Just Blogging

Jennifer Boss asked:




Why waste your time on endless shopping tours trying to find perfect costume looking for kids homemade Halloween costume ideas. The fact is that kids like funny, simple costumes, they like them to be effective and not necessarily very expensive. So if you find yourself in financial difficulties or just don’t want to spend way to much money on costume this year this is how you can save some money and still make a cool costume for your kid.

One way is to dress them up as boxes of Popcorns, all you need is one large box covered with white butcher paper, than you need to add red stripes to make it look like a popcorn box. Off course don’t forget to make a hole for your child’s head, glue some popcorns to the top of the box and you are done.

The weirdest idea is to make old and a bit shabby ideas interesting. You can dress them up into ghosts, but not an ordinary sheet with a single hole for the head and arms. Dress up you little ghost a little with adding some make up and maybe some hair, put on high heals and you get a better and improved version of your old white sheet.

Quasimodo is one of the simple costume ideas. All you need is some foam or a cardboard to build a hunchback. The rest can be easily found in every closet, find some old, worn out clothes, which is several sizes bigger.

The cutest idea for the kids homemade costume idea ever must be a Bag of Jellybeans, and it is quite simple as well. You need one plastic bag, make an opening at the neck for the head, and the legs are fed through small holes cut in the bag. The final step is to fill the interior of the bag with small balloons. They will look adorable in this costume.

Ever heard of a cereal killer? The one lurking the streets on the Halloween!

No? Then follow the instructions, you attach cereal boxes to a shirt, cut a slit in them, glue some plastic knives into the holes, and drip some red paint down the holes in the box, and beware.

And the last will have to be Rubik cubes, or just regular dice. All you need is a large card board box, five different colors, for the dice you only need two, and start painting.

So whatever your choice might be, don’t forget to have fun and get your kids involved in created kids homemade Halloween Costume.

Keith Allen asked:




Not long after earning and receiving Service Status, I was chosen by my Family Representative for a special opportunity and learning experience. Approached by Mr. Chaffin Pullan, I was asked to help a student, Norine Lopez, by joining her and five other students on a trip to an Indian Sweat Lodge. Two weeks later we were on our way to live and to learn.

I was excited and timid all at the same time. I had known of and spoken to very few of the six girls who were going. Together we joined as one, as sisters, as true bonded, and strong friends. We all have similar struggles with our Dads, having felt lonely and very selective in our relationships. One experience changed my life - the car ride down involving conversation about past problems, embarrassing and funny moments. We didnʼt have a care in the world, except ourselves, and what was next down the road. When living at home we thought we knew everything. If we didnʼt know everything or know what to expect we wanted nothing to do with the situation. However, we experienced just that, the unexpected.

The sun set beautifully over the Idaho Mountains as we arrived at the Lodge. It felt like a mini-family reunion with the love and open hearts eager to meet one another. The next morning I woke up with the sunshine peering in through the opening of the canvas tepee. The sweet smell of breakfast pinched my nose with the promised mouth-watering taste of french toast, bacon, fresh fruit and fresh squeezed orange juice. The rest of the day was a challenge. We learned how to make fire with a flint and steel, tomahawk throwing, shooting a bow and arrows in an attempt to hit the bulls eye. To my surprise an attempt is, and always can be, a winner.

We had taken up a days worth of listening, learning and doing. It was now the time to feel, and the sweat did just that as we opened up to our spirituality of choice and allowed new and insightful chants and stories from the heart be shared within our circle of family. I felt my fears, struggles, happiness, and pain all over my body. I allowed myself to let go of and forgive my mistakes and blame. It got better as I allowed myself to receive and acknowledge all that I have brought, will bring and will share on this earth. Through allowing myself to let go and help myself I unconsciously give to others. Norine has continued to be one of my good friends who I know in my heart I can always count on, and she can count on herself. She is flourishing like the beautiful butterfly and young woman she is.

Iʼve learned that sometimes all someone needs is love and support to allow them to break out and show their true colors. My journey to and from the Sweat Lodge really opened my mind and eyes to what I do have and how much I took for granted, and sometimes still do. No one word can describe the power and feeling I received from the Sweat Lodge. To this day I still refer back to that experience last August. Not just because it was a fun experience, but also because I allowed myself to be re-born through purity and growth as a young woman of Mother Nature.

Iʼd like to thank my mom, Mr. Chaffin, Ms. Amy, Grey Wolf, Grey Owl, our awesome Staff, Ms. Julie and her daughter, Jessica, along with my five other sisters, and last but not least Iʼd like to thank me. I want to acknowledge our effort to want to change and help one another as a growing family.

Keith Allen asked:




Out of a small black personal timer on my waist, a shrill cry is heard; and it has not come too soon. For the row of exhausted students in my midst running lap drills, it is a sweet sound as it signals the beginning of a one-minute round of rest. Some of the students go straight for their water bottles, some rest their heaving torsos on their weakened hips, while the rest shrug it off and keep jogging. All however, answer the next bell - the beginning of a new round and with it, a new drill.

This is Muay Thai Fundamentals, a new physical fitness class at Spring Creek Lodge Academy. Muay Thai, or Thai Kickboxing, is a dynamic and challenging martial art that utilizes the whole body in self-defense. Like other martial arts, Muay Thai is about self-improvement. For each of our two-hour training sessions, students work on a wide variety of skills. Some of our drills are designed to improve overall fitness while others are specific to the art. For two hours, we are in constant motion, getting a fantastic cardio-vascular workout while learning to move in new ways.

The purpose of Muay Thai is to learn about healthful habits. During our training sessions students sweat out toxins, burn calories, build muscle, lose fat and increase energy levels. Moreover, all involved learn a great exercise routine that they can implement into their overall plans for a healthy lifestyle. Through disciplined training, students find that they can achieve their physical fitness goals, de-stress and learn to manage a host of emotional issues.

On many levels Muay Thai fits well into the Spring Creek environment. Like many of our studentsʼ programs, the art stresses a balance between proper thought and proper action. As in most avenues, a dedication and focus in the art brings improvement and success. For students to get the most out of martial art training, it is imperative that they cast from their minds all extrinsic thoughts vis