When the girl cousins come to visit, focusing on football gets a little tricky. We love football and watch a great deal of it, but we love our cousins more.

Family Games can get interesting with a large family. There are quite a few games that aren't fun for us - all 6 of us. Games like checkers, slap jack.. We (meaning our mom) likes games that are fast, keep everyone interested, and don't take too long. Preston love Monopoly and our mom has modified the game so that it's over before midnight.

Farkle is one of our favorites for a quick game after dinner.

Tonight we were playing and the youngest wanted to know who was winning and he kept yelling, "I'm in the head!" We tried to explain what in the head meant to Navy-men, but he persisted. And when you can't beat them, join them. So we did. All throughout the game someone would ask, "Who's in the head?" and everyone would die laughing.

Equipment

• 6 Dice
• Scratch Paper (or use farkle_score_sheet.pdf) and a pen

Number of Players
Two or more players. Our youngest enjoyed playing when he was 6 years old; younger than that might be tough to hold their attention.

The Object
To acquire points by a systematic rolling of the dice. First Player to 5,000 points wins the game.

How We Play
On your turn, place all six dice into the dice cup and roll them. If a die falls out of the play area, re-roll it. Take out any dice worth points after each roll. This forms your running score for the round. Roll the remaining dice, removing any dice worth points and adding them to your running total. If you are ever able to set aside all six dice, you may re-roll all of your dice and keep building your running total. If ever you are unable to set aside any dice (no dice are worth points), you have Farkled. You lose your running point total and your turn is over. If you don't like these rules, you can read the "real rules." 

Points
You cannot count any of your points until you reach at least 300 points in a single round. 
5’s = 50 point
1’s = 100 points
1,1,1 = 300 points
2,2,2 = 200 points
3,3,3 = 300 points
4,4,4 = 400 points
5,5,5 = 500 points
6,6,6 = 600 points
Four of a Kind = 1,000 points
Five of a Kind = 2,000 points
Six of a Kind = 3,000 points
A Straight of 1-6 = 1,500 points
Three Pairs = 1,500 points
Four of a Kind + a Pair = 1,500
Two sets of Three of a Kind = 2,500

So after watching this episode of Liv and Maddie on Disney, the kids have started apologizing like this.

Do you ask your kids to apologize? Do you insist they do it in a certain way? How do you teach them what it means to be sorry?

We bit the bullet this weekend and went school supply shopping. The start of the school year is inevitable so we have started checking things off of the "before we go back to school" list. As we organized found backpacks and gym backs and checked them for signs of life, I noticed a familiar scent wafting through the air. 

There were times last year when I would pick the kids up from sports practice, roll the windows down, and hang my head out - and still hold my breath  - to make it home. The rule is that you put your clothes directly into the washer and immediately jump into the shower. Don't think that 
I didn't contemplate making them hose off in the yard first, I did. But this way I get their laundry started.

When we found scent boosters for the laundry, I should have bought stock that day. I love those tiny pellets and the way they make our clothes smell. I was standing in the middle of the office the other day and caught a whiff of myself and literally pulled my shirt up over my nose to smell. 

As the smell from the gym bags hit me today, I had an idea! We poured some of my beloved Unstopables into "wedding favor bags," tied them up, and told the kids to put them in their shoes and shoe cabinets, in their luggage and backpacks, and in their closets and dressers.

It won't stop the smell, but it might lessen the impact. 

We have some big plans for this year and we need to be intentional and on the same page as a couple if we are going to accomplish these. To help make it possible, we are budget planning. One thing that we have found that really helps us is naming every dollar so that they all have a purpose. Dave Ramsey has a simple to follow cash flow plan that we mimic. 

It helps us to make an Excel document so that we can see our money and where it's going, where we can cut back or alter our choices. I also found a Dave Ramsey budget template for us to modify and share on Google Docs. (Google Doc is a cloud based file sharing platform that allows us to work together on the budget from our laptops, phones, etc.)   There are quite a few lines on the spreadsheet so we can list every expense imaginable. It keeps us forgetting something. We modified the template quite a bit to just use the lines and categories that are relevant for us.

Happy Budgeting! - Mom

There's proof that playing outdoors and getting dirty is actually good for kids.

Children’s stress levels are significantly reduced within minutes of entering green spaces. Friendly bacteria found in soil helps produce serotonin, that all-important happiness-promoting hormone. Playing in dirt can help develop healthy immune function in kids that’ll keep them healthy and strong long past childhood. Regular outdoor time will help kids sleep more soundly at night. 

And it's just plain fun!

Last Sunday we met at the new park with our Sunday School class to fly kites, enjoy watermelon, and friendship. With all the rain, we also found mud, mud puddle, nonetheless. Those are a rare thing in West Texas. So we played and slid and squealed. 

When it was over we hosed off in the yard and jumped in the warm shower. It was awesome!

- Mom

St. Louis is a great city with lots to do. It was an enjoyable day. A few of the things that are fun to do might include going to the ball park, walking around downtown (make sure to check out the splash pad), and of course seeing the arch is a must.

- C

check out my mom's post about trying new things