Hello, dears!
We recently went back to where we used to live for some family reunions and a trip to the county fair! Even though I didn’t enter anything this year (see P. S. at end of post), we still had a ton of fun and made some great memories. đ Also I got some good pictures, which is what I’ll be showing you today. đ Continue reading
Hello, dears!
This week it’s my turn for Art Lab, and I have something a little different than my usual watercolor art for you today. đ Quite different, in fact: in this post I shall give you guys a tutorial on how to make a cute owl with graphite and colored pencil shavings! đ
But first, the inspiration behind the art: Continue reading
Hello, dears!
Are you excited for the next round of SBG? I AM! WOOHOO! Thank you all for your participation so far, and for making it so fun to host. đ
In case youâd like to review the basic rules of the game, you can check out my introduction post right here. Shall we begin? (That was a rhetorical question, by the way. I’m going to start whether you answered yes or no. *nods*) Ahem.
WHAT TO DO:
You have until the end of this week to complete however many of the 35 challenges below you wish to do. This is the only week that youâll be able to complete these challenges.
When youâve completed all the challenges youâd like to for the week, submit your points using the survey included in this post (see it below). Please try to submit your results just once per week. I suggest waiting until the end of the week to submit the survey.
Okay, guys, NOW FOR THE CHALLENGES. Are you ready for this? *drum roll*
What do you think? Which of those challenges are you most excited to complete? My favorites are #1 (THAT IS SO FUN TO DO, GUYS), #11, and #31.
If you have any questions about the challenges, the game, or anything else, donât hesitate to contact us at summerboredgames(at)gmail(dot)com. Weâre happy to help! Read on for a few more important details:
If youâd like to print off a checklist to help you keep track of the challenges for this week, CLICK HERE.Â
If you take any photos of your completed challenges (or your funniest challenge fails!), we would LOVE to see them! Send your pictures to us at summerboredgames(at)gmail(dot)com, and weâll pick our favorites to include in the final post! (If youâre just completing the challenges just for fun and havenât signed up, weâd still love to see your photos!)
We’ve really (REALLY REALLY) enjoyed the photos you guys have sent us so far, and we can’t wait to show you guys at the end of July! Keep the pictures coming, hee hee! đ
Have you completed all the challenges youâd like to do for this week? Hooray! Just click the image below to submit your points:
Click that graphic and it should take you right to the form!
Please be honest â the game is no fun if you arenât playing fair. Please follow the rules and make it fair for everyone!
And now… *drum roll again* the participants who got the most total points (points from the last two weeks).
10: Aria: 102
9: Enni: 107
8: Anna P. and Christina (tied with same number of points): 131
7: Ava: 148
6: Mandalynn: 161
5: Julia Rose: 167
4: Sophie: 187
3: Jo: 195
2: ChloĂŤ: 216
1: Laura: 259
Way to go, girls! đ Also can we just take a moment to appreciate the fact that Laura did EVERY SINGLE ONE of the challenges so far, minus one! *awed look* XD WOW, LAURA. I AM IMPRESSED.
You have until 11:59 PM EST on July 21st to complete as many challenges as you can and submit your points. Have fun busting that boredom! đ
Thanks for reading, dears, and have a lovely (and non-boring) day. đ
***Allison***
Guys, I have SO many extra photos. And that happens pretty much all the time. So I decided to make a new little series: these “Etcetera” posts will have random photography as well as recent life, thoughts… etc. XD (kind of like monthly wrap-ups, but different). I hope you enjoy reading them!
Now, where to begin? I have SO much to cover. Aha, Maggie is a good subject to start with.
I was trying to take a picture of Maggie’s eye but she kept MOVING. XDÂ I did get this one good one, though:
I also got some other, less close-up shots of her. I just love all of Maggie’s expressions, hee hee. It looks like she’s saying, “Aww, you shouldn’t have,” don’t you think?
Such a pretty pup. âĽ
It looks like she’s praying. đ
Dad just finished combining (harvesting corn)Â for the year. WOOHOO! Now maybe we can jump in the grain bins…
Speaking of fields, Megan and I (and Maggie) did a little mini photoshoot in the soybean field while it was golden green and brown. Isn’t the lighting AMAZING?
If you guys like my photography/lifestyle posts, you should totally check out Emmaline Figura’s blogs, Lucillian Photography and Crystal Ice Studio! Her photography is AMAZING – she deserves so many more followers!
I love this picture, but it sure took a while to clone out the soybean that so rudely butted in front of Megan’s chin. XD Humph, I shouldn’t have said that. Now you’re all probably inspecting Megan’s chin…
Megan got a few pictures of me but most of them didn’t turn out or I had a weird expression, heh heh. This is probably the best one. Still have a weird expression. XD
Guess what? My younger brother and I were driving to piano lessons today, and when we got there we found that one of my car’s tires was completely flat. O.o But guess what again? My brother changed it himself, while I was having my lesson! I really want to learn stuff like that – I’m much better at art than mechanics. XD
The sunset did capture well on my camera, but it did make for some neat silhouettes and bokeh!
Singing hymns is one of my favorite things at our church. The congregation sings beautifully, and it’s glorious when we do an a capella verse. ⼠I like singing for things like that, but not enough to take voice lessons or anything. I usually just hum and whistle at home. đ
Do you guys have any special plans for Thanksgiving? We’re having three different celebrations because we have a rather large extended family. đ Are you traveling? We aren’t – most of our family lives quite close by. But if you are, here’s a tip: salty snacks like chips really take carsickness away. Well, I mean they help if you eat them. They won’t do much good just sitting there by your seat.
Dad and the kids always pick out a hanging flower basket for Mom for Mother’s Day, and it lasted all the way into late fall this year! Isn’t it pretty?
Ugh, I have to write a 15-30 page research paper for school. *Long sigh* At least we’re taking this week off for Thanksgiving!
We also have a rose bush (well more like a rose vine) by our door, and it’s a weird mix of knockout-type roses and “real” roses, as we like to call them. There are usually only a few “real” roses a year and this was one of them. âĽ
To find the rose you must first get past the thorns. To find the rainbow you must first walk through the storm. Bad things make the good more beautiful. And always remember, my dear, there is beauty even in brokenness.
GUYS. LOOK AT THIS PHOTO! I just pressed the button and the moth behind just happened to fly in at the right moment. I LOVE IT WHEN THAT HAPPENS.
Pretty butterflies + pretty zinnias – my photobombing car = a mildly pretty picture.
We have one very old apple tree that usually produces nothing but food for worms. XD However, this year it actually grew real apples and they were DELICIOUS! I don’t know what kind they were, but they were stupendous. And I found this one extremely large apple – see? (The one on the right is a more normal-size one.)
It weighed 15 OUNCES. ALMOST A POUND.
These might be some of my favorite pictures ever! I just love the golden lighting so, so much, especially with the golden tones of the flowers. âĽ
Sometimes I feel wise and knowledgeable, and then I wonder if that simply means I still have so much to learn. I guess that happens when you’re a teenager, huh? đ
(Side note: I rather dislike the word “teenager” for some reason. Don’t exactly know why.)Â
And would you look at all that bokeh? AHHHHH.
This picture seems relaxing, like you can feel the sun and hear the breeze through the willow branches. đ I can sort of remember planting this willow tree, even though it’s quite a good sized tree now – it’s a curly willow so it grew SUPER fast.
This isn’t really a garden, but it’s golden. Even dust is beautiful when the sun shines through it.
I think cameras can make anything beautiful. In fact, here’s a challenge: find three things you think are ugly and try to take a beautiful picture of them.
We also have two black and two English walnut trees in our yard. I strongly dislike the bitter taste of black walnuts, but English walnuts taste great! (They’re the kind you get in stores.) We don’t usually shell these though, because it’s a lot of work for not much result. Have you tried black walnuts?
This is rather random, but I wanted to take a picture of a begonia blossom from my grandmother’s hanging flower pot because I noticed the beautiful, intricate curlicues in the center of the blossoms. I love the little things like this. đ
I got a picture of my youngest brother pressure-washing one of the wagons. đ His birthday was today, actually! The frame was supposed to be transparent but it’s showing up black here…? I hope it works once I publish the post, but I’m doubtful.
I like the way shadows look on this barn. đ
And now we have come to the end of this post. Wow, Allison, what a moving conclusion. *clap, clap*
ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed reading this gathering of orphaned thoughts and photos. đ I know it was an enormous post, but I’m only half-sorry because phew, I now have a large chunk of my random photos squared away. XD I don’t think Etcetera posts will usually be this long, though, if I do them in the future. Which category/picture/random thingy was your favorite? Do you think Etcetera posts would make a good series or are they too random and scattered (because I would kind of agree with you on that XD)?
Have a wonderful day, dears, and thanks so much for reading. âĽ
***Allison***
Heyyyyy, guys, and welcome back to Art Lab! Today I’m going to show you three super simple and fun techniques for creating art with watercolors. These ideas are great for art-starters, warm-ups, or even as finished pieces. I used ATCs for my canvas, but you can use whatever paper you like (though watercolor paper works the best, if you have it). Also note that you can use watered-down acrylic paint instead of watercolors if you need too.
Alright, let’s do the easiest (and perhaps most fun) first. đ
Technique #1: Magic Islands
I discovered this one by accident and I just LOVE doing it!
1. Lay down some plastic wrap and drop some water in one corner. Dip your wet paintbrush in watercolor and mix it into the water.
2. Load up your brush with the diluted paint and splatter it onto the plastic wrap.
3. Lay a paper of some sort on top and smooth it out, then pick it up (obviously đ ).
4. Wait for the paint to dry, then trace around the splotches with pen.
5. And you’re done!
I think this technique looks like islands, don’t you? This would be a fun way to make a map:
Technique #2: Bubble Maze
This technique produces a fun and striking result. The translucence of the watercolor lets you see the colors overlap which makes a really neat effect.
1. Start by painting some dots. Overlap them and attach them to other circles so that the colors bleed into each other.
2. Continue adding dots of different colors until the page is mostly filled.
3. Fill in the white areas with black Sharpie or pen. And you’re done!
Technique #3: Splatter Trees
This is a great way to give the impression of leaves without drawing ever single leaf.
1. Splatter different complementary colors (I used fall colors, but you can use whatever you wish) onto your paper. Try to keep it roughly in a tree shape, but don’t worry if the splatters get a little out of control.
2. After the foliage is dry, use a slightly damp brush and brown paint to add in some branches and a trunk. Don’t draw all the branches the tree has, just a few poking out for effect. đ
3. Add some grass and a few dots of fall color if you’re doing an autumn tree. And you’re done!
And there you go! Three fun and simple ways to make some watercolor art.
Which technique was your favorite? If you make art inspired by this post, we’d love to see it! Click here to learn how to help us fill our art gallery!
***Allison***
P. S. Hannah and Buttercup have joined the Art Lab team! Thank you so much, girls. âĽÂ Check out their first posts on the Art Lab blog and drop them a comment! đ
Heh heh, I know this is rather late for a summer post, but hey, we haven’t fallen too far into autumn yet, right? (See what I did there?) Anyway, I loved Clara’s summer recap post, so I decided to do one of my own!
Here’s a recap of this summer’s happenings in pictures.
Raising and selling a litter of darling baby bunnies. âĽ
Taking a lovely trip to Assateague and Chincoteague Island.
Playing piano at the nursing home and filling in for the pianist at church. O.o
Finding barn kittens.
All the flowers.
Working on a project I will hopefully reveal soon… (Here’s a sneak peek:)
Swimming at our neighbor’s pool.
Re-designing a board game I created. (Sneak peek:)
Saying goodbye to Clementine. đŚ
Making lots and lots of art.
Taking lots and lots of pictures.
Watching sunsets.
Celebrating fourth of July with family. (Photo credit to my aunt.)
Going camping in tents with cousins and grandparents.
Hatching swallowtail butterflies.
Cutting and creaming 150 quarts of corn from our sweet corn patch. O.o
Books.
Watching the eclipse (even though I got rather poor photos XD).
Having simply splendid time at Amelia Island with friends.
The County Fair.
Starting WordCrafters 3.
Gardening and canning produce.
Sewing class.
Making decorations for our monthly church meals.
CWWC (see my entries here) and BIBPC, (this my latest entry).
Nature Study with friends.
Bonfires, big and small.
Megan’s birthday (which included a water balloon fight).
It was a lovely summer. đ I had a lot of fun but I also learned a lot, I think more in practical knowledge than book knowledge. It’s been good.
How was your summer?
***Allison***
IT’S HERE, GUYS! YAYAYAYAY! I am so looking forward to reading your lovely chapters this go ’round. đ
Here is the list of participants and their order. Please let me know if those weeks absolutely will NOT work for you, and I’ll do my best to change it.
For a quick review of the rules, I’ll show you the first chapter here shortly, and then the next person, will write the second chapter based on where it ends and the loose plot outline I’ll give you. After a maximum of one week, it’s the next person’s turn. If you finish your story before one week, that would be great too! It will make WordCrafters move forward a little more quickly.
I decided to put the pictures of the characters and their descriptions on the WordCrafters 3 page so this post wouldn’t get insanely long. XD
Now for the first chapter. Eeeee, I’m so excited! I hope you enjoy!
__________________________
Esme was having a wonderful day. Little waves nibbled at her toes, sun rays warmed her back, and the seashell she had found felt cool and smooth in her palm. Vivi was sunbathing on her beach towel a few feet away, and Pippin… Esme shook her head and smiled. Pippin was sneaking up to Vivi with a pail of freezing ocean water. He beamed Esme a mischievous grin and dumped the bucket over Viviâs head.
Esme had to put her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Vivi scrambled to her feet, spluttering with rage and surprise, and ran after Pippin, yelling and threatening to dunk him in the water if he so much as touched her again.
She heaved a happy sigh. Life was good.
Esme settled back into the sand and took another fond look at her seashell. It was perfect, spiraling around and around, each spiral smaller than the last. It reminded her of a giant, periwinkle snail shell. She turned the shell over to gaze into the pearly opening. Suddenly, she gasped. Her eyes widened. She shook the shell, tapped it gently on the ground, and finally reached inside with her slender fingers and pulled out a scrap of paper.
âPippin, Vivi, come quick! Look what I found!â she called excitedly.
They halted the chase and trotted obediently over to Esme.
âWhat is it, Esme?â asked Pippin. In answer, she handed him the scrap.
Pippin frowned and read aloud, ââItem 7: fourteen mermaid scales.â What on earth?â
Vivi snatched it from him, âWait, and thereâs something on the back: âOperation Portal Icxylwocig, property of P. Charming.ââ
The three friends looked at each other with wide eyes. Was it time to go back?
*****************
Alalia was having a wonderful day. She and her cousin Jacob were testing out his new boat, the âCaptain Hook,â at the beach. A stiff breeze filled the sail and they skimmed gracefully through the water. She leaned over the side, trailing her hands in the cool water, and…
âJACOB! Come look!â
Jacob started in surprise. âWhat on earth, Alalia? You nearly knocked me overboard!â Jacob rolled his eyes, but grinned good-naturedly. He made his way over to her side of the boat. âWhat-â He left the word hanging as a flash of green and red flew under their boat. He rubbed his eyes. Alalia blinked.
There it was again â a long, green, fish-like tail, with red hair was streaming out above it.
âA mermaid,â Alalia whispered.
They looked at each other. Could this mean what they thought it did?
*****************
The next day Pippin, Vivi, and Esme all hurried back to the beach. They scoured the shore for more notes, leaving no shell unturned.
Nothing.
Finally the three of them plopped down on a rock, discouraged. Two other teenagers were walking in their direction, chatting intently about something.
âIâm just sure it was a mermaid,â the girl was saying. âWhat if it was Ariel?â
The boy shook his head. âI dunno. I mean, if itâs really her, why is she in the human world and not in Fairyland? I realize we didnât see her when we visited but-â
They both stopped short when they noticed the three children listening to them with wide eyes and open mouths.
Vivi spoke first. âAre you guys talking about… mermaids?â
The two teenagers looked embarrassed. âOh… um, we were just…â
âAnd something about Fairyland?â
âWell, we-â
âSo we arenât the only ones!â
The boy looked startled. âWait, what?â
Pippin hopped off the rock and held out the mysterious note. âHave a look at this. We found it yesterday in a shell.â
A look of recognition flitted over the girlâs face. âIcxylwocig. I saw that on a sign in the forest, when I first came through the portal.â Then she caught herself. âOh, I mean…â
âReally? You guys went through a portal?!â Vivi was excited now. âSo did we! Well, kind of. See, one day we found this huge, weird-looking egg…â
And with that, everyone started talking at once, racing each other to tell their wonderful adventures.
After many words and tales and names were exchanged, the five children felt like they had been friends for years. It was easy to become friends with the only other people in the world who understand your biggest secret.
âBut now we need to figure out what this note means,â Pippin said, getting back to business. âIt could be some sort of portal instrument or something, to take us back.â
âOr maybe it has something to do with our mermaid sighting? You know, the part about the mermaid scales?â Jacob suggested.
âMaybe…â
Esme had been listening quietly to everyone elseâs talk, until at last she spoke up shyly, in her soft voice: âI-I have an idea.â Everyone turned toward her expectantly.
âWell, you know how it says, âOperation Portal Icxylwocig? And the mermaid scales section sounds like part of a recipe. Maybe P. Charming, whoever that is, was trying to make a sort of recipe for a portal to get to Fairyland?â
Everyone nodded their heads thoughtfully.
âYeah, and you need mermaid scales to make it!â Alalia jumped in. âAnd maybe the âItem 7â part means itâs the 7th ingredient or something.â
Vivi jumped up suddenly. âGuys, wait. What if we found all the ingredients and made the portal ourselves? Then if that really was Ariel that Jacob and Alalia saw, we could take her back to Fairyland, and everything would be perfect!â
At that, everyone started talking excitedly.
âHOLD IT!â yelled Jacob. âDoes anyone know a P. Charming? If we could find him, maybe heâd give us the rest of the notes.â
âBut if he knows all the ingredients, maybe heâs already made the portal… maybe thatâs how I got to Fairyland in the first place,â Alalia pointed out.
Everyone was silent for a moment, thinking.
Suddenly Esmeâs face brightened. âOh, I just remembered! We have Katriâs diary! Maybe thereâs something in there about portals!â
âBrilliant!â Pippin shouted in delight. âLetâs go check!â
*****************
Precious minutes ticked away as Pippin, Vivi, and Esme introduced their new friends to their parents, but finally the five children were safely in the girlsâ bedroom at the beach house. Esme held out a violet leather journal studded with glittering stones.
Jacob wrinkled his nose, âEw, you can tell thatâs a fairyâs diary. Look at all that purple sparkly stuff.â Everyone laughed. âSo are we going to read the whole thing or what?â
Vivi frowned. âNah, that would take way too long. Here, Iâve read the first entry already, so I can just give you a summary while Esme looks for the entry about portals.â
Vivi cleared her throat with a mock-serious expression, and began. âSo Snow White got banished from her home in Fairyland after she herself banished Ariel, Katriâs sister, out of jealousy.â
Jacob snorted. âNumber one, how can a mermaid be sisters with a fairy? And number two, she banished her out of jealousy?â
Vivi sighed impatiently. âNumber one, I am not an expert on family relations in Fairyland. I donât know, maybe one of them was adopted or something. If Katri wrote in her diary that Arielâs her sister, Iâll go with that. And number two, yes, she did. Because Ariel had married her prince while Snow Whiteâs prince, Prince Charming, had suddenly disappeared one day and never returned. No one knows why. Snow White was so heartbroken and jealous of Arielâs happiness that she banished her â she only meant to move her to a different province, but her plans went awry. Now Katri, her father, and Snow White all want Ariel back, but the problem is, they donât know where to find her. They think she might be in the human world, but if so, they canât go and get her. Residents of Fairyland are too obvious in the human world, and plus, there are other physical complications of adjusting to a different world. Thatâs why we all went to Fairyland â they wanted to force us to find Ariel, but we escaped before they could make us do it.â
âSo do you think they sent us the note on purpose, to take us back? No one else but us could figure out what the note meant,â Alalia said.
Pippin shook his head. âNah, because how could they know we would find that specific shell?â
Jacob nodded. âGood point. Itâs still a little weird, though.â He looked over at Esme. âDid you ind anything yet, Esme?â
âActually, yes!â Esme smiled. âHere, Vivi, you can read it.â
Vivi cleared her throat and read…
Dad says portals to other worlds must be made with resources native to that world. For instance, if I wanted to make a portal to the human world, I would need wood, nails, and other human things to make it. So for Prince Charmingâs portal to work, he has to take some ingredients from Fairyland to the human world and build it there. I donât know why he thinks itâs worth the risk â what if he gets an ingredient wrong and gets stuck in the human world forever? I personally never liked Flynn Rider that much anyway, but I guess he and Charming were pretty close friends. Rapunzel just isnât the same since heâs gone missing, and I’ll admit it’s quite heroic of Prince Charming to try to rescue her dear husband.
âWoah, now everything is starting to make sense,â Vivi said. âSo Prince Charming must have been making a portal to get his friend back to Fairyland, but he messed up his recipe and the portal didnât work.â
âGUYS! I have it!â Alalia shouted. âWhy didnât we think of this sooner: P. Charming is Prince Charming!â
Everyone blinked. Oh, duh.
Jacob got to his feet, rubbing his hands together. âWell, now that weâve got all this figured out, letâs go make the portal and save everyone!â
Vivi looked at him scornfully. âYou canât just do that, Jacob. What about our parents? And how are we going to find the other notes? We donât even know if there ARE other notes. We need to get prepared, first. Weâll need food, and water, and some way to make shelter, and-â
âThatâs our girl,â grinned Pippin, poking Vivi. âAlways prepared.â She glared at him.
Esme, who was still leafing through the diary pages, suddenly jumped up and shouted, âEUREKA!â Then she blushed and lowered her voice. âOops. I mean, look what I found!â She had opened the journal to a page with a list of ingredients.
Prince Charming’s portal is coming along pretty well. He even told me what he has so far. (But it’s top secret, so don’t tell anyone, diary. Ha ha.)
I sure hope Prince Charmingâs expedition goes well, because if he canât find the right ingredients, he might never return.
__________________________
Ooooohhhhh! đ And lastly but not leastly, here’s the revised plot summary, to aid you in your writing:
It all starts with a mysterious note tucked inside a seashell. What could it mean? Who could it be from? And could it be time to go back? Five friends, Pippin, Jacob, Vivi, Alalia, and Esme work together to solve the mystery, and come up with a surprising solution: What if Snow Whiteâs prince, Prince Charming, was working on constructing a portal between the human and fairytale world, but he got stranded in the human world and couldnât get back to Snow White? If the five friends could find the rest of the notes, perhaps they could build their own portal to bring Ariel back to Fairyland â and maybe even Prince Charming with her.
Thus begins the biggest adventure so far as the children track down pieces of Fairyland hidden in the human world. But unbeknownst to them, there is danger lurking in the shadows â banished convicts from Fairyland that will do almost anything to get their hands on those mysterious notes. If this is a fairy tale, where is the happily ever after?
Exciting? I think so! I cannot wait to see how the story turns out! If you have any questions about the story or the participant list or WordCrafters in general, please just drop me a comment.
Thank you all so much for participating, and have fun!
***Allison***
Eek yay! Are you ready to see the answers to these mystery pictures, guys? Thank you all so much for guessing! I enjoyed reading everyone’s comments. đ
And now I shall reveal the mysteries…
#1. Kitchen grater
#2. Fingernail clippers
#3. Avocado
#4. Dollar bill
#5. Serrated knife blade
#6. Flyswatter (I have no idea what the marks on there are from. XD )
#7. Straw broom
#8. Sand dollar
#9. Cork
#10. Shell
Ta-daa! Are you like, “duh!” now? XD That’s usually how it happens with me.
Now for the winners: Out of around 30 participants, I think only two people got them all correct, and they are…
Congratulations, guys! Thank you all so much for playing, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have. đ Until next time!
***Allison***
P. S. Oh my goodness I’m posting the start of WordCrafters tomorrow! O.o I better get cracking… er, writing.
Oh my goodness, it’s been almost a year since I did one of these! I guess it’s high time for another one, huh? Eep, I’m so excited! In case you’re not familiar with these posts, here’s how they work.
I’m going to show you 10 super close-up pictures of ordinary objects, and you guys just guess what they are. Comment below with your guesses, and I’ll reveal the answers and the winners next Wednesday the 14th. Oh, and I donât approve these comments until I reveal the mystery, just so no one gets ideas from another guesser, so don’t panic if your comment isn’t showing up. đ And lastly, to see my previous mystery pictures posts, click here.
Alrighty! Let’s begin!
#1.
#2.
#3.
#4.
#5.
#6.
#7.
#8.
#9.
#10.
Allison Marie 