Frisbee Tic Tac Doe

For YW tonight, we were having a BBQ and playing outside games. I told them I'd bring this game, Frisbee Tic Tac Toe. Of course, Husband and I had to figure out if it would even work with what we were thinking and good news, it did! We just took a rope and made 9 squares:

 Its hard to see in that pic, but you can see how it works. It was actually super fun! We just bought 6 frisbees of two different colors (blue and green) and then you just play as a regular tic tac toe game. After we played a few rounds this morning (to test it out!) we kept returning to the grid all day and picking up a few games haha it was great fun.
As we were at the activity, I got the following picture from my sister:

Turns out small Darth had fallen while on his bike, and when the bike tipped over, he then fell ... on the handlebars! Ah poor tyke, he's working his way through some hurt mouth stuff right now. But he's soldiering on through it, good for him.

Aberford

Husband is currently in the middle of making a video game to be released. He’s been working on it for the last few months, and in a week or so, he’s going to start a Kickstarter for it. I don’t know if everyone here knows what a Kickstarter is, but basically, its when you crowd-fund something, and usually, something is promised to those that help fund it. We’re all crossing our fingers that this is successful, and I really hope it works out, as it’s a great idea. Recently, we got a poster for the game made:

I’ve been keeping the game premise until the end, because it’s awesome: its about 50’s housewives battling zombies. Here’s their website:

http://www.sketchypandagames.com/

In case anyone wanted to check it out. I hope this works out for us, and that the game can get made, because it’s awesome.

Kick in the Pants!

Thursday night, when I got home from work, there was a giant pizza box on my doorstep. At first, I was like, did someone order a pizza and just leave it there, but then that made no sense. I parked in the garage like I usually do, and while I walked inside, Husband happened to come home, and picked it up and brought it in. It had my name on it, and I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what it was, because any time I get a package, it’s from Amazon, and I know what it is. So I opened it up, and it was a package from Adam’s grandmother – who lives in Florida. It was a game she invented called Kick in the Pants. It’s kind of similar to Sorry!, but don’t mention that to her. Here’s a look at the game:

So this one uses marbles as playing pieces, and you want to get your marbles around the board and back into your ‘home’ space. The dice are used, instead of cards, and only a 1 or a 6 can get you out of your starting place, and only a right number can get you into home. When we went to Florida in March, we went to her house and played it, and it was a lot of fun, so I’m glad and excited that she sent it to me, now I can play whenever I want to!

First Soccer Game!

As I have blogged about our new soccer team, I will not waste any time introducing it. Today was our first game! We (Chelle and I) have been prepping for a week now. Sadly, we had to skip all of our soccer practices the past week because of inclement weather, so today was the first time seeing everyone again since the very first practice. Of course, I had forgotten half of the girls’ names. They were pretty good about telling me again what they were. After some warming up, we got started. We got to be on the field with the girls, Chelle back with the defensive girls, and me just running all over with the ball (well, the girls with the ball). It was fun, tiring, and made me sweaty by the end. After the game, we had cupcakes, to celebrate the other coach’s birthday. After singing to her, and giving everyone high fives, we all dug in.

How cute are these?! I used a funfetti cake with a vanilla frosting, dyed yellow to match the liners and pop-ups. I think they’re pretty fun. So now, I know what to expect from a game, and how to prep for them. And, in case you wondered, we tied, 1-1. It was a great game, and I can’t wait for the next one!

A Carnival, a Carnival

I've never been one to go to ward events. Of course, I've only been in a singles ward for things, but still. I never went to any ward activities, and while I did go to FHE's, it was only when the activity was a fun one that I went, never for the service projects or boring-sounding ones. I know that's not what you're supposed to do, but I'm just not that into doing the boring stuff. But with the move into this house a half a year ago, Husband and I decided that we'd be going to ward activities, and trying to be as active as we could. Now, this was a valiant effort. We went to the ward Christmas party, but we only stayed long enough to bring our assigned food and eat dinner. And then there have been a few party-type events since then that we've had plans during, and couldn't make it. Today, there was such an event, and finally, we made it!
Husband was originally supposed to go out of town this weekend. But then he woke up not feeling well, so he didn't actually go. So I dragged him to go to our wards event - the YW Camp Fundraiser Carnival. I know, that's just what you should do when someone isn't feeling well, right, drag them to such an event? But he wasn't like, sick, he just had some odd pains. (not his appendix, I asked. That's the only pain I know of in a specific area) So we go to the carnival, and I feel a little out of place, because we don't have any kids, which is mostly what the carnival was aimed at - bringing your kids to have a good time. Husband was mad, he really didn't want to be there, but I didn't want to go alone, because that just seemed crazy. So we just kinda...hung out for a bit...walking around...looking at stuff. We shared a slice of pie, bought tickets, and surveyed the land. As we walked by a game, a fellow ward member started chatting with us, and asked if we wanted to play the game. Originally we resisted, but then we got a little change of heart, and we played. The game was Ping Pong Relay (I think, I don't remember a name) and it went as such: You and a challenger (so, me and Husband) each get a ping pong ball. Starting at a line, you use your breath to blow the ball across the finish line, and hopefully stay in your lane. Of course, the game is meant for little breaths and little people. We finished the game quickly, with bruised knees, and a lot of laughs. My ball went out of bounds once, but I was told I could quickly guide it back in. So when I tried to gently put it back into play, it accidentally crossed double lines of play and knocked out Husband's ball. So I win! And not by cheating, despite what you might hear.
After the Relay, we made our way through the other games. We did ring toss, beanbag toss, Bingo, horseshoe toss, a water shooting game, and the balloon animals. Husband got a sword, and I got a purple elephant, since that's what color elephants are. That's what I tried to convince the kid standing in line behind me, but I don't think he believed it. Here is the elephant:

Snazzy, eh? I appreciated the work put into him. Then we hit up other booths, the photo booth (which, the pictures of that will be to die for, I can just feel it. I'll put them on here once we get them from the photographer) and we also watched a Candy Cannon, which is exactly what it sounds like. Its kind of like an exploding pinata that shoots a far distance. Glorious. I just realized I should have got a picture of that, but oh well. In case you're wondering, yes, we were the only adults playing these games. Oh well.
After the Candy Cannon, there was about 20 minutes left of the carnival. Originally, we had intended to stay 30 minutes, but I think we were there for about 90...whoops!
As things were winding down, we started a children-wide balloon-sword fight in the middle of the gym/carnival. And yes, we were the only adults in this fight. As I didn't have a balloon sword, I was mostly just standing there, clutching my elephant while eating my ice cream cone. My nephew, Zeke, came up and asked for my elephant. I was suspicious, and I said I didn't want him to hurt him. He assured me he wouldn't, so I handed it over. HE DISMANTLED IT! What a tiny jerk! So I thanked the carnival gods that there was still 10 minutes left, bought another ticket, and hopped in line at the balloon stand. I got another elephant balloon, but this time, orange.

Looking good, eh? We then took our leave, and came home. We emptied our pockets of all of our stuff we won, which was mostly Frooties and rings that didn't even go halfway down our pinkies. I should have taken a picture, I'm just realizing, but oh well again. So, there it is. Our ward carnival experience, which was a lot of fun. Husband even had a good time, despite his reluctance to come along. I don't really mind that we were the only adults playing and having a great time, but I wonder what the other adults thought, if it made them want to join in the fun. Maybe next time, they will!

Penny Can!

I don’t know how many of you watch Cougar Town, but I love that show. Its completely different than what you expect – it may have started out a show about Jules (Courtney Cox) dating younger guys, but the show has ditched that premise since about the 3rd episode. It’s about a group of friends who are hilarious, and drink a serious amount of wine (seriously, I don’t know how they’re sober, and all still have their livers.) But, there’s a game they invented on this show that is so fun, and I play it often. Behold:

Those are the rules of Penny Can, and yes, they are not at all hard. There are some new rules they’ve added. If you get a rimshot, you get flicked in the ear. If your penny goes in and out, you have a mustache drawn on your face. So far, though, I’ve never done the ‘stache attack, because that’s just mean. We’ve not had a proper Penny Can yet, we mostly just play with cups, vases, bowls, etc. Until now.

For my birthday, PJ made me my very own Penny Can. She took pictures and show quotes to decorate my can, and it is glorious:

So there it is, my very own Penny Can. We’ve been playing this all the time since I’ve gotten it. We’ve played it with the can down on the first floor, and all of us up on the second floor, overlooking it. That way is difficult – the height sometimes makes it so that the penny just pops right back out. But it’s still fun.

I brought Penny Can to work today, and Chelle and I played for a bit. Of course, we were being quiet, so when a penny made it in, we softly said our “Penny Can!” so as not to disturb anyone, but still celebrate the victory. This is what the ground looks like after we play:

I’m sadly not very good at this game. I make only about 15% of the pennies I throw, but I still have a blast. If anyone out there has the time/inclination to play this game, I totally recommend it, its so much fun. And remember, no matter who makes it, everyone has to say “Penny Can!” because it just makes it better.

WoW

We’ve all known for some time now that I’m a nerd. Not like, a huge nerd, but I so have some nerd-ish tendencies. I enjoy video games, I like nerd shows (Firefly…Superman...any comic book movie…) and I read nerd books. I used to be pretty embarrassed by these things, but at this point in my life, I’m used to it, and I even embrace it. But right now, times are a-changing.

Boyfriend is a nerd too. Again, like me, not a huge nerd, but compared to me, he’s a much bigger nerd than I. He plays World of Warcraft (hereafter referred to as WoW) like many a people. Recently, a new version of this game came out, and he warned me before it was available that he might not be available to hang out quite as much when it came out, which I got. He’s been pretty good about it though, it hasn’t interrupted things as much as earlier anticipated.

Anyways, so one day, we were talking about it, and he said that I should play to give it a go. At first, I was super reluctant, but after being hounded about it for a little while, I finally gave in. He downloaded it onto my computer, and after I got my little person created, we played it for a bit. That's right - I'm now a player of WoW.

It wasn’t nearly as bad as I was thinking it was going to be – and I’ll never admit this again, but it was actually pretty fun. I don’t know that I’ll be one of the super-nerds that play it all the time, but I wouldn’t object to playing it more often. I don’t think I’ll ever be good at it, and I know I won’t learn secrets and tricks, or even the lingo, but at least I won’t embarrass myself playing WoW – so long as Boyfriend is there, coaching me through it.

Penny Can!

I have discovered a new game. I took it from Cougar Town, my new favorite show. It’s a delicious game, and it requires so little! Alls you need is a can (like a big, coffee can. This presented a problem, since I don’t drink coffee. I had to substitute with a vase I had around the house. It still works.) and a handful of pennies. The number of pennies you need is directly proportionate to the amount of times you want to get up out of your seat to collect them. I started with 5 or so, but as the game went on, I was playing with like, 20+, because I got sick of getting up.

The premise of the game is such: place your can/vase a few feet away from you. You can play this game sitting or standing, I so far have only done it sitting. After your can/vase is set up, toss a penny into the can, trying to make it in. And that’s it! That’s the game! Every time you make a penny into it, you have to yell “Penny Can!” to celebrate.

It’s quite hard to make it in the can, I’ve found. When I had like, 20 coins, I maybe only made 1 in. If I was really lucky, I made 2. But I still love this game, and once you get started, it’s hard to stop! If anyone wants to play, let me know. You bring the can, I’ll bring a sock full of pennies, and we’ll play until the sun comes up. Or until we’re sick of getting up to collect the pennies, whichever’s first.

Best Idea Ever

I was at the local Radio Shack the other day, and I thought to myself, "Self, they have remote control cars here!" So of course, I peruse the section (which was only like, 4 cars) and what do I see but a cutie little truck that could very easily serve my purposes. I bring it to the cash register with my other purchases, but I didn't see a price tag on it. I asked how much it was and lo and behold, it was only 5 bucks! Holy cow what a deal, so I snatched it up on the spot.
I got it home and put the batteries in it, got it all ready. I turned it on, thinking it could be a great toy for my dog Sargent to play with. He likes to play with everything, so I thought they'd have a good time. Turns out, Sarge is actually just afraid of the truck, so he runs from it like a little girl. That's actually a way better game! I spent the rest of the afternoon playing 'chase Sarge' with it. That's a great game, and it's definitely one I play all the time. I don't know what the dog thinks will happen if the truck catches up to him, but I for one, can't wait to find out.

Finally, finally, back to normal

My health is usually pretty good. With the amount of running I do, it'd be crazy if I wasn't pretty healthy, and thank goodness for that. Unfortunately, on Monday, this took a quick nosedive.
I was playing Capture the Flag for my FHE that night, and as usual, I was taking my competitive side a little farther than normal people do. So there was a point where I was running at full sprint to my teams prison, to get one of my teammates out of there. There was three people coming at me, to try to tag me out too, and I successfully sidestepped one of them, zigged away from another, but the zag I tried to do to escape the third didn't pan out. There was some hitting, some falling, some flipping, some banging of the head, some rolling, and that was all only me. As soon as I had hit my head, I had the sick awful feeling that that was something bad, it felt horrible. I laid there for a few minutes, trying to get my bearings, but it was definitely taking a while. I had a massive headache that night, and was so tired by the time I got home, I just crashed and slept, even though they say you shouldn't do that with a concussion.
The next few days were uncomfortable, to say the least. I could barely move my head without it hurting, my neck had swollen up crazily, and I couldn't move that either. As those who saw me those few days can attest to, I was a mess for those few days. But at least I could move and walk, so that is a plus side. The headaches had stopped after a day or two, which was good too.
So now I know, after my first time of playing Capture the Flag, what I'm really getting myself into with these games. I should probably not be so aggressive in these games, for sure when I'm playing with my ward. For now though, I'm just taking it easy, and I'm glad we don't have any games lined up right now, that the summer isn't here. And if I can't rein in my competitiveness, I'll just wear a helmet, to deal with any falls I might have in the future.

To Draw My Own Conclusion...

I can't actually draw at all. Tonight at FHE, we played Pictionary, and holy cow, I realized how poorly I actually draw. I mean, I've never been creative. I can't draw, I can't make cute things, I've never been able to scrapbook, I just don't do anything like that. I've never really played Pictionary before, so I had no idea what was actually in store for me when they announced it. I went first (curses!) and I drew - wait for it - hair. The easiest word ever! It was my speciality, I drew a stick figure, some strands of hair, and drew some arrows. Man that was easy! We did some yelling, guessing, etc, and then it was my turn again. This time, I drew machine gun. Turns out, my way of drawing a gun is to draw a ninety degree angled line, then add a half circle (for the trigger, duh!) and then some tiny bullets coming out of it. Nobody guessed that right away (shock!) so my next plan was to draw a stick figure (I'm pretty sure that's the only thing I can successfully draw) with something in his hand shooting bullets, then a dead body a few feet away from him. And from this, someone actually got it! I felt pretty good about myself, and at the end of the night, my team won!
We didn't win much, just bragging rights (that's right, suckas!) and we got to get dessert first. But all that I care about is that someone actually recognized my drawings! I'd like to say I'll start playing this game more often, but oh, who am I kidding? I'll be lucky if I ever do again!

It's on like Donkey Kong

Today was my parent's 35th wedding anniversary, so a bunch of the family got together to celebrate. We decided playing games would be the best way to have a good time. Let me preface this by saying, we love games. We are a competitive bunch, and there's usually a game pulled out at every family gathering. There are a few rules that are in effect though. I'm usually not allowed to be banker, because I've been known to...embezzle a little. I'm not saying I've done it in a long time, but I used to grease my own bank a little. And certain people aren't usually allowed to sit by each other, so as to discourage cheating as well. Some games are not allowed to be played anymore, but we have favorites that we usually play-one of which is Scattergories. But we wanted to branch out this time.
We started off with Clue-which we haven't played in a long time, because at this game, I cheat like you wouldn't believe. I can't even help myself usually, I just find myself finding ways to look at people's papers and cards, to ensure I'm the best. I know, I'm horrible! But this time, I didn't cheat! I fought the temptation all night, and in the end, it paid off by...me not winning. But I was honest, and I'm sure that is better in the long run. Next we played Apples to Apples, my new addiction. I find that during that game, I am the loudest. I'm arguing with cards, and I'll yell victoriously when my card is showing. Nobody really fights during that one, it's just a LOUD game, but it's always fun. (PS, I won that game)
The last game we did before we had to wrap things up was Life. Ah, the game of Life. I love this game. We haven't played it in a while either, also because of my cheating ways. I used to rig the cards to make sure I got the best career, and the best salary. I'm a little ashamed now, but I'm trying to mend my ways. I wasn't even going to be the banker this time, but I was voted in at the last minute. Don't worry-I was totally honest this way! I think Mom was trying to cheat though-she kept trying to "change in" her money without going through the proper channels. Good thing I was paying attention! I love how in any game, people start to mistrust everyone. You're carefully monitoring everyone's money, you're paying attention to every roll. The people you love most in the world, and during one game of Life, you're pretty sure they're a criminal, out to take you for everything you have.
I had a blast playing the games today, and I can't wait until the next time we get together to play some more. And believe you me, I'm gonna be brushing up on all my skills-and I'll try to keep my cheating in check!

Its just a bit of Hocus Pocus...

Recently, I have acquired a new computer. And by this I mean Papa Bear got a new computer and I got his old one, to take the place of my computer, which, believe me, is an upgrade. My computer was the shadiest thing ever. I think I bought it in 2002-but I can’t be sure. So we took my computer and put it in the basement as the server computer. Again, an upgrade. Our old server computer was so old to move the mouse around the screen took a while. I will not miss it. When we moved my computer out, I decided to check all the files and folders on it, just in case I had left something scandalous on it. (Good news, I hadn’t) Going through the files, I noticed a childhood game on there, Hocus Pocus. I don’t know that many people have heard of this game, but I adore it! The game is essentially about a little wizard (you) who needs to fight the forces of evil, collect all the magic crystals, and defeat the evil wizard in a final battle. I definitely put the emphasis on little with who you’re playing. He’s so tiny, and he wears this little robe and cap, to let you know you’re a wizard. You have to go through several worlds and different levels, there’s treasure everywhere, and you get bonus points for getting all the treasure in a level. Then you get bonus points if you finish a level before the time they have allotted for you. Nothing bad happens if you go over; you just don’t get the satisfaction of being quick. Of course you have little creatures you’re fighting along the way, and in this game, they vary from level to level, getting harder to kill as the levels increase in difficulty. It starts off with little alligators (who walk on 2 legs) shooting fire at you to little men who throw spears at you. Every time you get hit by one of these guys, you’re health goes down, and you have to find the special bottles of potion to get you back to 100%.
This game is pretty easy. I don’t remember at what I age I started playing it, but it’s been a really long time since I have played it. As with all my games, I quickly learned the cheat codes to this game to ensure I would be the best. These were very helpful when fighting the wizard at the end. I don’t care that I cheat to win in these games. If they weren’t meant to be cheated, nobody would have invented these codes, and we’d all play it slowly. After I found the game on my computer, I played a quick round, to see if it was just how I remembered it, and it is! I fell quickly back into it, knowing all the secret places, and the best way to avoid my nemeses. I only played one level, because of time constraints, but I am excited to go back and play again. Now that I’ve found it, I just want to keep going, see if I can get to the end again, or if it’ll escape me. Seeing this game has brought back to mind my old games we used to play. Monster Bash was a favorite-you had to free cats and dogs that some zombies or something had captured, all while avoiding them. Wow, that sounds dumb now that I’m remembering it, but it was so awesome! And I don’t remember the name of this other one, but it was a math learning game. You chose a person, (a boy or a girl) and then you went through different levels of math-ness. They would give you a question (for example, 9x3) and you had to locate the number someplace. And you had to avoid the little number-stealers, or else you’d have to redo one! And sometimes, to be scandalous, I would be the little boy character instead of the girl. I know, I’m a wild one. But remember, I was like 7, and to me, back then, oh man; I was hilarious for doing that. I can’t wait to play again, and defeat the bad guys, to hear my little wiz yell “woo hoo” and the end like he always did. That always made me so happy!