For those who don't know:

A piñata is a brightly-colored paper container filled with candy and/or toys. It is generally suspended on a rope from a tree branch or ceiling and is used during celebrations.    ~Wikipedia

Generally, kids take turns with a stick of some form to hit the pinata open so they can get to the prizes within.

Nowadays, besides the normal traditional pinata, we have balloon pinatas and various sorts of pinatas available. In fact, at Mighty Magic Factory, we have a very creative, one-and-only self-created pinata known as our Balloon Bomb! Over past experiences with pinatas, we found several problems with the traditional pinatas:

1. Traditional pinatas are hung up - a problem for parties with varied age group.
2. Requires use of stick - accidents do occur sometimes.
3. Sometimes, the birthday kid is unhappy that he/she doesn't get the pinata broken.

As for balloon pinatas:

1. Birthday kid is scared of being close to the exploding balloon pinata.
2. Sharp stick required to burst the pinata - highly dangerous when it comes to kids rushing to get prizes.
3. Birthday kid is too young.

So, with all that in mind, plus we wanted to give the kids a different experience, balloon bomb was created! Now, you get a balloon pinata that kids love, minus the danger. All the kid does is actually detonate the balloon bomb from a safe distance (party host determines from experience how near or far we should bring the 'bomb' away from the birthday kid) simply by pressing a button with guidance from our birthday host!

Thus far, the kids love our balloon bomb! In fact, Balloon Bomb is only included in our Action Packed Adventures and up, but it is available as an add on and many parents have taken that option too! Check out our party Add-ons here if you're interested!

While all that is said, some people may prefer the traditional pinata still, stay tuned... Kinetic Gal will teach you a simple and easy way of making a balloon pinata in the next post! Till then!

:D

An alternative strategy for juvenile festivities is the 'Edible Piñata' or 'Exploding Chocolate Surprise'. The creation of this alternate glycaemia inducing treat confers strategic advantages including

• Reduction in significant eye and groin injuries - as only one assailant necessary
• Reduction in non-biodegradable cellulose waste - all materials used in the production of this surprise are wholly edible and rapidly degrade in the presence of small children

To create the Edible Piñata you will need

• 500g milk chocolate (450g for chocolate shell and 50g for 'chocolate glue')
• 200g Smarties, M&M and chocolate chips (shell decoration)
• Assorted alternate hyperglycaemia inducing treats (shell 'surprise' contents)

Facebreaker

Viva Pinata 2: Trouble in Paradise

We also checked out the church and surroundings of a pueblo (village). We will shoot some ceromonies next weekend. Some details are amazing... The rest I will show later!

I think that I have mentioned in previous blogs that finding filler is one of the most fun aspects of planning a piñata party. So yes, you can skip the candy and fill it with other fun things. - Well, if there’s not a little bit of candy in there, you may find some very disappointed players.

Some cautions first.

1) Please remember that the filler will fall out of the piñata. Please do not fill the piñata with fragile or easily breakable objects. This creates disappointment and a mess.

2) Please remember that the filler falls out of the piñata on to the ground and that the inside of the piñata is not clean. So do like they do in the Hidden Valley Ranch commercial and make sure that anything that you put into the piñata is well wrapped. I think that they stuffed the piñata with wrapped veggies in the Hidden Valley commercial. Not my first choice but obviously it works.

Some suggestions for choosing filler:

1) What is the theme? If it’s dinosaurs or animals, you can pick up tiny dinosaur or animal toys to fill the piñata. If it’s treasure or pirates put fake coins and jewels in the piñata. If it’s a pool party, how about using those toys that grow in the water. My nephew just got a set of dinosaurs that started out as little pills but expanded in the water. Use your imagination OR use my imagination-you can always ask me.

2) When there is no theme and candy is not an option - Well I would go with toys for children. I think that super balls are fun to put into a piñata because they bounce and scatter nicely when they fall out. Tops, whistles and small action figures are great fillers for children.

Toy cars and jewelry are good for all ages.

Adults are a little more difficult to please. I have seen riddles, gift cards and personalized gifts put into piñatas for adult parties. Usually there is a theme for the adult parties so follow the theme.

I think that the number one rule is to have fun with it. Don’t think about what you cannot have but think about what you can have. Go to a hobby store and walk the aisles. You will be amazed at all of high quality tiny things that you can put in the piñata. My sister even found paint sets that are small enough to fall out of a standard piñata.

Go on your treasure hunt – you never know what you might find!

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co!

Wir hatten eine wunderschöne Feier. Sofia hat sich sehr grefreut. Soviele Leute die mit ihr durch den Garten gelaufen sind. Immer war jemand da der sich hat "breitschlagen" lassen. Mein Ruecken sagt dankeschön! Ausserdem freut sich Sofia auch immer ganz besonders wenn andere Kinder um sie rum sind. Sie ist immer ganz fasziniert. Noch schreit sie nicht wenn ihr eines der Kinder ein Spielzeug aus der Hand nimmt. Es gibt ja soviel anderes zu tun und zu erforschen.

Zum Anlass habe ich mich aufgerafft eine Schwarzwälderkirschtorte zu backen. Leider ist sie diesmal nicht so toll gelungen. Irgendwie wollte der Bisquitteig nicht richtig aufgehen. So musste ich dann zwei Böden backen, die aber dann viel zu fest waren. Und da die Sahne in der kurzen Zeit nicht so richtig fest werden wollte und die Böden ja schwer wie Blei waren ist das ganze dann ganz schnell auseinander gefallen sobald Emily ein Stücke geschnitten hat. Aber geschmeckt hat es trotzdem! Und schön ausgesehen hat es auch!

Ein weiterer Höhepunkt war das Piñata. Ein Schmetterling aus Pappmasche, gefüllt mit leckeren Bonbons. Das ganze an einem Baum aufgehängt und los ging der Spass. Jeder durfte mal mit einem Schläger kräftig drauflos schlagen, bis es irgendwann dann endlich aufgebrochen ist und Bonbons vom Himmel fielen. Ein toller Spass für Gross und Klein!

This week has seen the launch of the highly anticipated sequel to Viva Pinata available exclusively on the XBox 360. "Trouble in Paradise," developed by Rare Ltd. is a sandbox game where players of all ages tend their own garden on Piñata Island and provide for  more than 100 different piñata animals that can take up residence there. Like its predecessor, "Viva Piñata," the sometimes relaxing, sometimes bizarrely humorous game will have players planting flowers, coaxing new animals to the garden, buying piñata costumes and all manner of other activities in the highly customizable game environment.

Viva Pinata - Trouble in Paradise is a great gift for a child (or young minded adult!), but why not go that extra step? Wouldn't it be great to be able to have a Viva Pinata Theme to go along with such a great gift?

It's great to see the kids sitting down eating their party food on Viva Pinata plates, making all sorts of noise out of their Viva Pinata blow outs while making less mess for you on Disposable Viva Pinata Table covers!

Of course, no Viva Pinata party would be complete without an actual Pinata, people would ask questions! There's an excellent supply of Pinata's here, one for every occasion.

Don't just limit yourself to one theme though, there are plenty of others to look at. Why not do an Ocean's Eleven night with a Casino Themed Party, or even go John Wayne or Clint Eastwood (whichever is your favourite!?) with a good old fashioned Wild West Theme? The options are endless, the only question is, will you pick your theme in time for the party!

We'll be updating with new blogs on Parties and much more so stay tuned in!

While Andrew was in Dubai, The Mexican Piñata and I went to see The Dark Knight.

First, The Mexican Piñata. She is/was a friend of Brett's who met him on Facebook and was sufficiently ravished by his pixelated electronic charm (many times more potent than in person) that she followed her heart thousands of miles to be with him. Their story features elements of a tender romance along with intrigue, misdirection, double-crossing, suspense, subterfuge, straining skin-tight jeans, nail-biting denouements - three of them - and lashings of crass humour.

[NB: The Mexican Piñata is not her real name. It has been changed to protect the innocent. In deference to The Mexican Piñata's first language, Brett's pseudonym is El Knobbo, which has been changed to expose the guilty.]

This story is complex as narratives go, with so many plot twists it could have been an opera had the screeching been more poetic and/or melodic. It is best summed up in a moral, which is: if you let a girl use your computer, make sure it doesn't automatically logon to your Facebook account where you have slandered her all over the Internet. Or if you like a selection of morals, how about: if you operate several women on a rotational basis, try not to overlap their allocated timeslots.

You will be glad to hear there's a happy ending. When El Knobbo dropped The Mexican Piñata to the airport, she said, "Thanks. It's been . . . mm, I don't know this word . . . is it . . . nice?" and stabbed him with a filed stiletto when she kissed him on the cheek.

Anyhow, The Dark Knight. I couldn't wait to see this film, and since El Knobbo was suffering a toxic overload, The Mexican Piñata volunteered to accompany me. There were only two seats left when we arrived at the cinema; when we got to them, the screen was so close we had to cross our eyes to focus it.

Ever since my first disastrous celluloid misadventure, I have taken cinema excursions seriously. For The Dark Knight, I would not accept anything other than optimal screen distance, Maltesers and lightly salted, crunchy popcorn. At least two of those conditions were not met, so we asked for a refund (The Mexican Piñata had bought snacks, so I was hopeful of profiting from the arrangement).

As a compromise, the cinema attendant offered us Gold Class seats. If we were apprehended and interrogated, we were to say there was melted icecream on our allotted seats A126 and A125. I'm not sure why icecream is considered so antisocial, as opposed to, for example, fake cheese or razorblades in the seat lining. But here's a top tip for getting a seat upgrade in the cinema: the magic password is 'melted icecream'.

The Dark Knight is outrageously good. It is a thoughtful, multi-layered and intelligent depiction of good and evil - or at least, as thoughtful, multi-layered and intelligent as a movie about a man in a plastic bat suit equipped with pointy ears can get.

Most superhero movies present good and evil as straightforward, implying that if you cannot distinguish right from wrong, you are a psychopath and/or rather stupid. But in real life, many decisions are wrapped in moral quandary. For example, can you say that paying a hit man to rough up Tom Cruise and call him names is absolutely, undeniably wrong? Of course not.

The Dark Knight ackowledges this struggle. Should Batman save his girlfriend, or Harvey Dent, the man capable of redeeming Gotham City? What are the implications of either choice? Batman is a tortured hero, wracked with indecision, uncertain of whether his actions are motivated by good intent or potential acclaim.

Batman also struggles with his masculinity, his alter-ego Bruce Wayne poncing around with women dripping off his arms. While I appreciate that Wayne has an international playboy image to maintain, there is no similar explanation for the amount of mascara Batman wears.

Christian Bale's Batman is excellent, but overshadowed by The Joker. Again, I feel vaguely embarrassed enthusing about a villain with green hair and more mascara than Batman, but Heath Ledger as The Joker is superb. His evilry outperforms even The Penguin in Batman Returns. In fairness, the worst The Penguin ever did was nibble off someone's nose which, although innovative, is hardly the epitomy of pure evil. The Penguin did squeakily threaten to kill all Gotham's firstborns; I suppose he might have done had the neoprene-nippled Batman not foiled his attempt, but I have my doubts. I always questioned the little fella's capacity for spite.

In contrast, Ledger's interpretation of The Joker is camp-free and completely chilling. The Joker's background is never explained. In one early scene, he attributes his deformed face to an act of abuse by his stepfather, a description so crawlingly grisly it makes you temporarily wish you weren't equipped with ears. For a while, you think, 'Aw bless! No wonder the little scamp is misunderstood.' But later, The Joker's story changes according to his whim. Not only is The Joker terrifyingly intelligent, he can blow up a truck so that it cartwheels lengthways down a street.

If you haven't seen the film, there are spoilers ahead so this is about as far as you want to read.

I have a couple of issues, which, although relatively minor, are worth mentioning. In the final act, The Joker reveals there are bombs planted on two ferries. Both lots of passengers can save themselves by blowing up the other ship; if they don't, The Joker will annihilate both ferries at midnight. The passengers prove the inherent goodness of man by refusing to blow up the other ship.

Call me cyncical, but I refuse to believe that would happen in real life. One possible alternative would be an almighty brawl as people trampled each other to get to the detonator. But everyone sitting around debating the pros and cons of blowing up another shipload to save their wretched souls? Not a chance. On one of the ferries, at least three characters are accountants.

(I'm still not sure why the ferries didn't just float like crazy to dry land and let everyone disembark. We'll overlook that for the moment.)

Another problem is Rachel Dawes. Maggie Gyllenhaal is a welcome substitute for Katie Holmes, who should be roughed up along with Tom Cruise although to a lesser extent. Rachel shows hints of feistiness before she is careless enough to let herself get killed.

Otherwise, this is one of the best movies I've seen for a long time. That said, it in no way makes up for missing out on The Man From Snowy River

What's goin on guys? I've been watching the DNC and preseason football a lot over the past few days, so I'm hating my life right now, because I don't care about politics or football.

That last sentence should cue everyone to start blasting me about my lack of intelligence and whatever other negative connotations come with not caring about politics. Do it. You guys act like I haven't blasted my own hometown over something that I think is stupid before...

I was cruising hypebeast the other day and saw that T.I., Jay-Z, Yeezy, and Weezy all came out with a song, called "Swagger Like Us" with MIA samples for the chorus. The song gets a solid 6.5 in my book.

Here's the song:

If you guys really want to know, T.I. had the best verse, and Jay-Z or Lil Wayne had the worst verse. Kanye's verse was good, actually. I'm really into that Chris Columbus concept.

I'll let y'all decide between Weezy and Hova:
Jay's verse:

No one on the corner gotta bop like this
Can't wear skinny jeans cause my knots don't fit
No one on the corner gotta pocket like this
so I rock Roc jeans cuz my knots so thick
You can learn how to dress just by
Checkcking my fresh
Checking checking my fresh
Checking checking my fresh
Follow my steps, it's the road to success
Where the niggas know you thorough
And the girls say yes
But I can't teach you my swag
You can pay for school but you can't buy class
School of hard knocks I'm a grad
And that all-blue yankee is my graduation cap,
It's Hova!!!
Dipping different rovers whipping with the soda
Hova!!!
Could u even have any doubt after doubt if its over

Wayne's Verse:

No one on the corner has swagger like moi, Church
but I'm too clean for these boys
I require what I desire I got stripes, A-di-das
Mami scream papi no mas
Run up in your shit just me no Moss
Runnin this shit like I got four thighs
None has swagger like these four gods!
When it comes to styles I got several
Sharper than a swagger dagger, all metal
And my jew-els blue and yellow
The type of shit that make em call you Carmelo
Rules as follows stay true to the ghetto
Write your name on the bullet make you feel special
Haaa!!!
What the fuck you boys talking about?
I know its us cuz we the only thing you talk about

The ONLY reason I haven't flat out said Wayne's verse is the worst is because of the fact that Jay-Z can do better, and I'm just disappointed.

Actually....Lil' Wayne's verse was flat-out the worst.

While I'm on the subject of commercial rap supergroups, please tell me you heard the Remix to "Everyone Nose" by NERD. The remix features Child Rebel Soldier and Pusha T. I'm not explaining who Child Rebel Soldier is. Just listen to the fucking track:

And if you wonder why I'm not talking about who CRS is, it's because I posted this earlier:

Song of '08. Fuck off.
My only complaint is how bad the kid who raps as Kanye is. But I'm amped he swings a baseball bat at a Bush pinata.

Thursday has been recording for their new album recently. Follow them on Twitter. They talk about it. Can't wait for their split with Envy, either.

Until next time....

I have been asked if it’s possible to make a pull string piñata without a kit. Of course! It’s possible to make piñatas – regular or pull string – without professionals.

So here’s how to convert any piñata to a pull string piñata.

1) Cut as many pieces of ribbon of the same length as the number of participants minus one.

2) Cut a piece of ribbon that is about 1 inch longer than the rest of the ribbon.

3) Tie the longer ribbon to a washer. Try to use the entire extra inch that so that the ribbon will appear to be the same length as the rest of the ribbons.
TIP Many people will cut out a small cardboard washer instead of using a metal because it is lighter.

4) Remove the fringe from the bottom of your piñata. The bottom should be smooth.

5) Using a sharp knife, cut a 3-sided "trapdoor" flap measuring approximately 4" by 4" on the bottom of the piñata.

6) Make a small hole in the center of the flap.

7) Fill the piñata with candy and/or toys.

8) Thread the ribbon that is tied to the washer through the hole in the flap from the inside out. The ribbon attached to the washer will be the one that releases the filler!
TIP It may be glued or taped to Close the trapdoor and glue the ends of the rest of the ribbons to the bottom of the piñata

9) Cover the ends of the ribbon and the edges of the trap door with tissue paper, completely covering the bottom of the piñata.

10) You don't want players to be able to see which ribbon goes through the trapdoor, so you will want to cover as much of the bare space as possible.

11) Be careful not to glue the trap door shut!

12) Let the glue dry.
TIP After the glue dries, try to open the trap door slightly to be sure that you did not glue it shut

PLAY a version of the pull string piñata game! I have the traditional version and an optional version on this blog.

HINT: It’s a little known fact that Piñata Supply Co will install the pull string kit for you. There is an installation fee – but then you don’t have to worry about anything.

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co

Next topic: Use Piñatas to Advertise

If at all possible I'd like to do a little recap of the summer, since it's been a pretty good one.  I'm seriously getting depressed that it's nearing an end.  The last week has been absolutely perfect temps, low 80's with virtually no humidity.  I can actually sit outside and not feel like I am going to collapse from heat exhaustion within the first few minutes.  I have what I consider a decent tan for the first time in over a year...on the front side of my body anyway.  If you look at me from the front I got it goin' on (minus the new knee scar, but more on that later).  From the back however,  my legs have virtually no tan and my back has several stripes where I got burned pretty bad in June from trying to apply sunscreen by myself.  The kids need to step up on this if they want Mama taking them to the beach!  The month of August, which is pretty damn near done, has not been a great one for weather, probably 2/3 of it was rain and not much sun.  I am praying for a nice fall!  Enough on the weather, who cares really.

So let's step back in time a few months...at the end of June we got to spend 6 days at the camp, and of course the weather made it nearly unbearable, not even a boat ride.  The highlight of that trip was a party for my big boy turning 4!  That was a good time.  And of course a much-needed night away to celebrate our 6th anniversary at the lodge.  Dinner at The Vault also proved to be very delicious and relaxing.  We returned the first week of July and the 4th was a hot but lovely day and I kicked it off by putting on a skirt, tanktop and my red golashes to go out and trim the hedges in the garden with the electric hedgetrimmer.  This outfit alone was recipe for disaster.  I was so determined not to cut through the cord on the thing (as two others have done), I missed the cord completely and sliced nicely through a bush and onto my right knee.  Or I should say INTO my right knee.  Blood started pouring down and I ran into the bathroom to rinse it out in the tub.  That is after I took off the red golashes and with an audience of course.  Everything in this house requires an audience.  I'd really like to insert a picture of this injury here so I will attempt that now....  Well that was way to easy.  Now if I can just type below it instead of just on top of it, I will be in business.

Voila, I am genius!  So that pretty much messed up my 4th, but we did go over to the Thomb's for a BBQ where my boy who is "4 today" and every day since his birthday stripped off all his clothes and peed on the lawn while everyone was sitting there eating.  Then when he did get dressed he put on his little friend's tiara, beads and heels.  We came home later and got everyone in their jammies and then headed down the road to the the guy-I-don't-know-but who-must-be-awesome's house for his ridiculous fireworks display.  Seriously this guy can put on a show.  I'm not sure if it's legal since just as we left the cops were pulling in at a pretty good clip.  The baby loved the fireworks and his big brother loved them as long as he was safely in the car.

I think it was the following weekend when I was giving the oldest one a haircut and I accidentally snipped the tip of his ear, which so help me God I hope never to do again.  It would absolutely not stop bleeding.  To the point where I was pretty sure he would bleed a slow death if I did not do something.  No amount of pressure was helping.  I wrapped his head in an ace bandage so all that was sticking out was a tuft of hair on top of his little head.  He was amazingly well-behaved and cooperative during all this.  Maybe he saw the crazy look in my eyes that told him this was not the time to mess around with Mom b/c she means business.

I called my cousin, who is a PA, after 2 hours of bleeding and he reassured me that cut ears "bleed like a stuck pig" and it would stop if I just kept the pressure on.  So I did.  After 6 hours of the thing refusing to stop I called his pediatrician who must be some kind of angel from heaven as she said she'd meet me right away at her office.  So we went, thankfully hubby was home from work by this time or I couldn't have handled this Dr. visit alone with 2 kids.  First she tried gluing it, but this would not hold back the torrent of blood.   So then she whips out the cauterizing sticks and uses 4 of them to get the thing to finally stop.  You'd think she was cauterizing a limb by the looks of the black spot on  his ear.  This is the one and only time where my brave boy cried throughout the whole day...such a trooper!  I'm kicking myself now for not having taken any pictures of this event but it was the furthest thing from my mind at the time.

The rest of July proved to be pretty boring from what I remember of it.  The end of July brought another trip to the camp and this time we had a couple nice days at least.  Finally a boat ride, lots of fishing, a tube ride, and I went swimming.  To my immense delight, we got to take the oh-so-ugly Superman pinata from my son's birthday the previous month and go target practicing with.  This originated when my father first saw the pinata before the party and said, "that thing is so ugly...I just want to shoot him."  And so he did.  As hard as we tried none of us could hit ugly Superman in the face - it was the oddest thing.  I guess he truly had some special kryptonite pinata powers on his side that day.

Some other highlights of the summer have included some beautiful days at the beach, wonderful visits with family, and the baby starting to use some words and taking some steps.  Some words he's using right now are Mama, Dada, toothbrush (which doesn't sound like toothbrush incidentally), dance dance dance while he's dancing (my fav), flower, water, bath, duck, and uh oh.  Also big brother has started using the word "like" in front of many things while using hand gestures to really get his point across.  This is endlessly funny and one of the few times when I thoroughly enjoy his endless talking!  I'll attempt to add some of my favorite pics of the summer here....[gallery]

The first piñata song that I posted was the most common one.  I found several versions of it.  I choose the one that I thought was the most complete.

I think that this piñata song is a really fun song to sing while the piñata game is going on.  I do not think that it has any historical significance.  It's just fun.

Piñata Song
tune: If you're happy and you know it

A piñata can be so much fun to break (clap clap)
A piñata can be so much fun to break (clap clap)
Everybody tries and tries
With a blind-fold on their eyes
Till CRAA-AASHH! (spoken) down
falls a wonderful surprise.

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co!

Next topic: How to use piñatas for advertising

I still do not think that piñatas are inherently violent. They are inanimate. I also do not think that they foster violence any more than the act of breaking open an egg fosters violence.

The problem lies with the presentation of the piñata game and the proper storage of the equipment for the piñata game. To be safe follow these guidelines:

1) I personally would not allow unsupervised access to a piñata buster.

2) I think that children below the age of 6 should be playing the pull string piñata game and not wielding piñata busters. At the age of 6 most children understand that it is wrong to hit people and animals. They also have the motor skills to avoid contact with animals or humans.

3) The piñata game should be presented as a game in itself. Like equipment for other games such as hockey sticks, baseball bats, tennis racket there is an appropriate use and inappropriate use. Teach the young people how to take care of their equipment and there will be fewer problems.

4) Always have at least one and preferably 3 people supervising the game and the equipment.

5) If anyone misuses the piñata buster or refuses to stay a safe distance from the person swinging at the piñata, I ALWAYS make them leave the game. I do not tolerate any instances where there is the potential for harm. Rules are meant to insure fun. If everyone obeys the rules the game is fun for everyone.

I believe that if you act responsibly, you will have a safe and fun piñata party.

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co!

Next topic: August piñata song

Appropriateness is an interesting question. It is always appropriate to give a piñata as a gift. What is not appropriate is to expect the host or hostess to be able to change their party plans to use the piñata at the party. A gifted piñata usually is used at an upcoming event such as Los Posados, Cinco de Mayo or another annual piñata event. It is rarely used at the party where it was gifted because it adds stress to the host or hostess to spontaneously add an event to a well thought out evening.

Having said that, I often will give a piñata as a gift to be used during the party that I attend. I manage this because I offer a piñata as a gift when I RSVP to the invitation. If the host or hostess is receptive to the offer, I have the piñata delivered (with filler) in advance of the party. I also offer to help hang the piñata and supervise the piñata game.

When thinking about the appropriateness of the piñata as a gift ask yourself these questions:

1) How familiar is my host or hostess with the piñata parties?

• If they are very familiar and frequently have piñatas parties. Give piñatas as often as you like. They will know exactly what to do with them.
• If they are not familiar with the piñata or piñata parties, offer to send the piñata in advance and supervise the piñata part of the party.

2) What type of party are you attending?

• Ask yourself, do I want to get down on the floor to grab the filler in the outfit that I will be wearing to the party? If the answer is no, then perhaps the piñata should be given for a later event. If the answer is yes, then offer the gift in advance.

In summary, remember 1) do not to add stress to your host or hostess by surprising them with a piñata and expecting them to change their plans and use it immediately. 2) consider the type of party you are attending and 3) consider the level of familiarity that your recipient has with piñatas to determine how to gift it.

How to choose the perfect piñata is a great topic for the next blog.

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co!

Next topic: How to choose a piñata

]]> http://xbox360total.wordpress.com/?p=647 Fri, 08 Aug 2008 02:05:23 +0000 Vitor Ussui http://xbox360total.wordpress.com/?p=647 O site MundoRare postou as primeiras imagens das Vision Cards de Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise, da Rare. O primeiro personagem criado foi Ryan (logo abaixo), um dos trinta cards desenhados. Confira:

Birthday party went very well. Kapitonas was really happy and excited to see all the people. All the kids had a great time.

This was the first time that we had a pinata and it was pretty cool!! Kids got to pull the string one by one until one of the strings opened the little door underneath and a million candies fell out. Although it was pretty funny that the kids took their time picking upp the candy. Usually, they will be all grabbing it like crazy, pushing each other and fighting over it. Not today! I don't know if it's because there was so much candy or if there was something in the air, but oh my goodness, they were taking their sweet ass time. But they did enjoyed it!

It was so cute this year, because Kapitonas was so into the whole birthday party thing. I mean, he knew it last year, but this year he really really understood it. He was waiting patiently all week for his party.

After the party he was playing with his new toys and we had this conversation:

Me: Kapitonas, you're getting so big! How old are you?

Him: (bends his one finger down and shows me four of his fingers and says) four!!

Me: I don't want you to get bigger.

Him: I will.

He said the "I will" with this proud look on his face while looking right at me. I almost started crying. And for a minute there I couldn't say anything back to him. I thought to myself, he really is getting bigger and older and he WILL get bigger. So sad. :( I want him to stay like this forever and ever. I want him to be a little kid. After all, he only has one more year of being a little kid before the school starts. And then the time will probably go by even faster.

Well, I better stop thingking about it (snif snif).

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On a happier note, I got a Mamma Mia soundtrack and I don't care what everyone says, I really like it!! All the songs are so happy (well eccept one, where the mom and daughter sing about how fast she grew up) and it puts you in a happy mood and makes you want to dance. I love it!!

In the same manner that you would for the traditional piñata game, line up the players.

Each player takes their turn going up to the piñata and choosing a string to pull. The string should either come off or release the filler. If the string does not release the filler the next person takes his/her turn.

When the filler is released, everyone is allowed to rush in and can grab a handful of filler. I always suggest having one or two people throwing in additional filler. Not only are there more treats this way, but it adds to the fun to have candy and toys continue to rain down.

Have fun!

Don’t forget that you may always get great Mexican-made piñatas at Piñata Supply Co!

Next topic: Piñata Song

Then 2 of my friends and I went to do karaoke - what a blast!  I was nervous about singing at first, but then I just was so relaxed that I didn't care how bad I was!

It was bittersweet leaving - I didn't want the night to end.  And I know I'm going to see my friends again before I leave, so it's not a huge deal, but still it's hard.

Pictures!

First the pinata - before the carnage

And my favorite "people" picture of the night - a friend and Buddy (the dog) and me

Of course, I wanted to take tons of pictures, but only took about 10.  Oh well, I still have the memories!

This year, it seems as though there are some great games coming out for all three consoles. (Primarily Xbox 360 and PS3)

Here are a list of all the games, and my expectations for some. I also list what I'm interested in.

2K Games
BioShock (PS3)
Borderlands (PC, PS3, X360)
Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Colonization (PC)

2K Sports
NBA 2K9 (PS2, PS3, X360)
NHL 2K9 (PS2, PS3, Wii, X360)

Akella
Disciples III: Renaissance (PC)
Heavy Duty (PC)
Moscow Racer (PC)
Numen (PC)
PT Boats: Knights of the Sea (PC)
Postal III (PC, X360)
Showdown: Scorpion (PC)

Bethesda Softworks
Fallout 3 (PC, PS3, X360)

Capcom
Bionic Commando (PC, PS3, X360)
Bionic Commando Rearmed (PC, PS3, X360)
Capcom Project #2 [untitled] (other)
Dark Void (PC, PS3, X360)
FLOCK (other)
Mega Man 9 (Wii)
Neopets Puzzle Adventure (PC, Wii)
Plunder (PC, PS3, X360)
Resident Evil 5 (PS3, X360)
Spyborgs (Wii)
Street Fighter IV (PC, PS3, X360)
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix (PS3, X360)

Codemasters
Damnation (PC, PS3, X360)
Dragonology (DS, Wii)
Jumpgate Evolution (PC)
Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising (PC, PS3, X360)
Rise of the Argonauts (PC, PS3, X360)
Wizardology (DS, Wii)

Crave Entertainment
Defendin' de Penguin (DS, Wii)
Ford Racing Off Road (PS2, PSP, Wii)
King of Clubs Mini-Golf (Wii)
PBR: Out of the Chute (PS2, Wii)
Purr Pals (Wii)
Solitaire & Mahjong (Wii)

D3 Publisher
Bangai-O Spirits (DS)
Ben 10: Alien Force -- The Game (DS, PS2, PSP, Wii)
Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (DS, PC, X360)

Deep Silver
Gravity (DS)
Pet Vet: Down Under (DS)
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (PC)
Secret Files: Tunguska (DS)

Disney Interactive Studios
Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell (DS)
High School Musical 3: Senior Year (DS)
High School Musical 3: Senior Year Dance (PC, PS2, Wii, X360)
Pure (PC, PS3, X360)
Spectrobes: Beyond The Portals (DS)
Ultimate Band (DS, Wii)

Eidos Interactive
Battlestations: Pacific (PC, X360)
Just Cause 2 (PC, PS3, X360)
Monster Lab (Wii)
Tomb Raider Underworld (PC, PS3, X360)

Electronic Arts
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (PC, X360)
Crysis Warhead (PC)
Dead Space (PC, PS3, X360)
FaceBreaker (PS3, X360)
FaceBreaker K.O. Party (Wii)
Madden NFL 09 (PS3, X360)
Madden NFL 09 All-Play (Wii)
Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (PC, PS3, X360)
Mirror's Edge (PC, PS3, X360)
NBA Live 09 (PS3, X360)
NCAA Football 09 (PS3, X360)
Skate It (Wii)
Spore (PC)
The Lord of the Rings: Conquest (PC, PS3, X360)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 (PS3, PSP, X360)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 All-Play (Wii)
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (PC)

Gamecock
Dungeon Hero (PC, X360)
Legendary (PC, PS3, X360)
Velvet Assassin (PC, X360)

Jagex
RuneScape High-Detail (Webgame)

Majesco
Away: Shuffle Dungeon (DS)
Babysitting Mania (DS)
Cooking Mama: World Kitchen (Wii)
Major Minor's Majestic March (Wii)
Marker Man Adventures (DS)
Our House (Wii)
Wonderworld Amusement Park (DS)

Microsoft
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (X360)
Fable 2 (X360)
Gears of War 2 (X360)
Halo Wars (X360)
Too Human (X360)
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise (X360)

Midway Games
Blitz: The League II (PS3, X360)
Game Party 2 (Wii)
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (PS3, X360)
TNA iMPACT! (PS2, PS3, Wii, X360)
This is Vegas (PC, PS3, X360)
Touchmaster 2 (DS)
Unreal Tournament III (X360)
Wheelman (PC, PS3, X360)

Namco Bandai
Soulcalibur IV (PS3, X360)

Natsume
Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness (DS)
Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility (Wii)
Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon (DS)

Nintendo
Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir (DS)

Sony Computer Entertainment
Buzz! Master Quiz (PSP)
Buzz! Quiz TV (PS3)
Killzone 2 (PS3)
LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (PS3)
PixelJunk Eden (PS3)
Resistance 2 (PS3)
SIREN: Blood Curse Episode #1 [PSN] (PS3)
SOCOM: Confrontation (PS3)

Sony Online Entertainment
Free Realms (PC, PS3)
The Agency (PC, PS3)

SouthPeak Interactive
B-Boy (PS2, PSP)
Big Bang Mini (DS)
Edge of Twilight (PC, PS3, X360)
Mister Slime (DS)
Monster Madness: Grave Danger (PS3)
Ninjatown (DS)
Two Worlds: The Temptation (PC, X360)

Square Enix
Chrono Trigger DS (DS)
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen (DS)
Final Fantasy IV (DS)
Infinite Undiscovery (X360)
Song Summoner: The Unsung Heroes (iPod)
Star Ocean: First Departure (PSP)
Star Ocean: Second Evolution (PSP)
Star Ocean: The Last Hope (X360)
The Last Remnant (PS3, X360)

THQ
All-Star Cheer Squad (DS, Wii)
Baja: Edge of Control (PS3, X360)
Darksiders: Wrath of War (PS3, X360)
Deadly Creatures (Wii)
Lock's Quest (DS)
Red Faction: Guerrilla (PC, PS3, X360)
Saints Row 2 (PC, PS3, X360)
UFC 2009 Undisputed (X360)
Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise (DS)
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 (DS, PS3, Wii, X360)
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II (PC)
de Blob (Wii)

Taito
Exit DS (DS)
The Legend of Kage 2 (DS)

Tomy Corporation
Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 (Wii)
Naruto: Path of the Ninja 2 (DS)

Valve
Left 4 Dead (PC, X360)

Warner Bros. Interactive
LEGO Batman: The Videogame (DS, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, X360)
Project Origin (PC, PS3, X360)

XSEED Games
Little King's Story (Wii)
Valhalla Knights 2 (PSP)

I followed G4 TV's coverage of E3, primarily on On Demand. There's a lot of games that struck my fancy, and looked really, really good.

First off, here's the titles that caught my eye: (In order. And remember, just becuase they caught my eye does not mean that I want 'em)

1. Resident Evil 5- Wow. Another R.E., eh? If it's anything like Resident Evil 4, I'll be blown away. From what I've seen, the game looks amazing, both gamplay wise and gaphics wise. I know that there has been a lot of controversy over the whole "killing black people in Africa". But seriously guys, race shouldn't be an issue any longer. A lot of videogames kill white people, (And RE 4 killed Latin guys), so why is there so much hype? Keep the race issue out of games, and just enjoy 'em. They're not racist, you're just killing mutant zombies in a different country. It keeps the games fresh- new locations are good. And you're not going to have asian people in Africa, now are you?

2. High School Musical 3: Senior Year (DS), High School Musical 3: Senior Year Dance (PC, PS2, Wii, X360) They're actually making more of this crap? Well, it'll probably sell. But they need to stop making them. The movies were bad enough.

3. Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (PC, PS3, X360)
Now thats what I'm talking about. This looks to improve on the first. (Which was amazing) With more vehicles, weapons, and characters, (Not to mention a giant, fully destructible world) this game looks to be absolutely amazing. It'll be the next game I get, without a doubt. I love free-roaming games similar to Mercenaries, and this one looks to not dissapoint.

4. Spore (PC)
Now you have to had heard about Spore? Who didn't? I had the trial of the creator alone, and it looks absolutely amazing. 1000's of possible combinations, along with to being able to roam around a world created by you and other users is absolutely amazing. I'd get it, but my PC probably can't handle it. (It couldn't run Oblivion) What a shame. I was looking forward to it. Of course, if it can run the trial, perhaps it can run the real thing.

5. Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (X360)
Being a huge fan of the N64 games, I cannot wait until this one comes out. I practically grew up on Banjo Kazooie! From the little that I've seen, it looks amazingly fun. I can't wait.

6. Gears of War 2 (X360) One word: Wow. This one adds some awesome new characters, and more colors as well. The only problem I have with it is that the game play looks to be the same- nothing new. Oh well, I'll still probably get it.

7. Halo Wars (X360)
Well, it looks as though this may be my first RTS game. I'm not usually a fan, but this looks impressive. Something about controlling people and vehicles from the Halo universe sounds extremely interesting and fun. The controls look good, as well as the game play. I'm definitely putting it on my list of games to get, although it's not coming out in quite a while.

8. Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise (X360)
When I saw this, I almost fainted. I am a huge fan of the original, and this looks absolutely amazing. If you say that this game is only for kids, you've clearly never played it. It's one of the most addicting games out there. And with 30 new Pinatas, and several environments, this game looks absolutely spectacular. I can't wait to get it.

9. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
Although I don't have a PS3, this game looks to be one of the most unique and fun games I've ever seen. Being able to create your own little levels and play them with fun little characters is very appealing. Too bad I won't be able to play it.

10. Animal Crossing 2 (Wii, ?)

Although not listed, this game also looks really good. I'm a big fan of the one for the Game Cube, and cannot wait for it to come out. However, it seems a long way away, as we only got a short little video of it. (Along with no release date) So, I'll just have to wait until this one surfaces a little more.

11. Wii Music \

Another not-listed. This looks interesting, although I'm not sure how the controls will work out. Dependent on reviews, I may get it. I suppose I'll have to wait and see.

12. Guitar Hero 4

Rather than Rock Band 2, I decided on GH 4. While RB 2 is sort of samey, Guitar Hero 4 looks to set things apart with custom songs and a new drum set, not to mention many of RB's features.

1. Mercenaries 2

2. Viva Pinata 2

3. Animal Crossing 2

4. Halo Wars

5. Perhaps GOW 2

6. Guitar Hero 4

What games do you want to get?