working again. It was taken out with a flood over a year ago
The river looks a little icy today, don’t think anyone wants to go tubing this time
PopPop looking great
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: 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.
Gift Giving: 12 Days of Christmas Appreciation
12 Days of Christmas Appreciation for my Husband
Last year I did the 12 days of Christmas Appreciation for my husband so this year as I was putting together the 12 Days for the girls I decided to do one with Christmas gifts I had gotten for him. The one I did last year for him had to be small because he was traveling for work several days prior to Christmas, this year he finished most of his traveling in time to start the 12 days of Christmas. I debated back and forth about posting it this year because I know he reads my blog and didn’t want him to know in advance all the goodies I had picked up for him so instead I decided to post it a few days into the 12 days a Christmas and list the items that he has already opened. If you want more details on what I got him or ideas on what to do for your spouse shoot me an email and I can give that to you personally without him seeing it! 🙂
Here is what Jake’s 12 Days of Christmas includes (at least the first few days):
Day 1: Berry Blast & Vanilla Energy Strips (purchased using rewards from CVS & Walgreens)
Day 2: Table Topics – Road Trip To Go Card Game for Upcoming 2013 Family Trips (free after a coupon) 🙂
Day 3: Spinach & Artichoke Dip Mix (free after coupon)
The 12 Days of Christmas started on December 13th (the day he came back from one of his work trips). Every night after dinner he opens his gift for the day. I used a variety of boxes that the items came in or that I had already at the house. Once the boxes were wrapped I put a bow on top and waited for him to come home. He was surprised to see a stack waiting for him to open too.
If you don’t have time to put this together for Christmas consider doing it for Valentine’s Day (for your “sweetheart”), the month of your anniversary, your spouse’s birthday, or another special occasion. The point is to express your love and appreciation for your spouse.
Here’s a picture of the wrapped stacks:
12 Days of Christmas
I am grateful for a loving, caring and hard working man that loves me despite all my craziness. This is just one way to share my love with him during the Christmas Holiday. It was a lot of fun picking out the gifts, wrapping, and giving them to my man. It is my intention to show appreciation to my husband at least once a day. Thankful for an extra opportunity to say “I love you” to my best friend and life partner!
Game: Bean Boozled by Jelly Belly
Bean Boozled Game Some friends of ours introduced us to this game called Bean Boozled by Jelly Belly a couple years ago and it has been a big hit with our family! We’ve even picked up some boxes to take with us when we traveled to play with extended family and friends.
There was a local store that carried the game, but the last couple of times I was in the store they didn’t have it in stock. When I asked about it both times the person working told me that they didn’t know if they would be re-stocking it. I checked online and Amazon carries it (this would be a great one to add to an existing order so you get free shipping).
I cannot tell you how many laughs we have had over this game. It is quite hilarious! With a group of people you have each person pick out a jelly bean to try. The is no way to tell if you have a “good” flavored jelly bean or a “bad” flavor, but as soon as you bite into it you’ll know! The faces of the people biting into the jelly beans is priceless. We even played this game with Jake’s grandparents the last time with visited Vermont.
Flavors
- Licorice or Skunk Spray
- Top Banana or Pencil Shavings
- Buttered Popcorn or Rotten Egg
- Berry Blue or Toothpaste
- Chocolate Pudding or Canned Dog Food
- Peach or Barf
- Juicy Pear or Booger
- Caramel Corn or Moldy Cheese
- Coconut or Baby Wipes
- Strawberry Jam or Centipede
Even though they may “look” the same they taste VERY different. It is a good idea to have a napkin available for each player in case they need to spit out the jelly beans. If you want to play a trick on your co-workers put these in a bowl on your desk, depending on which one they get they may never snag a candy from your desk again!
For obvious reasons this game can only be played one time! Once all the jelly beans have been eaten the game is over. Our kids love this game and can tell you many great memories of when they played it with various family members and friends.
All the fun flavors, hilarious game! The box reads:
CAUTION These jelly beans may look alike but they could not taste more different from each other. Think you can tell them apart? WE DARE YOU!
Gift Giving: 12 Days of Christmas
It’s that time of year again…..excitement is building and the countdown to the final days of Christmas draws nearer. This year we decided to spread the Holiday Cheer out at our house this year by doing the 12 Days of Christmas again. I did this last year and the year before; both years it was a huge hit!
Christmas morning can be so busy and this allows an opportunity to spread the fun over 12 days instead of packing everything into one day. Starting December 13th the girls will be able to open one a day with the last one being opened on Christmas Eve. The cost in the previous years was less than $20 total, including boxes and wrapping paper, however, we decided to add their “big” gift to this stack. Most of the gifts were bought on clearance over the past year and their big gift really wasn’t that much because we got a great deal on it. We did a joint stack for both of our girls, although you can choose to do a stack for each person.
12 Days of Christmas
- Day 1: Reindeer Christmas Socks (purchase last year after Christmas on clearance with rewards)
- Day 2: White Christmas Teddy Bear Shaped Soap (purchased last year after Christmas on clearance and with rewards)
- Day 3: “B” and “K” Candy Cane Striped Christmas Ornament for each girl (purchased last year after Christmas on clearance with rewards)
- Day 4: Christmas Stocking Sticker Craft (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 5: Two Colgate Kids Christmas Toothpastes (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 6: Two Christmas Games – Pin the Star on the Tree & Christmas Checkers (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 7: Christmas Bear Pez Dispensers and Pez Candy Packs (purchased with rewards on clearance)
- Day 8: Disney Cars Christmas Spiral Notebooks (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 9: Gingerbread House Kit (purchased on clearance)
- Day 10: Princess and Frosty Hot Chocolate Tins Sets (found on clearance at Kmart and used gift card)
- Day 11: New Winter PJ’s for each to wear (picked up on sale)
- Day 12: New Digital Camera’s (purchased when it was on sale with Swagbucks gift cards)
Their cameras are their “big” items for Christmas this year. Jake and I decided to give them to the girls for the last day of their 12 Days of Christmas so they would have the cameras to use on Christmas Day. The girls are taking more and more pictures these days. The inexpensive, non-English digital cameras that we bought for them several years ago have held up remarkably well. Whenever their cameras are not working over the past several months they were asking to borrow mine to use so we decided to do a little research, save up (including earning Swagbucks) and get them a little better quality cameras this year since they both are showing a big interest in photography and creative writing. The cameras made my typical $20 or less 12 Days of Christmas gifts a little higher this year but since it included their big gift for the Holidays I am okay with that because they will be so excited to start using them. This time around we got the same camera, but in different colors to help keep track whose is whose without putting names on each camera.
Other Ideas for 12 Days of Christmas:
- Hair Accessories
- Facial Cleansers or Make Up – if you have a teenager just starting to wear makeup or want to update your collection my Mary Kay contact is doing a 12 Day of Christmas set! If your husband is looking for something awesome to get you he may want to contact Ann too.
- Socks or Tights
- Chapstick
- Socks
- Gloves or Scarf
- Card Game
- Construction Paper
- Markers or Crayons
- Matchbox cars
- Small Toys
- Baby Doll Clothes
- Christmas Underwear
- The ideas are endless!
I wrapped them in the original boxes or found ones around the house to put the items into. The Christmas paper was purchased on clearance and I used a coupon. Many of the items we purchased on clearance throughout the year and / or used CVS – ECBs and Walgreens – Register Rewards, Swagbucks Gift Cards or Coupons. I cannot remember the price for all the items but with the rewards it very reasonable price for 12 gifts and some days had multiple items in them.
We did a joint stack for our girls to save money, however, the items we picked match their individual interests (for example, the pj’s were themed to match each girls tastes). When the girls walked into the room and saw the stack of gifts they were super excited. Love seeing their faces and hearing their comments when they first see the stack.
Travel & Vacation: Road Trip Entertainment
I am so thankful that our girls travel really well. Since they were little babies we have been doing road trips and they have been real troopers every time. The longest road trip we took with them was 40 hours (round trip). They have a blast hanging out together reading books, doing work books, playing games, talking, listening to audiobooks, and when we go on a long trip (5 hours or more) they get to watch a couple movies. Here are some of the ways we stay entertained on road trips:
Karlie lounging and talking on the phone as we were driving through Charleston. They usually keep themselves busy reading, doing workbooks, playing games or resting.
I hear giggling coming from the backseat….when I look back this is what I see….Brina practicing her flexibility. Hey at least they are happy on road trips! Goofy girl!
Karlie smiling as she works on a workbook in the car!
Brina multi-tasking….snacking and reading a book at the same time while in the back seat of the car. Thankfully she doesn’t get carsick as often anymore!
On this trip we stuck the basket of books, workbooks, games, etc….in between the girls. This was great because it provided accessible entertainment for both girls at the same time and kept them a little separated so they weren’t poking or messing with each other. They didn’t get to watch a movie on this road trip because it was only 3 hours long, but they still had a lot of fun!
Game: “Wits and Wagers Party” Game by North Star Games
Do you have an upcoming celebration or game night? Are you looking for the perfect party game? You should check out Wits & Wagers Party by North Star Games! You can have from 4 to 20 players and it only takes about 20 minutes to play a round. The rules are simple. Your guests will have a blast and will insist on playing another round.
Wits & Wagers Party has over 200 questions that will test your knowledge of various facts. Every answer is a number such as a year, percent, measurement, and so forth. You get points for having the closest answer without going over as well as for guessing the best answer (which could be any player’s answer). While this game is based on facts you don’t need to know all the answers in order to enjoy, participate, or even win the game!
Here’s 3 more games we recommend (we’ve played them many times):
Our review of this Wits & Wagers Family Game (easy enough for the kids to play too)
Our review of this Say Anything GameCONGRATULATIONS to Our “Say Anything” Game Winner!
The name has been drawn for the giveaway!
CONGRATULATIONS to
Theresa
for winning a
“Say Anything“ Family Game by North Star Games!
Thanks for making a comment in honor of our Giveaway!
An email has been sent to you with more information*
Enjoy your family game night!
Don’t forget to enter our next Giveaway (the next giveaway will be announced later this morning)!
*Giveaway must be claimed within 5 business days of the prize being announced. Failure to claim the prize within the allotted time frame means you forfeit the prize. The actual gift may or may not be identical to the one pictured above.
Giveaway & Review: “Say Anything” Game by North Star Games
I am thrilled to announce a new giveaway on Blessings Multiplied! The winner of this giveaway will receive a Say Anything Family Game by North Star Games! As a Mom, wife and friend I am always looking for ways to entertain my family and guests. After playing Wits & Wagers (see my review) and Wits & Wagers Family (see my review) both are from North Star Games I received Say Anything to check out. My family gives Say Anything game a big thumbs up! I know you will enjoy this one! This game has become a favorite with our family.
Enter the Giveaway (up to 4 entries per person)!
- Sign up to follow my blog (if you haven’t done so already) and leave a comment below telling us how you follow Blessings Multiplied. Put a separate comment for each way you follow Blessings Multiplied (Email, Twitter, or Facebook) plus an extra entry for your bonus answer! Each comment counts as an entry into the giveaway.
- Sign up to receive Blessings Multiplied via email
- Follow on Twitter – @BlessMultiplied
- Like us on Facebook – BlessingsMultiplied
- BONUS – you can get a bonus entry into the drawing if you leave a separate comment below sharing what types of game you enjoy playing.
All comments must be made by November 30th at 10:00 PM EST to be entered into the drawing.
More information about “Say Anything” game:
Say Anything is a great party game to play with your family and friends! You will find yourself laughing as you read the wide variety of answers to each question. The game is made for 3 to 8 players and takes about 30 minutes to play. I would recommend if younger kids are playing that they are able to read and write answers independently (otherwise they may need additional help). The game is recommended for ages 10 and up.
- Ask any question from the card you draw, such as “What’s the best movie of all time?” or “If I could have a BIG anything, what would it be?”
- Everyone else writes an answer and turns it face-up.
- Secretly choose your favorite of these answers. Then everyone tries to guess which one you picked.
Where do I purchase “Say Anything” for myself or as a gift?
This game would be a perfect game to play during the upcoming Holidays or to give as a gift to family and friends! You can purchase this game on Amazon or at major retailers like Books-A-Million, Target, or local game stores found on North Star Games retailer locator. To learn more about the game and those who created it you can visit North Star Games website. You can get the most update to date information on North Star Games by following them Facebook and Twitter.
*A special thanks to North Star Games, specifically Dominic Crapuchettes and Luke Warren, for the providing this game for the giveaway!
