Our family has had a fantastic summer filled with musicals, new experiences, festivals, friends, and lots of fun. The one thing we did not do this summer was have family game night. When we had a night free, our kids wanted to spend time with friends or just relax, so FGN fell to the wayside during this busy, active season. Now that we have a little more free time heading into the school year, I fully expect FGN to resume. The closest we got was giving away some games we no longer use in June and giving Micah the Monty Python Fluxx game as a show gift in July. Both are pictured below for your enjoyment. 😉
We had 2 family adventures in June! It was wonderful to have the opportunity to spend so much time together and we had an amazing time at COSI. We were really there for the fossils in the Dinosaur exhibit because of a Geology 4-H project, but we definitely explored more than that. I was really excited for the Jim Henson exhibit, and it did not disappoint! So, without further ado, here is the full report. 🙂
When we first arrived, we had to wait for the group of 4-H members from our club to get out of the Chemistry Live show, so we hung out in Gadgets. I was happily surprised with how much fun we had trying to make devices that would fly in the wind tubes they had. It was great!
After meeting up with our friends for a photo, we ended up checking out the WOSU exhibit. We especially had fun with the lights that break up your shadow into different colors.
Our next stop was the Dinosaur exhibit. We all learned some new things – I know we were never taught that some dinosaurs had feathers! Lots of cool fossils to explore, too. I think our budding geologist really enjoyed it.
Finally, it was time to check out the Jim Henson exhibit. I have ALWAYS been a fan of The Muppets and Sesame Street. I also really enjoyed Labyrinth and The Fraggles. So, seeing the beginnings of the muppet-type characters and seeing actual puppets and costumes and sketches and writing from the shows was amazing! I am so glad the exhibit came to Columbus so we could check it out!
We would definitely all recommend checking out both COSI and the Jim Henson exhibit. The exhibit is only here until September 2nd, so you should make plans to see it soon! Definitely worth the time and entrance fee. If you have already been, what was your favorite part? Let us know in the comments!
There is a new art installation experience in Columbus called Otherworld. This has been on my radar for a few months and we actually bought presale tickets a couple of months ago. This past Saturday we were invited to Otherworld for a birthday meet up. We were very excited to go and check it out!
We spent a good amount of time in the lobby before going in. I do not want to give away all the fun you will have, but I will highlight some of our favorite things. Here are a few photos from the lobby and entrance.
Once inside, there are So. Many. Rooms. It took us a good hour and a half to fully explore all of the different parts of this amazing place. They have done a lot of really cool things and there is an incredible attention to detail. You can tell that there are plans to expand as some of the rooms are “just” really amazing murals. The only thing we struggled with is that the light is very low throughout, so our eyes were pretty tired when we left. Here are some sneak peaks at the many, many rooms awaiting you at Otherworld.
Overall, we had a great time exploring. It was really fun that we could touch and interact with everything in the rooms. There are puzzles and little surprises throughout which we really enjoyed. We look forward to checking it out again in a few months to see if there is more to discover.
As I mentioned in my other May posts, this was a busy, hectic, crazy month. When we were home for a rare evening, someone was always grumpy or sleepy or had to study or needed a mental break. So, we only had one Family Game Night (FGN) in May. Which is still better than nothing, but I am disappointed that we couldn’t make it work. Most likely we will do better in June – we will have less rehearsals after Charlotte’s Web closes on the 16th, so I am hopeful.
On May 25th, we decided it was now or never. The plan was that Charlotte would study for her test and then join Keith, Micah and me, but it went a little differently. When Charlotte joined us, Micah must have felt his obligation was fulfilled and he ditched us to play online with friends. Keith and I still had a wonderful night playing with both our children, just not at the same time.
The first game we played was 5 Minute Dungeon. Keith and Micah had played this game with friends, and they enjoyed it so much that Micah gifted it to Keith for his birthday. It was not a 5 minute game as the name implies, but it was fun once I got the hang of it. We beat the first dungeon, but we ended up losing the game in the second dungeon. I chose to be a ninja character (because NINJA!!), but had I understood how the game play worked and how the characters’ powers would be used, I may have chosen a character with a more useful power. Knowing the Micah is a fan of this game, I am sure it will be in rotation for future FGNs in our household. I do have to say that just shoving all the cards to the side gave me anxiety about having to sort them out later…
The second game we tried was a Christmas gift to our family from my brother’s family. Phone Phever is a game that uses your smart phone for a lot of the the questions; sometimes it is optional, other times not. You are racing the other players to get the latest, greatest, new smart phone by answering questions. We finished the game, but I doubt that the three of us will play it again. It seems like a game that young teens will like, so we will have Charlotte and her friends try it out.
The next game Keith, Micah and I played was The Oregon Trail Hunt for Food card game. This game was pretty simple once we got through the rules. Unfortunately, we all ended up dying before we could deliver enough food back to our camp. I believe one of us died from dehydration, one died from getting lost, and one died from a snake bite. No dysentery, so I guess we had that going for us. 😉 I feel like we will most likely try this game out again.
After Oregon Trail, Charlotte joined us and we lost Micah. Keith and Charlotte found a Friends Trivia Game at a thrift store last month, so we decided to give it a go. It ended up being pretty fun, and I was pleasantly surprised how many of the questions we knew – thanks Netflix! Keith managed to beat us out at the last minute, but it was definitely neck and neck for the win. I have a feeling that Charlotte will want to play this again, but it will have to once again be without Micah because he is not a big Friends fan.
Have you ever played any of these games? Do you have any games you think we should try? Let us know in the comments!
March may have been rough for Family Game Night (FGN), but we are back on track in April! Even losing internet the evening we were planning to play an online family game didn’t phase us! It was a good month for games.
Our first FGN was April 12th. We were going to play Jackbox games using our television and cell phones, but our internet went out. So, we decided to take it on the road to the FGN event at two.fifty.four, the new youth center in Gahanna. We took Seven Dragons and Quarriors with us. We also enjoyed using their ping-pong, pool, and foosball tables. We really enjoyed that evening and will most likely be going back to two.fifty.four soon!
What luck that we could just pop down the street to this!
Seven Dragons
Quarriors
Ping Pong
Pool
Our next FGN was actually on Easter with Keith’s parents. We went to Marion for dinner and then sat down for a couple of games. We played Tsuro – Keith’s Dad took everyone out the first round and I think Micah won the second. It was our second time playing this game with them, so I think they enjoyed revisiting it. Then it was time for some smack talk in Uno. It was a really long game with lots of me remembering that I alter the rules some when I play with my clients… It was a really fun evening and I think everyone is looking forward to doing it again.
Tsuro
Tsuro
Tsuro
Tsuro champion!
Uno
May is looking to be a little crazy, so we will have to see how everything works out. I am sure we will at least fit in a couple nights with our kids. 🙂
Well, as expected, March was a super busy month. Our family involved in two different shows with two different tech weeks made for a very tight schedule. When we had time to have family game night, one or more of us was just not feeling up to it. So, we only have one game event to recap here. It’s a good thing we had extra game nights earlier this year! We also have not had any game nights involving my in laws this quarter, so we will need to figure that out for April.
On March 26th, we took Micah and 4 of his friends to Tabletop Game Cafe to celebrate his birthday – finally. The high schoolers had their own table and, as far as I know, only played two games. Betrayal in the House in the Hill and Kids Against Maturity (a more PG version of Cards Against Humanity). They seemed to have a great time with both of them.
Their game of Betrayal was the longest I have ever witnessed! The haunt started early and lasted forever!They had a great time!
At our table, Keith, Charlotte and I played Love Letters a couple of times. This is a quick game that we really liked. Not complex and pretty fun.
Next we played Catacomb. Catacomb ended up being a lot of set up and learning, so we only played one encounter. We really liked the game play, though. Flicking disks at your enemies is strangely satisfying. We plan to watch a little gameplay on YouTube and then give it another try with all 4 of us.
No photo of the board set up – I was definitely not “on my game” that day!
The last game we played was Apples to Apples. It turned out to be a little rough for Charlotte because Keith and I have so many more years of inside jokes, but we all enjoyed this one, too.
Another easy to learn and play game – definitely less frustrating to Charlotte.
We also found a game we want to try next time we are at Tabletop – Sagrada. It is a dice game with only a couple pages of directions, so I think it could be a hit with our whole family. Charlotte is especially excited to try it.
Have you tried Sagrada or any other game you think we should check out? Let us know in the comments!
As expected, our Family Game Nights (FGNs) have slowed down a bit for February. We were, however, able to fit in two and thus meet our goal. It is really thanks to Micah deciding that he would love to spend his birthday evening playing games with us. Whew!
Our first FGN was Super Bowl Sunday. We aren’t huge football fans, and we definitely didn’t have any team we were favoring. So, we got set up to play a few games and have a few yummy snacks. First up was Dos Rios: Valley of Two Rivers. Keith and I had played this one before, but it was the first time for both kids. First up, they enjoyed stacking their meeples, casas, and haciendas.
White tower
Red tower
Everyone seemed to enjoy the game play once we got going. In the end, Charlotte prevailed with an excellent use of strategy, but everyone had a good time. We enjoyed some chocolates from Christmas, some Hello Panda green tea treats, and some Bhuja Snacks Cracker Mix. (We also had Little Debbie Valentine Cakes, but did not end up eating them that evening.)
Dos Rios game board
Sees Chocolates
Hello Panda Green Tea treats
To finish the evening out, we decided on Fluxx because it can be a quick game. Unfortunately, that was not the case on February 3rd. It was a long game with many rule changes and a couple times shuffling the deck. We were all quite relieved when Keith won, which is generally not the case.
Fluxx with so many rules…
Our second FGN for February was on the 24th for Micah’s birthday. We had to order a couple of cords on Amazon Prime Now and noticed that Betrayal at the House on the Hill was on sale for almost half off. We couldn’t pass that up and naturally decided to give it a whirl right away. Since it was Micah’s special day, and because Charlotte and I were right by The Cheesecake Factory on Polaris, we decided to get cheesecake to celebrate.
Cheesecake Factory and games
Our house almost complete
Keith and Micah had played Betrayal at the House on the Hill before, and our whole family played Betrayal at Baulder’s Gate in January, but this was the first time Charlotte and I played this version. We liked building the house better than building the Baulder’s Gate with all the different colored doors. We had unfortunate luck with our haunt this game, however, so Micah’s Zombie Lord ended up killing all of us. Keith and Charlotte were cornered in the basement and I was a 9 year old girl, so we didn’t stand a chance. We will definitely be adding this game into our rotation and are very excited to have gotten it on sale. We did not end up playing Fluxx, Micah’s other choice, because Charlotte was done and wanted to FaceTime and text with her friends. Since Betrayal took about 90 minutes, we let her go. Overall, a great evening. Can’t wait to see what games we will play in March – maybe we’ll have a Family Game Night at Tabletop over Spring Break.
Years ago, on a trip to the North Market, our family tried some Bubble Tea. At the time, we didn’t know how to order and if you know anything about me, I am a super picky drink person. I do not tolerate sweetener in my tea well. I do not like surprises when I am drinking. So, I’m sure you see where this is going, it was not a good Bubble Tea experience.
Today, we tried a new location of Bibibop that just opened in our area. When we walked in, we saw that there was also a Bibitea shop in the same space! It was finally time to have someone really take time to explain it to us, and we all walked out with Bubble Tea that we love. I cannot recommend this Bibitea shop enough! The ladies let us try various things and made sure we really liked what we were getting ready to buy. Excellent service and product. We will definitely be back!
For our January Adventure Date, our whole family stayed in the Maple Treehouse at Hocking Hills Treehouse Cabins. Keith and I really debated about whether to get away on our own or whether to take the kids, but in the end we decided we all needed to get away. The past few months have been a little stressful as Keith’s company was bought and we were unsure whether he would have a job past the end of this month. Things have stabalized now, thankfully, so we really needed a family celebration of that.
Our treehouse cabin was cozy and had the perfect amount of space for us to spread out some but also hang out as a family. We loved all the little finishing touches and special nooks. Keith and I had a queen bed that was pretty comfy, and there was also a queen bed in the loft area and a pull out sofa. The kids alternated between their two options each night and seemed to like both okay. The kitchen was small but very workable – we definitely ate well while we were there. The bathroom was beautiful with the rain shower head and we loved the unlimited hot water supply. There was even a wood stove heated hot tub that the kids enjoyed on Saturday evening after a day of hiking. We took lots of photos of the cabin to show you, so lets start with the outside views.
The Maple
This side has the master bedroom.
Here you can see the hot tub.
Definitely in the trees – and anchored well.
The inside consisted of a kitchen/dining/lounge area with a loft, a master bedroom, and a bathroom. Every space was used really well for storage and decoration. Here are photos of the multipurpose room and loft.
Entreeway
Lounge area
Dining area
Ladder to the loft
Bed in loft
Nook in loft
View from loft
Kitchen
More kitchen
Next are photos of the great bathroom. Really can’t overstate the awesomeness of the unlimited hot water. We were mindful to try not to waste water, but we loved that we did not have to keep turning it up and rush through our showers.
Tile shower with Rain showerhead
Sink
Finally, the master bedroom was cozy and bright with wonderful views. It was also right up the stairs from the hot tub, so it was easy to watch the fire and the kids but also stay warm and enjoy a glass of wine.
Comfy bed
Desk with views of hot tub
Lovely view from bed
Getting the hot tub heated up
Enjoying a warm soak
I really loved the way the cabin was decorated. The artwork and words really spoke to me, so I took lots of photos of that, too.
Master bedroom
Lounge
Entreeway
Kitchen
My very favorite part of the cabin, however, was that it was situated so there were waterfalls that you could see and hear from the deck. This weekend there were also some very impressive icicles to admire. We spent a bit of time exploring the property around the cabin on Saturday.
Icicles from the deck
More icicles from the deck
Ravine from fire pit
Tiny waterfall
Double waterfall
You can hear waterfalls in this ravine
Icicles
Icicles
Icicles
On Saturday we also ventured out to a couple places in Hocking Hills State Park. The cabin is less than 10 minutes from popular places in the park, so it is really convenient as a place to stay if you also want to hike and explore. We drove past John Glenn Astronomy Park, Whispering Cave, and Old Man’s Cave every time we left or returned to our cabin. Our first stop on Saturday was Ash Cave because we wanted to see how icy things were before we headed to any other parts of the park. Since Ash Cave is so flat and usually an easy hike, it seemed to be a logical choice. There was a man finishing an ice sculpture as we pulled into the parking lot, so that was an extra bonus. We found the hiking to be a bit treacherous, but if you just took your time and were mindful of where you were putting your feet, it really wasn’t too bad. The views were worth it!
Kids with ice sculpture
Hummingbird
Frozen cliffs
Charlotte
Micah
Keith and Autumn
My people at Ash Cave
Ash Cave
Ash Cave
Ice under the falls
Water falling
The creek after the falls
Since Old Man’s Cave was on our way back to our cabin, we decided to see how well we could navigate the upper part of that hike. It was extremely slippery, but we managed pretty well. I *may* have crab crawled down some steps to make sure I didn’t slip. It probably wasn’t pretty, but it was very effective. The views on this hike were even better! The rain earlier in the week paired with the refreezing temperatures created quite a show for us.
Upper Upper Falls
Upper Falls and bridge
Upper Falls and bridge
Icicles
Upper Falls
Icicles
Devil’s Bathtub
Side Falls by Welcome Center
Wall of icicles
On Sunday, we decided to stop at Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve on our way home. It is also less than 10 minutes from the cabin. It ended up being the worst hike in terms of ice, but that also made it breathtakingly beautiful. We are pretty sure that Charlotte had hiked there with us before, but it was Micah’s first time and he really loved it. I did actually fall on this hike, with lots of witnesses, but nothing was injured so it ended up being pretty funny.
Looking back toward the parking lot
Icicles
Kids in the Grotto
Grotto Selfie
Lots of ice
Peeking from ahead on the trail
Frozen waterfall
Ravine is getting deeper
Icicles
Charlotte
Icicles
So many icicles
Falls at the end of the ravine.
Frozen waterfall near the end of the ravine
The end of the hollow
Behind the frozen falls
Frozen waterfall selfie
Photobombed!
All in all, we had an incredible weekend. We will definitely be back – Keith and I are already making plans to stay in the newest treehouse cabin, The Beech, which should be opening in the next few months. The kids have requested that we make it a family tradition, which is high praise from them. You should give it a try, too!
At the beginning of this year, I sat down and worked on some vision board activities to try to have some focus for our family this year. I was given a list of words and had to narrow it down to just 10 words that really spoke to me. Next I narrowed the list down to 5 words, and finally down to just 3. After carefully working through my options, I was left with Adventure, Create, and Relate. For this winter and spring, we are going to be starting a couple of different things to start to bring more of those words into our lives.
Keith and I have really been a great team and have worked hard to do lots of extracurricular activities for and with our children. Along the way, it felt like our relationship was taking a backseat. One of the things we want to do this year is have one Adventure Date and one Create Date a month. It will force us to try new things and be creative, both things we love to do. Sometimes these dates will involve our kids because we love doing things with them and want to expose them to new opportunities. Most of the dates, however, will just be the two of us and I am really excited as we start to plan out what we will be doing the next couple of months.
At the Franklin Park Conservatory’s “Conservatory Aglow”
Another thing that we love to do as a family but have not been doing lately is family game nights. So, we also made the goal to have two family game nights a month. Additionally, one game night each quarter will include Keith’s parents and at least two during the course of the year will involve mine. We are so fortunate to have our parents still around and able to enjoy activities with us, and we really wanted to focus more on those relationships. Plus, we love some friendly family competition!
Adventure. Create. Relate 