It’s Summer. It’s Hot. It’s Time for Wild Waves and Enchanted Village!

If you drive south of Seattle about a half hour, you can’t miss Wild Waves and Enchanted Village! For years I’ve said I wanted to go, but we never have in the summer. Until this summer!

You might remember that we got to go for the Fright Fest. That was my first time, and I had no idea that there was an amusement park there too! No idea! I knew there was 1, very large, roller coaster, but no idea it had tons of fun rides. And now Wild Waves Theme Park has officially changed its name and brand identity to Wild Waves and Enchanted Village, to more accurately reflect the park’s expansive amusement rides and water-based activities. I guess they realized that there were more people like me out there!

Wild Waves and Enchanted Village is truly two parks in one, featuring more than 25 amusement rides and 18 water slides and water attractions. Visitors can enjoy 70 acres of thrilling roller coasters—including the largest wooden coaster in the state—bumper cars, a Ferris wheel, a lazy river, an activity pool and more.

Um…. Yep. That’s BIG. Really Big!

We got to again this summer and spend some time with friends! And we did take in both the Wild Waves and Enchanted Village! The kiddos LOVE the Enchanted Village. My kiddo loves all the little kid rides. He just perks up and runs from one to the other! Jumps off one and heads to the next!

We had just gotten back from the beach, so I have to say the wave pool was a huge hit! It was almost like we were still at the beach.

And to end our day, what’s a better way than with ice cream!

Originally opened as The Enchanted Village Theme Park in 1977, the park began with a half-dozen dry rides. By 1984, WildWaves Waterpark was built adjacent to Enchanted Village and the combined amusement complex became known as Enchanted Parks. It wasn’t until 2002 that the park became Wild Waves Theme Park.

“This is major milestone for Wild Waves and Enchanted Village, as the Enchanted Village name evokes a lot of nostalgia for Pacific Northwest residents who spent their childhoods visiting the park,” said general manager Todd Suchan. “We’ve changed and grown quite a bit since then and now is the perfect time to return to our roots and begin investments to improve the park experience for our regular guests and new visitors.  And, fans of the park should keep an eye on our social media pages for some exciting new ride announcements coming very soon!”

In addition to the unveiling of a new name and park logos, the park also announces that coming later this summer, visitors will be able to purchase discounted tickets that provide unlimited access to Enchanted Village rides and activities, excluding the Wild Waves water park activities.

Wild Waves and Enchanted Village are open for the 2016 season  and season passes are available now via www.wildwaves.com. Discounted daily tickets will be available online and at select Safeway location throughout the season.

Only 30 minutes south of Seattle, Wild Waves and Enchanted Village is located in Federal Way at 36201 Enchanted Parkway South. Join in on the holiday fun during Fright Fest, weekends in October, and Holiday with Lights in December. For park information, please call 253-661-8000 or visit www.wildwaves.com.

 

Twitter: @enchantedparks

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Snapchat: lovewildwaves

Hope to see you there next time we go!

I have been compensated with either payment or product for this post. All opinions are my own, honest opinions!

Weekend Whims- Kids Clothes Week!

It’s coming!! Again!! Kids Clothes Week, the Spring Edition!

Next week! You in? I’m in!

And I have a long list! I wonder how much I can get done!! So here are some things I’m going to make that have already been done by others!

1. I bought the Surf Collection from Pattern Anthology and one thing on my list for the week is the Coastal Cargo shorts by Blank Slate Patterns for my son.

2. Sew Boy had a great idea of turning a men’s shirt into shorts! Shorts are also on my list….

3. Another project on my list is to make a jumper for a friend’s little guy. But I’m not a cutsie kinda romper gal… I love these overalls by Delia Creates as inspiration!

4. Tees. Even though my son has a drawer full of tees, I’m feeling the need to make more… Not sure why… But I love this tee by Cirque du BeBe using the Flashback Tee pattern.

5. There’s going to be a skirt in my mix! I think I’m using Dana’s simple skirt pattern…

6. In that Surf Collection I mentioned earlier… I also got the Boatneck Tee by Blank Slate Patterns. Love it. The kiddo is getting one of these! I love this striped version by The Train To Crazy.

7. Another men’s shirt reno! Feather’s Flights turned a men’s shirt in to a romper! Cute!

8. Love this short sleeved version of the Flashback Tee pattern by Sewing For Four.

9. And… The kiddo is getting new PJ’s. Love love love these neon ones by LBG Studio using the Winter PJ’s from Peek a Boo Patterns.  I think I’m going to try to do both, the winter and the summer pj’s.

 

OK, a peek into my list! Now what are you making?

 

Weekend Whims- Cute Women’s Clothing from the Blogosphere!

Big news here! I did something last week that I have wanted to do since high school. I kept blowing it off as no big deal. That is until Thursday morning, the morning before my scheduled surgery, I woke up freakin’ out. A nervous Nellie I was FOR SURE! I wasn’t questioning what I was doing, but all of a sudden it hit me that what I was doing wasn’t just a little nothing thing to ignore! I had a breast reduction! I’ve wanted and needed it for a long time. I’m sitting here writing this between naps from my pain medications! The surgery went well, but like with any surgery, there’s the painful healing time….

 

I’m so excited to not have to deal with the pains of the big boobs. I soooo don’t understand wanting big boobs.. They just hurt! And they don’t make too many cute clothes for those of us that do have them. This year, one of my goals was to make more of my own clothes so that I didn’t dress so blah. But now I had this and am so excited to be able to have my pick of patterns that will look cute!!!

These are some I’ve had my eye on….

1. This easy peasy shirt from Lemon Squeezy Home via Sewing In No Man’s Land is really cute! I had it pinned thinking would be good for the before boobs, but it’s going to look really cute for the after boobs!

2. I just found this pattern for the Amelia Dress on Sew Mama Sew today. Very cute and it would never have fit me before!

3. I think this Front Tie Spring Dress by Make It Love It is totally cute! And before it probably wouldn’t have fit me since I wore the size 5T pattern she has it in, but like she says it could be for kids or adults!

4. I want to try again with the Wiksten Tank. You might remember that I tried it before and wasn’t real excited about it… I don’t think I ever wore it again after those pictures…. I’m excited again!

5. And who doesn’t love the Washi Dress by Made By Rae??? Before I knew there was no way to get the girls in that dress. But now I can try this one too!

6. I’ve been wanting to try out these t-shirt patterns from Sewing the Littleheart Collection.

7. And this dress is cute, too. The One Hour Elastic Dress via Make! I just can’t believe that I might be able to wear a sleeveless dress again… Wow!

I still some work to do on the ‘ole figure, but just knowing that I will have more options this summer is helping pull me through the recovery process. OK, now to take another nap…..

Weekend Whims- Doll Clothes

I used to always do Weekend Whims posts, where I write about fun things I see online, but I haven’t in a long time! Since I’m obsessed with Doll Clothes at the moment, I thought I’d share some of the cute patterns I want to make.

1. I want to make a purse pattern myself, but until then, this is a really cute little one by Karatootie.

2. I’ve recently fallen in love with how simple and easy making t-shirts is and it’s as easy to do for dolls too! I loved this little outfit by Strictly Homemade because it also has the pattern for the hat!

3. Pants are pretty simple too! Loved these polka dot ones by Fleece Fun.

4. This is another shirt by Nap Time Crafters. Love the little pocket!

5. Now this Circle Wrap Skirt by Simple Simon & Co. isn’t really for dolls, but someone else on Pinterest pinned it for dolls. Easily translated to a doll pattern!

6. These shorts by akimbo are perfectly adorable!

7. The other thing about doll clothes… Easy to use your stash of scraps. This Scrap Saver Skirt by Daydream Doll Boutique is perfect for that!

8. And the other day I was thinking a straight skirt would be cool to make. And looky here! I don’t have to make a pattern because Daydream Doll Boutique already has!

 

OK, hopefully soon I’ll make a cape pattern and a purse pattern to share! I’m officially on the doll clothes making roll!

 

Free Cookies and Coffee and Crafts and Gifts and Greens Galore!

ok, so I don’t have any cookies and coffee for you, but I can tell you where you can get some!! If you are near Seattle, please try to make it to the The Arboretum Foundation’s beloved holiday sale, Gifts & Greens Galore. Get ready because it’s starting now! The event takes place today and tomorrow,  Friday, December 7, from 12 to 5 p.m., and Saturday, December 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

I was recently invited to attend the sneak preview and it was pretty cool!  I had never been to the event, so I was curious to find out more about it. The invite said crafts so how could I resist??

The annual event is a fund-raiser for the amazingly beautiful Arboretum, right in the middle of our fair city! The sale offers a one-of-a-kind selection of eco-friendly botanical decorations. While I was there donors were dropping off all sorts of beautiful clippings perfect for holiday decorating. The clippings, from both donors and from around the Arboretum,  are all sorted and sold by the pound. Not only can you buy the clippings to make into your own creations, but you can also pick up locally sourced and sustainably harvested wreaths, swags, and garlands.

Isn’t that hydrangea wreath fantastic? it was also made by local volunteers. Love it!

There’s also a great sale to pick up Christmas presents, including these great terrariums! And some great DIY demonstrations:

On Friday at 1 p.m., author and outdoor living expert Debra Prinzing will show shoppers how to create beautiful holiday centerpieces using seasonal, locally grown materials;

Northwest lifestyle and entertaining expert Alexandra Hedin will give a demo on Saturday at 11 a.m. about unique ways fresh greens can be used for the holidays;

Sue Mariotti of The Terrarium Shop on Etsy will show you how to build a miniature terrarium (so hot right now!) on Friday, from 2 to 4 p.m.,

And Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Foundation volunteer craft specialists and educators from UW Botanic Gardens will also host show-and-tell activities during the event, one of which we got to make!

These great little wreaths are made from ivy branches. Since ivy is an invasive species, the event will not be selling any of it, but it can be used in crafting!!! Lisa, the Education Program Assistant at the University of Washington Botanic Gardens, was there directing us on making these cute little wreaths. I love my super little simple one. Just a little bit of ivy branches, a pine clipping, a little mini pine cone nut thingy (you can see I’m not real up on my planting terminology) and some ribbon!

I loved seeing all their ideas on different ways to use clippings, from your own home or from their sale, as decorating embellishments! Check out that star place setting. How cute is that???

And thank you so much to The Arboretum’s local coffee roaster. Zoka Coffee, so offering free coffee for the event and to Cougar Mountain Cookies for the delicious cookies. Be sure to taste a little of both while you’re there (for free!)!

We also got to make another cute craft! But I’m saving it ’till tomorrow! Come back!!

And the details again….

The Arboretum Foundation’s beloved holiday sale, Gifts & Greens Galore, returns to the Graham Visitors Center at Washington Park Arboretum, Seattle, on Friday, December 7, from 12 to 5 p.m., and Saturday, December 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

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Weekend Whims- The Circus!

I hope everyone here in the States has had a wonderful Labor Day vacation! The official end of summer vacation! So sad… We’ve had such a wonderful summer here at our house. I actually had to work today (but seeing as how I didn’t all summer, it’s ok…) But what we did do this weekend was go to the CIRCUS!

I know not everyone agrees with the circus and I have some reservations about the circus as well. But I went anyway. And we had such a great time! All the stunts and acrobats and animals were just amazing. Not sure if it’s still the Greatest Show on Earth that it once was, but it was still a lot of fun. And seeing my son’s eyes light up and watch him sitting on the edge of his seat… Totally cool! Honestly,  we actually needed him to sit on the edge of his seat because we didn’t have anywhere else to put our stash of popcorn and pretzels and cotton candy and funny circus hats….

So in the spirit of the circus, here are some of my favorites circus finds….

 

1. Wooden Circus Toys by Watermelon Cat Company

2. Circus Tent Shadow Puppet by suowen

3. Felt Circus Food by fairviewpl

4. Keep Calm and Join the Circus t-shirt by CirqueSoul

5. Circus Trapeze Artist Art Print by emiliovillalba

6. Circus Animal Pillows by BeciMay

7. Circus Invitation Set by Tess Donohoe & Katy Greenspan for Oh So Beautiful Paper

 

 

 

Weekend Whims- Spoonflower Cut and Sew Projects

Two things happened recently to remind me of a project I started a few years back and never finished… I had started an ABC of fake animals photographs I had taken… The idea was that it was going to be a book. But of course I had other ideas of what to do with the photos. Like maybe have them printed on fabric and make ABC blocks… Yep! I was gonna do it. And am now excited about finishing it!

oh, yeah, those two things that reminded me about it.. One, I am so excited to have a close high school friend visiting me this week with her family and she is pushing me to get some of my projects done that I’ve been talking about… And two, I saw this great camera bag cut and sew project on Spoonflower this week! And of course, you can’t go to Spoonflower without looking around and I found a few other cut and sew projects that I love!

 

1. So my friend that is visiting has a 2-year-old daughter and she LOVES airplanes! Lucky for her we live under the flight path to the airport… And she loves stuffies, so how perfect is this plane doll design by Tante_Lein? Except I would need to add a tag, because tags are so in these days, at least in the eyes of this 2-year-old!

2. I love the skeleton doll by Happy Sew Lucky ! I think I love it most because it has the pumpkin dress!!

3. All of a sudden yesterday my son started singing this song about Yeti’s. it must have been from a show he watched, but it’s hilarious! After one day he of singing this song he decided he wanted his next birthday party to be a Yeti party! hmmmm… I bet he’d love this Yeti doll from KFay.

4. Speaking of parties, my nephew is about to have a Ninja birthday party. These little ninja guys from Engravogirl would make a great party favor!

5. And the very cool camera bag that started this whole thing…. From Happy Sew Lucky.

Do you all know what Spoonflower is? It’s a company that prints your designs on fabric. So you can design something, upload and sell it. You can buy it just for you or you can put it out for everyone else to buy too. There are some FANTASTIC fabric designs on there! Has anyone uploaded any designs for sell???? Feel free to share your favorite Spoonflower fabric or cut and sew project with us!!

Weekend Whims- Printable Paper Projects

I’ve been seeing some great printable paper ‘toys’ lately! I’ve been a member of the Calendar of the Month Club monthly calendar from Scout Creative for the last year or so and they are so fun to print and put together.  (and you can still print out past months…)

So here are some of my favorites! Take a look, print and fold!

1. I love this forest scene with a tree, squirrel, bunnies, wolf, owl  and monkey from KIRIN via My Owl Barn. I love that the monkey is in with the rest of the typical forest animals!

2. This alphabet is what reminded me this week of all these papercraft ‘toys.’ This alphabet by Digitprop could be great for SOOO many things!! Fun for a nursery, a great way to start learning the letters, or as they say leaving a note for someone! I love it!

3. How cute if this Basket Monster monitor monster by Scout Creative for HP and Best Buy???

4. Do you know Made by Joel?? He’s awesome! He’s kinda famous for his paper city printables that are also awesome. But I LOVE this little circus guy.

5. And another one by Scout Creative. This month’s calendar is a really cool Hot Dog Stand. I should have printed this to go along with my Hot Dog Bun vest… But I guess National Hot Dog Day was in July and this is August. OK, I don’t feel so bad! hehehe….

Weekend Whims- Suncatchers!

We are loving making these sun catchers from melted beads! I saw this project the other day on The Artful Parent and got really excited! Have you tried it yet???

The directions tell you to cook the beads in the oven on 400 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes. Those directions were updated to use a gas grill outside or a toaster over outside because of the smell of the melting beads. So I was excited about the project, but also a bit nervous about the project.

I don’t have a toaster or a gas grill, so we had to resort to the oven. But I do have an oven vent and doors and windows that open… So we decided to try it out inside in the oven. And luckily, and to my surprise, the smell wasn’t bad at all! It did smell a little, but honestly, not nearly as bad as my curry dish I cooked later that day. GROSS!!! I’m sure the melting plastic is worse for you to sniff than the curry, but it didn’t feel that way to me that day!!!!

We decided to make a wind chime with the big one. we had this froggy wind chime that we’ve had for quite some time and had fun with, but it’s been broken for a while, so we decided to repurpose it into our own wind chime! And I used my Dremel to drill holes in the melted bead sun catchers. I tried to do it with a toothpick as soon as I got it out of the oven, but that didn’t work for me.

And for the little ones, we painted a wooden dowel with our ice cube paints and tied them on the stick in groups of three! These are going to make cute little gifts!

I see these again in our near future! Think Olympics…. hmmmmm…..

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Disclaimer: I am not a scientist and I didn’t come up with this project. I have never used a gas oven or a grille! I have only made these as I described above and don’t really know what other temperatures or times. Please be safe and do not cook around children! Please see blog disclaimer below!

Weekend Whims- Thrifted Quilts

OK, you could probably say I’m a bit obsessed at this point… I want to go to every thrift shop and garage sale to see if they have any quilts for me!!!

Last weekend I found two great quilts at a yard sale down the street. They had a bunch, but I restrained myself and only bought two! I’ve mentioned before that my favorite quilts are a bit more modern, but my husband likes more traditional patterns. So I snatched up this red white and blue one! It’s in great shape with only a couple of little spots on it. Beautifully hand quilted and nice and bright!

I don’t know what it is about this yellow and white one, but I loved it. It’s not in good shape at all, but I loved the hand embroidery on it. It’s a light yellow fabric with white sqaures and orange embroidery. There are some pretty big holes in the back. the weirdest thing is that it looks like someone cut off the ends and added a random piece of fabric to the top and bottom. I love that each quilt has a story and seeing these alterations just makes me wonder more about its life! Debating about how to fix it, if at all….

The last one I found for 1.30! It’s bright and it’s polyester. I can only imagine it was made from someone’s old clothes. It’s handmade and even though it’s poly on top, the underside is a soft flannel.

Have you thrifted any quilts lately??? I can’t wait to find more!!!

 

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