August Part 6: Family Activities

It's your favorite (or at LEAST second favorite) Brian again, and here we go...

August was beautiful weather and so we couldn't miss the opportunity to have family activities together. Most of these came on Sundays when we take turns at conducting a little family meeting, teaching each other a church lesson, giving a prayer, making a treat, and choosing a family activity.

First off, Gabe chose to play baseball in the backyard. We found a foam ball and used our "most bestest" and very high quality plastic bat.

Perhaps the most entertaining part of it was watching Gracie try to run the bases with Devri. She always sticks right by her side during all of these things. Please don't tell Gracie that even though Devri is the one that found her on KSL and pushed for adopting her, she really didn't want a dog at all (just for the kids).

I came in one day to this situation in our bedroom. Gabe apparently commandeered my chair and was reading a book quietly with Devri. I graciously decided to allow it instead of kicking him out of the chair (I'm just magnanimous I guess).

After Devri and I saw "Murder at Havershim Palace" "The Play that Goes Wrong" at the Ruth theater in July, we decided that the kids and my Mom and Dad would just love it and had to see it, so we took/forced them to go in August. The actors' antics even went out into the line while getting treats. The guys not dressed like everyone else are part of the show. I think one of them was trying to buy food and the other wouldn't allow it or something. It was funny, you'll just have to trust me.

The stage itself was a big part of the show as it kept falling apart more and more as the show went on. You can the see the sad state of it at the end here with panels falling off, etc. Also, my Mom and two random kids.

Everyone's review: I loved it! Except for Michael, who said: not bad. So that's a 5/5 stars performance for everyone.

One of our family favorites is to play basketball, as either Michael or Gabe usually chooses this. Devri and Michael actually know how to play basketball, I know some of the rules and how not to shoot the ball (doesn't stop me from doing it that way...), Gabe knows he wants to get it in the hoop but is unsure of how you get from the ground to the basket, and Rachel knows that basketball exists but chooses to embrace a modeling career instead. Exhibit A: (not pictured: the rest of the family or an actual basketball) (also appearing in this picture: the trailer hitch rest that is fully committed to the white hand of Saruman)

The next week, Rachel decided to switch up our usual activity and instead wanted to do the tortilla challenge. The rules are simple: two people face off by filling their mouths with water and then hitting each other one at a time with a tortilla. The first to spit loses.

Gabe was nice to Devri, though it looks like she's about to get a full hand slap instead of just the tortilla.

Devri, in turn, was also nice to Gabe. See, that's how it's done, no hand involved in the slap, just tortilla.

So the only tortillas we had are really fantastic to eat, but we learned they are not really great for slapping people. I blame tortilla land for subpar slapping abilities without falling apart. They just don't make tortillas like they used to. I mean, who tests these things anyways? Hence why it looks like Michael is throwing a full fist punch at Devri. I'm pretty sure the majority of the tortilla is some where to Devri's right on the ground.

If one person struggled more than any others, it was definitely Rachel. This girl could not stop laughing. Evidence:

Michael and I had a full 5 minute slapping spree with each other. Though water was leaking out, we didn't fully break.

We finally figured out that to make it a little harder we had to fill out mouths with more water. And I think I finally lost it.

In the end, the winner  was the owner of the RBF (Resting Banshee Face), Devri herself. This woman wins every staring contest, every attempt to keep a straight face while making a joke, and every trivia game involving Greek architecture, so it really wasn't a surprise that she won here. But in the end, I feel like the best part of the game was the tortillas that we made along the way (may they rest in pieces).