Friday Fantasy #fairy #fairies #garden

If you've seen my garden outside, you would already know that I have a penchant for gnomes and fairies. I had some fairy things that I couldn't put outside, so I cleared room in my sunroom for them.

Walking new ground #DungeonsandDragons #DM

I decided to try something new this past weekend. Well, not totally new.. I just haven't done it since high school. I stepped into the world of DM'ing. I don't think I did too badly. I used a pregenerated one day run to put the kids through. The kids seemed to enjoy it (well, all but one who was having a real hard time getting good rolls). Now to see if I can do it again..

Goofy fun with @DramaFever #KCON17NY #Goblin #KDrama

I am Groot #GuardiansoftheGalaxy #Groot #Planter

When the theater sells popcorn in a Groot head, you turn it into a planter..

Atlanta Sci-Fi and Fantasy Expo @scifiatlanta

I heard about the Atlanta Sci-Fi and Fantasy Expo online as well.  I took my daughter and one of her friends on Saturday afternoon to check it out.  We didn't attend any panels, though we did look around to see where they were being held.  We did the main thing and checked out the vendor and artist area.  It was set in the middle of the mall with a LOT of vendors.  Quite a few authors, artists and gaming companies were in attendance as well.  I was suitably impressed.  For a relatively new con, it had a good selection of vendors and panels offered.

Our haul from the show.  The requisite candy/treats, a stuffed Dopey head, small Hello Kitty (we had been at the cafe earlier in the day after all), a book (signed by the author) and some rings.

Since this one is so close to home, I'll likely keep an eye on it. It may become one we try to attend regularly. I also liked the cost of admission (free).

Hello Kitty Cafe Truck @HelloKittyCafe

I heard about this online and decided to check it out.  My daughter and I stood in line for 2 hours and came home with some really good sweets.  Macarons, Petit 4's, cookies and a t-shirt.  The staff at the truck had the line as optimized as it could be, there were just that many folks wanting to be there.

All our gingerbread #family #gingerbreaddrama #justbecause

My daughter put together a gingerbread train, but the engine kept falling apart.  So she ate it.  So we'll just pretend that the cars are in the siding and the engine pulling elsewhere.

A Tinkerbell and her gingerbread house #KNK #Keunekeun

It's not easy to draw with edible pens on gingerbread.  Especially if the tip isn't as narrow as I'd like.  So the logo didn't come out as well as I'd like, but KNK fans will get it.

A Monbebe safari on gingerbread #MonstaX #KPop #Making

My sculpting skills need a lot of work, but I think it's cute.  The gingerbread house wasn't as big as I thought, so it took two houses to get all of the members.

Of course, this is the inspiration behind the project..

Friday fun with a gingerbread house #MonstaX #Got7 #Seventeen

My daughter and I haven't done one of these in a few years, so I decided it was time.  It was a preassembled gingerbread house, which made it a little easier.  She took one half, I took the other.  When I decorated the roof, I wanted to see if I could get a rise out of her, unfortunately not. :)  I did discover that trying to put canned icing on to a roof with a toothpick is easier said than done.  I may try a paint brush next time.  Stay tuned as I may get another one to do.

Mystery Room Monday@MysteryRoomAtlanta #Gwinnett #family

I can't give a lot of details as what goes on in the room themselves, other than to say my daughter and I had a blast.  She and I have visited the Mystery Room at Sugarloaf Mills twice now. We started "easy" with a level one SuperHero room. Then advanced to a level two Zombie Apocolypse room. We finished the first time with 4 minutes left.  The second time we had 16 minutes left. The second time we also took one of my daughter's friends with us as well. At $20/person, we can't do it often, but it's definitely something fun to do when we have the time and money.

Georgia Renaissance Festival - a wonderful day of fun @usfg @syngethedragon

I was given tickets to attend the festival, all opinions are my own.

Every year my family and I do our best to make it out to the Georgia Renaissance Festival.  We were able to get out there this past weekend.  We discovered there are several new shows, but ended up sticking with our 'regulars'.  We first started watching Barely Balanced a few years ago, while my daughter's hair was still long.  We always seemed to manage to get to the festival right as this show was starting.  My daughter would get her hair braided while my husband and son (and I) would watch this show.

We always make a point of seeing the Tortuga Twins as well.  The first show of the day is family and kid friendly (still hilarious), which is what we usually see.  My kids are big enough now, though, that they're asking to go to the festival later in the day so that they can see the more naughty version.  So whether we get to go back to the festival to see them this year or whether it waits until next year I don't know.

We always go to see the Birds of Prey show as well.  Always fascinating and educational.  The bird on the left is a Harris Hawk, the one on the right is a Eurasian Eagle Owl.  Both with distinct personalities.

Then there's the food.  I had the gyro, my kids had chicken ceasar calzones, hubs had steak on a stake.  All were great meals.  We heard about a wonderful desert from one of the vendors at the festival and my daughter and I had to check it out....

Death by Chocolate... chocolate brownie (with nuts), chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup and chocolate whip cream.  Very sweet.

As we were wandering, I caught the last bit of another show.  I'm not familiar with them, so I can't say who they were, but the ending was impressive.

You can't tell from the photo, but the stairs she's standing on are knives with blade edge up.  Of course, there are always the wandering characters.  This was one we encountered as we were leaving.

We spent a good 5-6 hours out there and still didn't see everything.  We did do a good bit of browsing (not as much money to spend this time around) and enjoyed seeing the items offered for sale.  Both kids found leather armor they wanted as well as weapons to go with it.  I came home with this..

My precious... (replica of Sting, not the ring.. the ring I've had..)

Every weekend and Memorial Day, April 16 thru June 5, 2016 The 31st Annual Georgia Renaissance Festival is a family-friendly event, and a different kind of theme park. Inside this 32-acre recreation of a 16th Century English Village you'll find hundreds of costumed characters, the Queen and her Court, endless circus-style entertainment on 10 stages, shopping in over 130 artisan shoppes, food fit for Royalty, games and rides for kids of all ages, and the spectacular Jousting Knights on horseback. Patrons are invited to wear costumes and join in the fun too. It's a whole lotta' fun, and a little bit of History, every weekend and Memorial Day, April 16 thru June 5, 2016.

Georgia Renaissance Festival Discounts - Get $6 off Adult and $3 off Child (6-12) tickets by using promo code "castle" when purchasing discount tickets on our secure website at www.garenfest.com. Tickets good any day of the 2016 Season (Weekends and Memorial Day Apr 16-June 5). Online discount only. Not good with any other offers.

Wand Making with paper and paint #maker #crafting #HarryPotterinspired

My daughter and I tried this craft at Conjuration Con last year.  It was so simple I wanted to share it.  I didn't find a video of it and I really don't like my voice recording, so a series of photos is hopefully enough.  Basic supplies are paper (I used printer paper), paint, glue gun, regular glue and sand.  You can do it without the sand, but I think it adds a nice weight to the finished product.

Start by rolling your piece of paper.  I like fairly narrow wands, so I tend to roll it tightly.  If you want something fatter, that's up to you.  Once you get to the end of the rolling, put elmer's glue to hold the roll together.

Close the narrow end with hot glue.  Fill with sand through the wider end. I used floral sand.  You can use play sand or even clean kitty litter if you'd prefer.

Close the larger end with hot glue as well.  You can either snip off extra paper or fold the extra to help close the end.

From there you get crafty with the hot glue.  They created vines and such at Conjuration.  I created neat ends on my sample wand.  Then just wide enough for my hand to fit, I made a second band.  I did a wrap up one wand and a sample vine on the other.  You can't see the details as clearly here.

Paint.  Colors and designs are up to you and your creativity.  The green on the one wand is all hot glue.  The bronze on the other is all hot glue.

Finished products.  I put the two wands we made at Conjuration beside the two new ones.  The paint wasn't quite dry when we left the con that day, so there are flaws in the ones on the left.  Personally, I don't want my wand to be perfect, just fun.  I have an idea that I want to try when I get the chance.  When I do, I'll show you how it came out and what to do if you want to copy it.

Fun with hats #ww #Disney

Just because sometimes you have to try them on.  The leather hat was hand done steampunk style with a pocket watch on it.  Too cool (and expensive).

CONjuration Time! @CONjurationCon #magic #HarryPotter #LotR #family

Tonight is the start of a great little con!  My daughter and I will be in attendance this year.  Not sure we'll make it there tonight, but we'll definitely be there Saturday & Sunday.  If you're in to Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, or other things magical, this may be a great fit for you!  Tickets will be on sale at the door for 3 days for $60. You can also get 1-2 day passes at the door if you just want to check it out for the day.  For some preview information and to stay in touch, check out their facebook page.

For some "live action" updates, you can check out my instagram page.  I plan to post pictures there regularly.

CONjuration- a magical little convention #magic #HarryPotter #LotR @CONjurationCon #winpasses

An awesome little con!  I attended CONjuration Con last year (it's first year ever) and had a blast.  You can see some of what I wrote about it here.   If you love anything magical (Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, etc), you'll find something there for you.  Lots of great authors and performers.  Maybe I'll even see you at the special Tea Leaves & Tastings!

The convention runs November 13 - 15 at the Atlanta Marriott Century Center.  Adult tickets are currently $49.  The price will go up at the door.   For now, you can even try to win passes!  Winner will be contacted (and have 24 hours to respond) to send a mailing address so that you can receive your letter from Hogwarts.  Good luck!


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Friday fun film from TestTrack at EPCOT #WDW #familyfun @chevrolet

If you haven't been to Disney in a while, you may not know that they've changed TestTrack somewhat. You now design your own car before riding. It then evaluates your car to see how well it would perform. I worked with my daughter to design a mini car with solar power and a turbo charged engine.  We decided it needed to be sparkly and green.  It was a blast and scored a 198 at the end. Once you leave the ride, you can make a "commercial" for your car and even email it to yourself. Me (being me) did just that. Here's the end result of our work.

@CONjuration Con Review #magic #cosplay

I was invited to go to CONjuration Con as a member of the press.  I attended Friday night and again on Sunday.  Unfortunately, I'd already made plans for Saturday that couldn't be undone, so I missed a lot of cool panels.  On the other hand, I did get to meet some very interesting people on both days and got to go to a couple of panels on Sunday.  There was a selection of authors, including the ones pictured below, to talk to.   Southeastern Reptile Rescue was on hand as well with some cool animals.

My daughter and I attended in costume on Friday night.  We attended the opening ceremony, explored the vendors (very cool selection), the gaming room and the Festival.  The two panels I attended on Sunday were Fantasy Parties (how to throw awesome fantasy type parties) and Crystal Magic.  A lot of useful information out of both.

I also went to the charity tea party Sunday afternoon.  This was to benefit Noah's Ark, a local animal rescue facility.   We were treated to music by Louis Robinson while we waited for the tea to begin.  There were 12 fandom teas from Adagio.  I think I sampled 6 before I floated away.  There were also shortbread cookies, British tea cakes and cheesecake samples.  I thoroughly enjoyed the samples and the company.  I met a couple of very nice ladies at my table and had a wonderful afternoon chatting.

By the end of the day Sunday, I'd thoroughly enjoyed myself.  It's a small con with a lot of heart and potential.  I'm looking forward to next year and am hoping I'll be able to attend.  Location hasn't been set yet, but you can reserve the dates: November 6-8, 2015.

Maker Faire Atlanta #cool #fun #crafters @MakerFaireAtl

To enjoy a Maker Faire properly, you first have to have a basic understanding of what a Maker is. It's fairly easy and straight forward. A Maker is someone who makes something. The most quickly understood of these are weavers, blacksmith, glass blower. You can also include wood worker, or other crafts person. They create a product specifically by hand that we may need and would use. There were quite a few of those at this past Maker Faire in Atlanta.

Then there are those  who make things who are just for fun.  It's still a made item, it has it's uses, but it may not be something we need.

Maker Faires, though, started to showcase those things that an engineer or programmer may have made.  They showcased the technology that someone at home could do, but wasn't aware of.

Then there's the science and robotics (and fun) that are an extension of it all.

There were a lot more crafters, makers, and cool stuff on display out at the Maker Faire.  Most had activities that kids (and adults) could participate in to see what it would be like to make things.  Clubs you can join too.  More stuff & people than I could easily share here.  If you get a chance, I highly recommend going next year and plan to take a good portion of your day to explore.

Ruckus the Goblin Army #tabletopgame #kickstarter

I backed this kickstarter project and received it a bit over a week ago.

My daughter and son played it with me the first time to help figure out how it works.  We then set it up as the family game last week and played it through with my husband.  It took us probably 1.5 hr to play it all the way to the end.  We discovered that playing the Thieves's Guild and putting Bang and Boom in regularly tends to slow down the action.  Of course, I found this hilarious as I was the one playing Thieves.

Our layout on the table isn't quite what it's supposed to be in the book.  However, our table is considerably smaller and we had to scootch things around to make them fit.  It's a cute game. We've only played with the pre-set "starter" armies so far, next time through we'll try it with the advanced set-up and see how it plays.