February...it happened.

February is a bit of a blur.  But I know it happened.
So before the morsels of memories I have left are gone completely, I'll try to summarize. 

The main gist of February is that our nephews and niece were staying with us.  And during February, it became our responsibility to determine where they would live.  I won't go into the details here, but lets just say the conversations and decisions were incredibly emotional, and it was a process I would not wish on ANYONE.  So.very.hard.

And during all of that, we celebrated the life of RRL's sweet grandmother when she went Home.  Her death was the culmination of many years of illness after a stroke and we were all thrilled to know she was reaping her eternal reward.  But it is always hard to say goodbye, especially to someone who was such an amazing example, a real pillar of faith, in our family.

In the midst of the difficulties, I want to remember that we had some sweet time with these sweet faces.

We celebrated Valentine's Day with a festive breakfast, a fun craft and a silly face picture.

 

We took all six kids to the science museum (we win the crazy award).

We tackled potty training...and celebrated the victories with a girls' trip to buy a new babydoll.

We had an obstacle course (which was so much fun, it got its very own post!).

And just enjoyed watching our kids love their cousins. 

There were many tears in February.  But there was also much laughter.  I'll remember both.

ABL

Tips and Tricks: Obstacle Course

In the age of pinteresting (can that be a verb?), I'm sure posting Tips and Tricks on an ordinary ole blog is quite pointless.  Who knows?  I've completely steered clear of pinterest.  Here's an easy idea for some serious family fun, requiring little to no prep and zero money spent.  I've posted about this idea before.  But because it is a family favorite around here, I decided to share again. 

And what's fun with two kids surely is MORE fun with six right?

So, here's an update to an old favorite...the Obstacle course.  Make your own stations, inside or outside and let the kids help come up with ideas for "obstacles" using things you find in the house or garage.

Here is ours from a windy February afternoon when there were six munchkins to entertain.

Everyone line up at the start

 And divide into teams of two for completing the course.  On your mark, get set...

 GOOOOOOO.  Down the hill on your riding toy of choice.

FIRST- complete the kick-ball challenge and work together to get the ball in the bucket.

Find number TWO where you and your partner have to scurry through the tunnel.

At number THREE, you will have worked up a sweat- stop for a water break, guarded by baby June and friends.

Watch out for the lava cracks at number FOUR.  Hop, skip and jump over the danger zones.

Then around and around you'll go when you navigate number FIVE- the balance beam around the flower bed. 

 Your almost there, but first you'll have to pull your partner along in Number SIX...the wagon ride.

YOU made it!!  The FINISH is a slam dunk for you!

Whew!  We worked up an appetite in our little challenge. The best part about putting your "course" in the front yard is you attract the attention of neighbors.  A great way to get to know those that live nearby!  Which in our case was a huge VICTORY because one of our favorite neighbors offered to take us to McDs for some post-obstacle-course celebrating! 

A fun afternoon indeed!  Try it at home and let us know about some of your favorite obstacles.

ABL