Do you remember that "Saturday Night Live" skit with John Belushi spoofing Bruce Jenner and eating little chocolate donuts instead of Wheaties? Of course my children didn't get the reference at all, but I giggled the whole time eating them.We started with a torch relay (yellow tissue paper shoved in an empty toilet paper tube) and then the march of countries, complete with flags (Frances was Frances-Land, Alice-Grace was Alice-fornia, and Jeffrey was the United States of America).
We then started the competition. We had the high jump (won by Frances), limbo (won by Jeffrey), forward long jump (Jeffrey), backwards long jump (it was a three-way tie -- could it be that you can only jump so far backwards?), see who can whistle the longest (Frances), climb up a slide (Frances), and a game of SPUD (Frances).
Then we had a popsicle break.
More sports followed. We used the popsicle sticks for a javelin throw (won by Jeffrey), crab walk (Jeffrey), push-ups (Jeffrey) and lastly a soccer kick competition (won by Alice-Grace -- finally, she won something).
It was interesting to see how their personalities came out during the competition. Alice-Grace wore a dress the whole time, Jeffrey had to wash his popsicle stick before throwing it, and Frances got fed up with the judges and boycotted much of the games.
After that, we took a field trip to the nearby Museum of Peoples and Cultures (because the Olympics is all about bringing different people together). We learned all about the Casa Grandes, the Pueblo people, and Kachina dolls. Nigel was totally digging it and the kids were literally digging for artifacts in the sand pit and putting together shards of pottery.
After that, we went out to get some Chinese food (because the Summer Olympics are being held in Beijing this year).For our closing ceremonies, we went to a (free) carnival put on by Frances' orthodontist. We had (free) snow cones, hot dogs, drinks, cotton candy, popcorn, plus a game and a bounce house.
It was fun, there were tears, we came close to political unrest, it was too commercial and over-rated. Just like the real Olympics!
9 comments:
I know my comments are becoming so repetitive but seriously this is AMAZING! you are proving that you can have a great family experience w/o all the fluff of "buying things"
GREAT JOB!
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It was fun, there were tears, we came close to political unrest, it was too commercial and over-rated. Just like the real Olympics!"
Brilliant!
SHILLIG4FAM -- good, I'm glad because that was my goal. There are so many great free things in this area and I don't think people realize it or take advantage of it. Plus, I think that my kids just like playing games in the yard the best!
CW -- yes, we have a hard time with competition in our family. We have had to ban all "pin the tail on the donkey" and "pinatas" at our birthday parties. It's just too much drama.
You, my dear, are the one who deserves the medal!
You went to that carnie??
DAng! I forgot about it.
(assuming we go to the same ortho)
I coulda fed the fam fo free.
(ps. I am loving reading about your staycation!! You are so creative!)
lois is still at it
GEO -- yeah, a medal for coming up with this crazy idea that's now making me exhausted!
B -- it was a mad house, so feel lucky that you forgot about it. We never win any of the prizes, but the free food was good.
PUTZ -- yes, still at it. Only a few more days left of family camp!
what the heck is SPUD?
RENA -- you never played SPUD? This is the rules according to familyfun.com:
This raucous, century-old playground challenge is a time-tested favorite--and one that easily includes players of different ages and abilities. Assign each player a different number and choose a player to be "it." This player then tosses a large, bouncy ball into the air and yells a number. Everyone disperses at top speed, running away from the ball--except the player whose number was called, who must run after the ball. Once he has it in his hands, he yells "Spud!" and all players must stop in their tracks. Then, the catcher can take a moment to survey the scene and decide which player is the best quarry. When he has chosen a victim, he tosses the ball at that player, attempting to tag her with the ball. The target must keep her feet planted, but she can twist away from the ball, duck or even try to catch it. If the ball makes contact, she receives an S. If the ball misses, or if she catches it, the thrower receives the S. The unlucky player must then throw the ball in the air and call a number for the next round. The game continues until each player receives the letters S-P-U-D and is thus eliminated. The remaining single player wins.
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