Adventures in Crafting: Minecraft Creeper

As I told you before, both my kids love Minecraft. I decided to take on a project for them. My older one loves Star Wars too, so he wanted a "clone trooper modified Steve."  I found this cool website that lets you design your own Minecraft character. You can see all the dimensions.

My little one wanted to be a creeper. I thought the creeper was going to be easier to make since there was really no pattern that needed to be followed. I WAS WRONG! The creeper needed 100 squares per side! It was tough cutting the squares. I should probably invest in a Cricut but this craft is of the thrifty type.

Here are the materials I used:

I have a collection of Target diaper boxes, they are great for storage. 

It's simple enough. Paper trimmer (or Cricut if you're fancy) 

box (doesn't have to be perfectly square) , 

good old fashion Elmers glue, 

Box cutter (not pictured) 

Pair of black pantyhose (not pictured) hot glue gun to attach the pantyhose

Cardstock (for the creeper I found a pack of  different shades of green for $3.00 at Michaels')

For the Storm Trooper, I got 12x12 open cardstock at Michael's as well.  Best part, it was on sale @ 6 for $1.00. I bought 2 sheets of black, 4 different shades of grey (2 sheets of each as well) 4 sheets of white and like 2 sheets of blue.

After 3 sleepless nights we were ready for Megacon 2013!

UPDATE!:

I love it when costumes can be reused! Halloween is coming early this year. Our family shall attend Halloween Extreme!

Halloween Extreme is for the kids but Spooky Empire is more for me. Fine out why!

Jayden wants to go to Halloween extreme as a zombie but of course...a Minecraft Zombie so I have to get started on that. Tristan is going as a creeper because creepers are really scary and well creepy! Here's how the rest of the costume is coming along.

I had to cut off the side because there was no way he was going to be tied down like that for more than 10 seconds! I have gotten a lot faster at gluing down those little squares.

OCTOBER UPDATE:

So we didn't make it to Halloween Extreme nor Spooky Empire. I was sad. But I did finish the Zombie and the creeper.

Here's the rest. My mother-in-law found me a great box at BJ's for the creeper legs. I cut off each end and glues in to the bottom flaps of the body. 

To keep the legs up I knew I needed some kind of L-brackets. I had a couple of Ikea anti-topple devices in our hardware kit. Don't judge me for not fastening my Ikea wardrobe and TV console to the wall! 

I used liquid nails to attach each one to the middle of each leg. I reinforced them with duct tape and it worked perfectly!

Our Community fall festival was this weekend. They had a costume contest which we didn't win. 

WE WERE ROBBED! I had already prepared the boys. Before we left to the festival I told them that we will enter the contest for fun but it will be alright if we don't win. It's all about having a good time and showing off our costumes. They were very gracious losers.  

Up Next: Diamond Sword & Pickax

Adventures in Fitness: 21 days straight challenge!

http://ecerdeiros.com/motivationalmonday.php

Take one: Action!

I have decided to make a New Year's resolution in March. Let's be honest with ourselves: How many of you have actually kept up with the New Year's resolutions you made on January 1st? I'll give you a hint, probably like 10 percent. I knew I wouldn't start that early so I made non. That does not mean they are not important and necessary.

My resolution for spring will be to lose 50 lbs by summer! That Means that by June 12 ( I think summer actually starts on the 21st but whatever) I should have lost 50 lbs. At first I had said that I was going to do it by my birthday but June 12 sounds better.

Three weeks ago my hubby signed us up to the gym. Read the last paragraph on my earlier post here. I finally went last Monday for the first time. Yesterday a couple of people on Facebook started talking about losing weight and we should try and do it together as a contest. So I decided to join in. My contributor who has yet to post anything said something that stuck with me: It takes 21days to form a habit. Being the nerd that I am I researched it and learned that not everyone agrees with this. But if I believe then it WILL happen!

Also I started researching fitness blogs. I typed losing weight in your late 20's. No luck but I did find this one interesting blog that jumped out at me: NERD FITNESS
 I'll post other's as I find them.

Challenges:

One of my challenges with weight loss before has been making it a habit. I want to make it such a habit that instead of me saying (tone: sluggishly like Eeyore) "ugh I have to go to the gym" I want to say (tone: obsessively & excitingly like Tigger) I HAVE to go to the gym!

Over eating is not a problem. I actually tend to forget to eat and end up having only 1-2 LARGE meals a day. That's going to be my biggest challenge  I don't want to be preparing 5 small meals a day! If you guys have suggestions I would love to hear them!

Drinking water. It's not that I don't like water. I just don't like having to pee every hour! The urgency to pee is the worst feeling in the world for me! Water goes straight through me!

UPDATE: I almost forgot one more very important challenge. Going to bed early enough to wake up at 6:00 a.m. My goal is to go to the gym at 6:00 a.m. but I like to play XBOX at night and my peeps don't get on until 10:00 p.m. and I NEED 8-10 hours of sleep. I know I know, I need to get my priorities straight and put the controller down! Maybe this will be the hardest challenge.

If I can overcome these challenges I should be fine. So here we go!

3/12/13 DAY 1: Did 25 minutes of cardio and 35 minutes of abs and arms. Weight 205 (Shocking I know! But I really don't look it. I mean I look "fluffy" but I am also big boned. It's true!)

3/13/13 DAY 2: I actually woke up at 6:30 a.m. to head to the gym early but it was not in cards to go that early. The freaking car wouldn't start. By the time the car situation was resolved I had to get to class. I made it to the gym at 2:00 p.m. HUNGRY! Did 30 minutes of Cardio and 20 minutes of ab weights.
Weight 204 ( I must have been bloated yesterday)

3/14/13 DAY 3: Happy Pi Day! How Ironic. Made it to the gym again today. This time I did 45 minutes cardio and 45 minutes of weight training.
Weight 206 (Must have been that pizza I had for dinner at 8:30 p.m.)

For those of you skinny bitches that only need to lose 5-15 lbs, enjoy this!

4/9/13 Come back soon, I will be restarting my 21 day challenge! Read about how I failed the first time around.

UPDATE: 

Take 2: Action!

"If at first you don't succeed try, try again"

It is May 11th so 2 months since I started this challenge but have yet to accomplish. I put "getting fit" as something I need to do before I am 30. It WILL happen.

I have cancelled my gym membership. Being a full time mom/student and soon be full time employee, it was really difficult to make it to the gym but I can work out at home! Then when the habit has been created I can revisit the gym membership.

The majority of people always wait till Monday to start a workout routing or a diet. To me that is just another excuse to procrastinate. You should start the minute you think of it, if not then you are probably not really serious about it. To be able to succeed at anything you have to first be honest with yourself. Don't get me wrong, I have done it before and obviously I was not serious about it.


Besides me wanting to get fit for vain reasons as "I want to look good in everything" I really mostly want to get fit for my children. "I want to feel good doing anything." My oldest is really into soccer and even running. He asks me to go jogging with him all the time. My body is way too heavy to go running. I don't jog...I trot! It's not a pretty picture!

To promote fitness I decided to make him my trainer and coach. I knew he would have a blast. What kid doesn't find it satisfying to boss his mother around for a change! In our first session he pretended to be his soccer coach: accent and all. He is really good at impersonating people. It really makes me laugh. So here we go again:

My coach made me trot. It was 100 degrees outside! My trainer made me work out till I almost passed out! He is the little kid version of Jillian Michaels but way funnier. He called me a Fathlete... a fat person who is trying to be an athlete. That really made me laugh.

The weather was perfect in the evening! It was cool and breezy, nothing like the day before. I came home starving at 6:00 pm. but I knew if I ate first I would not have gotten a work out in. 

Day four was busy. My trainer had practice and a den meeting so by the time we got home it was bed time. His assistant took over the training and photographed

Day 5 was a long day too. This time I had class in the evening. I didn't start until like 10:30 p.m.! I need to be careful because then the next day I may be getting closer to midnight! I think i'll work out at the park while Jayden is having soccer practice.

No photo of me for day 6. But I did exercise I promise! While Jayden was in soccer practice I lunged around the entire park!. Between all the squats, lunges and but lifts this week my butt is ridiculously sore! On a side not the photo above was taken by my 3 year old Tristan! My toddler is talented!

I have come to the end of day seven My shadow was shaking in it's boots for a weigh-in.

I probably should have weighed myself again on day 1 but I forgot. Anyhow, from 2 months ago I have lost  8 pounds. I weigh 197. Not bad not bad. *giving self pat on the back* I am 1/3 of the way there! For the habit building, not the 50 lbs. 

Family Outing: Camping

I sit here, exhausted beyond belief, to write this post. Why am I exhausted you ask. Well you probably aren't guessing since you obviously read the title of the post: CAMPING. 

A better question would be, why in the world would I decide to blog instead of taking a long needed nap? EXCITEMENT. I am still running on adrenaline fueled by the most rewarding weekend in a long time. 

Going through the blog you will see that we haven't had a family outing in a while. I was starting to feel guilty as a mom. I mean we go to the park, and the Mickie D's playground but nothing excited and new had been done. 

I feel terrible when my Jayden writes "This weekend I played XBox all weekend" for his Monday school journal entry. Don't judge me! It happens... quite a lot. We can't all be super moms. Some of us live in reality without nannies. 

Consequently I want to write about it while it is fresh in my mind. 

This camping adventure was pretty spontaneous! Our cub scout pack had this camping trip planned but I was apprehensive about the whole camp out with a toddler (Tristan)! The last time the pack had a camp out we were all ready to go but the weather didn't permit us. For that trip I over-planned and over-prepared. I was exhausted before getting there. Since the weather at night was going to be bad we only showed up for the day activities and my Jayden was heartbroken. The kid has a way to make me feel like a horrible person with those big puppy eyes of his. Regrettably this time we were going to do the same nonetheless. Jayden was more understanding this time around, no guilt trip for me. 

The day activities included fishing, a farm tour, regatta races (spectating not competing: me rowing in this shape? I don't think so), crafting, hiking, bonfire (with s'mores, stories and singing) and of course barbecuing. 

The hubby needed to leave early from the campsite to exchange cars and head back. Since he was going home anyway, I decided to call him and tell him to bring the camping gear. He was hesitant but obliged regardless. BEST DECISION EVER! Besides the uncomfortable night sleep (the hubby wanted a true camping experience so we had no air mattress) we all had a great time. This is all we brought:

1 2-person tent (perfect for sleeping a family with 2 children under 8 years old and 2 adults.

2 large blankets (one to place on the floor of the tent and one to cover the adults

1 kids sleeping bag (for Jayden)

2 nursery comforters (for Tristan)

2 king size pillows

1 standard pillow

1 pair of pajamas (for mom, the boys slept in their clothes)

extra pair of clothes for the boys(encase the clothes the boys were wearing got too filthy or wet)

sweaters for everyone (good thing because it was nippy at night)

1 large packet of hot dogs

1 packet of buns

1 box of graham cracker

1 packet of chocolate bars

1 bag of marshmallows

1 large roasting skewer fork (I think that's what you call them)

1 fishing rod (used hot dogs as bait)

1 large water canteen

2 folding chairs (never used)

It seems like a lot but it's really not. We managed just fine with only these items but I would also recommend:

1 queen size AIR MATTRESS (a must for a good night sleep)

1 toddler sleeping bag to keep him from sleeping on top of you or moving around.

headband flashlights (that's what I call them the boys call them mining flashlights)

SUNBLOCK (obvious, yet I forgot mine and my face is all red)

Outdoor Bug repellent (not necessary in the Florida winter) 

Towels ( if you don't want to smell like smoke you must take a shower!)

A cooler with juices sodas and milk because kids get bored of water.

Lots of snacks because the wilderness makes kids extra hungry.

The best part about the camping was the group we went with. Our Cub Scout pack is amazing! Everyone was so neighborly. We got help pitching the tent (I think that's the lingo). Everyone shared their extra food; our tent neighbor even made us a scrambled egg sandwich  for breakfast in her outdoor kitchen (super awesome kitchen but I don't think we'll invest in one). I was very grateful to the whole pack. They were a huge reason our camping experience was amazing despite our lack of preparation.

Believe it or not I am actually less exhausted now than I was when I started the post. Good riddance! 

I had something different to write about but this took priority.

The Joys (or Pains) of Motherhood: Minecraft

"That's not gold mom..it's BUTTER!" If you have heard your child running around talking about "butter" then you are the mom to a minecraft fanatic.

www.moddb.com

Minecraft  is like a Lego set without the horrible mess and horrible foot pain. It's a virtual Lego set. It has all the kids going  crazy. Even some adults. My Jayden can spend hours on YouTube watching videos about Minecraft.

We are a family who LOVE conventions. We have been to Mega-con and Star Wars Celebration (twice). For each convention my boys (including my hubby) have gone in costume. 

                                                                      Exhibit A B & C:

Our first year at Megacon we saw a bunch of people walking around with these pixelated heads and I had no idea what they were. It thought it was an ode to some 1990 video game character. It turns out to be a Minecraft character. 

So this year for Mega con I thought it would be cool if I made the kiddos a costume of Minecraft but Star Wars theme. I started working on a sketch today before Jayden got home from school. When Jayden got home he took a look at my sketch and immediately started to criticize it and like a true artist he took over.

We will be working on it this weekend. I'll make sure to reveal the end result.

Check out the progress so far here! I will end up making the whole body little by little so that by October he has his Halloween costume.

Feelings/Nerd Wars

It seems that I am trying to make up for the many months I did not post anything. Or a clinical psychologist would say I am having a manic episode. I happen to like my manic episodes. I am at my very best. The other pole puts me in a dark and twisty place (Grey's Anatomy reference) and I lose my incentive to want to write about anything! Depression sucks!

Whenever I am extra sensitive about things I feel like this:

Writing is the only way I can release all those feelings. I can't comprehend why the words I have in my mind cannot transfer to my vocal chords and shoot out of my mouth! It is beyond aggravating. I think it has to do with fear. The fear of what people will think about me. Then again if that is the case then why can I so easily put it in writing. I guess it's easier for me to filter myself in writing. I am contently worried about saying the wrong thing.

I don't like to offend people. I offend myself when I offend others. I care what other people think way too much. Don't try to tell me "it doesn't matter what people think." I can't help myself. I wish I was like Jennifer Lawrence. She is so freaking charismatic that it doesn't matter when what comes out of her is ridiculous. Maybe it's because she is gorgeous. Are people more accepting of people's mistakes if they are really good looking?

You know who else I admire and hate at the same time. This girl: Danielle from Nerd Wars

People with no filter are annoying to me! Yet I also admire that. Hence the love/hate relationship. If you haven't watched Nerd Wars you have to. It's freaking awesome! Jayden LOVES her. 

I just realized Madeina is like her in many way (minus the crying a lot). So if Danielle is Madeina then I must be Genevieve. 

Yup. Sounds about right. 

This also means Karol would be Celeste:

The sweet and "innocent" one trying to fly under the radar! Now go watch the Nerd Wars if you are a self proclaimed nerd!

Meet my newest contributor!

So obviously I have not been keeping up with my blog. I figured I should probably have a partner in crime. That way when I have nothing to say someone else can come in and put in their two cents.

Meet Madeina (pronounced Mah-DAY-nah) Exotic, I know. But you can call her Maddie, Maddy, MadiSin. She won't mind...I think. She is married to my baby daddy's brother. I call her my sister-in-law. We practically act like sisters, or other's may say... nemeses. Tomayto, Tomahto.

Well, she's my unofficial future editor. She believed in me when I told her I wanted to start a blog. She is the person I know will ALWAYS read my newest post. She LOVES to read so I trust her judgement. Remember how passionate Belle was in Beauty and the Beast? Well she shares the same love for books. Her nose is always stuck in a book.

She told me once that she wanted to write a book. I have been trying to convince her to start writing her own blog but for some reason she has some apprehension about it. I asked her to be one of the authors on my blog and she said yes. I hope she meant it because I expect to see something soon! Madeina and I are very alike in some ways and very different in many other ways. We very much disliked each other in the beginning but then realized we just clashed. Now we tolerate each other. When something irks me now I simply walk away. But she can get under my skin. And she knows it. I believe she ravishes in the idea she can get me all hot and bothered.

 I wish I was as witty as she is. I admire her for her snaps. I can never come up with a comeback. I won't discuss her flaws because it would not be very lady like. I try to always focus on the best in people.

We both like to live in fictional worlds, hence the book reading. We talk about TV shows like it was our real life. "Can you believe Wade cheated on Zoe! He is such a douche!." She calls me a weirdo, a dork, and crazy all the time. I simply say "Birds of a feather."

I am super excited to read her first contribution.