#plus a scoop of lake water to give it some body

[mildswearingat4am]

no more work, only making potions in the backyard in a giant cartoonish cauldron and stirring it with a big wooden spoon

reblog n tag with what you’re adding to the Potion

[crash-bump-bring-the-whump]

Whumperless Whump Event - Day 7

Have some war mage emotional whump c:

TWs: drowning, CPR, broken bones, hypothermia

Falling through a frozen lake / Hypothermia / “Hey, c'mon, you gotta stay awake.”

"Dimitri--Dimitri, you need to sit down." Laredo hissed, hands wrapped firmly around Dimitri's soaking-wet shoulders. He knew Dimitri couldn't hear him.

He was too busy watching Izan force his overlapping palms down against the center of Mariano's bared chest. Laredo couldn't entirely blame him. It was too quiet, with only Dimitri's harsh, shivering breathing and Manuel's muttering breaking the silence as Mariano lay on the snowy shore, unmoving and pale with his winter clothes heavy with water.

Laredo was only able to tear his eyes away because Dimitri was shivering like he'd just come out of the training room freezer. "Here--Dimitri, babe, look at me." Dimitri didn't see him when Laredo carefully blocked his view of Manuel giving Mariano rescue breaths.

"I need to help you out of those clothes. You can put mine on." Laredo had a good amount of body fat so it didn't feel terribly cold to him, but Dimitri had complained about only being able to put on three layers that morning. Dimitri nodded, though, wordlessly cooperating as Laredo unzipped his winter coat and peeled it away from him.

Neither one acknowledged the pop of one of Mariano's ribs, or the huff each compression forced from him.

"Sweater, Dimitri." That went next, then his undershirt, and then Laredo shed his own thick coat and wrapped Dimitri up in it. His own sweater came off next, and he started using it to squeeze water from Dimitri's hair. "C'mon, jeans next, you know the drill."

Dimitri's shivering hands slowly started to unbutton his pants, fumbling when Mariano started to choke and Manuel let out a sob. Laredo only just caught Dimitri by his arms, keeping him from scrambling over. "Hey, hey, no, pants first, you dove into that water so we need to get you warm. They have him."

Laredo didn't need to look to know that Manuel was helping Mariano onto his side, and that Izan was brushing away the hair plastered to Mariano's face. He slid his hands up to Dimitri's face, hating how ashen his lips were. "They have him. Let me take care of you, now. Sit back."

It was easy to pull the skates from Dimitri's feet and slide his pants and boxers off when he sat back, and even easier to slip Laredo's sweatpants onto him. "There, there, that should be way warmer." Dimitri still shivered and shook, but everything felt less urgent now that he was wrapped in Laredo's warm, dry clothes.

Laredo, in his long-sleeved shirt and athletic winter leggings, pulled Dimitri close and tucked his head under his chin.

"He's breathing, guys! We're getting him stripped and dried off now." Manuel called, voice thick with emotion. "How's Dimitri?"

"Got him changed. We ready to get back to the car?" Laredo asked, letting Dimitri bury his head in his chest and start to shudder and sob through his own emotions.

"Ready in sixty--maybe next time we can just go skating at the ice rink downtown." Izan suggested, and Laredo heard Mariano let out a waterlogged laugh-cry into another coughing fit. "I just think it'll be cheaper overall."

"I think Izan's right." Laredo said, gathering Dimitri up into his arms as Manuel scooped Dimitri's freezing clothes up. "This lake sucks anyway. Plus the skating rink has a hibachi place next door."

"Hib-bach-chi's b-bett-ter 'n this-s-s." Mariano croaked out in agreement, making Dimitri cry even harder.

Those sobs didn't die down until Dimitri was able to get his arms around Mariano in the back of the car, held on each side by Izan and Laredo.

@whump-captain @whumpr @whumperofworlds @lektricwhump @cyberwhumper

@bxtterflystxtches @inscrutable-shadow @honeybees-125

[erodasfishtacos]

omg we know how YN is about mlbrry’s short shorts but I want to know if there’s something she wears out that makes H absolutely feral

Hot As They Come

prompt: this mini blurb turned into something else completely

warnings: body issues, smut

if you liked please reblog, recommended, like, and come talk to me about it! (this is what motivates me to continue writing)!

i write for FREE - I am also trying to steer away from paetron so everyone can have access my stories - so if you would like to support my work, you can donate here.

——

He’s a narcissist, so anytime she has his jersey on.

They all were staying at Anne’s lake house (that Harry had purchased her) in Rhode Island for the long weekend - Easton, Cash, and Ezra were in the pool being vigilantly watched by Anne and her friend, Martha when Harry arrives.

He had to fly home from a stretch of games in San Diego, then get in the car, and drive three hours to get to his family.

YN had been inside, laying down with Briar for a nap, having the all fours kids had been exhausting these past two days - plus Briar was freshly one and still had some painful teeth coming in.

When he opens the back gate, he’s automatically met with squeals and whines when his kids realizes he’s finally there.

They’re all floating in the pool with their float vests on, except for Easton who was old enough not to have one.

Chants of ‘daddy’ echo through the backyard as they wave him closer.

Harry being a big child at heart, drops his suitcase, and kicks off his trainers and socks, then his shirt before he’s running towards the pool and cannonballing into the deep end, away from the kids.

When he pops up, hair matted to his head, all of them are giggling wildly - including Anne and Martha as Harry dives back under to pop up near his kids to make them scream in surprise and joy.

The two boys are automatically climbing all over him and he waste no time in tossing them high into the air before they’re sinking into the water.

A whimper comes from his right, near the steps, “Daddy, daddy.”

Harry takes a break from the boys to pout out his bottom lip and swim over to his little boy, scooping him up and wading back into the water.

“Hi bubba, missed you so much,” Harry tells him as he lays his head on his shoulder, sleepy and most likely ready for his own nap.

“Miss you,” He lisps back before his hand is coming up to play with the gold cross on his necklace and tucking his thumb between his lips.

“Mum, where’s YN?” He asks as he drifts towards the edge near where Anne is sat with her feet in the water.

“Inside, she’s taking a nap with Briar,” Anne replies before taking a sip of her own homemade lemonade and swishing her toes.

“Was she tired?” Harry frowns, guilt sinking into his stomach - he knew she had been stressed having to tote all four kids in the car for multiple hours.

She would also lie and tell Harry everything went fine because she didn’t want him to feel bad that he wasn’t there.

“Very. She said that Briar and Ezra were giving her a hard time on the way up. She said Briar’s teeth are coming in and she kept her up all last night,” Anne reports before adding on, “They’ve been asleep for a good three hours so hopefully they feel refreshed when they wake up.”

Harry tries to not internalize it and has to remind himself he’s not a terrible husband or father but he hates when he’s away.

The boys grab his attention again, demanding their father watch them do handstands and swim to the bottom to retrieve dive batons.

All the while, Ezra makes himself comfortable in his dad’s arms and he had removed his life vest so he was more comfortable when he naps against his warm skin.

Harry’s turning quickly when he hears the back door open and his heart jumps like a schoolboy when he sees his wife step onto the patio with his newest little baby just in a swim diaper on her plush hip.

He has to swallow hard when he scans her body, a simple black bikini on with one of his unbuttoned jerseys that’s down to her mid thigh.

She doesn’t even realize how sexy she looks is the thing, he knows she put it on to cover her body a bit more because she’s still a bit self-conscious of some baby weight.

However, he’s basically drooling, the extra weight around her hips, thighs, tummy - decorated with light stretch marks.

Harry hasn’t seen a more beautiful woman in his life.

He wants to bite that soft skin, licks those marks from where her body stretch to accommodate their chunky bubs.

Briar, who’s just learning basic words, squeaks out an excited, “Dadadada.”

Harry wades towards the shallow end where Anne’s waiting to carefully wrap Ezra in a towel while he sleeps, his mother then takes the little boy for a snuggle in the shade.

“Dadada,” Briar continues to whine with a pitiful pout on her face as she makes grabby hands towards her father.

“Oh, hi there, lil’ mama. I missed you so much, little love,” Harry hums as soon as YN shifts the baby into his arms and Briar’s pulling at her dad’s wet locks.

“Dada,” She coos back as Harry winces at the tugs to his hair and his eyes twinkling as he looks at his wife who’s smiling back.

“Hi mama,” Harry murmurs softly as he rocks Briar on his hip, his other hand reaching out to cup her jaw and bring her in for a long kiss.

“Missed you,” YN replies quietly, a bit of sadness and stress in her voice as she runs her hand down his side and squeezes his hip.

“I’m sorry, darling,” He replies back, just as quietly, and moves to kiss her forehead, “You’re such an amazing wife and mama. I appreciate everything you do for this family.”

A crease forms between her eyebrows, lips turned down a bit, “You’re the one who provides for us.”

Harry makes sure they’re making eye contact when he tells her, “What I do for this family is nothing compared to what you provide us.”

“I love you,” YN sighs, leaning over for another quick kiss and adds, “I know you feel guilty but please don’t. I knew what I was agreeing to when we had four kids.”

“Not the first time,” He chuckles, looking fondly back at Easton, who was now seven which was crazy, and thriving.

“Mm, he was just our favorite surprise. Wouldn’t change it for anything,” She replies with a warm smile, leaning over to kiss Briar’s cheek and she lets out the bubbliest giggle.

Martha steps over to them, arms outstretched, “Okay parents, time to share this little muffin with the rest of us.”

Harry slips Briar into the crook of her arm and she goes easily, lounging back and tucking her pacifier that was in her small fist this whole time back into her mouth.

“You look so fuckin’ hot,” Harry hums lowly now that all the babies were out of earshot, his hands coming to her hips.

YN scowls at him, stiff and frustrated when she grits out, “You don’t have to lie to me just because you’re my husband.”

Harry gets defensive instantly, “What would I be lyin’ about?”

“I know I don’t look hot. It’s my first time in a bikini since I had Briar. My stomach is still puffy, my love handles, not to mention my boobs from breastfeeding four kids,” She huffs like it’s obvious as she pinches at skin in her hip.

“Come on, now,” Harry says firmly to her, authority and demand in his voice which wasn’t common for him to take that tone with her, “Mum, you guys okay with watching them for a few?”

Anne waves them off and tells them to enjoy a few minutes alone, they have everything handled.

“Wha-“ YN begins to ask as Harry wraps his hand around her wrist and guides her back into the house, back into their room, and clicks the lock shut.

“Don’t you dare ever insult the body that gave us our four perfect, healthy babies. The body that I fell in love with and am still madly gone for,” Harry nearly hisses as he’s tugging the jersey off of her shoulders until it pools on the ground.

“Harry, I-“

“Just listen to me, would you?” He cuts her off as he kneels in front of her, lips moving over the silky smooth skin of her stomach.

“Love this belly,” Harry praises, kissing, licking, biting at the sensitive skin that has fully went back to normal, “Obsessed with it even. Everything about you gets me hard. I love how you look, I love that you have this, reminds me of what a strong woman you are.”

YN feels embarrassed that she’s getting emotional at his kind words, they were so sincere and reverent that there was no question he meant them.

“These love handles?” Harry scoffs as his large hands grip the extra plush of her hips, “Do you know how sexy it is? Love holding onto them when you ride me.”

His voice had gotten noticeably deeper and gravely with his arousal, standing up and moving to untie her top - letting her breasts falls from where they were held up to appear more perky.

“Don’t get me started on your tits,” He groans as he thumbs at her nipples, being carefully because they were sore from feeding Briar, “Fuckin’ beauties. I remember the first time I got to see ‘em. Swear that was more memorable than when I got drafted. You think I’m gonna complain that they got bigger? You’re crazy.”

YN giggles at that, especially when he gives her a cheeky smile and presses himself against her so he can kiss her again.

His hands go to the ties of her bottoms on each hip, playing with the string as he whispers, “Please let me take these off and ‘ave you. I’ve been starving for it, mama.”

“It’s been a week,” YN chuckles as she bumps there noses - already feeling better about herself, feel more empowered and sexy, “If you’re so hard up, maybe I should help you out.”

“It’s about you. You don’t have to if you don’t- fuckin’ hell, doll,” Harry moans when his damp athletic shorts and briefs are pulled down and YN is kneeling to lick at the bottom side of his hard length.

A thrill shoots about her spine for her husband’s reaction to her mouth, his hands weaving into her locks, and whimpering, “C’mon baby, take me. Can’t be teased right now or I’m gonna come so fast for you.”

“For me?” YN parrots with a mischievous smirk as she pumps him, he’s almost too big for her palm and she loved that.

“F’course, you’re the only thing that makes me come. Whether you’re right in front of me or if m’in my hotel room thinking about you,” Harry pants sweetly, still letting her make the calls when she doesn’t listen and continues to just lap at his dripping tip.

“Best husband,” YN praises him as her hands come up to roll his balls with her thumb, making his cock twitch in her hand.

“Fuckin’ Christ,” Harry grunts after another minute or so, he’s leaning down and pulling her up before he’s picking her up and throwing her own the bed as she yelps in surprise, “Give me tha’ cunt.”

YN spreads her legs immediately and Harry is nearly ripping the bottoms off of her lower half before his face is buried between her thick thighs, sucking harshly at her clit as payback.

“Ba-baby,” YN whines in a kittenish tone, pushing her hips up into his mouth to ride his tone to chase her pleasure, “Wha-no!”

YN complains when he pulls back, crudely wiping his mouth on her belly before leaning down and cleaning up her slickness with his tongue.

“Shush up, we don’t have much time. We got four little buggers out there, s’only a matter of time before one of them causes trouble,” Harry quips as he wriggles her bum up off the bed and wrapping her legs around his waist so he can fuck in.

“There,” She moans quietly a few seconds in when he angles just so that his cock is hitting the spot that sets her afire and then he adds a thumb to her clit for extra stimulation.

“Yeah, I know,” He murmurs cockily, fingers dimpling the skin where he’s holding on to her upper thighs as he pushes his narrow hips into her center over and over again.

Harry nearly comes on the spot when YN redirects on of her hands to her throat, she doesn’t have to say anything before Harry’s gripping at the sides of her neck with his fingers.

“How could you think that you’re not perfect? You’re as hot as they come,” Harry tells her as her limbs loosen and she climaxes, he lets go of the pressure on her throat and follows suit.

“I love you,” YN hums when he collapses on top of her, “Welcome home. You played amazing in San Diego.”

“I love you more,” Harry replies as he smatters kisses along her cheeks, “Those guys were a buncha of ass-“

The both turn their heads when they hear echoing through the backyard a wail that was no doubt Cash because Easton wasn’t sharing a water toy.

“It was fun while it lasted,” YN snickers as they roll of the bed and begin to redress so that they can go back out and take over parenting duties.

-

[babieyangyang10]

violent ends (chapter 8)

(chapter 8)

series masterlist

genre: hunger games!au

pairings: huang renjun x oc, na jaemin x oc

warnings: language, mentions of blood, fighting, deaths, mentions of sex

A/N: I’m curious, tell me if you’re team Renjun or team Jaemin!

previous | next

Athena's POV

Sixty.

That's how many seconds I have before I have to step off this metal circle. It's all the time they give us to survey our surroundings. I look around to see the other tributes scattered randomly, all facing towards the cornucopia. Heart thumping, I spot Jaemin on the complete opposite end.

There are supplies almost an arm-length away from me, however everyone knows that the most useful supplies is placed in the mouth of the Cornucopia. Almost beckoning for me to take one, knifes are displayed on the walls.

Thirty Seconds.

I'm counting down in my head. Should I grab the book bag in front of me in case there's a weapon in it? But then, by the time I get to the Cornucopia, others will already be waiting for me with their fresh pick. However, if I'm quick enough I could get them while their backs are turned.

Twenty seconds.

Breathe. I look around to see no other than Haechan placed exactly to my right. That's a huge problem. No matter what I choose, he's going to be right on my trail. But the bag is so close!

Bag or Cornucopia?

Fifteen seconds.

My eyes dart, back and forth trying to come up with a decision. Then, suddenly I question how I will even be able to find Jaemin during the chaos, if he decides to ditch me and run away to the lake. He wouldn't, right?

I look him in the eyes and discreetly nod towards the Cornucopia, praying he gets the message. Or that he even saw it, considering he's about 20 tributes away from me.

Now back to the bag situation.

10 seconds. Big, yellow letters appear on a screen in the Cornucopia, counting down. 

Back and forth, I struggle to come up with a quick decision on which I should do first. However, when I look over to my left, over two tributes away is Renjun. Noticing my visible distress, he shakes his head at me.

"Don't." He mouths.

I get into running position and keep my eyes on the knifes. Guess I'll give up on the backpack. Although, since Renjun is officially my competition now, should I trust his input?

Is this a secret plan between the three of them to collectively slash me to bits?

5 seconds.

Fine, I've made up my mind. Okay, Huang Renjun, I'll forget the dumb fucking bag.

3 seconds.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Breathe you fucking moron, before you pass out.

2 seconds.

Then, I hear it, the gong. My body takes over and I'm sprinting as fast as I can. I'm so close now, I can practically already feel the blades in my hands. My lungs are burning, but I don't care.

I reach out and grab several, random knifes from the wall. However, once I turn around, my whole body collides with the sharp wall behind me. A boy from District 5 has his bare hands around my throat, making me drop the knifes.

Pivoting my body to the right, I strike his arm with my left palm. Once he falls forward, I use the same arm to lock around his neck. Squeezing as hard as I can, I grab whatever I can from the wall with my free hand and thrust it into the side of his neck.

Blood violently seeps in squirts from the wound onto me, as I release him from my hold. I grab my dropped weapons and a backpack by my ankle. When I look up, I am greeted by absolute madness.

Lee Jeno is standing over a young girl from District 3 with an axe stuck in the middle of her head. Meanwhile,  Renjun has just slashed open the District 8 boy's neck. Too occupied, they don't even notice me running past them. However, I feel someone leap on my back, causing me to crash face-first into the ground. I use all my strength to roll the large boy off of me, before stunning him with a sharp and painful punch to the nose. Wasting no time, I jab a knife into his throat, before pulling it out to keep.

Jaemin.

I desperately try to look for the blond boy, but he's nowhere to be found. There's beginning to be less people, meaning the Careers will spot me if I stick around much longer. While they're occupied with hacking away at the poor tributes, I decided to immediately follow Taeyong's advice of collecting water. It's important that I get there before Renjun does the same. I sprint through trees, trying to achieve a safe distance.

Once I've gotten away far enough to no longer hear the deafening screams of the dying children, I could softly hear the sound of moving water masked under the chirping birds.  At this moment, I can't help but feel jealous of them. They have no idea what's truly happening beneath them.  Stuck in their own little world, safe from harm's way in the trees. Even if something where to happen to them, they have wings to fly away with. I guess, they remind me of the people from the Capitol.

As the sound of water gets louder, I make sure to tread quietly. The Careers can't be far, and right now I'm alone and vulnerable. God, I wish Jaemin was here right now.

Noticing the dirt become muddier as I walk near the sound, I know I should be extremely close by now.

Snap.

Alerted, I quietly crouch behind a tree. Knife ready, I wait until the crunching of leaves get close enough, before I jump out and tackle the noisy perpetrator to the floor.

They put up a good fight too, attempting to push me off their back. During our wrestling, I notice them looking around frantically, probably looking for their weapon since they dropped it during the tackle.

Suddenly, the head becomes locked in one direction. Following his gaze, I see a trident laying on the forest floor.

A trident?

They notice me pause, throwing me backwards into the ground. My head smacks backwards against it, my eyes shutting in pain.

Once they open, I am face-to-face with the sharp prongs of the trident.

Cowering backwards, I frantically say, "Jaemin! It's me."

Once he realizes, the alerted look on his face fades away into one of concern, "Athena, are you okay?"

Jaemin chucks his weapon to the side and thoroughly looks over my face and body for injuries.

"It's not my blood," I assure him, "Ran into some people at the Cornucopia." 

"It's literally everywhere. Here, follow me to the lake, so you can wash it off." He gently pulled me up off the ground.

Grabbing his trident in one hand and my own hand in his other, he leads me to the lake. We crouch down by the waterside. My hands scooping up some water to cure the dryness in my throat. Then, I began scrubbing off the blood from my face and body.

"What happened out there? I couldn't find you at the Cornucopia." He asked, curious.

I watch the blood fading away into nothing in the river, as I speak, "I made it to the center. The guy from District 5 tried to choke me out right away. Then, after I started looking for you, I got tackled by a guy I couldn't see."

Frowning at the now clear water, "Honestly, for a second, I thought you left without me, when I couldn't find you there."

"I wouldn't leave you. We're in this till the end, okay?" Jaemin promises.

"Til the end, then," I agree, "What happened to you?"

"I only got to this," He held up his trident, "before Haechan is launching at me with bow and arrows. He kept chasing me, and before I know it I ended up far behind the back of the Cornucopia.That's where I spotted this lake from. He kept calling out for me, but eventually I guess he just gave up. That's when I decided to leave and set out to find you."

Taking in his words, I point out, "It sounds a lot like they were trying to purposely separate us, so they could kill us easier. Don't you think?"

"It makes sense, " He suddenly laughed, "it's funny though, we almost killed each other for them."

"I'm sorry for tackling you like that." I apologized.

"It's fine. Is your head okay?" Jaemin softly patted the back off my head.

"It is now." I bat my eyelashes, playing it up for the cameras. Looking around, I notice some  flowers sticking up through the water, surrounded by Lilly pads.

"What are these?" He curiously picked one from the water.

"They're pond lilies. They're good for infections and burns. Plus anti-inflammatory too." I remember what Taeyong taught me.

"Hm, so smart," He smiles down at me, before tucking the flower behind my ear, "and pretty too."

I don't hide the way my cheeks flush. Just like they did last night, when I was with Renjun.

Distracting myself from the thought, I decide to look throw the bright orange back pack I picked up after killing the District 5 guy. While rummaging through it, I found a pack of crackers, a pack of dried beef strips, a bottle of iodine, a box of wooden matches, a bit of coiled wire, glasses, and an empty black water bottle.

Grabbing the bottle, I began to fill it up with water for later. Then, I place it back in the backpack along with some of the knifes I've been holding onto. While doing so, Jaemin proceeds to try on the glasses.

"Wow, these really do suck. I can still see the sun." He murmurs, looking around.

"Then, they're probably supposed to be used during night. That'll be useful for hunting. Speaking of hunting, you hungry?" I ask, feeling my stomach rumble at the first mention of food.

"Yeah, let's go."

Renjun's POV

Jeno, Haechan, and I had decided to turn the Cornucopia into our own little camp. We had  all the supplies we could ever need. I mean, sure, there's about ten bodies just laying around, but home sweet home, right?

However, right now it wasn't feeling too sweet.

"What the fuck happened out there, Haechan? The plan was whoever was closest to her would kill her as soon as she stepped off the platform. You were the closest." complained an irritated Jeno.

I don't feel guilty that Haechan is unknowingly taking the hit for me. In fact, I was the one who stopped her from getting that bag and immediately dying by the bare hands of Haechan. I'm not sure what made me do it. I keep telling myself that maybe I was thinking about her being defenseless and unable to put up a fair fight would be unfair.

Or maybe I'm just pussy-whipped after last night, I don't know. My hand subconsciously goes to the hidden mark she left near my collarbone. Although I can't see it, I can feel the slight pain as my fingers pass over it. A reminder of last night.

Ripping my hand away, I try to tune back into the argument to avoid popping up a boner, while on live national-fucking-television.

"She was just too fast. I was sure that huge dude from District 5 was going to finish her off for me," Haechan suddenly remembered something, "Besides I was the one who made sure they were separated like our Plan B said to do."

I guess he's right. If we were able to kill them, we were going to do our best to separate them. Without Athena, Jaemin probably couldn’t survive, since District 4 is entirely a beach district. That fish boy probably has no idea how to survive for a week in the woods.

On the other hand, Athena, for some reason, needs him just as much. The three of us had debated on the reason why. Maybe she’s using him for his fame and sponsors? Although, she had received a lot of positive attention based on her own charms. She didn’t need him for that.

That’s what led us to the conclusion that she had a little girl crush on him. The thought makes me sick. I thought the Lee Athena I grew up with, would never waste her time on a guy like him.

As the sky becomes dark, I wondering what they’re doing now. Are they dead? Or still all alone? I can imagine Athena, hiding in a tree all by herself, frightened and scared. A little part of me wonders what would happened if she joined the Careers. Would she be here right now sitting next to me? Listening to these annoying boys bicker with each other.

Where are you, Lee Athena?

Maybe they found each-other. Maybe they’re looking up at the same sky right now.

I can see it. Them huddling close together, blaming it on their need to keep warm for the night. His arms wrapped around her, tightly. Her head resting against his check, watching the stars.

God, it makes me sick.

[echoeternally]

If Poliwrath and Politoed Survive Together...

Balancing the votes between Poliwrath and Politoed in the Hero’s Second Wind poll will bring them into the next story together. Those potential scenes are found on this page!

Brief descriptions and scene titles will be included below!

Fair warning: There is some content dealing with death below as well.

Second warning: This post is long to depict several developing scenes!

... ... ... ... ...

Cave of Wonders

Working together to paddle for safety, Poliwrath and Politoed are able to reach a cave that heals their wounds and restores their lives. They’re mystified by the cave’s powers, and wonder what it means.

...

Poliwrath paddled through the water, gripping his body with one arm while pulling through with the other. His feet tightened around Politoed’s hand, as his brother kicked them along.

Struggling with his sight, Politoed glanced back the way they had swam, but noticed that the tunnel had changed. He patted at his body with his free hand, and lifted it to his eyes. Nothing was on his hand.

Paddling up and guiding them to the surface, Poliwrath pulled himself up, and scooped Politoed from below, pulling him up. Politoed rubbed where Poliwrath had been hit, blinking at his body.

“That’s only going to make it hurt,” cautioned Poliwrath. “Think we both know what blood looks like.” Poliwrath chuckled as Politoed silently stared at his hand. He then turned it over to Poliwrath, revealing no blood from him either. “…Wait, what the hell?”

“You’re not bleeding anymore,” pointed out Politoed, as he glanced below the water’s surface. “I can’t even see where you were cut.”

“Well, it might be harder on me, but with you…” Poliwrath stared down at Politoed. “Wait, hold on.” He sunk back into the water and studied his twin’s body, but found no wounds on him either. Poliwrath scratched above his head as he swam back up. “Ok, that’s…weird. We…we did get stabbed, right?”

“We should be dead.” Politoed swayed a bit in the water. “When he threw those weapons at us, when we saved Greninja—”

“Maybe he missed the mark?”

“Look, I don’t know about you, but he got me for sure. Pretty sure that felt like dying to me.” Politoed paddled to the edge of the lake, as Poliwrath followed him. “Plus, even if he didn’t kill us, we were both bleeding out. Hell, we had to work together just to swim to this place, because that pain was so much for me.”

“Think either of us could’ve made it, honestly,” contested Poliwrath. “But it was a lot easier working together.”

“Usually is.” Politoed hopped ashore and smiled down to his brother, who winked to him. “But this still seems so strange. …Do you think…would it be weird to wonder if this place has magic in it?”

“Here?” Poliwrath spun around and looked around the cavern. “How could it? I don’t see anything…wait, is that grass over there?”

“Seems like it.” Politoed pointed at a few spots around the cave. “There’s some snow there, that has sand, and the rock formation there is like a miniature—”

“Mountain?” Poliwrath turned back as his twin nodded. “…Where the hell are we?”

... ... ...

Netting Newcomers

As they become more familiar with their friends of the Grass Fields Kingdom, Poliwrath and Politoed plot to advance on two attractive allies.

...

Spiraling around, Lilligant gathered petals with her spins, and they fluttered across the air as she danced around.

“Check out how pretty she is,” murmured Politoed.

“Yeah, she’s cute and gorgeous,” complimented Poliwrath. “Think she likes tough guys?”

“I dunno.” Politoed shrugged. “Maybe we can make her laugh instead.”

“Teaming up to get her interested…that’s crazy enough to work.”

As she twirled aside, Lilligant slipped from her vortex of petals and leaves. Diving from beyond it and sweeping through the air, Sceptile slashed at their practice dummy, slicing it with his blade and her plants.

“Oh no, he’s hot too,” whispered Poliwrath. “What do we do?! Who do we go for?!”

“Both, duh.” Politoed grinned. “One of us gets the pretty dancer, the other gets the sexy ninja.” He poked at Poliwrath. “Pretty sure we can work out who we’ll like more, right?”

“Hmm.” Poliwrath pondered it over and nodded. “Ok! But let’s do it nice for them.”

“Right, right, no fighting, and no advancing too much like we did with Chesnaught and Greninja,” agreed Politoed. “…Well, mostly Greninja, but whatever. Come on!”

... ... ...

Showdown Spectacular

Arriving at the arenas of the mountains, Poliwrath eagerly challenges a strong competitor of the monarchy, and drags Politoed into the battle with him.

...

“This place has such a cool arena!” Poliwrath pumped a fist and flexed his arm. “All right! Let’s get in on this one, Poli-Poli!”

“Wait, what? No!” Politoed flailed his arms. “Look, I’m not a bad fighter, but I don’t need to prove it to the likes of these—”

“Hey! Hey you! Big angry cat guy! Over here!”

“And you’re literally ignoring me again, how swell.”

“Hm?” Incineroar blinked and pointed to himself. “Cat guy talking, who’s asking?”

“Me! You’re tough, but I’m a pretty good fighter myself!” Poliwrath wrapped his arm tightly around Politoed and dragged him close. “In fact, both of us are!”

“Whoa, no, no, no,” piped up Politoed. “Do not drag me into this.”

“Come on and battle us!”

“Whirly Froggies want to fight, huh?” Incineroar sighed but forced himself back up into a confident grin. “Ok, might as well! Which one of you wants to go first?”

“Nah, try both of us together!” Poliwrath lifted his thumb up. “You want to really see how strong you are? Two-for-one, let’s go!”

“Poliwrath, that’s hardly fair for him,” insisted Politoed. “He’d be at a disadvantage by Type alone, and he’ll clearly get clobbered facing off against knights that know how to work together.”

“Sounds like you two need to be taken down a few pegs,” taunted Incineroar. He cracked his knuckles. “Don’t worry, I’ll be glad to pull that one off.” He pointed to the ground. “Come step into the ring.”

“That’s hardly fair at all,” interrupted Lucario, as he ambled over to Incineroar’s side. “If you’re going to try getting yourself killed over this place that you loathe so much, you might as well have a fighting chance.” He turned to the twins. “Your battle will be with both of us.”

... ... ...

Building Brotherhood

Reaching the midpoint cave of their journey in the mountains, Poliwrath and Politoed work together to quell the arguing mantis brothers.

...

“Get along?” Scizor scoffed. “With that arrogant little twit?”

“He’s actually taller than us,” pointed out Politoed. “Especially me.”

“Height isn’t the issue,” restarted Poliwrath. “It’s your relationship, or lack thereof.”

“No offense to you two, but our relationships are vastly different,” chimed in Scyther. “You’re twins. You have a deeper connection with one another with just that alone. But then you two get along really well, you have cute banter with one another, and you can actually battle side-by-side.” He gazed down and studied his scythes. “Scizor and I can’t even get past our differences based on the surface.”

“Oh, don’t turn this into another debate over scythes and claws!”

“Shocking, that’s exactly where the extent of it lies for you, huh?”

“Both of you, cool it!” Poliwrath folded his arms. “You two keep at this and you’re just going to keep fighting! Has that helped anyone from Grass Fields thus far?” He waited as neither mantis replied to him. “Then that’s why we’re here, isn’t it?”

“Easy, Wrathy.” Politoed chuckled as Poliwrath lowered his eyes, but then straightened up and returned his attention to the others. “Poliwrath and I actually struggled to get along after we both evolved, because we thought that our differences were too great to contend with.” He pointed to his brother. “He always wanted to be the stronger one, and I always had creative techniques that I wanted to better explore.” Politoed placed his hands on his hips. “Sound familiar?”

“It’s not even just about the differences between you guys, but your whole structure as siblings,” carried on Poliwrath. “Politoed and I were always competitive with each other, but even we could put that aside when it mattered. The two of you literally want the other to fail more than you care about succeeding.” He folded his arms. “You should understand one another’s strengths and perspectives, and then learn to cooperate with them.”

“Exactly.” Politoed nodded, but then frowned as Scizor threw everyone dark glares, while Scyther placed his attention elsewhere. “Look, maybe you guys don’t want to get along either. And that’s ok.” He sank down. “But, have you ever even tried to get along?”

“Can’t recall a time like that at all,” confessed Scyther. “And you, Sciz?”

“Don’t call me that,” snapped Scizor. He checked over the others and then deflated. “...But, no.”

“So, give us a chance to help you work on it,” insisted Poliwrath. “It’s better than nothing.”

“If anything, we’ll help you guys hate each other at least a little less,” promised Politoed.

... ... ...

Clawing to the Apex

Towards the end of the journey up the Mountains Monarchy, Politoed and Poliwrath find themselves battling the enemy assassin, Zangoose.

...

“You…you’re both alive?!” Zangoose gawked in horror as the twins readied their weapons. “That’s not possible! At least one of you should be dead, and most definitely both of you! How?!”

“Turns out your aim was off after all,” taunted Politoed.

Zangoose growled and pulled out a shuriken. “Doesn’t matter. I know exactly how to correct this mistake.”

“The only mistake was letting you live,” snapped Poliwrath. “Greninja should’ve gotten you like he did your partner.”

“SHUT UP!”

With a roar, Zangoose threw the first shuriken, and lobbed a full barrage at the brothers as fast as he could manage. Dropping back, Poliwrath and Politoed dipped behind a boulder, and looked at one another as the blades clanged against the stone.

“Maybe we shouldn’t have pissed him off so much,” murmured Politoed.

“Nah, he’s distracted like that,” contested Poliwrath. “Let’s use that to help.”

“Right.” Politoed spun his nunchaku and slowly made his way to the edge of their cover. The shuriken had stopped for a moment. “I’ll knock them away when he starts again, and while he focuses on me, you rush him. Just…be careful.”

“Will do.” Poliwrath winked at his brother. “But you’d better do the same, ok?”

“Promise,” pledged Politoed. “Ready in three…two…one…”

... ... ... ... ...

(Remember, these are scenes in development. However, this is what you can look forward to, should the vote tallies of Politoed and Poliwrath be close enough together! See if you can get their combined return for the stories!)

(Head back to the poll here!)

(Still not sure or want to read more? Check back here!)

[arda-ancalima]

Ferus Olin - By the water For @sirianddeanseethestars (prompts here)

Ferus laughed as he surfaced in the lake and shook his hair out of his face. “Come on in Trever, the water is fine!”

“You know what, I think I’ll pass. It’s kind of cold. Aren’t you cold?”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Ferus said. “The Force can help one adapt to changes in temperature. Plus, once I toss you in, you’ll get used to it quickly.”

“All right! I’m coming, I’m coming.”

“We’ll get you used to swimming. Now that, you know, you can practice without your life being at stake. Here, let’s start out with just floating on your back.”

It was an afternoon of Padawans helping with the younglings. It gave them experience mentoring and gave the guardians of the younglings a chance to get other work done or have time to themselves. Ferus and several of his old classmates were by the lake in the Room of a Thousand Fountains swimming or playing with the children. He was helping a little Tholothian girl who was apprehensive about swimming to get comfortable floating in the shallows of the lake.

“Breathe in deeply and you’ll feel your body float up. The Force is in the water, and it will help you. I’ll be right here.”

“Are you still holding me?”

Ferus smiled. “No, you’re floating by yourself.”

The little girl’s timidity turned to excitement as she stood back up and ran out of the water babbling about what she did. Not to Ferus, but to Darra, who was nearby and seemed to already have a connection with the child as she scooped her up and chatted back.

It shouldn’t have mattered to him. He was doing what he was asked to do, and it wasn’t as if he needed to connect with a potential student any time soon. But there was still a small ache to be wanted and have the ease with others that his fellow Padawans seemed to have.

At that moment, Ali-Alann came to collect the children so they went over to him while the Padawans began to wander off. Ferus started to get out of the lake and was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he almost didn’t notice Siri approaching him.

“I was just going to go for a swim. Care to join me?”

Ferus nodded and slid back into the water.

“I suppose you’ve been in the shallows this whole time,” Siri said as she stepped in. “Let’s go out into deeper water.”

After being in a depth that even the younglings could stand in, it felt good to make long strokes and push off into the deep. Once they were a distance from shore, Siri stopped to tread water.

“I could hear you thinking from a mile away,” she teased. “What’s on your mind?”

Ferus hesitated. “I…I’m just not very good at working with children.”

“From what I saw, you were doing fine.” Siri looked at him curiously.

“The others seem to have already made connections with them.”

“Aha,” Siri said. “That’s a train of thought that will lead you nowhere useful. ‘Comparing leads to despairing.’”

“But shouldn’t I recognize my weaknesses?”

Siri gazed toward the waterfall thoughtfully. “Yes, but how you do matters. Comparing your journey to someone else’s doesn’t give you an accurate perspective. We all have our own weaknesses to work on and strengths to use, but they vary for everyone. There are as many different paths to becoming a Jedi as there are...well, Jedi.”

“As for making connections,” Siri continued, “I can only recommend patience and persistence. If you’re trying but they don’t happen now, that’s okay. It doesn’t mean they never will. It took me a long time to make friends as a Padawan, and I’m only starting to rebuild friendships now that I’m back at the Temple. You’re doing fine, and when the time is right, you will have people to connect to and will make a fine Master to some lucky apprentice.”

“That seems a long way off.”

“Trust me, you’ll get there.” Siri grinned. “I look forward to meeting my grand-Padawan.”

“Umm anyone home? Earth to Ferus! I’m sinking here!”

Ferus’s young friend, though certainly not his apprentice, pulled him out of his memories. “You’re doing fine Trever, just take a deep breath and feel the—”

“If you tell me to use the Force, I’ll dunk you.”

[ramblinganthropologist]

Januanders - Clinic chores

Summary: Running a clinic takes work. Luckily, Anders has help in the form of a couple birds who enjoy lending a hand. What would he do without them? (Anders x M!Hawke, Anders x F!Hawke) 

(Yeah I know it’s weird he dates them both just roll with it.)

---

“That's the last of them.”

Thank the Maker.

Anders felt his soul – or maybe that was Justice? Even now it was hard to tell some days – sigh in relief as he glanced around the dim room that made up his Darktown clinic. For hours, it had been packed to the brim with coughs, broken bones, and in one case a 6 pound baby boy. Now it sat quiet and needing a good sweep to prepare it for the next time the lamps would be lit.

His joints creaked as he reached out for the broom to begin sweeping. There was blood on the floor, a reminder that the baby had come into the world. Just looking at it made his back ache, but it had to be cleaned. After all, it wasn't sanitary.

“Let me get that.”

A deep voice boomed across the clinic, shaking Anders to his very bones. The large shadow stretched across the floor in the low light, practically touching the opposite wall. Once, a shadow like that would've loomed in his nightmares.

Now? He was just glad for the cleaning help.

A tired smile stretched his face as he nodded. “If you're sure.”

“Blood is my specialty.” There was a twinkle in the man's eye as he got to work. Anders didn't stay to watch – he could feel it anyway. The tingle in the air that only came from a certain type of magic that would've gotten his helper in more than just a little trouble if the Templars knew. Luckily, he was over 7 feet tall. Nobody was suicidal enough to mess with him.

Moses Hawke had been helping him at the clinic for some time now. It was a relief to have more than one healer on sight, especially as the winter colds and coughs began to pile up. They could see more people that way, and the children enjoyed playing with Dog while they waited for their loved ones to return. It was a win-win.

Plus... Anders stole a look over his shoulder on the pretext of checking for dirt. Moses had finished with the spot on the floor and had moved on to stacking mostly empty boxes for re-purposing the next day. His strong muscles flexed with every heavy object he scooped up like it was nothing at all, and then he was back to doing it again.

It was... well... he enjoyed watching.

You missed a spot.

Nope, that one was Justice. Anders knew that one – the humming at the back of his mind that resonated with old wounds inside him that should have never healed. He usually felt it strongest in his back and chest. A reminder, perhaps, of his duty. Or in this case... that he needed to finish the damn floor instead of drooling over his helper.

Thanks, Justice.

His cheeks still colored as he continued sweeping, keeping his eyes to the floor. Dust kicked up in his wake. At least this way he could check for debris – no more blood from the looks of things, but some grime. He'd definitely need to scrub the floor later that week. Just thinking about it made his knees ache.

Eventually, Anders put the broom away to organize his supplies. This brought him in close to Moses, who had moved on to a similar task. They worked in silence, shoulders bumping together every so often in the cramped space. Every jostle sent heat up his body and got a responding soul tingle in turn with a reminder to do his chores. Good old Justice; had he been human, he would have made a lovely taskmaster.

“They named him Anders.” Moses' voice was softer now. He didn't need to explain who. “Good name.”

Anders felt his face heat up. “I would disagree there.”

“I wouldn't.”

Moses was often a man of few words. It wasn't as if he didn't think them – he did, of course – but getting them out there was something else. When he spoke, it was often blunter than a 50 year old blade left in the middle of a lake. But at times, that could be charming. This was one of those moments, and it made the heat spread even faster.

Their hands found the same sprig of dried elfroot in the gloom of the closed down clinic. Fingers twined together, dropping it to the table. Eyes as blue as lyrium and twice as bright gazed straight through him, saying everything the large man didn't.

Anders felt his heart race as Moses' head lowered, their lips brushing together in a brief kiss that was all too quickly followed by another, then a third. They heated up and became red hot with every reputation, the count of which was quickly lost in the silence of the night. His hands reached out, grasping at robes  in the hopes of getting just a little closer.

The door is unlocked.

Justice tended to interrupt during times like these. Usually, it was to remind him he had better things  to do than... well, his lover. This time however he had a point. Even if they were closed, those damn doors were just waiting for somebody to stride through with a problem or a pike. Neither were desirable at the moment.

Now, Moses wasn't a mind reader. They had long since figured that one out. But in one fluid moment he reached over Anders' head and threw the bar down over the door with a satisfying clunk that shook the frame. Maybe he could've done it a little nicer... but at the moment it was hard to give a shit.

“Now... where were we.”

And oh, the shivers ran up the healer's spine as they all too quickly returned to pressing matters at hand. If he had been sore before, the morning was going to find him in even more of a state. Yet... maybe he needed a bit of a workout. Besides, it wasn't like his joints ever stopped hurting anyway. The few moments he got Moses alone he treasured.

Especially when the clothes were getting removed at such a rapid pace. Maybe it was time for a different examination. And this one he was definitely proficient in.  Though, this one involved his bed and a few other... instruments.

----

That day, Anders was a little later than usual getting back to the clinic. A frantic young woman had pulled him out of bed in the middle of the night, in tears over the fate of her younger brother. The boy's broken shoulder and leg had taken all night to put back together, but by the time the sun's rays had risen over Lowtown, everything was healing as it should have been. Just another day in the life of Darktown's only healer.

“Maker...” Everything hurt from the long night. The day's list of clinic chores kept rolling in the back of his mind. The floor needed mopping still, and there was plenty of organizing left. All of that would keep him busy until night rolled around once more, and maybe even longer if someone came in needing help. Forget trying to sleep the night off – he'd be lucky if he got any rest at all.

You need to mop.

Anders rolled his eyes but said nothing as he rounded the corner that would take him back to the clinic's front doors. He passed a familiar dark corner as he did, warmth spreading through his chest. Up that ladder, through the trap on the door, and he would've been in the Hawke basement. It would've been so easy to pop in...

But Justice was right. Floor first, romance later. He sighed as he tossed the idea aside and continued on. However, something about the clinic doors made his blood run cold. The night before, he had been sure to lock them before running off into the darkness. Now they were slightly ajar, as if someone had forgotten to close them all the way.

Is it the Templars?

Anders felt his power well up along with his anxiety as he approached. There were no tell-tale signs of the Chantry's favorite thugs – their armor tended to scratch the door frames, or their heavy boots left marks in the dirt – but that didn't put him at ease. He reached for his staff and carefully peered through.

“I swear to the Maker's dido if you step on this damn floor before I finish I will end you.”

An energetic voice rang out through the small space. Anders blinked back surprise as he realized that most of the floor was sopping wet. Not wet, he realized based on the marks – but freshly mopped. The proof was the bucket on the floor, filled with soapy water and the mop currently resting next to it.

In the center of the chaos, sleeves rolled up, was a small woman who was giving him a look tantamount to playful murder. Anders felt the tension evaporate as he smiled in return and held up his hands to make sure he survived.

“No need to call down the dildo. I'll stay right here.”

“Good. Your floor is so fucking gross by the way.”

Avery Hawke often smiled at him that way, though usually it was with a sword in her hand instead of a mop. She made fantastic use of either, however. He hadn't seen the floor that clean in months, maybe since he had first moved in. That wasn't from lack of effort – maybe it was just because she was lower to the ground.

The Maker does not have a dildo.

It was impossible to suppress the snort of mirth that leaked out from his nose. It garnered Avery's attention as she continued to clean the floor. There were blue eyes on him once more, slightly tinged with confusion. Sometimes, it was hard to explain those kinds of conversations.

“What, did I draw a dick on the floor without knowing?”

Anders shook his head, the rest of the chuckle escaping. “Justice disapproves of your taking the Maker in vain.”

“Well, somebody's gotta take him. Maybe if he got off more often we wouldn't have Blights.” She finished off a corner of the floor, and then glanced back. A sheepish look crossed her face as Anders realized too quickly she had blocked herself into a corner. “Uh... little help? No dildos, I promise.”

Now the mage really was laughing as he rescued her from the clean floor. It wasn't hard, as Avery at her heaviest weighed under a hundred pounds soaking wet. Talk about being a knight in shining armor, or in his case slightly dirty feathers.

They were soon in the most dry part of the floor. She was still in his arms,  chuckling at her own lack of planning. Laughter came easy to her – and around her, Anders felt like laughing too. She had a way of bringing it out of him.

“Thanks, love.” She reached up, kissing him lightly on the cheek in thanks. It wasn't an invitation for more – he was too sore for that. “Now, get the fuck into bed. You look like you're dead on your feet.”

He responded with an eye roll. “Well I would but some strange woman broke in and mopped my floor without asking.”

And then he was back on his bed, though there was no body joining him. Instead, Avery threw the blanket over his head as she picked her way to the door. Briefly, her blue eyes gazed on him. Maker, how did she fit so much emotion in there.

“Sleep well, prick. I'll be back later with something to eat.”

And that was that. The door was locked, the floor was cleaned, and the healer was under warrior's orders to get some fucking rest. Anders, for once, wasn't going to argue with that. Even Justice fell quiet as his mind began to fade. Truly, he had been tired.

Still... how the hell had she known he needed his floor mopped? Maybe the Hawke siblings shared more than they let on. Yet Anders found he couldn't really mind as sleep took him over. It was a weird arrangement, but it was theirs.

[kdawg87]

Bee’s Shoes

Summary: It's Bethany's first day of school and she's got the perfect outfit all picked out, until she realizes something is missing. Also posted on FFN and A03

It's 6:30 when Kurt finally pulls into the driveway after his most important mission in quite some time. He sighs and looks up to see all the lights out in their apartment, Jane and Bethany still asleep after the last weekend of the summer. He promised Bethany that he'd be back in time to walk her to her first day of school and so help him if he didn't keep that promise. Looking back at what kept him away from his family all night, he chuckles and shakes his head as he climbs out of the SUV and up the front steps.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bethany had spent all week going through her closet to pick out the perfect outfit for her first day of kindergarten. She had finally settled on a bright pink sequenced shirt that Aunt Patterson had given her with some black leggings that Aunt Tasha swore made her look at least 2 inches taller. Uncle Reade had given her a brand new backpack that she filled with her new pencil case set that Jane and Kurt had bought her. But the most important part of her outfit, the piece de resistance, was the wheelie shoes that Uncle Rich had gave her for her birthday earlier that summer. Not a day had gone by that she hadn't zipped up and down the apartment hallways trying to see how fast she could go.

But now as Kurt and Jane helped her get ready for bed and laid her clothes out for the next morning, the shoes were nowhere to be found. They had checked the whole apartment - inside every closet, under every bed and behind every sofa - but there was no sign of Bee's beloved shoes. Bethany had started tearing up when the shoes weren't by the front door and was now full on crying that they weren't anywhere in the whole house. Jane had even called Avery thinking that maybe Bee had left her shoes at her dorm the last time she had gone to spend the day with her big sister. No luck with the shoes, but she did leave behind her teddy bear that Avery was a little reluctant to return because she missed her little sister just as much.

Kurt thought back to where they'd gone the last few days and groaned when it finally dawned on him where they'd spent the long weekend. They'd decided to go up to the cottage at the last minute wanting to get away from the city one last time before the weather cooled down. They had spent the last morning out on the lake trying one last time to teach Bethany how to swim underwater. She loved sticking her head underwater but her life vest kept making her head bob out and she couldn't see all the fishies swimming under the surface. Kurt had bought her a pair of arm floaties, flippers, and scuba goggles to teach her how to snorkle. They'd spent all morning diving in and out of the water still trying to find their first fish. Jane had finally coaxed them out of the water for lunch put didn't manage to get Bee further than the dock. Bee was walking around in her flippers eating a sandwich as Jane and Kurt loaded the SUV for the drive home. Kurt was the first to turn around as he heard Bethany cry out. She was sprawled on the floor one flipper still on her foot and the other thrown off to the side. He ran over and scooped her up, trying to calm her down telling her that there was barely a scratch. Jane looked over and Kurt saw the same knowing look in her eyes - Bethany was exhausted and they should just head home as soon as the car was packed. Jane grabbed Bethany's towel and wrapped her up in it, bouncing her up and down to calm her down. While Kurt finished loading the car, Jane got Bethany strapped into her car seat and they began the long drive home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was well after 10 when Jane walked out of Bethany's room and saw Kurt sitting at the kitchen counter drinking a large cup of coffee.

"Planning to stay up all night?"she asked as she wrapped her arms around him and placed a kiss along his jaw.

He looked down and shook his head "I've gotta go back" he said quietly.

"Go back?"

"The cottage. I've gotta go back to the cottage"

Jane raised her eyebrow questioningly as Kurt spun around in his seat.

"She came back in one flipper. Her shoes are still at the cottage."

Jane tried to convince him that he didn't have to spend the night driving to pick up a pair of shoes for a 5 year old. She had more than enough shoes to choose from and he'd already made the long drive once that day, he shouldn't be doing it alone in the middle of the night. But Kurt's fatherly instincts, and the fact that little Bee had him wrapped around her little finger, meant he would do anything to make sure his daughter was happy. Plus she had over a decade of schooling to go through and if she hated the first day, whose to say she wouldn't hate it forever. And so Jane finally gave in, not because she agreed but because she wanted to go to bed herself. She kissed Kurt good night and watched him pull out of the driveway and down their street.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kurt quietly enters their apartment and heads to the kitchen with the bag of groceries he stopped to pick up on his way home. If he was going to make sure Bethany's first day of school was unforgettable then he'd have to make her favourite chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. A while later, he hears Jane and Bethany get up and can sense that his little girl isn't nearly as excited for her first day of school as she was a week ago. Lucky for him he's got a secret up his sleeve, well two really. By the time the girls make their way to the dining room, Kurt has breakfast set on the table.

"Daddy you made my favourite." Bee exclaims as she runs into her dad's arms to give him a big hug and a kiss.

"Of course I did baby. Can't have you going to school hungry on your first day."

The pancake breakfast puts a smile on Bethany's face but it's short lived once she realizes it's time to head out for school. As she slumps her shoulders and makes her way to the front door, Jane and Kurt can tell she clearly hasn't gotten over the fact that her favourite shoes are still missing. As she rounds the corner to the front door they hear her scream out in excitement.

"My shoes!! Mommy, daddy you found my shoes!"

"Guess we didn't check the car last night while we were looking for them" Kurt says as he makes his way over carrying her backpack.

Jane looks over with a slight smirk and chuckles at Kurt's response. As much as he doesn't want to admit it, everyone knows he'd do anything for his little Bee. The three of them head out the front door hand in hand for the short walk to Bethany's school.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's 9am by the time Jane and Kurt make their way into work at the FBI. Jane tried to convince her husband to take the morning off to catch up on some sleep but he insisted he was fine. As much as they want to start working on their latest case, Kurt is running on fumes and needs some coffee to make it until lunch, let alone through the whole day.

Rich walks into the break room takes one look at Kurt standing at the counter and says "Geez Weller, you look like shit."

Kurt just glares at him as Jane lets a small chuckle escape.

"I mean if you're gonna stay up all night working on baby number 2 you should at least look happy the next morning. Unless you need an extra body to make it more interesting."

The glare on Kurt's face doesn't change, in fact it looks even more deadly now. Jane cups his cheek and gives him a few kisses along his jaw letting him know that he's doing perfectly well in that department on his own, baby number 2 is only 7 months away but they're the only ones who know so far. She turns to Rich and explains the whole shoe fiasco with Bethany the night before.

Rich let's out a loud laugh as Jane recounts Kurt's all-nighter. Kurt's glare is still on Rich and even though he's not ashamed that his daughter has him under her control, he's not in the mood for Rich's regular antics.

"Sorry I know it's not funny, well not for you. Actually it's really sweet that you went through all that for a pair of shoes." Rich lets out a smaller chuckle. "It's just that Bethany told me a few weeks ago that those were her favourite shoes ever, so I bought a pair in the next few sizes so that she can grow into them."

Jane and Kurt just started at Rich, dumbfounded at his latest revelation.

I would've brought over a pair last night, but someone ignored my messages all weekend so I probably would've let you make the long drive anyways." And with that he left the room with a smug smile on his face.

[boystownbirdie]

LMWTV4U: GOT S7E6

Welcome back to Let Me Watch TV 4 U, the blog where I watch TV for you! Tonight we’re talking bout Game of Thrones season 7 episode 6, “Beyond the Wall” aka Disney Presents The Walking Dead on Ice! Let’s jump right in to this icy abyss, shall we?!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

We open on a curious panning across of a map, and no I’m not talking about the opening credits. It looks like the giant map/table in Dragonstone? 

However we quickly cut to our Eastwatch crew...

...who are marching one by one further and further North. We’ve got Bae, (the artist formerly known as) Stoney, New-Thor (let’s just say Thor, shall we? He’s not so new anymore), Gingerbae, Gingerbun, Eyepatch, the Hound and approx 5 rando nightswatch dudes and/or wildlings who are doomed because no backstory = dead first.

First, we get some ice-breakers (sorry can’t stop won’t stop) when Thor tells us he’s never even seen snow before and I’m like bb boi come here to Chicago I’ll show you some midwestern winters! Thor is also still feeling a little salty toward Eyepatch and Gingerbun for selling him off to the red witch while the Hound keeps score and is like, Thor you didn’t really have it so bad. Gingerbun hands Thor the olive branch in the form of a flask.

Meanwhile, Gingerbae asks Bae about Khaleesi and Bae is all coy but GB sees right through that. Gingerbae helpfully reminds us that he still loves Brienne of Tarth (aka Ladyknight) very much.

Bae and Stoney swing their swords around (not a euphemism) and Bae tries to give his huge fancy sword to Stoney since it belonged to Stoney’s dad. Stoney is like naw, it’s yours man, give it to your KIDS. And we’re supposed to be thinking, whoa! Is Bae on the market for marriage/kids? Cuz sign us all up! Later Eyepatch tells Bae that Bae doesn’t really look like Ned Stark which, duh, cuz we know Bae is Ned’s nephew. But also Bae’s bio-dad was Khaleesi’s bro and apparently had silver-white hair like her so WHERE DID BAE GET HIS LEWKS FROM? Heaven, apparently.

Before we get into the meat, pun intended, let’s pop into Winterfell, shall we?

Sansa and Arya discuss gender roles and Arya tells us a tale of their dad, Ned Stark, sort of tacitly approving of her being a fighter rather than a lady. And then she’s like, speaking of, dad was killed by the Lannisters with YOUR help, Sansa. Arya brings up the letter she found last week that poor bb Sansa was forced to right by QPC and is not happy about it. And Sansa is really caught off guard but also like STEP ALL THE WAY OFF, I have been THROUGH IT. They argue about the past few years and who’s had it the worst but also as Leslie Knope would say, uteruses before duderuses, ya know?

Later, Sansa is talking to Littlefinger, who set up all this nonsense anyway and he’s like well Ladyknight can be your referee since she lurves both of you? But then Sansa sends Ladyknight away to King’s Landing to be her proxy in this upcoming summit with QPC. Towards the end of ep, Sansa decides to do some snooping of her own a la Arya last week and finds Arya’s suitcase full of faces from the face-swapping-assassin-training-academy which Arya dropped out of after a misunderstanding with a professor who wanted her killed. Sansa is like srsly, WTF? And Arya explains the face-swapping thing which sounds crazy the first time you hear it, but so did dragons and we got them now so all’s fair, right? Arya grabs a knife and basically threatens to cut Sansa’s face off but then hands Sansa the knife and scoots outta there. So at the end of the day, no Stark-on-Stark crime this week but stay tuned!

We pop in to see Khaleesi and Tyrion chatting by the fire…

She’s like, you know what I like about you? You’re not brave. And he’s like umm thanks? And then she’s like all of my fave bois are brave but stupid and she includes Bae on that list. And T is like, so you’re taking a liking to him, eh? They discuss strategy and have a little tiff wherein Khaleesi again questions T’s loyalty. And then he’s like btw, you said you can’t have kids so...who gets to be in charge when you die? And she’s like let’s cross that bridge when we come to it, and he’s like it’s called a LIVING WILL for a reason, babe.

Back North of the wall...

Bae and Gingerbae spot a bear but they’re like, that’s weird… he’s got blue eyes-ahhh zombie bear! Zombie bear kills one of the no-name/ no-backstory guys (like we care!?) and maims Gingerbun. Eyepatch smartly cauterizes the wound with his flaming sword while the Hound is too busy having PTSD about fire. Really unfortunate to be afraid of fire in a world without electricity, huh?

Bae and Gingerbae spot a small crew of ice zombies and decide to take one of them prisoner. During the scuffle, Bae kills a leader-ice-zombie and suddenly all of his pals drop dead too. They find out that you kill the leader, the rest die too- good to know! But in capturing their prisoner-zombie, his squeals seem to alert the 5 million other ice zombies to their location and next thing you know, the crew is about to be trapped. Bae smartly tells Thor to run back to the wall and tell Khaleesi the scoop. Poor Thor has to give up his hammer before he leaves so that the rest of the crew has more zombie-smashing tools.

SOMEHOW, I still don’t understand the logistics of it all, but Bae and crew get stuck on this little island surrounded by a frozen lake. The 5 billion zombies surround them but can’t walk further into the lake without falling in. It’s a real pickle. Luckily, Thor does make it back to the wall to tell No-Knuckles to send word to Khaleesi.

Speaking of Khaleesi, that raven flew fast because she already got the scoop. She is DECKED OUT in her cold-weather best and is heading North to save the day with all 3 dragons. Tyrion is like BAD IDEA HUN but she goes anyway. While Khaleesi flies like the actual wind on her #1 dragon, poor Gingerbun has succumbed to his injures or maybe freezes in the night and is no longer with us. So, much like Rose must let go of frozen Jack (but why does she say “I’ll never let go” as she is literally letting go? I’ll never understand the word choice), Eyepatch has to burn Gingerbun’s body before he becomes a zombie too.

Sidenote: Why didn’t everyone bring weapons made of dragonglass or valyrian steel? We know now that only these 2 things plus fire kills the ice zombies and Bae just mined heaps of dragonglass from Khaleesi’s basement for this very purpose. Sometimes I think I should be the King in the North, ya know!?

But back to the battle, the Hound decides to skip stones across the lake like an idiot, which leads the ice zombies to learn that the lake is frozen solid again. Now that the zombies can cross the lake, they attack the crew and they are VICIOUS. Bae and co retreat to another little island but are completely surrounded and basically dead. Bae is tweakin’ out probably thinking about what a bad idea all of this was, when all of the sudden, Khaleesi’s dragons have landed!

They all fly around burning up ice zombies by the hundreds and narrowly missing our crew. After Khaleesi successfully wipes out a good number of zombies, she lands to let her priority boarding pass holders on dragon #1 with her. Meanwhile, Bae is still fighting off some zombies. The #1 in charge ice zombie aka the Night King, throws a giant ice spear at #2 or #3 dragon (honestly idk, let’s say #3) and makes it on the first try. It’s sad that #3 gets speared and all but I’m kinda like wow nice shot. Dragon #3 falls into the icy water and sinks and Khaleesi is weepin’ about it.

At the same time, Bae is now fully overrun by interloping zombies and this FLIGHT IS ABOUT TO DEPART, honey! He falls into an ice-hole and Khaleesi sees the Night King winding up his ice javelin so she has to go. I know what you’re thinking, wow Bae is super dead, right? He fell into a frozen lake whilst being attacked by zombies. WELL YOU ARE WRONG.

Bae crawls outta that ice hole, grabs his fancy sword, and starts walking. Soon enough the zombies see him walking in a non-zombie-like fashion so they are on it. BUT Bae’s uncle Benjen (who is pretty much the only person whose relationship with Bae is unchanged by his whole bio-dad and bio-mom thing!) rolls up on his horse with his incense-swinger! Uncle B saves Bae (remember Uncle B saved Bran last season?) and sticks him on his horse, but stays behind to fight off zombies with his incense-swinger. Bae, who is like 65% Leo-from-Titanic-frozen at this point, heads back to the wall.

The rest of the crew are back at Eastwatch and we learn that the Hound is the one who’ll be bringing the “sample zombie” back to show QPC. Khaleesi is watching from the top of the wall to see if Bae makes it back while Stoney is like, let it go, he’s dead, I’m alive and recently not-Stoney...when suddenly Bae rides back to camp.

On the ship back to Khaleesi-ville, Khaleesi sees Bae on the operating table and notices that he has a stab-scar on his heart. Remember when Bae died and then got brought back to life but then Bae has been super secretive about it? Well the secret's out babe! She watches him being warmed up/revived and sits there watching him sleep for awhile #gottaenjoytheview. When he wakes up (still topless!) he’s like wow I’m so sorry #3 dragon died this was a horrible plan. And she’s like no, I’m glad I saw the army of zombies. I will fight with you, Bae.

And Bae is like wow, also I know I said I wouldn’t kneel to you but honey, I will. Then he calls her Dany and she’s like...eww...my creepy bro used to call me that. And he’s like well then I’ll just call you MY KWEEN. And I’m like yassss gaga. Also they hold hands. Also, she’s like I can’t have kids, ok?!? So just… cards on the table. They hold hands some more and it looks like we might get a little kiss but naw, she’s G2G.

In our last scene, we see thousands of zombies working together (good for you! teamwork!) to pull dragon #3 out of the frozen lake. The Night King walks over and touches him and BAM! ZOMBIE DRAGON. SHIT IS GONNA GET REAL.

Let’s recap:

Biggest surprise this ep: Uncle Benjen? How did you know Bae was in this part of town?

Biggest letdown: I wanted more witty banter from Thor! Also, enough with the will-they won’t-they, GoT. This isn’t Cheers!

Important fashion moments: Khaleesi’s Wintertime Fantasy Realness was GIVING ME LIFE. THAT. COAT.��

Who died this ep? Gingerbun, a lot of ice zombies, Uncle Benjen (although he was kinda already dead?) and dragon #3. RIP Gingerbun I will miss being confused-ly attracted to you.

Thanks for reading! Tell your friends and subscribe!?

[dirtdiggersanddinosaurs]

#PressTrip This weekend marks 3 weeks since we experienced the delights of Timber Festival and 3 weeks until we fully immerse ourselves in our next Wild Rumpus adventure at Just So. But before you start to hate me too much, I’ll crack on and tell you all about how we got on at Timber.

For those of you who read my preview (if you didn’t, catch up here) you’ll know that Timber Festival was our eagerly anticipated start to the Summer and this year’s festival season. We were looking for a chilled out vibe, with lots to keep the kids happy and generally we wanted to spend some quality time together continuing on from our holiday.

So how did it measure up?

Well if you’re expecting a run down of the acts and experiences I’d listed in my preview as our must sees, then you’re going to be slightly disappointed…why? Because when we got there, the site was so beautiful, calm and spread out that we kept getting distracted and stumbling across other things by accident. We were then completely absorbed and forgot all about what we were meant to have been doing.So basically we decided not to be ruled by the programme, and instead discover, explore and enjoy the festival on our own terms. Yes, we did miss a few things that we wanted to see but this way we found we took in things that we wouldn’t have necessarily chosen on paper. Plus, it gives us a few things to add to our Timber 2020 bucket list.

Practicalities for Parents.

Timber Festival takes place in Fearnedock near Ashby in the National Forest and runs over a three day weekend. The festival encourages families to immerse themselves into the heart of the forest while exploring their relationship with trees and nature.

The site is relatively well spaced out and there is a fair bit of walking involved for those with little legs but luckily we had a wagon, well I say lucky but I’m not entirely convinced that Ben considered himself lucky when he was pulling two sleepy children and our gear (we took chairs and a large picnic blanket) back up the hill when we left!

There were plenty of water points throughout the site so take a reusable water bottle with you and stay hydrated, especially if the sun is shining. There was also a cashpoint near to the entrance although some of the vendors took card payments.If you feel slightly nervous of taking a baby to a festival set in a forest then fear not, we were your happy little guinea pigs and took Eli (8 months) with us.

Imagine my glee when I discovered A BABY CHANGING TENT. This was a tepee style arrangement that was laid out with changing mats and also a selection of biodegradable nappies and wipes too should you find yourself running low. So no trekking back to the campsite each time to change a nappy, or trying to balance a baby on your knee while you do the honours! Not necessarily high up on everyone’s priorities when choosing a festival but it certainly made my day a whole lot easier. Mama’s you’re with me on this, right?

Our Foray into the Forest.

After trading in our tickets for wristbands we headed into the site intending to meander down to Field Notes to chill out for a bit and get our bearings before exploring. This however didn’t happen as Stanley spotted a familiar mini gypsy caravan in As The Crow Flies and we had no choice but follow a very excited 5 year old into the woodland clearing.

Ian Douglas Campfire Stories

In a totally non-stalkerish way [honestly] we tend to follow Ian Douglas around a bit, over the last few years we’ve caught up with him at ‘A Day at the Lake’ which was held at Rudyard Lake and annually at Etruria canals Festival. So it was a complete no brainer that we would listen to his stories at Timber as my boys (and me) absolutely love him.

Any campfire would be a pretty sad and lonely place without the incredible Ian Douglas, the storyteller to end all storytellers. Storytelling inspired by British folk tales and world myths.

So we settled in around the fire, and allowed ourselves to get taken into a magical world of adventure. Be warned: audience participation is not only actively encouraged it’s almost compulsory, and adds to the theatre. Stories need sound effects and we became waves crashing up against the rocks.

Hammer & Chisel

Could this have been any more perfect for my boys?

Wild play rules at our unique woodland playground. Under the supervision of our forest play experts, create your own world or add to ours using pallets, ladders and ropes and help us put together a myriad of walkways, dens and secret spaces. Pick up your tool of choice and get ready to build a Timberland.

Well, unsurprisingly they wholeheartedly threw themselves into this. I actually think Ben enjoyed it just as much as the boys did, there’s something about men and tools…they are instantly drawn to them.

After waiting, and waiting and a bit more waiting I gave up and left them to it and happily headed back to the campfire for another story this time to be enjoyed without a child wriggling around on my knee – bliss!

Professor Pumpernickel’s Mind-bending Science Show.

Eventually the boys downed tools and joined me at the campfire just in time for Professor Pumpernickel’s science show. I know what you’re thinking..sounds a bit boring right, this is a festival not a classroom! Well if you’re expecting a tweed wearing professor with half moon glasses you’re going to be in for quite a shock when I introduce you to Professor Pumpernickel.

Professor Pumpernickel travels the country with his laboratory of lunacy. His mission:- to enthuse all ages and abilities about science in hope of seeding some of our future inventors, explorers, life savers and superheroes.

If you like fire, explosions, loads of mess and mind-bending magic, you’ll love Pumpernickel. We certainly did. From his crazy blue hair, to his mad scientist accent there was nothing at all boring about Prof Pumpy.

James was enthralled and took it upon himself to move seats to get closer to the action so he could try to catch the bright orange smoke rings that the Prof shot out of his homemade ‘cannon’. Stanley found the whole show hilarious, giggling his way through.We weren’t out of the woods yet, quite literally! Our next adventure was just around the corner.

TwistingSpace Giant Marble Run

Seeing is believing with this one, the giant marble run was suspended between the trees and was skillfully made from culled rhododendron. It was a beautiful thing to behold, an work of art in itself.

It was also a lot of fun too as the boys raced their marbles down the twisting tracks.

Aside from the main run, there was also a section with pieces that you could build yourself. Coming from a household full of wooden Brio train track, my boys loved creating their own mini marble run and we spent quite a bit of time here.Naturally, we did do a fair bit of hanging around watching the boys play but there was such a relaxed feel and the setting was stunning. It was lovely to just stand and breathe in the forest.

Next stop was the bar (hooray!!) and compared to other events the prices were reasonable and we hardly had to queue as there were bars situated in every general ‘area’ of the site. Once you’ve paid for your (reusable plastic) glass, it’s yours to keep which makes for a nice keepsake of the festival too.Finally, we made our way down the hill into Field notes and set up ‘base’ we sat and enjoyed the sun soaking up the atmosphere. The boys ran around the field and played on the hay bales with some other children. I just love how children make friends so easily.

One of the other boys told Stanley about a giant game of Guess Who, and as he and James came running over to tell us all about it we knew that our time relaxing was about to come to an abrupt halt! So, wagons roll we were off to Halcyon Days!

Beginner’s Luck

This was actually a huge amount of fun, we laughed A LOT!

Dreamt up and brought to life by the Wild Rumpus artistic team, expect to become a human meeple in a giant game of Ludo, crush your opponent in our enormous, ridiculous game of Guess Who and wrestle our gigantic Tiddlywinks into submission!

Watching two Dad’s bellow questions from either end of the Guess Who board…it was huge, they really did have to shout, bless them!..to be greeted with a huge chorus of YES or NO from all the kids who then charged around knocking the characters down was just hilarious and a bit bonkers!

It was fab, and everybody was in such high spirits too, they didn’t even mind too much when James got carried away and started randomly knocking the characters down between turns. It was fun and it was inclusive of all age groups. What a brilliant idea!

We also managed to catch Sweep of Swallows as they passed through. These giant yet graceful swallow puppets toured the site throughout the day.

Next was a much needed comfort break. Now, we all know festival toilets are the stuff of nightmares legend so this wasn’t something I was particularly looking forward to. Timber is a eco friendly festival so the toilets weren’t your standard portaloo’s. Outside each block was a container of straw with a handy sign that read ‘one scoop per poop’. I’m pleased to report that we are no longer compost toilet virgins…and it was nowhere near as bad as I was expecting! Phew!

Back over to Field Notes and we were set to experience my absolute highlight of the Festival…

Otto & The Mutapa Calling

Wow, these certainly made us get our groove on! Even now as I’m typing this 3 weeks later, I’m smiling at the memory.

Otto & The Mutapa Calling were full of energy and we just couldn’t help but dance along. They put on a great show with fab music and showed everyone how to get their bodies moving and shaking along.

James just loved this group and as some of the musicians turned dancers were dancing side to side in front of the stage James tried to copy them. It was so cute, he loves dancing and was very much enjoying himself.

We weren’t the only ones dancing though Otto & The Mutapa Calling in their brightly coloured shirts and headbands seemed to get the whole of Field Notes up onto their feet!

For the next couple of hours we just relaxed in the last of the sunshine, the boys played bubbles with their new friends and we enjoyed an ice-cream from one of the many vendors situated in The Common.

We also had fun rolling down the big hill from the Hollow Way lookout, yes I had a go too but thankfully there’s no photos of that!

Simon Watt’s Frogs & Friends

Frogs might be brilliant but, sadly, they are dying out. In a comedic lecture Simon Watt explores why frogs are better than people!

I found myself alone (Ben and the boys had gone for a stroll) as I gave Eli his bedtime bottle and cuddled him to sleep, sitting listening to Simon’s performance. It was both educational and funny, and I found myself chuckling along with the rest of the audience. It was something completely different and I was glad I got to experience it even if it was slightly unintentionally.

Once the gang came back we headed over to The Canopy via the Eyrie Stage. Esya was performing and we stopped to listen for a while. The stage is in such a beautiful setting that it really is something special. The lighting makes it almost look magical, Stanley described it as an elf house.

Once in The Canopy we settled in and awaited our final performance for the day. We knew it would be popular and got there a little while before it was due to start to grab a good spot.

The Baron in the Trees, Lost in Translation Circus

The Baron in the Trees is a playful, romantic fable set in the 18th century. In this surreal tale the 12 year old son of the Baron climbs a tree in protest at being forced to eat snails, vowing that his feet will never touch the ground again!

To be honest all that was lost on us, ironic given the name of the circus performing the show! HOWEVER, we thoroughly enjoyed the performance regardless. Stanley was completely spell bound watching the amazing acrobatics taking place in the tree tops above him.

We also witnessed high flying stunts, a human tower balancing act and plenty of juggling. There was also a tree top trapeze swing which Stanley said was amazing. After giving the circus a huge round of applause, the sky had started to darken so we decided to call it a day (reluctantly).

On route out of the site we were once again (too easily) distracted by giant bubble blowing in Halcyon Days and stopped to watch a while.

Our Final Say

As a final farewell we climbed up to Hollow Way Lookout for a second time to watch the sun set on what had been a truly memorable day.

Timber is such a treat, a completely chilled out festival suitable for everyone. It’s family friendly but also offers something for those wanting to learn about nature and conservation, enjoy some awesome live music, or simply relax and while away the weekend in a beautiful setting.I personally felt there was a real sense of community among the Timber parents, children made new friends, items of clothing and snacks were shared and at one point we had a little boy climb into our buggy for a nap while Eli was enjoying rolling around on our picnic blanket. I was also asked a couple of times whether I would like a drink fetching because I was trapped under a sleeping baby! Our only regret is that we just attended for one day, but I think you’ll agree we crammed a lot in. We have already put the date in the diary for next year, and we want to do the full weekend next time.

Book Your Tickets for Timber 2020

Tickets for Timber Festival 2020 are now on sale at timberfestival.org.uk. The award-winning festival (Best Festival in the UK 2018) returns to the beautiful 70 acre woodland of Fearnedock in the National Forest from 3-5 July 2020. A limited number of Early Bird tickets are now available to buy online, with a 25% discount on all tickets for residents of the National Forest.

Disclaimer: We attended Timber Festival as a press trip. Tickets were gifted in return for blog coverage, a review of the event and promotion across my social media channels.

All images are my own unless otherwise credited.

Five Go into the Woods: Timber Festival Review 2019 #PressTrip This weekend marks 3 weeks since we experienced the delights of Timber Festival and 3 weeks until we fully immerse ourselves in our next…

[featluke5sos]

Are your requests open? If so could you do one (with any of the boys I don't mind☺️) where Y/N somehow ends up falling into deep water and he has to save her? Maybe like he saw her fall in and jumps in after her or something? Thank you and also just wanna say that I love love love your writing!!💛

Yes, requests are always open! I know sometimes it takes me forever to get around to writing them, but I’m always accepting them

So I know it’s been a while since I’ve written anything, but school’s back in and I just don’t have much time :( plus, I’m working on a book! Which is super exciting but it also takes up a lot of time lol.

But here’s this one! I hope you love it xx

You feel the breeze coming off of the lake as it blows through your hair and sends a shiver through your body. You’re currently sitting on a dock in the middle of the night with your boyfriend, Calum, and his three friends Ashton, Michael, and Luke. Someone came up with the great idea of playing truth or dare out by the lake, and for whatever reason you went along with it.

A few weeks ago, Calum invited you to come on vacation with him and the boys to a private lake house that they’d rented, and you were beyond excited to join him. The only thing is… you can’t swim.

You’ve never told Calum about this because you’re a little embarrassed. At your age, it should be something that you know how to do, but you just never learned. And to be honest, lakes and oceans frighten you. You have no desire to find what’s lurking beneath the surface. 

So far you’ve been able to stay on the shore and tan or only go in the really shallow water, but tomorrow Calum wants to go riding jet skis. You know he���s going to find out you can’t swim at some point. You’re just hoping he doesn’t laugh.

“Luke, truth or dare,” Michael says, bringing your attention back to the game.

So far, everyone has chosen truth, so there hasn’t been much action. But Luke is about to break that trend.

“Dare,” he says confidently.

Michael laughs and turns to Ashton as they try to decide what the dare should be. You’re not paying them much attention. Calum has his arm lazily draped around you and you’re starting to fall asleep. It’s been a long day, and it’s very late.

“I dare you to throw (Y/N) in the lake!” Michael suddenly says.

This immediately wakes you up and you open your mouth to protest. Luke only laughs at your hesitation though as he easily scoops you up from where you’re sitting. You struggle against his hold and try to make the words ‘I can’t swim’ come out of your mouth, but it’s like you’ve forgotten how to speak.

Next thing you know, you’re submerged in freezing water. All of the breath has been knocked out of your body and you go completely still. It takes you a few seconds to realize that you need to try and get back to the surface.

You start flailing your arms, hoping that the boys will realize soon that you don’t know how to swim. You break the surface just long enough to draw in a short breath, but you’re almost immediately dragged back under. You arms start to become numb, and you stop flailing them as hard as your body slowly loses energy. 

You vaguely feel a strong arm wrap around your waist, and you can’t even muster the strength to hold on to whoever is trying to save you. You can feel another pair of hands grabbing onto your arm and pulling you out of the water and back onto the dock, but your eyes refuse to open. It’s like your mind is aware, but your body isn’t.

“(Y/N)!” You hear Calum’s voice yell frantically.

You feel his large, warm hands roaming your face and your body, probably searching for any sign of life.

“Wake up, baby!” He yells, getting more and more panicked with each word. “(Y/N), wake the hell up!”

The next thing you feel are his lips being pressed against your own. You think for a minute that he’s kissing you, but then you feel his hands on your chest and you realize he’s giving you CPR.

You beg your body to wake up and start working again so that you can tell Calum you’re okay, but it isn’t listening. His compressions get more frantic and sloppy, and you can hear him quietly sobbing.

In the background, you hear the other boys bustling around trying to get help, but your mind only focuses on Calum. Somehow you know that he’s the one keeping you here.

“C-Cal,” you whisper, coughing up water as your mouth finally gets the words out.

“Yes! I’m here! (Y/N), keep talking to me!”

You continue to cough, more water coming out of your lungs with each hack. You open your eyes and gently roll onto your side to let the water spill out of your mouth.

When you feel like you can breathe again, you turn back to face Calum. His large, brown eyes are worriedly staring down at you and you can see his freshly shed tears mixing in with the water that’s dripping down his face. He must’ve been the one who jumped in to save you.

“Holy fuck, (Y/N). You scared the hell out of me,” he breathes as he pulls your body against his and holds you tight. “Why didn’t you tell me you couldn’t swim?”

“I was embarrassed,” you say quietly. “If I thought I was going to be thrown into a lake, I might have mentioned it earlier.”

He laughs a little at your sass, but you can tell he’s still freaking out.

“I swear none of the boys are allowed to touch you, come near you, or even breathe in your direction for the rest of time,” he says seriously. “I almost lost you.”

“But you didn’t,” you remind him. “Thanks for rescuing me. You’re my hero, Calum Hood.”

[nutriyumaddict]

Fic prompt AU: Ben is a professor who has come to Pawnee to research some strange phenomenon. Maybe history-related or whatever you want it to be. The only person in town who gives him any help - lots more than he even thinks to ask for - is the Deputy Director of Parks and Rec.

Okay, first of all, this is one of my most favorite prompts that I’ve ever gotten! So much so, that I’ve kind of been hoarding it for…um…six months or so?

I’m so sorry about the delay, anon, but I wanted to wait until I had a really great idea (this was almost a fic about a Pawnee were-raccoon). I think we can all  appreciate that I kept waiting for a better idea.

I’ve wanted to do a Splash AU for the longest time and I just realized last week that this prompt kind of works for that!

And, I’m already 11k in, so this is definitely happening and new chapters should be coming pretty quickly.

Also posted on ao3

A Mermaid Tale (Leslie/Ben) (1/6)

Look, he knows his obsession is kind of weird.

Well, wait, no. It’s not really an obsession. It’s more like an interest. A very strong professional interest. In mermaids.

Alright, fine, it’s kind of weird.

But Ben Wyatt isn’t some Weekly World News-reading crackpot–nope. He’s a Professor of Maritime History & Folklore at Indiana University and everything. He even minored in Marine Biology way back when he was an undergrad, so he knows that the ocean (as well as rivers and lakes and even ponds) are pretty amazing places, ecosystem-wise.

If there are giant squid and gray whales and rainbow trout, why is it so hard to imagine that people throughout the ages have almost always claimed to have seen beautiful half-fish women in the murky depths as well?

And if you fall in the water and they swim over to you and hold your hand, deep down, how can you not want to believe it?

* * * * *

 Duluth, Minnesota 1982

Seven-year-old Ben’s parents are fighting. Again.

The whole family is on a boat, a sightseeing cruise with some relatives up in Duluth and of course Steve and Julia Wyatt are glaring and heatedly whispering at each other right by the fancy display of shrimp cocktails lined up along the buffet table. It’s not as loud as they usually get, but it’s still fairly clear that they’re arguing.

Ben is hiding from everyone and his ten-year-old brother Henry is off doing who knows what. The last Ben saw him, he was dropping his Star Wars action figures on the ground and laughing while getting down low by all the adults’ feet to scoop them back up. And Stephanie is crying and carrying on in his mother’s arms, all while his parents fight away.

Everyone is ignoring little Benji.

He’s under a table out on the deck when something out in the water catches his eye. It’s a shimmer and then a definite sparkle in the calm water and then…a little blonde head pops up. He smiles at the girl around his age and she smiles back.

She has a big shell necklace around her neck and her eyes are bright blue. Her hair is golden like the sun.

Without even realizing what he’s doing, Ben walks over to the railing to get a closer look. He just wants to see her better and he’s also very curious as to why there’s a girl out in the water. Maybe he should get an adult for help but then she grins at him again and her tail flips up out of the water and Ben finds that he can just fit through the gap in the bars of the railing.

He’s still smiling when he hits the cold Lake Superior water below.

* * * * *

 Pawnee, Indiana 2010

It’s a sunny day, so he’s wearing his Ray-Bans as he pulls his Saturn into an empty spot in front of City Hall.

Ben is in Pawnee because he has a google alert set for mermaids and the great lakes. It doesn’t come up with anything all that often, but there have been a handful of mentions about Lake Pawnee of all places over the last few years.

He’s also in Pawnee because last month his girlfriend Victoria moved out of their shared two-bedroom, two-bath condo overlooking Lake Monroe on the outskirts of Bloomington. She left him because he didn’t love her, which still seems massively unfair to Ben. He really wanted to love her. He really tried to love her. Ben just…didn’t. Couldn’t.

Victoria moved out while he was at work and when he got home it was just him and his fish tanks and about half of the furniture. She’d even taken the fancy blender that they had bought together.

So, now seemed like the perfect time to gather up and organize his email folder full of google alerts, bang out a proposal, and try to get approved for a sabbatical from his Assistant Professor position at IU.

At first, he was thinking scholarly article, maybe something he could submit to The Journal of American Folklore but then he figured–no. Think bigger. Think book. That would almost assure his tenure.

And of course, the first step in any book is fieldwork and research. It was the closest location from Bloomington, so he’s here in Pawnee on this sunny Monday in May day to collect data and all the details on possible mermaid sightings in this corner of the Hoosier State. He also plans to visit Kewaunee, Wisconsin, Mackinac Island, Michigan, and Duluth, Minnesota later in the month.

But for convenience sake, southwestern Indiana is his first stop. Pawnee is definitely unique in that it’s not even on one of the Great Lakes. No, any reported sightings here over the years have happened on Lake Pawnee–a deep freshwater 10,750-acre body of water in Wamapoke County, with inflow and outflow sources at Deer Creek.

Once inside the building, after a somewhat scary and confusing trip up to the fourth floor, he eventually gets sent back downstairs to the first floor and to the Parks and Recreation Department.

A sightly imposing and unsmiling man with a full mustache ignores him when he tries to ask questions but then Ben is introduced to a pretty and petite blonde–the Deputy Director of the department. She stares at him intently as she reaches forward to shake his hand. Her skin is warm and soft and for some reason, Ben finds himself wanting to not let go of her hand at all.

But, he does and they end up in a conference room and even though a strange girl with dark hair keeps staring at him menacingly through the glass, Ben turns all of his focus to Leslie Knope.

“I’m really just looking for some preliminary information on Lake Pawnee,” he explains.

“Lake Pawnee? And mermaids?”

Ben nods, opening his laptop.

“Oh,” she scoffs, making a face. “You aren’t interested in Lake Pawnee!”

He looks up, slightly puzzled. “I’m not?”

“No. There are no mermaids there–”

“Okay, I feel like I need to mention again that I know that there are no actual mermaids. I’m not looking for mermaids. I’m looking for talk of mermaids. I’m documenting the occurrences of mermaid folklore. Legends. Oral history. That sort of thing.”

“Right. But still. Lake Pawnee is a complete dead-end. You want to see, uh, the Eagleton Reservoir. Yeah. The Eagleton Reservoir. That’s where everyone in town always talks about when they talk about mermaids. We have the best waffles at JJ’s Diner here in Pawnee and over there, they have all the weirdo mermaid sightings. Ask anyone! Ron? Ron!” She cranes her neck to look out into the work area. “Well, Ron doesn’t care. But if he did, he’d say the same thing.”

Despite the odd start to his project, Ben smiles. And when Leslie smiles back at him, Ben feels himself instinctively scooting closer to the table in his chair.

“How about this?” she suggests. “I can stop working early at five-thirty today. Why don’t you come back here then and I can give you the tour.”

“Of Lake Pawnee?”

“No, Ben,” she chides him lightly. “The Eagleton Reservoir! Oh, well, we can start here at City Hall because that’s where all official tours should begin but then we can go look at the reservoir and finish up with waffles at JJ’s back here in Pawnee, a much better town. For everything,” Leslie pauses. “Except mermaid sightings.”

“Alright.” He agrees with a laugh because, well, he finds himself wanting to spend more time with her for some reason. He’s always had a thing for blondes with blue eyes, plus she does seem to know an awful lot about the area.

She’ll no doubt be a great resource for his research.

[wfitvacations]

No gym required! Cat Smiley’s weight loss boot camp is 100% outside (even in winter)

The ethos of our wellness retreat (fitness programming).

Weight loss boot camp programs get you fit in a way that’s not only achievable, it’s rewarding and fun. Some of the top benefits of joining a wellness retreat like West Coast Fitness Vacations are that in just three weeks, magic starts to happen.

You can trust the results from your your training at WFV weight loss boot camp and wellness retreats. It’s hard to believe them at first, because they seem accelerated. And they are! While we know you’re not going to be exercising or training 3 hours per day at home, here’s the deal. Hunkering down and giving yourself a dedicated couple of weeks of full time workouts is smart. After your fitness retreat, you’ll feel positive about the change you’re making, motivated to continue.

As the Fitness Director of West Coast Fitness Vacations, (a wellness retreat travel company in B.C., Canada) my role is to create incredible and unique workouts. Our health retreat fitness programming is completely outside, rain, hail, snow or shine. My thought behind this one is that if you can exercise outside in the West Coast winter, you can workout anywhere and anytime. Voila, life-long exercising habits are born! And then of course, along came the pandemic and nobody really likes all the cleaning and group stuff we have to do.

And the bottom line, it’s just nicer, better, and more adventurous to make nature our gym. Our many happy health retreat clients agree – click here to hear their stories.

Ready to take a closer look? Let’s jump in.

In this post I’ll share our typical training schedule, so you can pick which wellness retreat vibes best with you. And right at the end, I’ll explain the science behind why our clients get such amazing results from just a few weeks at our weight loss retreats in Canada. You’ll learn more about:

What’s in the weight that you lose (not all of it’s fat)

Why cholesterol improves so much

The unlikely reason that staying focused is easier.

Why wellness retreats in B.C. are worth staying local for

Key differences in programming

West Coast Fitness Vacations has two distinctive styles of wellness retreats. Our weight loss retreat programs in Whistler have more focus on adventure activities.

Vancouver Island is a weight loss camp whereby outdoor exercise is king. We do this at gorgeous oceanside parks, fields, forests and on the beach. It’s a lot of fun.

In Whistler, we achieve our daily cardio quota with hiking, biking, and outdoor fitness classes. We also kayak one day a week. There are tutorials and workshops for each trip style, working through the curriculum that has become the blueprint of our wellness retreats.

Insiders scoop – curriculum will soon be made into a paperback book – Eat, Move, Learn. Guests of our wellness retreats will have first preview!

Outdoor personal training workouts that just make sense

Both Vancouver Island and Whistler weight loss boot camp and fitness retreat programs include outdoor personal training. In Whistler, this is whenever the occasion presents itself and in Vancouver Island it’s scheduled and structured.

These personal training sessions are with the other wellness retreat guests and vary, depending on what’s best. This could be some lower body strength training while the last person in the group catches up, or a stretch class in the forest.

West Coast Fitness Vacations uses a multiple activity workout schedule in small group format. These packages are set up with weight loss as the key focus, which means that everyone is working towards the same common goal.

Isn’t it too much for beginners?

Hey, I hear you. When you’re scrolling through your phone reading about a typical day at our weight loss boot camp, it seems a LOT. And it is – especially if you’ve done zero exercise in a very long time. Yet that’s why we need so much time. We need to take it slower than sometimes is expected. There’s time between workouts to assess and reevaluate.

I’ve been a weight loss coach and master fitness trainer for a while. I completely trust myself and my methodology with plus size fitness programming.

Weight loss coaching that you can trust

Your wellness retreat at West Coast Fitness Vacations will be detailed, strategic, intelligent, researched & personalized. In my role as a fitness leader, I’m continually furthering my education – staying on top of the latest research. That’s important to me, as I really want to give my clients the best possible solutions.

A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau for almost 20 years.

11 years of losing 1000 total pounds or more with my client base

Average weight loss (for clients 230-260lb starting weight) is 23 lbs per month.

Average time to lose 100lbs with me: 7 months and 2 weeks. I usually do 7 x 100lb weight loss projects per year.

I am writing this blog post and will also be your trainer while the pandemic is in effect. We’re operating with a maximum of 4 guests per session until September 2021. Then we’ll move to 6. This is because I’m being super careful with covid, and more guests means more staff…. More people overall. For now, I’m thrilled to be operating as the lead solo of my wellness retreat weight loss boot camp client experiences.

Whistler FItness Vacations is located at the Westin Resort and Spa, Whistler (above)

Multidimensional fitness programming

Whistler Fitness Vacations is definitely a boot camp weight loss vacation, but it’s a powerful place where you feel safe. Safe in your abilities to rise above preconceived restrictions that may have previously held you back from trying certain fitness moves. Safe from judgement.

Results at our weight loss camp in B.C. are accelerated as you find that stubborn person inside you and convince her to be an athlete. By continually bringing new sequences to your workouts your body experiences targeted strength and dramatically improved athletic performance.

You’ll prevent injuries and build multiple foundations of fitness with carefully designed combinations of 5 different fitness classes and small group personal training. Our most popular classes include Learn to Run, Sports Stretch, Water Boot Camp, Athletic Conditioning and Strength Training.

While classes are mostly scheduled outside, if extra modification is needed they will be run in a small group private training format. Small group personal training may be offered (no more than 4 guests in your session) at our beautiful partnership health club. Master new skills, push your physical limits and elevate your perception of what you can achieve!

Why this wellness retreat in Canada MUST be on your bucket list

West Coast Fitness Vacations guides are the best in the business! Click here to learn about our team.

You’ll never feel left out, or left behind.

“What if I’m the oldest, or most out-of-shape at your women’s fitness camp?”

“I don’t want to injure myself on a fat camp vacation! ”

“Imagine if I do all this work and still don’t lose the weight?”

“What if I put the weight back on?”

Most have asked themselves these things at least once during the signup process for our beginner fitness retreats. But if you have met our base fitness requirements, then we’ve got a program for you. We’ll teach you how to be compassionate with yourself, and that includes setting the right goals for where you are now.

Vancouver Island residential weight loss camp (biggest loser style) – 1-4 months

Low impact, high intensity workouts

The best wellness retreats know that beginner bodies don’t work at the same speed sometimes, as beginner enthusiasm does! For that reason, our weight loss retreats for women prioritize weight-bearing exercises (such as hiking).

These activities will strengthen and build your bones – an excellent way to slow down bone loss as you age.Walking is easier for most guests at our luxury fitness retreat programs, but often their fitness is too high to get the cardiovascular benefits that running could. Yet their bodies don’t like running due to prior injuries or restrictions, so we make it amazing with incredible hiking routes and high-intensity hills.

Whistler guided hiking tours are a popular program at Whistler Fitness Vacations. These can build up to running for a few minutes on the flatter terrain – the dirt trails are nice on the joints. We also go on big walks around the famous Valley Trail of Whistler, our stunning pedestrian road that winds 40 kms. around rivers, lakes and forests.

You’ll improve quickly at our health retreat. Each day on your outdoor fitness retreats, you’ll be challenged to the next level. You’ll use new muscles and work your heart and lungs harder, building your fitness with fast progression.

Learn more about our Whistler guided hiking tours 

Hiking retreats and walking for fitness

Ten thousand daily steps is the base minimum part of your stay with West Coast Fitness Vacations. Whether you choose Whistler or Vancouver Island location, both programs guide you with nature walks in some of B.C.’s most pristine trails.

Our Whistler wellness retreats include hiking as part of the ongoing fitness activity. These are carefully selected based on guests ability, fitness level and hiking experience. Discover the ancient glaciers and volcanic history of both the Whistler valley and alpine – while revisiting the iconic places made famous by the 2010 Olympic Games. Have lunch under the Olympic rings on Blackcomb Mountain, or snap a photo with the Inukshuk on the Top of The World at the Whistler peak (summer sessions only).

With multiple group levels and route plans carefully designed for each guest, you’ll feel safe (and confident) in your abilities. Whistler’s incredible valley links over 40 kms. of multi-use trails that wind between the stunning lakes, forests and rivers. Alpine hiking is scheduled for July and August guests looking to challenge themselves in the world famous Peak2Peak accessed terrain.

Whistler Fitness Vacations includes biking and fitness kayaking as part of it’s multi-adventure weekly activity. Water boot camp is scheduled during off-peak hours, when the pool is quiet. It’s a way to cool off while getting your ‘cardio quota’ after a big day in the mountains!

7 great reasons why a wellness staycation In Canada is more enticing (than ever)

Biking on the valley trails, Whistler weight loss camp

Take in the stunning landscape of Whistler’s valley while cruising along the 40km paved trails that link our best scenic spots. With the company of our experienced fitness retreat guides, you’ll love the customized routes that we put together for you! Hiking and biking is part of the aerobic requirement needed for body transformation goals. Training targets are carefully assigned, and heart rate monitors are essential.

Fitness kayaking in the glacial lake

Fitness kayaking in one of the valleys most picturesque lakes is one of the best aerobic workouts of the week. With kayaks and life jackets to fit all sizes, even if you’ve never paddled, stable single boats and detailed instructions will get you quickly confident. Professionally qualified kayak instructors from Whistler Eco Tours (our partners) are on hand for tips as needed. Kayaking is unguided free time for you to enjoy.

Water boot camp at the Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler

When the pool is quiet, we offer this class with our guests who are staying at the Westin. This high-intensity zero impact class uses barbells, buoyancy belts, and resistance fins. We keep your head above water and your heart in the cardio zone throughout. The forgiving water environment lets you sprint, jump and do exercises that you never thought possible.

Signature wellness retreat workouts

Below are my four top classes at our wellness retreat programs.

Athletic Conditioning. During your fitness retreat, you’ll learn techniques and form to improve overall athleticism. Using medicine balls and fun training tools (such as hurdles and ladders) these workouts are fun, empowering and playful.

Learn To Run. If you feel stuck in a fast walk then this workshop will be truly transformative – it’s one of the most memorable workshop! You’ll learn the adaptive form of gentle jogging that will elevate your heart rate without putting pain or discomfort on your joints.

Sports Stretch. Our stretch classes are truly an inspiring experience, especially when we get to go onto the Lost Lake dock surrounded by water! We’ll teach you easy-to-follow routines that will drastically improve your mobility, with yoga inspired moves that are adjusted for you.

Strength Training. We’ll introduce you to the basics of strength training with simple exercises that you can do at home. Outdoor workouts are one of the best parts of your fitness retreat, and we also use the health club at the Westin sometimes. You’ll learn restorative conditioning exercises throughout your fitness retreat experience.

But won’t you gain all the weight back?

Depending on your starting point, you can expect to lose upwards of 20 pounds in your first month at our weight loss boot camp. This is both muscle glycogen loss and stored fats. Usually those that come to our health retreat with history of higher intake of starch-based carbs lose more – initially.

Similar to the carb loading principal before an athletic event – excess carb creates excess glycogen. Athletes can lose more than 10 pounds in a strenuous physical event, much of it, excess glycogen and sodium.

The same principal applies to your first couple of weeks at a fitness retreat.

Click here to learn about upcoming wellness retreats and weight loss camp programs.

Weight loss will be faster – and not all of it is fat

Exercise of any kind greatly increases your metabolism, as compared to being sedentary. At West Coast Fitness Vacations, you’ll be moving throughout the day. We do 3 hours training per day – regardless what wellness retreat trip style you choose. The Vancouver Island weight loss boot camp program is probably the most intensive exercise regimen.

The weight that you lose is safe and sustainable, even if it’s coming off quickly. Normally your body has two sources of energy, one from stored fats and muscle glycogen, the other from food you just ate. Your body uses the most readily available energy, those that are stored near and is within the working tissues, so fats are the one that would be burned first through exercise.

Nancy Snyderman, MD, a FITNESS advisory board member, editor-in-chief of BeWell.com, and chief medical editor for NBC news says it all.

“It’s pretty simple: You need to burn more calories than you consume in order to lose weight, Regular exercise blasts excess calories that would otherwise be stored as fat. Plus, you continue to burn calories even in the hours following your workout.”

Once your body has adapted to using this stored fuel through exercise, it automatically burns them – even when you’re resting!

Every change you decide to make is a step closer towards your goal.

In an interview with Dr. Carly Stewart, Medical Expert at Money Crashers Personal Finance,Dr. Stewart said that,

Generally speaking, you can expect to feel healthier and stronger after two to three weeks of exercise (along with a proper diet). However, you may not see any significant changes in muscle growth or weight loss (depending upon your goals) until after the first few months.

Low-Density Lipoproteins (LDL) or the bad fats are the ones that cling to the arteries and can cause heart attacks. They are decreased with the help of the good soldiers, The High-Density Lipoproteins (HDL) which are increased through exercise. “The right kinds of workouts, done regularly, can raise levels of heart-protecting HDL cholesterol and drop dangerous triglyceride levels.” – Robert H. Eckel, MD, professor of medicine in the cardiology division at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Increased focus, productivity and alertness

At West Coast Fitness Vacations, the daily workout schedule is what you might call ‘heart pumping!’ You see, training makes your body pump more blood to your muscles. This increases alertness especially during the first few weeks of exercise, consequently increasing brain function.

Dr. Stewart explained the reason why,

Exercise improves oxygen flow to the brain. It also helps the body release hormones that assist in brain cell growth. Additionally, it helps the brain with both learning and memory capabilities.

Exercise affects your brain both directly and indirectly. Exercise reduces inflammation, decreases insulin resistance and helps in producing new blood vessels in your brain. The indirect gains that you can get from exercising are that improved sleep, as you’ll have reduced anxiety and stress.

CLICK HERE TO BOOK A WELLNESS RETREAT IN CANADA

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[itsworn]

Bill Tower’s Amazingly Advanced 1956 SR-2 Corvette: Decades Ahead of Its Time!

There were exciting things were underway inside of Chevrolet in 1956. The Corvette received its first body refresh, there was an optional dual-quad, 225-horsepower 265 engine (RPO 469, $172.20) and a Special High-Lift Camshaft option (RPO 449, $188.30) that bumped the power of the dual-quad 265 to 240 horsepower, plus fuel injection was in the works.

Corvettes set records at Daytona Beach and took a class win at the 12 Hours at Sebring; memorialized with the now classic “Real McCoy” print ad. Things were looking up for Corvette.

Meanwhile, an unlikely series of events happened in Corvette creator, Harley Earl’s house; that could have become the Z06 of its day. Earl’s son Jerry bought a Ferrari with the intention of going racing. When Harley learned of his son’s plans, he hit the roof! “No son of mine is going out there with an Eye-talian car!” he allegedly bellowed. As GM’s VP of the Art and Color Division, Earl could do anything he wanted, so he charged top designer, Bob Cumberford, with the task of designing a race car for Jerry. The completed car was called “SR-2.”

Cumberford and his team took the all-new 1956 Corvette body and extended and lowered the nose, created a vented hood, short twin wind screens, side air scoops on the doors and a low vertical stabilizer fin on the trunk lid. Decked out with Halibrand knock-off wheels and metallic blue paint, the SR-2 was a great-looking Corvette. Jerry picked up his customized, basically stock Corvette on May 24, 1956, and raced the car at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, through the summer months. The car was a hit, thanks to its unique looks, but at 2,900 pounds, it was heavy and quickly ate up its brakes. The SR-2 was not competitive.

Earl’s successor, Bill Mitchell, was two years away from taking over as VP of Design had enough clout to order an SR-2 built for him. The Jerry Earl SR-2 was more of a styling study, Mitchell directed his SR-2 to be an all-out lightweight racer.

The body was so thin that the fiberglass matting can be seen at certain angles. While the nose of Mitchell’s SR-2 was similar to Earl’s car, Mitchell’s SR-2 had a tall vertical stabilizer fin that was integrated into the driver’s headrest. Hidden inside the headrest were a rollbar and a racing fuel filler cap for the 48-gallon fuel tank. The side scoops were ducted through the rear of the door and doorjamb, directly to the rear brakes. Yes, functional external rear brake scoops, just like a modern Z06. The interior had lightweight fiberglass racing bucket seats with racing seatbelts; a full instrument cluster; a custom-designed teakwood steering wheel with a column-mounted 8,000-rpm tachometer; stainless steel gas, brake and clutch pedals; lightweight door panels with tuck ’n’ roll door panels and a single door-close strap.

Under the hood of Mitchell’s SR-2 is a tricked-out, Smokey Yunick-built, fuelie 283 small-block Chevy engine. Keep in mind that the SBC had just come out. Advanced parts included Packard Electric solid-core stainless steel high-tension ignition wires and a higher-voltage ignition coil. The generator was mounted on the left side to give the tension-side of the belt better grip on the water pump pulley. Inside the engine was the Special High-Lift (Duntov) Cam. Most unique was the fiberglass ram-air box that connected to the driver-side inner fenderwell and was ducted to the front grille opening. The engine dynoed to 310 horsepower, a lot for 1956.

The suspension was straight out of the RPO Racer Kit parts catalog and included heavier front springs, five-leaf rear springs, larger 13/16-inch front sway bar, larger diameter 1-3/8-inch stiffer shocks, quick-ratio 16.3:1 steering and rear torque rods (traction bars). The rear axle was the new Multi-Disc Limited-Slip Positraction unit. Brakes were aluminum-finned drums with cast-in steel liners and Bendix Cerametalix brake shoes.

The SR-2 used every aerodynamic trick of the day. “Streamlining” was the buzzword of the day, just like today’s “downforce.” The SR-2 had headlight cones, short windscreens and a faired in headrest with an aircraft-style vertical stabilizer fin for high-speed stability. We see the same concept on the modern prototype road racing cars.

Although aerodynamicist Wunibald Kamm invented what we call today the “Kammback” design that is very aerodynamically efficient, automotive designers and stylists favored the tapered teardrop-style for high-speed cars. While not as extreme as the long tapered speed record cars from Europe, the design of the 1953-’60 Corvette’s rear section tapers down.

Because of the rear vertical stabilizer fin, the large trunk section was hinged at the back and opens to the back. Both the front and back of the SR-2 were void of bumpers and are very clean-looking.

The SR-2’s Smokey Yunick-built engine was special inside and out. Production 1956 Corvettes had 265-cid small-block engines, but the SR-2 had the 283-cid engine. The unreleased Rochester fuel-injection system was part of the SR-2’s engine setup and was part of the fuelie’s development program. Deep inside the 283, the bumpstick was a pre-production high-lift “Duntov” cam. Steel-tube headers were a novel item in 1956. Yunick’s engine dynoed to 310 horsepower.

The airbox was a trick setup in 1956 and showed how serious the SR-2’s designers were about looking for as much horsepower as they could get. The concept is alive and well and is today a popular and easy add-on for C5, C6 and C7 Corvettes. And there it was, back in 1956!

What’s most amazing about Mitchell’s 2,200-pound SR-2 is that it was built by fabricators at Chevrolet that were not race car builders, but were damn good builders. Later, they built Duntov’s Corvette SS. But the SR-2 met the same fate as the Corvette SS; the 1957 AMA Racing Ban. In December 1956, Mitchell campaigned the car in the Nassau 70-mile Governor’s Trophy Race finishing 10th overall. In February 1957, Mitchell took his SR-2 to the Daytona Beach Speed Week, outfitted with an enclosed canopy, full Moon disc wheel covers and semi-enclosed rear wheels, a red and white stripped rear fin and Zoomy headers! Buck Baker drove the SR-2 to a Modified Class win with an average standing-mile speed of 93.047 mph, and was first in the Flying Mile at 152.866 mph. Then in March 1957, Mitchell’s SR-2 competed at the 12 Hours of Sebring, coming in 16th place overall.

After the AMA Ban, the SR-2 was sold and bought, and was eventually owned by Don Yenko’s private plane pilot, Cookie Knuth, who didn’t do much with the car. In 1980, Chevrolet development engineer Bill Tower bought the car from Knuth and set it aside, as he was very busy working for Chevrolet. After some consideration, since the SR-2 was only missing a few parts, Tower chose to simply put it back together.

Tower had an interesting encounter with retired Bill Mitchell in a meeting that was supposed to last 15 minutes that turned into 3 hours. The first thing Mitchell said was, “You got my damn car and I want it back! That one got away from me. I got in a lot of trouble with those cars.” The two men benched raced about all kinds of things, with Mitchell telling Tower that he’d help him get a set of fiberglass buckets for the SR-2. When the two parted, Mitchell said, “You take care of that car and don’t wreck it! That car is very special to me!”

Tower’s SR-2 is driveable, but he hasn’t taken it out on the streets take after a near T-bone incident. Now he only drives the SR-2 after it has been transported to special events. In 1982, Tower was invited to bring the SR-2 to the Daytona 500 to the Chevrolet tent along with the new IROC Camaros. Bill Mitchell and Bill France, Sr. were there as well. After “a few,” Mitchell and France wanted to take the SR-2 out for a few laps, to which Tower said, “Like hell you will!” At the 1986 Indy 500, Tower and Pace Car driver General Chuck Yeager took a few laps in the SR-2. Later in 1986, Tower was invited to display the SR-2 at a special Chevrolet event on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Chevrolet luminaries such as Clare MacKichan, Vince Piggins, Bill Mitchell and other GM executives were there along with Linda Vaughn and singer Neil Diamond.

Since then, Tower doesn’t show the car very often and it is mostly seen via visits to his private museum. In 2016, retired VP of Global Design Ed Wellburn visited Tower and was totally blown away with the SR-2. He couldn’t get over how many key design elements on the C7 were also on the SR-2. Tower says, “Of all of my cars, the SR-2 is most special to me. Look at everything that’s in the car. And it was built in 1956!” Vette

Although on the surface the SR-2 was a toy for Bill Mitchell to go racing with, the SR-2 was an official Development car. Tower says that the numbers on the stamped metal plate attached to the top of the radiator indicate the different projects that were done to the SR-2. The overall SR-2 project didn’t have an “X” or “EX” number indicating that it was an experimental car.

The Halibrand 15×6 wheels were cast in magnesium. Take note of the five slots in the wheel’s design. That style was used when Kelsey-Hays developed the 1967 steel Rally Wheels. Knock-off wheels helped speed up pit stops, but many knockoff wheels came off of cars because the spinners weren’t properly tightened.

The SR-2 was a serious lightweight race car, but the spartan interior was nicely finished. The teakwood and stainless steel steering wheel went through over a dozen different diameter and offset variations until Mitchell got what he liked.

Even the dash was made of thin fiberglass. Note that the dash is unique, as the production Corvette’s dash had a mirrored hump on the passenger side. Serious racing instruments mounted to brushed-metal plate replaced the stock instruments.

When Tower bought the car, the original SR-2 seats were long gone. During his 3-hour meeting with retired VP of Design, Bill Mitchell, the design legend told Tower, “I’m going to help you with your SR-2 project.” A few weeks later a set of fiberglass seats arrived at Tower’s home. The seats had RPO number molded into the fiberglass, indicating that at some point, Chevrolet was considering offering racing seats as part of the Corvette’s RPO program.

The doors were gutted of their window mechanisms to make room for the side scoop vents that lead back to cool the rear brakes. The interior door panel was tuck ’n’ roll aluminum with vertical ribs and a door closure pull.

The finish and attention to detail on the SR-2 is extraordinary. While the SR-2 race car was built by fabricators that were not race car builders, they were the same people that built the Motorama cars, so they were highly qualified craftsmen. The instrument panel looks like a component from a Ferrari. Note the metal pedals that didn’t come on Corvettes until 1997.

The one single element on the SR-2 that did not belong on the car is the big toothy grille. But, you have to consider that the build of the SR-2 was being directed by Harley Earl and Bill Mitchell. Both men had an acute sense of how things presented and looked. Even the 1957 Corvette SS racer had a big grille up front.

The functional rear brake scoops was one of many design elements that blew away retired GM Global Design Chief, Ed Welburn, when he visited Tower’s museum. Welburn said, “We didn’t put this on the Corvette until the 2001 Z06!”

In our time, we don’t associate Corvettes with NASCAR. But from 1936-1958 Daytona Beach was where speed records and Stock Car racing happened. Tower’s SR-2 and his Betty Skelton 1956 Corvette both set speed records on the nearly 2-mile-long beach straightaway part of the Daytona Beach and Road Course in 1957.

“What’s with the big fin?” you ask. Speed records provided street cred for performance cars back in the day. Logic of the day said; since vertical stabilizers are essential for airplanes and jets, a tall, long fin could only help a speed record seeking race car.

For many years road racing cars had to carry a spare tire. In case of a blowout the driver was required to change his own tire off on the side of the track. Because of the headrest and rear fin, the trunk lid had to be hinged from the rear. Tower has a unique lead mallet designed by Proto for knock-off Indy car wheels. The slightly loose handle gave a second hit on the knock-off spinner.

The twin windscreens were beautifully handcrafted by the Chevrolet master fabricators.

Bill Mitchell hated hood pins that stuck up and had to have their pin retainer and attachment cord in the wind. He insisted on flush-mounted, aircraft-style latches for the hood and trunk.

The vented hood was another detail that rocked Ed Welburn. This functional design element didn’t make it into production until 2014. Venting the hood helps the engine keep cooler, plus reduces frontend lift. This concept would have helped the 1963-’67 Sting Rays a lot.

The fuel filler door is located just behind the headrest. Note the rollbar tubes. NASCAR didn’t like exposed rollbars back then. The filler cap indicates that Mitchell and his team intended to race the car the following June at Le Mans. See the ring tab that’s close to the fill cap latch? A special seal was put on the fuel cap at the beginning of the race. The seal could not be broken before a car’s first pit stop for fuel.

The SR-2 sure makes Marilyn look good, doesn’t it? Marilyn Monroe was on her way to Miami for a screening of her new movie Bus Stop. At the Sebring Airport she got a ride to the racetrack on the Thursday practice session. She posed with several cars, including the SR-2. Attendees and drivers couldn’t believe it was her. Photo: SportsCarDigest.com

Here is Bill Tower at the inaugural Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance receiving the Earl B. Hadlow Award for his 1956 SR-2. From left-to-right is; Sting Ray and Daytona Cobra designer Peter Brock; National Director for Hospice; seated in the SR-2 is Betty and Bill Tower; standing next to Tower is Sir Stirling Moss; representative from Barnette Bank; and stylist Larry Shinoda. Photo: Bill Tower Photo Collection

The “Jet Age” began in the late 1940s and by the mid-’50s car designers were adding jet aircraft styling elements to their car designs. This photo was taken at the GM Tech Center before being transported to Daytona Beach. The SR-2 was decked out with an enclosed canopy, full Moon discs, semi-enclosed rear wheels and Zoomie headers. Tower pointed out that because of the small 283-cubic-inch engine, the dragster-style headers didn’t provide enough scavenger effect and didn’t help the car’s performance. Photo: GM Archives

Here’s the tricked out “Jet Age” SR-2 on at the Daytona Beach Speed Week event. The SR-2 took a Modified Class win with an average standing-mile speed of 93.047 mph and was first in the Flying Mile with a speed of 152.866 mph. Impressive for a 310-horsepower car 283 car. Photo: Bill Tower Photo Collection

The SR-2 raced at Sebring in 1957 with Paul O’Shea and Pete Lovely doing the driving. Race car suspensions have come a long way since 1957. Photo: Bill Tower Photo Collection

Posing in a relaxed moment, perhaps after Marilyn’s visit, the SR-2’s pit crew and drivers Paul O’Shea (with the sunglasses) and Pete Lovely. Sebring is hallowed ground for Corvette racing history. All of the greats of Corvette lore—past and present—have been there. Photo: Bentley Publishing

The post Bill Tower’s Amazingly Advanced 1956 SR-2 Corvette: Decades Ahead of Its Time! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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[marcusambigu-blog]

Strawberry Ice-cream or My First Super Short Story

Preface

 So, that’s my first blog for whole life plus also that’s my first blog in English. The reason for making it was to improve my level in it and to practice especially in writing skills because I’m really interested in this area now and honestly have always fallen in love in it but this side has always been as a hobby for me. I’ve recently decided to change my mind for creating a new challenge for me. This Challenge is to try to write something every single day (I’d like to focus on daily short story and most of them are going to be unreal or half - real or not). Today, I’d like to post my first short story here. I’ve tried to write different types of stories in Russian for all my life but it was a long time ago plus I’d actually like to write something new in English. I understand that more likely it’s going to be badly or even disgusting but I hope that it’ll help me out to level up my skills. 

 Strawberry ice-cream

  Once upon a time, Mike went out with his best friend. Mike was 10 years old boy who constantly got into trouble (it was his second favorite hobby after staying under downspout during raining like taking a shower right outside). Mike was so out-going and adventurous child and adored to join to any challenges in his enjoyable child life. I think, you’ve already understood the Mike’s love to water. Same as most children, ice-cream was his one of the main weaknesses as well. Mike got a best friend, Charly. They got so strong bonds like friends, their fathers were best friends as well and that had become a live example reflexing a real friendship.

Anyway, Mike and Charly had planned on walking on ice on this day. They lived in small city in Canada close by few popular in this place lakes but every winter all lakes got covered in thick layer of ice. Frozen lakes combined with massive Red cedar surrounding them made an amazing view inspiring anyone. Mike and Charly would rather to wander on nearest lake 5 miles away, north part of their city. They got a custom to go there after Mike’s birthday at the end of February, walking and talking for a few hours and enjoying incredible sights. At this time this list had been added one item more, named «strawberry ice-cream», that was a gift by Mike’s uncle. Mike was so happy, grabbed one pack of strawberry ice-cream (contained 2 wrapped cones) with himself then in 30 mins was on the way to the nearest lake with Charly. Boys decided to keep the ice – cream in Mike’s backpack before they reached the lake, enjoy it later.

They got to this direction in approximately 1 hour. Mike were so starving and had tried to be tempted by waving magic power looked like usual strawberry ice-cream. Charly every time stopped him and asked to wait for a while because they were so close from the lake. In result, finally they stepped out of the forest and emerged on narrow rocky lake bank which opened mesmerizing view of enormous sky mirror right before their foots.

«It literally looks like our favorite summer ice-cream on winter. Awesome! » – astonished Charly.

«Yes, agreed but I think ice cream is better! » – added Mike.

«Hahaha, for sure» – exclaimed Mike, added «Let’s finally wrap the box, I’m sick of waiting, Cha».

«Ok, ok, let’s do it, your birthday, your rules» – joked Charly.

«I don’t remember you talked about it before» - rebuked Mike.

«Oh common, let’s open» – signed Mike.

Mike took off his bluish-blackish backpack covered some of pics of Marvel heroes then unzipped the biggest backpack pocket and pulled out a carton, bit sticky, blue box, then unwrapped it quickly and reached out for the most desired stuff at the moment, strawberry ice cream. There wasn’t no doubt that there were thousands of flavors stood out from the crowd but dear reader, you know, when you’re a child then you usually appreciate the moments which give you strong emotions and if we’re talking about an ice-cream, believe me, the taste of your first one like whether cheapest vanilla cone or a few scoops of pistachio in ice-cream shops, it doesn’t matter because the first taste even expired one will be more than sugar, eggs, cream and milk, it will keep in your memory, the memory about your childhood.

Mike and Charly took off their backpack, put on the small piece of ground between the beginning of  forest and a rocky line before an even ice surface of lake. Then they started to wander on the ice carefully and few minutes late the wandering turned into running, jumping and riding. The dish of this day was happiness with flavor of strawberry ice-cream or strawberry ice-cream with favor of happiness. My dear reader, I’m sure you understand what I mean.

By the way, the weather outside was amazing, the sun was already warming spring fond sun beams even though a temperature was 14 F. Every time when Mike touched his lips to pinkish cool cream, he felt the taste, a little melted because of a sun help and kept finishing this process in his mouth. Time got frozen at this frame where best friends were sincere happy and surrounding reality invited to ask two characters of our short story to have a fairy dance out of the time and the place. Smiling, laughing and the power of moment … it was Mike’s birthday now. And … abruptly there was a loud ice crackle … boom… gloomy flame of glacial water with billions of mysterious bubbles … Wow … it’s incredible and boom again, there’s something evil and so scared like sudden awakening in earliest morning got punched in every nerve of your body… boom… something horrible is coming, something horrible is happening inside of you … panic is coming … messing up in your mind and suddenly …what’s it … just grab it, grab it, GRAB!!!!!!!!!!!!! ………

One moment later, drenched Mike lying among huge frozen lake, kept coughing and Charly leaned to the friend body kept repeating one word «Mike». A few minutes later, Mike was standing up with Charly holding him, they were looking at each other and then,

«Are you ok?» - stuttered Charly.

«Yes, I’m better now. Thank you! » - stammered Mike because of the cold filling his body

«I got scared when it happened! » - whispered Charly taking of his jacket and covering Mike.

«I got it, me too, thank you! » - kept still a little stammering Mike.

Silence again … a moment later …

«Charly, friend, look at it! » - yelled Mike pointing out multicolored spot.

Pinkish cream paste covered piece of broken waffle cone to be spreaded on this Canadian lake like favorite mom’s sandwiches with peanut butter, there was part of home, part of memories.

«Oh, dorn, look at it now! » - shouted Charly.

Charly’s ice cream covered the surface of ice as well.

«HAHAHAHAHAHAHA»  - Mike and Charly laughed simultaneously.

One moment more later.

« Listen, Cha, I’m thinking about something now, was it actually the best ice cream ever?

Charly looked at Mike again and laughed again, Mike laughed as well.

A blue police jeep came around a corner close by west part of the forest 600 feet away and the boys saw their parents screaming and bawling at the same time, and rushed into a new beam of happiness or long virtual punishment. Well, who knows.

It was Mike’s birthday. Lake and strawberry ice-cream with the favor which they remember for whole their life.

 Appreciate your memories.

 M.A.

[mostfunnystuff247-blog]

30 Free Things To Do With Your Kids This Summer

Family & Parenting From learning to build, to learning to code and even going bowling—there's a lot of free stuff to do! Tricia Goss 2018-06-07

Flickr | stevendepolo There are 15 weekends from Memorial Day to Labor Day; 30 bright and balmy days to spend bonding with your family in the sun or in a comfortably air-conditioned location. However, those summer break outings can quickly add up (and the kids eating at home all day, every day will likely put a damper on your grocery budget, as well!). Fortunately, there are loads of fun and free things to do with your kiddos during their summer vacation from school. Whether you want to entertain them while you work during the week or get out of the house as a family on Saturdays and Sundays, here are 30 ways to enjoy summertime without breaking the bank.

1. Home Depot Kids’ Workshops

Home Depot stores regularly host Kids’ DIY Workshops that incorporate creativity, skill building and safety in a lively environment. Check out your local store or visit Home Depot online.

Flickr | Kimco Realty

2. Lego Mini-Model Builds

If you live near a Lego store, you’re in luck. The retailer offers a monthly mini-model build where kids get to make, and take, a different mini model for free.

Getty Images | Matthew Lloyd

3. Free Fishing Days

Fishing is generally an affordable sport, but it can be even less expensive if you go on free fishing days. Most states offer free fishing days during National Fishing and Boating Week, which means anyone can fish on public bodies of water without a fishing license. Find your state’s free days here.

Flickr | vastateparksstaff

4. Skate For Free

Roller skating rinks across the United States partner with a service called Kids Skate Free to encourage children to be active and healthy. Once you locate a participating rink in your area, you can register your kids for two free roller skating passes every week (and not just during the summer, but all year long).

Flickr | WalterPro

5. Free Bowling

Bowling centers around the country are participating in a program called Kids Bowl Free. Register your kiddos for two free games of bowling every day, all summer long.

Flickr | NRDC pix

6. Catch A Free Movie

Loads of movie theater chains offer free kids’ movies throughout the summer, so check with your neighborhood cinema. Even if they don’t, chances are good they do offer super cheap tickets for family movies on weekdays.

Flickr | JeepersMedia

7. Hear A Story

Pottery Barn retail locations hold weekly story times (in most cases, it’s Tuesday mornings at 11, but check your location for more details). Kids receive an official Book Club Passport at their first story time and after five visits, they get a special gift.

Flickr | San José Public Library

8. Earn Free Books

From libraries, to book stores, to pizza restaurants — summer reading programs abound, and most of them give participants free books and other great goodies. Encourage a love of reading while building your home library. Find a comprehensive list of free summer reading programs here.

Flickr | Radarsmum67RELATED: Here are some great tips to encourage reading and creativity all summer long!

9. Craft Classes

A little digging will likely unearth free kids’ craft classes in your local area. Lake Shore Learning hosts them every Saturday, and, on occasion, Michael’s does as well. Other places to check include your local library, parks and recreation department or churches in your neighborhood.

Flickr | woodleywonderworks

10. Bass Pro Shops Summer Camps

Bass Pro Shops frequently holds kid-friendly, free activities including its Family Summer Camp, which typically runs through June and July. The free workshops are different every week and run about 20 minutes each on Saturdays, Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12-2 p.m.

Bass Pro Shops

11. Visit Museums

Museums can be entertaining, engaging and educational — not to mention nicely air conditioned in the summer months. If you’re a Bank of America card holder, you can get in free to hundreds of museums every month. If not, check with area museums to see if they have any free admission offers for which you might qualify. For instance, some offer free admission to military families or teachers while others have certain dates and times with free admission.

Flickr | Franklin Park Library

12. Learn How Things Are Made

What child hasn’t asked, “Mom, how do they make (fill-in-the-blank)?” A factory tour can be a free way to learn about anything from how sandwich bread is baked and packaged to how paper currency is printed. Visit Factory Tours USA to find factories near you that offer tours.

Flickr | Sean MacEntee

13. Splash Around

Splash pads continue to crop up around the nation, providing a free way for kids to cool off and get some social interaction. Check with your local parks and rec department to find splash pads in your town or ask for recommendations on local social media pages.

Flickr | stevendepolo

14. Visit A National Park With Your Fourth Grader

Whether it’s close to home or as part of a summer road trip, a national park visit is well worth the effort. It’s even better when you can visit for free. Thanks to the National Park Foundation’s Every Kid in a Park program, fourth graders and their families can do just that.

Flickr | jakesmome

15. Take A Hike

Family hikes are wonderful ways to exercise, teach kids about safety, discover nature facts and so much more… plus, hiking is free! Find the perfect trail near you by visiting the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy Trail Link website.

Flickr | Lotzman Katzman

16. Go On A Walking Tour

Explore your city or one near you by taking a free, self-guided walking tour. While there are several options for self-guided tours, you can download the free Sidewalk app for Android or iOS and start exploring right away.

Pixabay | rubylia

17. Do Your Shopping At A Farmers’ Market

Okay, so technically grocery shopping isn’t free, but you have to do it anyway, right? Turn it into a fun outdoor family experience by visiting a local farmers’ market. Not sure where to go? Check out the LocalHarvest website for markets near you.

Flickr | gmtbillings

18. Dine Somewhere That Kids Eat Free

Obviously, eating out is not free either — but it can be for kids! When it’s just too hot to cook, head out with the whole brood to a restaurant where kids eat free. You can find a massive list of locations here.

Flickr | BlueJules

19. Have A Disney Store Experience

Obviously, visiting the Magic Kingdom is far from free, but your kids can enjoy some summer Disney fun at no charge if you have a Disney store nearby. Check your location for events, such as movie-inspired games and activities, sing-alongs or story times.

Flickr | Esparta

20. Catch A Concert

Concerts in the park or the town square pop up all summer long. Inquire with your local chamber of commerce, parks and rec department or library about upcoming free outdoor concerts.

Flickr | Base Camp Baker

21. Act Like A Tourist

Your local visitor’s center can be a treasure trove of free things to do with your kids. You might discover places you never knew of or rediscover events and activities you had forgotten.

Flickr | TaylorStudiosInc

22. Visit The Library

Of course, reading over the summer months is important, but public libraries have so much more to offer than just books. You might be pleased to learn that yours offers classes, story times, clubs and much more, at no charge. And, you can likely rent movies for free all summer long from your local library!

Flickr | elmindreda

23. Learn How To Cook Together

Impart essential life skills by preparing meals or sweet treats as a family. YouTube is a wealth of information if you want to watch and learn recipes. Alternatively, check out Daily Table for lessons with parents and kids in mind.

Flickr | Rachel Tayse

24. Visit A Fire Station

Contact your local fire department to see if you can schedule a visit. Young kids will especially enjoy this experience, but even older siblings will likely learn something new. Pro tip: bring a case of water or Gatorade as a way to say, “Thanks!” to your neighborhood first responders.

Flickr | Ian D. Keating

25. Visit A Nature Center

Nature centers and wildlife preserves are peaceful, educational and often free to visit. Check with your local Audubon society or ask your local parks department for recommendations and details.

Flickr | kellyv

26. Volunteer At An Animal Shelter

If your kids are begging for a new pet this summer, show them what taking care of animals entails (no pun intended) while making a difference at your local pet shelter or rescue. Walking dogs, cleaning litter boxes and scooping poop might make them rethink their request (or you just might end up with a new furry family member, so consider yourself warned!). It can also teach them responsibility and animal shelters almost always need volunteers!

Flickr | ToddMorris

27. Free STEM Classes

Microsoft Stores offer free YouthSpark Summer Camps for kids ages six and up. Participants learn about coding, 3D drawing, digital filmmaking and other fascinating STEM-related activities. Who knows? Maybe they’ll discover their dream career early!

Getty Images | Adam Berry

28. Apple Camp

Apple also offers free camps at its brick-and-mortar stores, for kids ages 8 to 12. In the three, 90-minute sessions, campers will learn about coding and robotics, movie making or musical storytelling.

Getty Images | Christopher Furlong

29. Play At Chuck E. Cheese’s

Encourage your kids to mind their Ps and Qs by downloading and printing rewards calendars from Chuck E. Cheese’s. The wide array of calendars cover everything from brushing their teeth each day to practicing good table manners and getting their chores done! Every kid who brings in a completed calendar earns 10 free game tokens.

Flickr | pennuja

30. Check Out Target Community Events

If you are a Target mom (aren’t we all?), you might be excited to learn that the store hosts community events. Check the local calendar for free and reduced-priced happenings near you.

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