Maiden voyage on the PF-Bobber

For the last month or two our family has really enjoyed fishing together. We pack up all of our fishing poles, tackle boxes, snacks and head to what my Hubby decides is THE BEST place to fish that day. It could be one of many places along the Columbia River, the Snake River, the Yakima River, or even a random pond around where we live. When we get there we set up our little fishing spot, pull out our fishing gear, and fish and fish and fish. Usually without any success. Although, Perry has been known to catch a frog or two.

So, for the last month Trevor (Hubby) has been doing countless hours of research on different boats and rafts. He was convinced that if we just had a small boat to get out ON the water we could start catching fish. So, for our anniversary last month I surprised him with the Excursion 5 from Amazon.

Of course, with our busy schedule we weren’t able to get it on the water until yesterday. We decided to go to the local mud hole and got it all set up. We were pleasantly surprised with how much room it had. It fits 5 of us pretty easily and it’s even pretty easy to maneuver. The first time off the dock it was just Trevor and Perry rowing with Nora, Dani and Stephie as their passengers and they didn’t have any problems (We bought an extra set of oars).

After a few times around the dock, us girls left Trevor and Perry there to fish ON the water. Low and behold, about 30 minutes later I got a text with the next picture… Perry caught a fish!

We all agree that the $125 price tag on this boat was worth it! Trevor even let me name it because I bought it for him. I had several names on my list of options but finally settled on the PF-Bobber.

We anticipate many more adventures on this little boat and highly recommend one for your family if you are looking for some easy and cheap family time.

How do you spend family time? Do you like to do things on the cheap like us? I’d love some more ideas.

Oregon Coast or Bust!

We are packed and ready to head off on our next adventure. You see, the Oregon Coast is our happy place! It is the place that reminds us that God’s mighty hand needs to be the guiding force in our lives. The ocean reminds us that we are so small and God is so great. Do you have a favorite vacation spot?

I’d love to share with you my most recent ah-ha discovery when it comes to packing for 8 people. Bins instead of luggage! It’s brilliant right?! Everything stacks nicely and I can fit 2 kids worth of clothing and shoes in one bin. As you can see some of the family has not bought into this idea yet but I bet they will by the next trip. I also packed all of our toiletries, curling irons, meds, etc into separate smaller bins that also stack great in the back. Add the stroller, a few odds and ends, and Monster’s metal detector and we are on our way.

Do you have a favorite packing tip? I’d love to hear from you.

Family Dinner

Do you make family dinner a priority? 

About 4 years ago we moved into a new house that had a big enough dining room to hold a dining table big enough to fit all 7 of us (my mom ~Grammy~ lives with us). We made it a goal to have dinner together as a family as many nights of the week as possible, usually at least 4 nights a week. These have become some of our most cherished times together. 

While we don’t usually make new memories around the family dinner table we definitely reminisce about old memories, talk about our day… the good and the bad, and simply take the time to be present in each other’s lives. It is also a very good way to teach kids how to pray.  

This weekend we are camping and put 2 card tables together to make a family table.

If you have a hard time coming up with things to talk about I found this great list of questions here. 

If you have any great family dinner topics or questions please share them….

Visit Boise Idaho without breaking the bank!

This last weekend we decided to take a small family trip to Boise from our hometown in southeast Washington to visit my father who has been in the hospital for a couple weeks. With some money saving ideas we were able to visit Grandaddy and make it a vacation. I wanted to share a few of the ways we were able to take this trip with a family of 6 (plus my mom) without spending a ton of money.

• Look online and plan out your hotel in advance. I was able to find a hotel for an average of $117/night for 1 room (we needed 2 because Grammy joined us).  I was able to get this rate because I did the entire booking online. That was a savings of almost $100/night. It included a warm breakfast including waffles, sausage, eggs, etc, a very nice indoor pool, hot tub, sauna, steam room, and workout center.

• Get a cargo carrier for your vehicle. In the past when Grammy joined us on vacations we needed to take a second vehicle (we have a Toyota Highlander that seats 8) because we couldn’t fit all of us and our luggage.  Recently I found a nice soft cargo carrier at a yard sale for just $20 and on this trip alone it saved us at least 2 tanks of gas in Grammy’s car. Ours is a lot like this one and as you can see it’s worth the savings with just a couple tanks of gas you didn’t have to buy.

• Research gas prices along your route. I will be honest I am not the one in our family that does this part, hubby does it. For instance on this trip gas was cheaper in Washington and Idaho so he was very careful not to need gas in Oregon. It isn’t a huge savings but a little bit can go a long way.

• Plan your meals. Obviously we were able to save a lot of money because the hotel had free breakfast and for dinners we got food we could cook at our hotel in the microwave. The first night we ate frozen pasta bowls and spent less than $3/ person on dinner. The second night we went to the store and got some finger foods and shared them in the hotel while we watched a movie. For lunches we did eat out because we were going from one attraction to another and didn’t want to take the time to make food. So one day we went to McDonald’s and the last day we had our first Chick-fit-A experience. Also, be sure to take along snacks so you aren’t tempted to pay convenience store prices.

• We were able to visit three of the main family attractions in Boise, World Center for Birds of Prey, Aquarium of Boise, and Zoo Boise. We were very impressed with the prices of each of these attractions and you would not have to do all of them in a single trip. The Birds of Prey exhibit was very neat as it houses many endangered birds and teaches about the importance of conservation. The Aquarium of Boise had a lot of touch pools with many different types of fish, sharks, and sting rays. Zoo Boise was my favorite. We have been to a few zoos in our day but this zoo offers a much more personal experience with the animals. We were able to be within a few feet of some of the most amazing animals on earth, where at bigger zoos the animals are a fair distance away and you don’t necessarily get to see their size and colors up close. We also got to feed a sloth bear for just $3 (we bought one cup of meal worms and shared) and you could also pay $3 to feed a giraffe (we weren’t there long enough for giraffe feeding time)!

• We also really like to take advantage of small stops on our way to and from our destination. On our way home from Boise we found a beautiful bridge with a gorgeous view in Perry Oregon. Had we not been willing to go a couple miles off the highway to this view point we would never have see this part of God’s beauty.

  If you have any great ways of saving money on family vacations I would love to hear them!

~Amanda

 

 

 

1 on 1 time with kids in a big family!

If you have a large family you know how hard it can be to find ways to have 1 on 1 time with each kid. I blogged a while ago about doing date nights here, but sometimes time and money don’t allow for frequent date nights so you have to get creative.

One of favorite ways to have 1 on 1 time with each kid is grocery shopping. I know… I know…most moms dread grocery shopping and when I have to take all 4 kids with me I do too. Thankfully, most of the time there is another adult (or 14 year old) at home that can watch 3 kids while I take 1 grocery shopping with me.

Here is how we do it…. I do one big grocery shopping trip a week and on that trip I take one kid. They get to help plan out one menu item and pick out 2 treats for the week (usually gummy snacks, Popsicles, or a treat for lunch boxes). They get to help read the list at the store and put the groceries in the cart. When we are finished, if they have been helpful and have had a good attitude, they get to pick out a candy at the register. Then they help load the groceries into the car.  When we get home all 4 kids unload and put away all the groceries.

While we are grocery shopping I am sure to give them opportunities to explore different aisles, food products that we don’t normally buy, and ask questions without interruption. I honestly wouldn’t trade our 1 on 1 grocery shopping for anything. This week was Monkey’s turn to go shopping with me and we had a blast.

I would love to know… how do you find new and creative ways to spend 1 on 1 time with each of your children??

 

 

Family time

Ever heard of a hydroplane? Basically they are the fastest boats you will see. Reaching speeds upward of 150 mph. It is a long time, multi-generational, family tradition to spend the last week in July camping on the Columbia River watching these boats race.

Well, today is a special occasion. A few boats made a special, one day trip to our town to do some testing and time trials.  So we are taking a mental break day and doing nothing but sitting by the river enjoying each other’s company. I hope you get a chance to spend some quality time with the ones you love this weekend.

Date Night

From the title of this blog post you would probably assume that my hubby and I got to go out tonight, together, alone…. NOPE. My date tonight was my handsome 8 year old son Monster and Hubby’s dates were our 6 year old twin girls Bear and Monkey. We try to do a date night once a month. My hubby takes the girls on their dates and I take our son on dates. We let the whole evening be about the kid we are out with. It usually includes dinner, an art activity, a trip to a store, playing sports etc.

Tonight, Monster decided he wanted to go to the batting cages and to Olive Garden for dinner. What he didn’t know was that Hubby and I made plans to meet up at some point during the date. So Monster and I went to the batting cages (our first time. It was fun!) then we went to Olive Garden for dinner. After dinner we stopped at Toys R Us. He insisted we look at ALL of the boy stuff. He picked out some baseball cards and much to his surprise the there were 2 Red Sox players… that made his whole night 🙂 . Then we went to the pottery painting place in the mall and met up with Hubby, Monkey, and Bear. They were all very excited to be reunited, both with each other and with both parents. After pottery we decided on Baskin Robbins for dessert. Then Butterfly needed picked up from her Bible Study and we all came home. It was a lovely night and I truly cherish our date nights.

I would recommend everyone start doing date nights with your kids on a regular basis. Not only is it wonderful bonding time, it is also a great way to show them how to treat a date and how to have one on one conversation without it being weird. If you are looking for something to talk to your kids about on a date Google… fun questions to ask your kids. The options are endless. Again, I can’t express enough how great I think it is to have the opportunity to spend one on one time with your kids. I hope you are able to give it a try.

I am sharing some pictures of our dates tonight and Hubby’s latest date with Butterfly too.