The Popsicle Stick Sculpture Contest

On August 18th our family will be attending the “Austin Ice cream festival”
What kind of contest would an Ice cream festival have? Well they’ll have an ice cream eating contest, an ice cream making contest and the one I’m going to enter…The Popsicle Stick Sculpture Contest!
Snippet:
"Make anything, yes anything out of Popsicle sticks. No pre-notched sticks allowed. Make your creation at home and bring it to the festival or make it at the festival. Get creative and have fun! You can use adhesives and decorations, but the primary building material must be Popsicle sticks. Who wants to be the Popsicle Stick Building Champion? All ages’ welcome. Free to all.”

Here are some photos from my entry, I still need to do some touch up work on them but you can get the idea!
We had family craft day yesterday and I never had so much fun with Popsicle sticks! I worked off and on for 12 hours between helping the kids with their projects and working on mine.

They stand about 18/20 inches tall and are made with love, Popsicle sticks, glue, paint and other little details like buttons!
I’ll need to put a shelf up in the game room to display them after the contest.
Win or lose I think I did a great job and…..Now I have some real PRO’s to play Wii with!
Also the kids have just flipped over them they want me to make a luigi, princess Peach, and Bowser! WOW we’d have the whole family!
I doubt I’ll “really” make all those but make some other classics would be fun!

Game Camp

Austin Community College has A Game Camp for Children 10-17.

My kids would love to attend this summer camp but with a price tag of 500.00 - 625.00 we just can’t swing that for two kids with out getting a student loan! They do offer Scholarship Opportunities for who are nominated by a schoolteacher.

“Requirements: Applicants must submit an official GameCamp! Scholarship application that includes a nomination letter written by one of the applicant’s schoolteachers explaining why this promising student should receive a GameCamp! Scholarship.”

Here is a snippet of the three summer camp classes they offer.
Our Son wants to attend the “Hardcore Gamers camp” Shoot I wish I could go too!
I’m going to try and get the kids in on that scholarship deal next year!

“Basic Camp:
Basic Commuter - This camp is our basic introduction to the video game development industry. Designed for students from 10-17 years of age, we focus on all aspects of the game industry so that students take away a well rounded experience. Instruction covers the game development process from idea creation to a game design pitch. Students will take away knowledge of how programming, art, production and design work together to create video games. Students work in groups and with industry mentors to discover their skill interests and learn about the tools and processes used by video game developers.
Advanced Camp:
Advanced Commuter - This camp focuses on advancing the student's game development skills in a chosen field. Whether the focus is software skills, college preparation, leadership, teamwork, or creativity, students will go to the next level in achieving their college and career goals and eventually working in the game industry. The advanced curriculum is customized by parents and students with the help of the GameCamp! staff. Attendance at a 'Basic' camp or a personal interview is required for attending the advanced camp.
Hardcore Gamers:
Hardcore Gamers Camp - Students will learn game design in a more hands-on gaming approach. The hardcore camp is for students less interested about careers as game developers but more serious about playing games competively. Students will learn the tricks of good map and level design, compete in team-based tournaments to help build communication skills, and develop, test and play their own game modifications. “

There’s only three camps left this summer, so I don’t see them getting to go but I can start making plans for next summer.

Why does summer camp have to be so expensive :( I wonder if I could be a teachers Aid at the camp?!? I may have to look into that!

Play Attention

Play attention is a game designed to help families with ADHD children. Our son was diaganosed four years ago at age six. I found this website and found it interesting.
Play attetion is a learning system that uses a helmet to read brain signals weird hu! The game is supose to help adhd children improve on their concentration skills , improve memory, and learn to filter out distractions.

You can order a free demo cd which I have already done. As cool as this idea is it’s not for my family. Other than I’m not paying 2,000.00 for any kind of game alone the graphics didn’t look like anything my son would really be impressed with.
I could see how this would be helpful in younger grades as maybe a learning center in the classroom.

Snippet from the site
“Can I see a live demonstration?
Every Thursday evening, we offer a free online teleseminar. Our CEO and founder, Peter Freer, conducts a lively and informative presentation and encourages the online audience to interact freely during the discussion. Our free teleseminar is your opportunity to see Play Attention live on your desktop PC, and to get answers to your most difficult questions from an ADHD expert.”

Go check out the site read it over and give me your thought on this idea~

Pay to play or Pay Allowance?

What is the going rate for a Childs allowance nowadays? Do Parents still pay for a child doing chores?
I wasn’t one of the kids who got an allowance growing up. It was just expected that if you lived in the family house you helped with the family chores no compensation needed.

My Husband however was one of the lucky ones who got an allowance. He got enough money to buy one Star wars figure a week. If you think about that and the current costs of an action figure now (6.99 +) that means I’d be paying each of my kids 28.00 bucks a month adding a bill of 56.00 to our monthly budget! That’s 3 months of World of Warcraft! Or whatever pay to play you are playing.

We don’t pay any allowance in our house. What we do is if you have pulled your weight around the house doing family chores we will pay for your pay to play game account for 1 month. Yes, there has been months that the kids haven’t played but it’s completely up to them. We don’t have a chore list (Well “They” don’t I do lol) If I ask someone to do something twice I don’t ask again I’ll ask the other kid and if neither do it 1. My husband or myself will do it or 2. I remind them that they wont be playing games and that normally fixes their attitudes real quick. Really we don’t get too much attitude when it comes to helping out. Our Daughter likes the inside chores like Loading the dishwasher, gathering the dirty clothes and Our Son likes the Outside Chores like Mowing the Grass or taking out the trash can that kind of stuff.
I think they are getting a really good deal. What do you think?

“Your Parents play video games?”

I hear that a lot whenever a new friend or classmate comes to our house. It just boggles their minds that parents are into videogames. You should see the look on their faces when their friends come to the door and the get told “I’ll be out in an hour were in the middle of a raid” What?! You want to sped time with your parents? How weird!
Our house is the most hoping place in the neighborhood! I will only allow 2 friends each at a time (Because that’s 6 kids!) so it’s funny to hear the door bell and my kids will say oh so and so is inside right now can ya come back? And they actually stand there waiting so they don’t lose their spot in line! That is so crazy lol
Every parent in the neighborhood has our phone number and we are the first people they call if it’s time for their kids to go home.
We bought a 52 inch T.V for the Wii (We didn’t have a T.V in the living room before the Wii) we have the N64 set up in our sons room, we have 4 game boy colors and one DS lite a few plug and play games as well as 5 PC’s set up in our house. So there plenty for 6 kids to do without arguing over who plays what.
Summer has been crazy too; it seems that every night someone is asking to sleep over.
I just love it!
If you future Gamer Parents want some advice- Buy loads of popcorn it’s a cheap healthy snack and I haven’t met one kid who didn’t enjoy a fist full of warm popcorn and a controller in their hands! Not to mention it makes your house smell like a Video Arcade in a theater hehe
Nana~