Oh What Do You Do In The Summertime?

I was looking back through posts that I have put up on the blog and realized that I really haven't put any pictures of the kids and the fun things we have done thus far this summer.  Actually I was noticing that I need to have my camera on me at all times, because I really don't have many pictures at all.  That is not like me. Enjoy the following pictures of some of the things we have done this summer. These may or may not be in order, but they are all from the past 2 months. 

3rd Annual Ward Campout

Every year the campouts get better and better.  This year we had so many people show up.  The annual lighting of the campfire went off without a hitch.  Pinatas, games, smores, friends, and fun. What else could you ask for?

Enchanted Village

 Every year we go as a big family to Enchanted Village.  This year was no different than any other.  We had a great time.

Lots of cousins all piled into a firetruck.

Brave Little Girl.  She really wanted to go on the pirate ship.  However, once it started she hated it.  Lil' E got on, but he was at the top.

She loved the scrambler.  I think she went on it at least 6 times in a row.

4th of July

Our annual family 4th of July was a blast.  The weather was so nice that we camped out.  The kids had lots of fun with cousins they haven't seen in a long time.  This was the first time in like 15 years that JBody had seen one of his brothers.  It was a great weekend.

Baby Lise Finally Has Arrived!

June 19th was the arrival our new baby cousin Lise.  What a whirlwind she put her mommy and daddy through.  We are so happy that in the end both she and her mommy were healthy.  We had to wait awhile till the kids could see her.  They didn't get to see her in the hospital because she was 4 weeks early.  But now that she is home, they love her.  Especially Razy.  She has become quite the baby hog when Lise is around. (Lise is her bloggy name)

The Game Farm With Mema

Mema is what the kids all call their Grandma.  Mema had all 8 grandkids visiting so she treated them all to the Game Farm.

The Elk were pretty scary.  Everytime you turned around another one had it's head in the window. 

Finally a Double Yoker

Lil' E has patiently waited for 2 years to get a double yoker.  He has to wait no longer. 

Daddy Fixed the Septic Pump with Grandpa

I thought I would just add this picture for giggles.  Our daddy is quite the character.  He was supposed to take a picture of the little box behind him and email it to grandpa.  He thought it would be funny to take the picture with him in it too.

Swimming in Mema's Pool

My mom has a pool (and it is heated ahh).  This summer the kids have gone over there about 4 times.  Lil' E has learned to swim (Yeah) and Razy and Doble are no longer afraid to be in the water.  The water is a nice 85 degrees so even when it is gloomy they can enjoy the pool.

Another Tooth Lost

Well this one was yanked out.  Doble and Lil' E were playing and Doble ripped a blanket out of Lil' E's mouth.  The blanket wasn't the only thing to come out of his mouth. 

Babysitting Baby Lise

My brother and my sister in law asked if we would watch Lise while they went to dinner.  OF COURSE!! Razy got Lise all to herself.  The boys were at Aunt Tay Tay's house so Razy got to cuddle with Lise the whole night.

She actually did start to fall asleep on the luv sac with Lise, but here she is just faking.

Camping At Zion's Camp

We enjoyed Zion's camp so mcuh during Memorial Day Weekend that we decided to go back.  It was the perfect weekend to do so.  It was so warm that the kids got in the lake and swam.  We were still in t-shirts and shorts that night when we finally decided to go to bed around 11:30.  It was so beautiful. 

This came as a huge shock to me.  I can't believe Doble actually went out on the lake.  This is the first year he has overcome his fear of being in the water.

Well there you have it.  That has been our summer thus far.  This week we are supposed to have some nice weather so we are actually hoping to visit Salt Creek and John Wayne Marina.  Pictures to come!

4th of July Pinata {tutorial}

Last week we made a pinata for our ward camp out.  It was so much fun that JBody and I decided we needed to make one for this weekend.  Every 4th of July we have a big family get together.  Everyone pitches in money for fireworks, which makes for an awesome show.  This year, two of JBody's brothers that haven't come in the past due to distance will we coming. One of which JBody hasn't seen in about 15 years.  We are excited for the weekend.  The kids are really excited.  They love spending time with their cousins.  To make the weekend even more fun we made a 4th of July American Flag pinata.  It will be loaded with candy, pencils, necklaces, bouncy balls, glo sticks and more.
Want to know how to make one too?

What you will need:

newspaper, balloon, flour, water

crepe paper

glue

string 

Let's get crafting:

Begin by making your paper mache.  I don't have a picture tutorial for this part.  However, it is super easy.

1. Make your glue: 1 part flour to 5 parts water (ex. 1cup flour/ 5cups water).

2. Bring to a boil over med heat and boil for 3 mins.  To make this smooth, stir constantly with a wire whisk.  You want it smooth.  

3.  Let the mixture cool.  Trust me, it will be very hot and hard to work with.  

4.  Using strips of newspaper, cover a blown balloon.  I found that I like to have at least 4 layers.  To keep track of this I do alternate layers of vertical and horizontal laying.  

5.  Let dry.  The more layers you have the longer it takes to dry.  We put ours in front of a fan for a couple days. 

6.  Begin decorating.  Here is where my picture tutorial begins.  

1. Start with your dried newspaper balloon.  By day 2 I have popped the balloon to help the inside dry faster.

2.  Drill holes at the top of the pinata to place your string, ribbon, wire, ect.  See the large hole on top?  I cut it about day 2 as well to help the inside get more air circulation. 

3.  Using a sharp pair of scissors, cut your crepe paper like so.

4. After cutting your crepe paper you will have a pile of strips like so.

5.  Cut slits about 2/3 - 3/4 inches into the crepe paper.  

6.  I like to use a brush to brush the glue onto my pinata.

7.  Going around in circles, glue your cut crepe paper onto pinata. Start from the bottom up.  For a while you will have the pinata upside with your strips facing up.  

8.  There will come a point when you will be able to flip your pinata right side up and have your crepe paper pointing down.  I like to place the pinata in a bowl to keep it from wobbling all over the place.  

9.  Find the holes that you drilled and insert a pencil or something to remove the crepe paper around them. 

10.  Using a piece of tape around your ribbon, insert ribbon through one hole and the other directly on the other side of it.

11.  You will have 4 pieces of ribbon looking like this.  Cut them so they are equal lengths.

12.  I wanted to reinforce the ribbon instead of tying it.  I used my sewing machine to stitch the ribbon together. I went forward and reverse few times to make it extra strong.

13.  Take one of your remaining strands and sew it to the two you stitched in the opposite direction.  

14.  Stitch your last piece of ribbon going the opposite direction as the last stitch.  I hope this part all makes sense.  

15.  You can use pieces of paper to embellish if you would like.  For our pinata I cut stars out and glued them on to make it look more like the flag.
There you have it.  A pinata ready to be beaten apart.