little hummingbirds

And speaking or papier mache... I have always felt that I could create anything using it.  I have made many things in my years with papier mache and love to work with it in all it's messiness and simplicity.  Just mix up a batch, made a mold of something and cover it... let it dry and paint it.  Simple as that.  During naptime one day, after the volcano was complete, I decided to try and make butterflies.  The butterflies didn't turn out as planned so I moved on to something bigger... birds.  Or one bird in particular.  Hummingbirds.

 

There was a lot of messiness in between these steps so the camera was not involved.

Oh, but the wings are simple cut out cardstock with a bend at the body and tape.

I love this little belly.

I used mod podge mixed with fine glitter for the green body and red throat.  I painted the belly white and the beak black and added black sequin eyes.  I also used heavy duty foil... incase you were wondering.



days of our day care

About a month ago... the big kids and I decided that we needed a project.  Something that would involve all of us working together.  We do lots of projects that show individuality, but not many that show what we can do together.  I thought about it and decided that we should make a papier mache volcano... and they were ALL IN!  So we traipsed back to the shop at the house to find a piece of plywood for our base and covered it with aluminum foil.  Then we fashioned a model volcano out of a Pringles can and tissue paper all glued down and together.  Next I mixed up a batch of papier mache as the boys tore pieces of newspaper.  Then we painted our volcano and the base.  And the most exciting step of all was carrying our creation outside and making it erupt by adding baking soda, a little food coloring and vinegar.  Tis was their most favorite step of all.  The big finale!

 

 

Note: this did not all happen in one day.  Our Wednesdays, at the time, consisted of only the bigger boys.  So we used our Wednesday time together to work on our project a little at a time. 

 

 



cucumber and onion

Hey guess what... I am a vinegar lover.  And this is one of my most favorite recipes.  Every time I walk into a meat and three (which is not so often anymore) I scour the menu for a side dish of cucumber and onion.  It is super simple to make, requires very few ingredients and surprisingly goes really well with just about any meal.  Especially meat and threes!  So if you've still got cucumbers growing like crazy in your garden like I do this is a great recipe to try.

 



image inspiration

I wasn't sure if I should name this post Image Inspiration or Stuff I'm Drooling Over.  They both apply greatly to these photos.  I was in the mood this morning to find new places.  New places on the internet.  I love my favorite blog list of sites I cruise regularly, but (like me) they sometimes don't post as often as I would like.  Hey... none of we bloggers are perfect!  Unless maybe the ones that get paid to blog but then what's the fun in that... besides the getting paid to do it part.  I never really wanted to get paid to blog or venture down that route because I don't want to lose the fun in it.  If it felt like a job I probably wouldn't want to do it... you know if I felt like I "had" to blog.  Anyway, I found a few new places this morning... one happily leading to the next.  Then one happily leading to me wanting to spend thirty one bucks on a piece of enamelware which isn't abnormal for my enamelware love affair that I have been in for simply years now.  I'm probably gonna do it.  Afterall... I don't have a cream can to put flowers in... and oh how I didn't realize I wanted one until literally within the last half hour. 

 

 

Image Inspiration

 

I know..... I'm going to have to bite the bullet.  Probably as soon as I finish this post.

Found in this lovely etsy shop called Vintage Goodness.  Oh she has some awesome stuff.

 

 

 

And... I own several floral paintings that live happily ever after in my bedroom.  They aren't fancy but are oh so pretty to look at.  This post from DesignSponge has got me wanting more.  So in fact that I have already texted my sister this morning for a date to the next Nashville flea market.  She gladly accepted.

 

Very prettily placed upon the top shelf.

This picture made me start a list of home décor updates.  Intentions of moving my floral paintings to the kitchen and redecorating the blue barn wood shelf in the living room.  I always have good intentions when I am not at home.  Then I get there, tired after work, and it never happens.  Maybe not "never".  Sometimes it happens.

Also found on DesignSponge, I was led to a very talented illustrators blog named Frances Macleod.  I adore the pattern below along with many of others she has.  I am thinking of placing it on the background of this blog.  If I can get it to work.

 

 

Ok, that's all for now folks.  I have lists of blog posts that I want to do.  Finding the time if a different story.  So for now you get spur of the moment stuff.  XOxo