Survivor Sillies
I'm sure you've all seen or at least heard of Survivor. You know, the show where people compete in some wild place. Those reality shows... aren't they crazy? Admit it though.. as insane as they are they look kind of fun. Well, that's what my aunt thought too. The day after Christmas my cousins and I weren't playing with toys from Santa ( No, not because we were bad! Geez! Hehe.), we were on a mission.
It was a survivor challenge unlike any other as the guys and girls, all sharing some relation to the name Baumgard, went head to head on that sunny day. The battle took place at a park in Phoenix, Arizona. As the clan piled out of the minivan the break up of the teams was obvious. The men trailed behind each other walking with that silent yet intimidating look. The girls giggled and laughed as they linked arms and shouted girl-power-like phrases. The teams met under a picnic table on that warm December day and they were confronted by the host of the event: Brenda (Aunt Brenda) Haarman. Red and blue bandanas were handed out and tied around arms, legs, and foreheads. With dads, grandmas, and kids alike it was truly a ridiculous site. The teams were instructed to pick team names. After the rules were laid out the Pink Flamingoes and the Blue Devils were off to participate in the first event. And so a wooden beam in the park was were the initial challenge would take place. Teams lined up facing each other and the first player on each team used balance to carry themselves across the beam. Object: to get across the beam and around the other player without touching the ground. Elementary my dear Watson.. hehe just go against a little person, pick em up, and set em out of ur way. Muah haha. So that challenge wasn't exactly fair, but it was a good beginning match. The teams, still armed with their goofy looking bandanas, returned to the picnic table to learn the details of match 2. Two hoola hoops were placed in the grass and a perso from each team was given three small balls. The goal: Each member of the team must roll the balls on the ground into the hoop until all three balls are in. Simple enough... I think we all assumed this would be much easier than it turned out to be. The grass was bumpy and we were all much less coordinated than normal people. My stomach will always ache remembering the image of my dad. There he was.. the spitten image of a dad gone gangsta. Haha or not. He was waving his arms in the air and doing what one could define as a happy dance cheering on his teammates with a blue bandana sticking up atop his head and sunglasses masking his eyes. You honestly have not experienced the true definition of hilarious until you've experienced Brian Green. Haha. I LOVE my dad!!
So that challenge ended and we were on to the next. Finally this one involved the playground. I forgot to mention that the park was not entirely vacant at the time of our gaming. Yes, that is correct..others actually had to witness the madness...oh my! On the up-side it probably made them feel much more normal. =) Cheese!
Small plastic dillies were hung at the top of the playground... half red and half blue. This was one of those tag and go games where one player would race up a slide, climb a set of stairs,grab a flag, race down the slide, run back to where they began and tag the next player. Let me remind you that parents and grandparents took part. Haha. Clumsily we all made our way through the challenge. Fortunately I missed the run through where my mom raced down the slide and forgot to put her feet down at the end. My sister couldn't control her laughter when she saw mom plop onto the ground....I just know I would've lost it.
Darkness was approaching and there was one more challenge before the final scavenger hunt. I think this one was the best.. and it is such a good thing that I used the bathroom before this challenge. Haha. So the bandanas were removed from arms and legs and wrapped tightly around each individual's head to cover the eyes. The hula hoop would be put to use once more. I want you to close your eyes and imagine what it would be like if your family, cousins, grandparents, etc were blindfolded and sent crawling to search for objects in a field. When its a reality, I promise you laugh even harder. So we went off blindfolded to find objects that were scattered in the field and had to try to return the objects to the hoop. We had a little difficulty, mostly related to conflict with the other team. The only object I found was TAKEN by my brother. Brandon I will never forgive you. Haha. Somehow we still won though.. way to go girls!! ( I found out later that Brooke could see through her blindfolded.. what a stinker...good thing she was on our team- hehe)
The scavenger hunt was the last challenge and it sent us racing up and down for blocks reading clues and finding pieces to the final puzzle. Now if you need a way to get in shape, I'll be glad to set up one of these courses for you. Goodness! There were clues in trees, under benches, and even buried in the sand volleyball court. The guys had speed, but the girls had intelligence ( I know I know-give it up ya'll). So it was a race to the end... and a very close one I might add. After our team had put the puzzle together to read the final hint my sister sprinted off to be the first to the grand prize. I was right behind her, running with a blanket I had used to stay warm around my shoulders and my five year old sister attached to my hand. I know the guys didn't get that puzzle together....they just followed our lead. The speedy boys were gaining on us and Brittany was running out of fuel...she'd run to get most of the clues. In a voice of exhaustion I heard her say I don't think I can do this Bryana... I can't run anymore. I urged Brooke to take hold of Brittany and flung the weight of the blanket of my shoulders. With a pass-the-baton like strategy Britt encouraged me to push forward. Knowing the guys were closing in on me I kicked it in high gear. Track my freshman year was the last time I could remember really running hard.. I tried to forget those experiences. I was sick for Christmas so I obviously wasn't better by now.. but I figured the run could only be good for me, plus I had a slue of excited little kids and a gung-ho grandma behind me. So I made it.. and the boys didn't catch me.. I was the first on to the large palm in front of my aun'ts house. I walked up to the door and grabbed the Winners box in victory. Only a few walkers came in behind me.. the rest had surrendered to the comfort of the minivan. Pictures were taken in front of the house.. the Pink Flamingoes were captured with expressions of victory and the Blue Devils smirked as they circled around their Consolation box.
It was a fun day in Phoenix, Arizona... with one heck of a memorable experience. I now have a new set of neon pens to put in my waitress apron(compliments of the winner box). So when I finally have to return to college life and my job as a server I can hand my customers a neon pen with a sense of pride and I can walk away with a smirk on my face as I remember the goofiness and nerdiness of my winter break.
When you and your family or friends have nothing to do- Test your skills in a survivor challenge. It may sound weird.. and it is... but I promise you'll have a blast. Just be careful not to bust a gut. =)
It was a survivor challenge unlike any other as the guys and girls, all sharing some relation to the name Baumgard, went head to head on that sunny day. The battle took place at a park in Phoenix, Arizona. As the clan piled out of the minivan the break up of the teams was obvious. The men trailed behind each other walking with that silent yet intimidating look. The girls giggled and laughed as they linked arms and shouted girl-power-like phrases. The teams met under a picnic table on that warm December day and they were confronted by the host of the event: Brenda (Aunt Brenda) Haarman. Red and blue bandanas were handed out and tied around arms, legs, and foreheads. With dads, grandmas, and kids alike it was truly a ridiculous site. The teams were instructed to pick team names. After the rules were laid out the Pink Flamingoes and the Blue Devils were off to participate in the first event. And so a wooden beam in the park was were the initial challenge would take place. Teams lined up facing each other and the first player on each team used balance to carry themselves across the beam. Object: to get across the beam and around the other player without touching the ground. Elementary my dear Watson.. hehe just go against a little person, pick em up, and set em out of ur way. Muah haha. So that challenge wasn't exactly fair, but it was a good beginning match. The teams, still armed with their goofy looking bandanas, returned to the picnic table to learn the details of match 2. Two hoola hoops were placed in the grass and a perso from each team was given three small balls. The goal: Each member of the team must roll the balls on the ground into the hoop until all three balls are in. Simple enough... I think we all assumed this would be much easier than it turned out to be. The grass was bumpy and we were all much less coordinated than normal people. My stomach will always ache remembering the image of my dad. There he was.. the spitten image of a dad gone gangsta. Haha or not. He was waving his arms in the air and doing what one could define as a happy dance cheering on his teammates with a blue bandana sticking up atop his head and sunglasses masking his eyes. You honestly have not experienced the true definition of hilarious until you've experienced Brian Green. Haha. I LOVE my dad!!
So that challenge ended and we were on to the next. Finally this one involved the playground. I forgot to mention that the park was not entirely vacant at the time of our gaming. Yes, that is correct..others actually had to witness the madness...oh my! On the up-side it probably made them feel much more normal. =) Cheese!
Small plastic dillies were hung at the top of the playground... half red and half blue. This was one of those tag and go games where one player would race up a slide, climb a set of stairs,grab a flag, race down the slide, run back to where they began and tag the next player. Let me remind you that parents and grandparents took part. Haha. Clumsily we all made our way through the challenge. Fortunately I missed the run through where my mom raced down the slide and forgot to put her feet down at the end. My sister couldn't control her laughter when she saw mom plop onto the ground....I just know I would've lost it.
Darkness was approaching and there was one more challenge before the final scavenger hunt. I think this one was the best.. and it is such a good thing that I used the bathroom before this challenge. Haha. So the bandanas were removed from arms and legs and wrapped tightly around each individual's head to cover the eyes. The hula hoop would be put to use once more. I want you to close your eyes and imagine what it would be like if your family, cousins, grandparents, etc were blindfolded and sent crawling to search for objects in a field. When its a reality, I promise you laugh even harder. So we went off blindfolded to find objects that were scattered in the field and had to try to return the objects to the hoop. We had a little difficulty, mostly related to conflict with the other team. The only object I found was TAKEN by my brother. Brandon I will never forgive you. Haha. Somehow we still won though.. way to go girls!! ( I found out later that Brooke could see through her blindfolded.. what a stinker...good thing she was on our team- hehe)
The scavenger hunt was the last challenge and it sent us racing up and down for blocks reading clues and finding pieces to the final puzzle. Now if you need a way to get in shape, I'll be glad to set up one of these courses for you. Goodness! There were clues in trees, under benches, and even buried in the sand volleyball court. The guys had speed, but the girls had intelligence ( I know I know-give it up ya'll). So it was a race to the end... and a very close one I might add. After our team had put the puzzle together to read the final hint my sister sprinted off to be the first to the grand prize. I was right behind her, running with a blanket I had used to stay warm around my shoulders and my five year old sister attached to my hand. I know the guys didn't get that puzzle together....they just followed our lead. The speedy boys were gaining on us and Brittany was running out of fuel...she'd run to get most of the clues. In a voice of exhaustion I heard her say I don't think I can do this Bryana... I can't run anymore. I urged Brooke to take hold of Brittany and flung the weight of the blanket of my shoulders. With a pass-the-baton like strategy Britt encouraged me to push forward. Knowing the guys were closing in on me I kicked it in high gear. Track my freshman year was the last time I could remember really running hard.. I tried to forget those experiences. I was sick for Christmas so I obviously wasn't better by now.. but I figured the run could only be good for me, plus I had a slue of excited little kids and a gung-ho grandma behind me. So I made it.. and the boys didn't catch me.. I was the first on to the large palm in front of my aun'ts house. I walked up to the door and grabbed the Winners box in victory. Only a few walkers came in behind me.. the rest had surrendered to the comfort of the minivan. Pictures were taken in front of the house.. the Pink Flamingoes were captured with expressions of victory and the Blue Devils smirked as they circled around their Consolation box.
It was a fun day in Phoenix, Arizona... with one heck of a memorable experience. I now have a new set of neon pens to put in my waitress apron(compliments of the winner box). So when I finally have to return to college life and my job as a server I can hand my customers a neon pen with a sense of pride and I can walk away with a smirk on my face as I remember the goofiness and nerdiness of my winter break.
When you and your family or friends have nothing to do- Test your skills in a survivor challenge. It may sound weird.. and it is... but I promise you'll have a blast. Just be careful not to bust a gut. =)
posted by You can call me Bry! @ 10:30 AM
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