find joy in the journey

road-trippin'

This summer I am embarking on a grand new adventure.

Me.  The kids.  A van.  750 miles of open road.

This will be my first attempt at road-tripping alone with the kids.  I've shunned the idea in the past because, typically, I was such a sleeper driver.  2 hours tops is all Scott could get out of me.  Then during our road trip in April I found myself able to take 4 hour driving shifts with relatively no problem.  From there, I said to myself, I could maybe do this.  And now . . . . plans are set, an AAA membership is now mine, hotel reservations waiting at a mid-point, oil changed, tires rotated, car washed, and a big bag of kid entertainment is about to be packed.

The kid entertainment . . . without an extra set of adult hands to whack help the kids in the back I knew I had to be prepared.  This post on traveling with kids was sooo helpful and gave me lots of great ideas.

For one, all the kids will have a shoebox size rubbermaid tote to put all their stuff in, and it will double as a writing desk.  Nice idea, huh?

We went to the library today and picked up Harry Potter Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets audio CD's.

A map.  I printed out several maps from Google and plan to glue them onto construction paper for sturdiness because I know they will get a lot of use.  (Conner loves being the navigator).  They can use their colored pencils to color in the route as we go and they will see exactly how much farther it is to Grammer's house.  I 

I've gathered up a bunch of little toys, doo-dads, games, drawing activities, etc. that I will put into brown paper lunch sacks and throw into a big tote.  Then, at certain intervals (a designated time, landmark, or when the kids are driving me nuts) Conner will pull out one of the bags and hand out the contents to his dear siblings.  Here's my list

• notepad and colored pencils in a zippered pouch (no crayons - don't want things falling between the seats, getting lost, and melting -- it's gonna be hot where we're going)
• pipe cleaners for bendy, twisty creations
• black paper & chalk
• post-it notes
• a new, very small toy -- a tiny pound puppy for Anna, mini transformers for the boys
• Road Trip BINGO*  Download Road trip bingo.pages  (I don't know if this download will work for PC users - I created it in Pages, but give it a try).  There is one version for the older, "reading" kids and a picture version for younger kids.
• mini mazes - those cheap little plastic things with the silver ball that rolls around.
• handheld water game - 1.99 @ Fred Meyer.  Kinda like this.
• mini googly balls
• maybe a new CD mix of fun kids songs
• stickers - with strict instructions that they only go on their notepad
• tin foil -- weird?  see here.  Anything to keep the kids entertained.

12 items for 12 hours of driving.  I'm hoping we won't have to use them all and can save some surprises for the drive home.

To start out they'll get a new book, the map, and their box.

I think this just might work. Wish me luck!

girls camp . . . the whole shabang

craft lady

Back in February (I think) I was asked to be the "craft specialist" at Girls Camp.  I was so excited!  I've never held a calling in the Young Women's organization and I haven't been back to Girls Camp since I was a youth there in . . . 1996.  And crafts - that is something I can do.  It totally made my day when I mentioned this new assignment to one of the girls in my ward and she said, "Yay!  Crafts are my favorite part of girls camp!"  And then to discover last week that my Grandma Margaret (one of my very favorite people) was the craft lady at girls camp for years and years . . . . I was ready to go.

But, I also have to admit it was a little strange going to girls camp and not being connected to a group of girls all week.  I was kind of a floater, which was also nice (could operate on my own schedule, shower when I wanted, help out the other staff, etc. etc.).  Monday I spent quite a bit of time twiddling my thumbs.  But tuesday through thursday I had plenty to keep me busy and I found a groove.

You want to see inside the craft house?

Don't you just love the light fixtures?  Very rustic for sure.  And at night the chipmunks made this place their home.  Each morning I'd have the lovely task of sweeping out the chipmunk poo and opening the windows to air the place out.  You could say it's just a part of its character and charm.  I had been warned by the camp host about the chipmunks, but figured I was safe because for the most part everything was tucked away in plastic storage tubs.  But that first night I left my apron out top of one of the tubs.  You can probably guess what I found the next day . . . . one little poo nugget sitting on my apron!  Ewww!

Okay, so on to the projects . . . . .

Tuesday:  Composition Books

I think this is a camp craft tradition of sorts, and it's a nice one.  We covered some composition books and it provides the girls with a journal, notebook to write in all week.  

Cardstock paper was purchased at Peachy Cheap in one of their great daily deals.  We used duct tape for the binding.  It's great because it comes in lots of different colors, it stays put, and provides flexibility.  We also placed a ribbon under the tape at the top of the book so it could hang over and provide a bookmark.  I printed out the camp logo/theme on cardstock to place on the front, and little oval frames they could cut out and put on the back as a nameplate of sorts.

The girls loved their books!

Wednesday:  Ribbon wands and Pipe-cleaner crowns

This was a fun day.  The crafts were pretty easy and open to creative interpretation.  And after a warm afternoon I think it was nice for them to be able to just sit down and fiddle around with things.  Low stress.

{it's blurry, but you get the idea}

For the wands we used 12 inch wooden dowels that I got for a great price at Blick art materials.  They were each given 5 strands of ribbon, 24" long in their year color.  After adding 1 or 2 glue dots to the top end of the dowel we tied the ribbon on super tight.  Then we used some silver star garland to twist around the top -- just the perfect touch of sparkle.

For the pipe cleaner crowns I provided a stash of pipe cleaners and pony beads, ribbon and tulle (for tying to the back) and just let them go to town.  FYI - Papermart is the best for buying ribbon in bulk.  I purchased 100 yard spools of 3/8" satin ribbon for 2.95 each!

Some of the crowns were very creative - I was quite impressed!  The basic idea is to create a circular base - 2 pipe cleaners is all it takes.  Then embellish by adding layers, rows, shapes, winding it around the base as needed.

Thursday:  Mirror project

For thursday I packed up the craft cottage and moved things into the lodge.  The previous two days the girls had rotated through activities (crafts being one of them) for 40 minutes each.  But today we had a 3 hour window where the girls could do crafts or play on the slip n' slide.  So I decided to move to the lodge so we could be closer to the action and the girls could go back & forth between activities pretty easily.

I was very excited for this project - my favorite of the week.  I don't have a picture of my samples, but here is one my favorites created by a super sweet girl in our ward.  (And I should mention it's way better than any of my samples!)

See what I mean about the creativity of these girls?  Just, wow.

They started out with an 8x10 canvas panel (also from Blick art at an amazing price) and painted it.  Then they added a 3" round or square mirror with tacky craft glue.  The "remember" stamp is by Heidi Swapp - for most of them we used a black Staz-On ink pad, but others wanted white so they painted a thin layer of white paint into the stamp.  It smudges a little when you use paint -- just depends if you want a crisp image or something a little more artsy/folksy.  The crowns were made on my vinyl machine so they could just stick on.  And I also had some sticky rhinestones and flourish stamps for embellishing.

I think everything went very well.  A little crazy at times but that's to be expected when you're trying to help 30 girls at once.  Everyone seemed to enjoy the projects and I especially loved hearing their thank you's and ooo's and ahhh's over the cute stuff they got to bring home with them.  Like I said, it was a great group of young women - so kind & friendly to each other, sweet, fun . . . just a delight to be around.

banners

This has become one of my favorite sewing projects . . . . pennant banners.  It's so easy to do, and it adds a fun, festive flair to a party or celebration or just for your everyday!

I've done them two different ways.

In this example I laid out my fabric folded in half with the wrong sides together.  Then pin a triangle template to the fabric and cut with pinking shears.  Sew all the way around the edges with 1/4-1/2" seam allowance.  Then, using double fold binding tape for your ties . . . place the top of the finished triangles inside the fold of the binding tape, pin in place, and sew on the tape close to the open edge.  Done!

For a more finished look . . . .

This time with right sides together, cut out your triangles with straight scissors.  Sew a 1/2 inch seam on the two long edges, trim the seams & corner, and turn the flag right side out.  After pressing, follow the same instructions above to add your ties.

I usually put 9 flags on a banner.  The binding tape is 3 yards long so that gives you plenty of extra length on both ends to hang your banner.

Now, go have a party!  If you need an excuse, today is National Ice Cream Day.  I can guarantee that we will be celebrating.  Multiple times.

girls camp preview

this is the lodge where we ate delicious food, held campfire, sat by the fire, did hair/make-up/nails in "Grooming fit for a princess", and carefully avoided the blast zone created by a bird nest in the rafters.  And the field where we gathered for flag ceremony each morning and evening, the girls enjoyed a carnival, games were played, and a monstrous slip & slide brought fun & cooling relief on a very hot day.

 

 

this is the cute cabin where I slept with 5 other wonderful ladies.  Bunk beds, mattresses, and warmth . . . . nothing to complain about here.  (The girls didn't quite have it this easy - open air adirondacks, dusty gravel, spiders.)

this is the bathroom that we used each day.  The water may have had a metallic smell/taste to it, but the showers were warm and there were toilets that flushed . . . . that's more than my girls camp ever had!

this is the schoolhouse/chapel where I taught crafts on tuesday and wednesday.  More details to come . . . 

this is just a sampling of the crazy, cute, fun, creative, happy, kind, beautiful girls I got to spend the week with.

this is the hike I went on with the 2nd year girls.  Just beautiful.

this is homemade salsa made by our amazing cook staff.  That's right, homemade, right in the camp kitchen.  They treated us so well . . . . spaghetti & meatballs, ceasar salad, brownies, banana bars, BBQ chicken, fajitas, turkey wraps, pancakes, strawberry shortcake, 3 meals and 3 snacks a day.  I can guarantee that no one went hungry at girls camp.

this is one of only 3 pictures I got of myself at girls camp.  With Prince Charming.  Each day he was hidden somewhere in camp (up a tree, in someone's car) and when a girl found him, she received a prize.

this is what I did on Friday after coming home . . . Cub Scout Day Camp.  I think all the hugs & kisses I received were evidence that Conner was really glad I was there.  I got to watch him in the archery and BB gun range (and I got to do archery too, which was fun after I missed that opportunity at girls camp).

Lots more camp photos to come soon . . . . 

on 7.8.09

at 10:11:12 AM I was waiting for the piano tuner to arrive and running around the house gathering and organizing craft supplies for Girls camp.  

And I forgot to take a picture.

Luckily, at 10:11:12 PM I was still doing the same thing!  Minus waiting for the piano tuner.

As far as the craft projects go, I think I'm 95% packed.  3 storage tubs, 2 boxes, 1 file tote.

As far as extra "make-camp-cute-and-fun" projects . . . I've still got some work to do.  I'm hoping to make myself an apron, some decorations for the craft cottage, and come up with a couple quick ARK-ing ideas to bring along with me.  Details on that and a wealth of other camp-related acronyms are sure to come late next week.

a photo challenge

take a photo at this exact time, blog it, comment with a link on Elizabeth Kartchner's blog, and be entered in a giveaway.

Giveaway or not, it's pretty cool to think that this wednesday's date is 07-08-09.  When will that ever happen again?  I guess next year we'll get to have an 08-09-10, and then a 09-10-11, and so on and so forth.

While we're on the topic of total randomness . . . .

I spent the late night hours searching the web for modest swimsuit/clothing sites and came across a couple that are new to me and wanted to share.

• Mika Rose - dresses that are oh so stylish.  I'll definitely be checking back here.
• Vintage Hem - love the idea & look of these long slips that are supposed to poke out from under your dress/skirt.
• Christa Taylor - not your typical Utah based modest clothing shop.  I was pleasantly surprised to come across this one in my google search.  She appears to be a good fashion designer who just likes to keep things on the modest side.  And I was surprised to find they are actually in Vancouver, WA.  
• Layers Clothing - cute tops and one blind-your-eyes-yellow tankini. 
• Modbe Clothing - I've heard that their jeans are really wonderful - supposedly they don't slide, sag, pucker, or reveal anything in the behind.

As for modest clothing shops that I have shopped at

Shade - The tank is my favorite.  I think I have 5 of them, in all different colors.  

Also, when they came out with their denim bermuda shorts this spring I did an internal cartwheel and ordered a pair right away.  Love them!  A few other tees, long sleeve shirts, a swimsuit and I guess you could say I'm a Shade shopper.  

Shabby Apple - I really like my dress (the ballerina, I believe), but had to do some alterations to make it work for me. And I just noticed they have a pre-teen section that is "coming soon."

Down East Basics - I only have a few camisoles from here, but they have a lot of cute tops I'd really like to get my hands on.  And they always have the most fun skirts (patterns, colors, etc.)

Lime Ricki - okay, I just bought a swimsuit from this site last month, and I love it.  It is 

definitely on the fun & playful side.  As you'll see, their suits are geared more toward the teenager demographic, so I hope I can pull it off.

It's great to know that there are so many options out there on the web for clothes that will cover your body and look cute in the process!
  

  

mountain hood

We just spent the day at Mountain Hood (as Anna calls it, and it's just so darn cute we might all start saying it that way).  Our first ever visit to SkiBowl and it was a blast!  There was so much to do and it was a huge bonus that ALL of the kids were able to do everything (even little Anna on the bungee trampoline).  Very nice that no one was excluded for being too short.  Plus, you can't beat the scenery.

{taken while zooming down the alpine slide}

As for the activities . . . . 

There was, of course, the alpine slide.  We did it 3 times, and because we came mid-week there were no lines.  We'd make it down the hill and jump right back on the chair lift to take us to the top.

{Payton and I at the end of the track.  And Conner zooming past me on the other track.  He was pretty proud of this move.}

kiddy karts

kiddy canoes

an indoor playzone

summer tube hill

watching Anna come down was a crack-up!

miniature golf

Conner even got a hole in one!

bungee trampoline

This was at the top of everyone's favorite list.  At one time Anna, Payton, Conner, and I were all going at the same time.  Pretty darn fun!  Below I have a video of Payton doing his backflips.  I, of course, was too chicken to attempt that maneuver.  Jumping 15 feet in the air was thrill enough for me!

 

and last but not least . . . . the zipline

Conner and Scott strapped up, climbed the tower, and zipped their way down the 500 foot cable.  There is also video of this below.  As you'll see, Conner did great!  When he got down he was pumped and ready to do it again.  But we were only paying for one trip down the zipline, so maybe another time bud.

 

Mt. Hood SkiBowl from Shannon on Vimeo.

A trip to Dairy Queen for blizzards and a lot of "that was so much fun!" comments from the back of the van, and I'd say it was a pretty successful day.

shaving cream paper

$1 can of shaving cream + food coloring + white cardstock =

pretty cool paper and a fun decoration for the 4th.

I tore out a page with step by step instructions for this from Creating Keepsakes magazine yeeeaaarrrss ago and tucked it away in a binder.  For whatever reason, it surfaced this year and here we are.

Is it messy?  I won't lie . . . yes.  (But not nearly as messy as these kids - thankfully shaving cream is mostly soap, right?  Just hose 'em down.)  But it was fun, and cheap, and honestly I was the messiest of the whole crew.

So now, in 4 easy steps you can create your own shaving cream paper.

Step 1:

Spray shaving cream all over a cookie sheet and spread it out.  This was the kids' favorite step.

Step 2:

Add drops of food coloring.  Swirl it around with a knife or toothpick or popsicle stick to get the design you want.

Apparently it helps to be wearing homemade antennae.  (An obsession that Payton went through last week -- see his photo album on the right for more).

you might end up with something like this

Step 3:  Place a sheet of cardstock over the shaving cream and do "the finger dance" . . . . pressing lightly all over so the paper & shaving cream come in contact.

{a bit blurry, I know - trying to manage kids, camera, and wiping shaving cream from my fingers}

Step 4:  Slowly pull up one corner of the cardstock, and use a spatula to scrape off the shaving cream.  This is can be a little tricky.  And messy.  But what's a fun craft project without making a little mess in the process?

Doesn't it look cool?  Just wait till you scrape away the shaving cream and see the patterns underneath.

Okay, I lied . . . . one more step

Step 5:  Lay the paper out to dry.  Then cut into fun shapes or leave it as is.

And you could even do this project using just one color.  By mixing red and blue we ended up with a little bit of purple on our paper, but we decided not to worry about it.

Tomorrow we're going to let the kids decorate their bikes for the holiday.  I picked up red, white, & blue streamers, balloons, little flags . . . . I think that one of these years it would be so fun to gather up a bunch of kids to do this and have a little parade down the street or in the church parking lot, with the parents cheering them on.  Do we have any closet baton twirlers?