Celebrating Summer with Cornhole! (Read on for an explanation...)

Brennan and Grandpa Brad (A.C.A. Member!)

My family and I have always been 'outside' people.  We would much rather be outside on a nice summer evening than stuck inside.  That's why my parents have a lot of deck parties each summer.  They are so much fun!  Everybody (usually a couple sets of neighbors, an aunt or two's family, and maybe my grandparents) shows up around 5 or 6 for a weenie roast or fish fry, a lot of talking and laughing, a few drinks, maybe a Twins game on the flat screen that my Dad moves outside, and ultimately some Cornhole.

You may have heard some other definitions of the word Cornhole, but the definition Wikipedia gives is what I'm talking about!

"Cornhole (bean bag toss, baggo or bags) is a lawn game in which players take turns throwing cornhole bags (cotton duck bags filled with feed corn) at a raised platform with a hole in the far end. These platforms are usually made with plywood or plastic and are often decorated. A corn bag in the hole scores 3 points, while one on the platform scores 1 point. Play continues until a player reaches the score of 21."

This game is so much fun!  Anyone who plays always ends up wanting a set of their own!  Lucky for me, I have a crafty Dad!  He used our neighbor's set as a model and made sets that snap together for easy travel for another neighbor, himself, and me!  Later on he received two more set requests- one from my older sister, and one from my friends Shannon and Eric as a wedding gift!  Needless to say he was busy making the games!

Well, since Dad had become so 'involved' with the game of Cornhole, I thought that he would appreciate becoming an official member of the A.C.A.- The American Cornhole Association!  I hopped Online and signed him up!  He is now an official, card carrying, "American Cornhole" (as my niece and nephew like to call him)!  Haha!

Dad and I in the Cornhole tournament.

Two summers ago, my Dad and husband, Ryan, entered a Cornhole tournament together.  They did really well, and finished only one place short of the prizes... darn!  So last summer, we decided to have them enter again... on different teams!  I entered the tournament with my Dad (I was one of very few girls).  Our team name- "Slim Chance"!  Ryan entered with our friend Eric as "Bazinga!"  (They aren't fans of "The Big Bang Theory", are they??)  Unfortunately,

Brennan & I at the Renaissance Festival.

as luck would have it, we were paired up in the first round!  It was a double elimination tournament, so we knew that after the game one of our teams would already be one step away from elimination.  Well, the impossible happened- Dad and I beat "Bazinga!"  They are really good, but we pulled it off!  So we were in the winner's bracket and they were in the loser's.  This ended up being good for them, since we were playing the best teams and were soon knocked out!  Ryan and Eric came back to take 8th place, scoring four tickets to the Renaissance Festival in the Twin Cities.

Grandma Jan and my nephew, Wiley, playing Cornhole.

Anyway, Cornhole has become a very enjoyable part of our lives.  It's played every year at our 4th of July party and many other times throughout the summer.  It truly is fun for everyone and for all you guys out there- it only requires one hand so you can hold your beer with the other.  If you have a chance, give it a try!

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