Sun Catcher Art Project

Today, we made a fun sun catcher project.  Trisha and Carlton gave this project to the kids a few weeks ago, and they loved doing it! 

 Each kid made one sun catcher for their own room, and then they made one each for Caroline's room and one each for Lori's room.  

Katie Anne did an awesome job!  She is so crafty.  Her sun catchers looked beautiful.

SJ worked really hard and did a lot better than I thought.  He was very careful and didn't make much of a mess, and his looked really good!

In the oven, baking away!

All finished - they look awesome!  The unicorn is KA's to keep, and she made the puppy for Caroline and the crown for Lori.  The "Lightning McQueen" car is for SJ to keep, and he made the horse for Caroline and the rocket for Lori.

I didn't get a picture of SJ with his finished products because he was already napping by the time they'd cooled, but KA was proud to show her creations off!

The kids can't wait to give their sun catchers to their cousins!

Mommy and Me Painting Class!

As a Mother's Day gift from Gigi this year, Katie Anne and I got to take a "Mommy and Me" painting class at The Funky Paintbrush in Woodstock.  It was such a great bounding time for me and KA!  With SJ still being on a two nap schedule, it's hard for Katie Anne and I to do the things that we're used to doing in the summer.  So, this was a great surprise for us!  My mom kept SJ - and even let us borrow her new car with GPS to help us find The Funky Paintbrush - and KA and I were off!  

Katie Anne got to pick the painting that we did, and she picked the Sleeping Cat.  (Not my first choice because the colors nor cats really go with our house, but it wound up a lot better than I expected!)  The instructors took us through the painting step-by-step, and Katie Anne did most of the work.  She did an awesome job of listening and following directions - she's a great painter!  I did the outlining work that took precision, and I filled in some of the bigger parts of the sky and background of the grass when she got bored with it.  It was really a team effort, and everyone at The Funky Paintbrush was impressed with our great our cat looked - especially with a four-year-old doing the majority of the painting!  The class lasted two hours, and it gave KA and I some time to chat without interruptions.  Plus, we got to take home the cute painting of the Sleeping Cat when we left!  Here are some pictures of us at work...

The artist is ready to begin!

 The instructor does the outlining for you to get you started in the kids' class.

 Mommy and KA!

 Look at that concentration - painting the sky.

 Working on the grass background.

 Two girls having a great time!

 

 Working on the body of the cat- we started with a background of orange and added strokes of white, yellow, orange, and red.

 

 Katie Anne did an amazing job on the flowers- she did those almost entirely by herself.

 Adding the highlights.

 Making the grass look more realistic.

 Katie Anne did not want ANY help from me when it came to mixing her paint colors.

 I outlined the cat's body and drew the face, and Katie Anne added the the finishing touch - the nose!  She was really trying so hard - look at that face!

 KA with our beautiful finished painting!

 The Sleeping Cat!

Sleeping Cat is now hanging proudly on our living room wall, and KA loves that something we made together is out for everyone to see!  The painting class was a great gift for us!

Katie Anne's Christmas Craft Party!

This morning, Katie Anne had a Christmas Craft Party for all her friends!  

 

Normally each December, my friends Vanessa, Natalie, and I take the kids to Pottery Lane - a local pottery painting studio - to make ornaments.  Unfortunately, that business closed this year, and I was so disappointed that we'd miss out on our annual tradition - and the handpainted ornaments!  So, I got the idea to have an ornament making party for kids here at our house.  Of course, crafter extraordinaire Katie Anne was totally excited about that idea... but I think I had more fun getting this party together than anyone else involved!  This is soooo my idea of a good time!  I decided to have a morning party to hopefully avoid ruining anyone's naps.  For snacks, I had cupcakes, goldfish crackers, and grapes with apple juice for the kids to drink and coffee with seasonal creamers for the adults.  I raided Hobby Lobby and bought tons of wooden, ceramic, glass, and foam ornaments, along with lots of paint, stickers, and markers.  My mom came over and helped me get ready for the craftiness the night before - we covered my dining room table with red and white butcher paper and laid out all the goodies.  Katie Anne made sample ornaments for ideas, and we put those out, too.  It looked like a crafty kid's winter wonderland to me!

When all the kids arrived, they played in the living room with Katie Anne's Little People Nativity set and Santa Train (we cover all the bases here).  They had a great time playing with all the Little People!

 

 

Then, when all our friends had gotten here, it was time for the crafting to begin!  I thought it would be a bad idea to have directed crafts or make all the kids make the same ornament.  We had lots of different ability levels, interests, and ages (infant - four years old), so I thought too much direction would be a disaster waiting to happen.  I just turned the kids and parents loose, and everyone made crafty things at their own pace!  There were lots of beautiful ornaments made by all the precious kiddos, all the kids were really well-behaved and careful with the supplies, and everyone seemed to have a great time!  

 

Snack break!

 SJ napped for part of the party, but he couldn't stay away from the good times for long!  He had to come and hang out with Gigi, Daddy, Mommy, and the rest of the party gang.

 My kids in their cute matching outfits:

 SJ did so great hanging out in his swing for part of the party:

 Of course, it isn't hard for a boy to keep himself occupied when he's surrounded by cute, doting girls:

 

We are so thankful for our all great friends!

 

We couldn't have asked for a more fun Christmas Craft Party!  Katie Anne and I hope we can make this a new tradition for all our friends!