Kickball Mango Style

The family reunion was a wonderful time.  Since we were gathering to honor my father-in-law, we chose to play a lot of kickball.  This was one of Dad's most favorite activities.  He insisted that it be played at almost every family gathering.  We all enjoyed it.

Picking teams was the first order of business.

Several of the youngsters opted to go swimming with Uncle Bob rather than play kickball.  It was refreshing.

T-Bob did a lot of the pitching for his team.

It was nice that there was actually enough players to have a good game.

My DH kicks a foul ball.

The Uncles and many of the Aunts all played.

Karen had good follow through.

Uncle Jon wore his work shoes to get a good kicking surface.

Thomas gave the ball a good ride ...

... and then took a good rest after scoring.

Lisa started off playing, but then had to stop as her hip was hurting.

We even had fans and observers.  It was a great day and I think Dad would have been very pleased to see the fun we had and the sportsmanship that was exhibited.  He would have enjoyed joining us.  He played well into his 70's.  He was a real game player.  We sure miss him.

Planning the Farm

 I am feeling a little stressed.  I have so many decisions to make and not enough time to figure things out.  Our goal is to use our farm so that it is recreational and fun for our children and visitors yet is a still a small working farm.  We want to have a soccer field or kickball area as well as room to play volleyball and other sports.  We want the pond and fire pit to stay quiet and peaceful.

 So what changes do we need to make?  What trees need to come down and what should stay?  Where will we plant the orchard and where will the garden go?  What will stay grassy and what will we let grow into pasture?  Where should we put the fences?

 Did I mention that we are trying to transplant a lot of the smaller fruit trees and bushes from our yard?  As they come out they need to go somewhere.  Where to put them?????  The Junior Boss (aka Paul) wants to know by tomorrow morning.  He has dug some out and they need to go back into the ground!  How does one decide?  I know the basics.  They need sunshine and moisture, but not too much.

Michelle has raspberries on the brain.  Where can she plant hers?  We don't want them to near the chickens....  What about the blueberries.  They need to be separate as they require acidic soil.  I don't want to do this willy-nilly I need a plan!  and by tomorrow morning.  No pressure.  I have been thinking about this but I have trouble making decisions especially if I don't have any definite criteria to base the decision on.  Ask me about your sleep issues, and I can, after a few quick questions tell you what herbs you need to take to help.  But where to put the rhubarb?  I don't know.  I have so much input from the children, but they know less than I do.  Haha!  I need some experienced farmer to come along side and give us advice.  Any volunteers?

Cousins and Friends

Happiness is a beautiful spring day with friends and cousins to play SPUD with. Do you remember that game from your childhood?

The temperature was about 76 which is significantly warmer than usual for this time of year. At our house the temp has to be above 70 degrees before bare feet are allowed.

Heidi and Brooke were enjoying themselves as everyone played together.

Elizabeth would find a spot behind a tree so that she was a more challenging target.

Adam, a friend, was the referee to make sure that everybody stopped running when 'Spud!' was called.

Katrina was having a good time and Ulysses was just swinging back and forth through the game. Nobody seemed to mind. What's to mind?!! It was a beautiful day!

Josh liked being the center of attention, although when the spotlight stayed on him after the ball was caught, he wasn't sure that was where he really wanted to be. Those letters started to mount up fast! He and I discussed what stealth meant. We spent some time watching a red tail hawk circle the house and the field, we played with the camera. It was some quality Aunt-Nephew time.

I like this picture of Brooke.

After a vigorous game of SPUD the older girls relaxed at the piano, Katrina and T-Bob played 'Battleship' and the rest played Legos and Bionicles.

This post is for my sister and her husband in the Philippines so she can see what her children are up to while they are away.

~Mom

Ping Pong at the Mangos!

We finally got the ping pong table. It is so nice! We don't have a lot of room with all the things we have stored in the garage. There is only about 10 inches of clearance on the one side and nothing on the other.

We have to make allowances for replays when the ball goes into the 'junk' on the edges and is nonreturnable. But the children now have something to do that is active and that is NOT in the living room. Hallelujah! I also now have a place to exercise,

as the children take turns being beaten by Mom. HeHe! I still got it! Mr. Boots can give me a run for my money sometimes, but he's not there yet. I really enjoy playing ping pong. Thanks DH for setting it up and clearing all that stuff out of the garage to make room.

~Mom

Games for Preschoolers

Games are a wonderful learning experience for children. It teaches them to follow rules, think logically and be a good winner or loser. We have had a lot of fun over the years playing games in our family. Preschool games can be a challenge for parents. How many times can you play Candy Land or Chutes and Ladders before you are bored to tears? I reached my limit when JoAn was a preschooler. So what have we done since then? Look for other games. Thomas and T-Bob started Chess and Checkers around age 4. Mancala was another classic game that the children figured out pretty early. Michelle was able to win at that over Mr. Boots and JoAn when she was only four. The game Memory is a challenge for parents as it is often humiliating to lose to a preschooler. We do play that one at our house still. Here are some other suggestions if you are looking for something quick and fun for parents and children.

Max is a great game. I was a little unsure what this 'co-operative game' thing was all about. Was this some liberal game where when you finish you don't know who won? NO! Thank goodness it wasn't. This game is played by all the players against the game. You all win or lose. This is a great little introduction to strategy games to children I would say as young as 2.5 or 3. Max the cat chases the bird, chipmunk, and mouse around the small board. You get a little head start and you also get 4 treats to send Max back home so he doesn't get you. You can use them anytime. The goal is to get all three creatures to their home safely. Any player can move any piece on his turn. You roll the dice and move a piece.

There are only 3 pieces, but up to 8 can play. I wouldn't recommend that for younger children as it takes too long to get to their turn. They get bored and wander off. 3 or 4 would make for a funner game. I like the fact that there is some strategy to this game, something I haven't found in most games for pre-schoolers.

This is a quick and easy game for preschoolers 2.5 to 4. It is really simple and is a game that they will grow out of by age 5 probably. There is no luck or strategy in this game. It is a matching game with very nice wooden components.

Here is what is included. (I couldn't find the fourth counting board). You take turns rolling the dice and then you have to figure out which animal piece has those three colors on it. Yellow, blue and orange like is shown here would be the duck. The first person to recognize that would get to put a yellow disc on his counting board. The first one to get to four wins. This is a very simple game.

Catch the Match is the next step after Quack Quack. It uses the same skill set. This one is actually challenging enough for an adult to not mind playing.

The box says 5 to adult, but the picture at the top of this post is of Elizabeth and Ulysses playing it together alone and quite happily. They are 4 and 5.

You play this game by turning over 2 cards and seeing what is the same on each. The first person to spot it gets one of the cards. Can you spot the match in these two cards? The winner is the one who has the most cards after you have gone through the whole deck. This game is kind of a simplified version of the card game 'Set'. Set can be played in a slightly simplified way (instructions come with the game) by a 5 or 6 year old and yet is very challenging even for adults.

Max can be played by any learning style. I would say that Quack-Quack and Catch the Match will be excelled at by people who have strong visual skills.

There are two websites where I have gotten these games. www.timberdoodle.com is a homeschooling website that also sells some games. I use a lot of the products they sell in homeschooling and really like them. The other site I get a lot of games at is www.funagaingames.com. This site has good prices on many of the games we like to play.

We are willing to loan out games from our large collection to responsible households. Try it before you buy it.

Do you know of anyone wanting to get rid of a ping pong table? Please let us know. We need/want one.

~Mom

Mango's Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving day at the Mango's started with dinner being planned for 2:30 PM. Of course, all participants KNEW that meant that we would sit down and eat at 3 at the earliest. As long as everyone understands. Now, when people start stretching that to 3:10 or later..... that's another story.

Mom and Dad worked hard at carving the turkey. It was a moist delicious bird - free range and all that. Mom baked the turkey and the stuffing and made the gravy.

The turkey was flying!

The Morris men enjoyed reading some funny stories as they awaited dinner. Have you ever read the book 'I Fail to Miss your Point'? It is really hilarious. A lot of classic stories and facts.

I forgot to take pictures before we started eating. This is what it looked like when we are done. Yes, we had more than enough food. Very traditional meal.

Kathy enjoyed the conversation.

Todd always tells good stories.

The Sorta Teens (12-34) had their own table in the living room.

After dinner we enjoyed a hymn sing. Don and Nathan played their guitars.

The people on the couch sang.

JoAn got her violin out.

So did Mr. Boots. He has a wonderful ability to play by ear.

After singing, the games came out. Settlers of Catan is a favorite. After this we had a giant game of Taboo. I think there were 18 people playing.

With the arrival of dessert, the newspaper ads came out so the Black Friday shoppers could plan their route.

I am not sure if Anita was a shopper or merely an ad peruser.

My Mom's ribbon cookies are the best! I restrained myself and only ate about 7 halves. Michelle kept giving me a half of hers. I skipped the rest of the dessert. They looked yummy, but I didn't need them.

The children had a wonderful time playing. Katrina and Michelle found my camera and took a bunch of goofie pictures. Katrina is not shy. She likes a camera.

The day gradually wound down and people started to leave as their children got tired and it was bedtime. Danny gave Mr. Boots some hints on the guitar. It was a wonderful day.

Thank-you Lord!

~Mom