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30
Aug

Art School for Toddlers

posted by rachel, August 30, 2011

This past weekend we attended Uptown Kids‘ first anniversary birthday bash, where they teamed up with Prevent Blindness Oklahoma. In addition to a crazy awesome carnival (complete with petting zoo!), the kids also got to paint a canvas which will then be auctioned off in a couple of weeks to raise money for Prevent Blindness. How cool is that?

Jude was in hog heaven getting to paint his little canvas, which got me to thinking, “Why don’t we ever do stuff like this at home?”

Oh yeah. My anal-retentiveness about having to clean up one.more.mess. That’s why. :-

But c’mon – I was an art major, for pete’s sake! Can I not deal with a little mess to give my child a whole lotta joy?

So it was off to Hobby Lobby we went, to pick up the couple of supplies we didn’t already have. I have a ridiculous amount of art supplies left over from my OU School of Art days. All we were lacking were canvases, really, and a couple of tubes of paint that I was out of. If you want to do this at home, remember that places like Hobby Lobby frequently run major promotions on art supplies. All canvases, for example, were 30% off this week. Another idea is to go to a thrift store and buy up ugly paintings and let your kiddos just paint like crazy over them.

Hobby Lobby also sells giant packs of cheapo brushes that you don’t have to feel bad about ruining.

Keep in mind that if you choose to use acrylics (like I do), either strip your kid down to his skivvies or put them in clothes you don’t mind ruining. You will not be able to get the acrylic paint out of clothes. Ever. Trust me on this one.

I covered the kitchen table with an oil cloth splat mat that I had and taped it securely to the table so we wouldn’t have one of those “OMG” moments when one of us inadvertently pulls the tablecloth & all its painterly contents onto the floor. A few dixie cups were filled with water & placed within sturdy plastic cups (again, to minimize spillage). Then I let him have at it – and I did too!

I forgot how awesomely cathartic painting is. And for Jude, he was so stinkin’ proud of himself as he swirled the paint around his 2 canvases. The first one he used the brushes on. But the second one, he studiously applied the paint w/ a palette knife (my personal favorite method).

Et voila! Fabulous art for the upstairs! And he’s so proud of his work, he couldn’t wait to show Simon when he walked in the door last night.

How about you? Do you indulge your kiddos in high-mess-potential projects? I feel inspired to try new ones now!

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29
Jul

Instagram Fun

posted by rachel, July 29, 2011

I’m late to the Instagram party, but man, I sure am loving it! Don’t get me wrong, I’m still madly in love w/ my DSLR, but it’s true that I have my iPhone with me all day every day, so sometimes it sees more use.

The original photo that inspired the one above. Jude was itty bitty! Maybe a month old?

This is us making our “sad faces.” We play a game where I ask him to show me his faces: sad face, happy face, crying face, excited face, hungry face, curious face, etc. Cracks me up every.single.time.

Jude ‘n Simon, lounging around at Mathis Bros. the other night. True story: that little blue chair was $170(!). And the adult one? $174. That’s right. For only FOUR DOLLARS MORE. Huh???

Did I tell you we made homemade strawberry cheesecake popsicles a few weeks ago? Super yum. Recipe here (I swapped out strawberries for blueberries).

Favorite summer outfit right now.

Second favorite summer outfit right now, inspired by this lady.

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17
Feb

February is halfway over?

posted by rachel, February 17, 2011

January was gone in a blink of an eye, and here it is halfway through February. I swear time is going faster than it used to. And yet, in other ways, not so much. I remember hearing a phrase that has stuck with me a lot lately: “The days are long but the years are short.” This was mostly in relation to how quickly your children grow up, but the same can be true for the everyday, mundane things of life. I apologize in advance for what is going to be a random post, full of all kinds of miscellaneous stuff.

Like dishes.

Man, I hate dishes. I hate doing dishes with a passion. And you know you’ve waited way too long to do the dishes when it takes two loads to do all the dirty dishes that have been piling in the sink.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned Simon’s latest big project. He’s one of the design co-chairmen of the OKC Orchestra League’s decorator’s show house. Every year they pick a gigantic house and designers come in to redecorate, redesign, etc. Fun, right? Well, a lot of work, too. I’m so proud of him. He has really stepped up and been a huge help to them this year. I’m really impressed with how much he’s undertaken.

And I’m also thankful that I get to have a part in it, too. He’s helped me land some print design work for them, which is a great opportunity. This year’s logo, for example:
GalaLetter.pdf @ 300% (CMYK/Preview)

Here’s an aerial view of the house they’re doing this year. Isn’t it amazing? It’s somewhere in the neighborhood of 15,000 square feet. Check out that pool in the middle! I think the guest house in the back is practically the size of our house! It will be open to the public for viewing, completely decorated starting either in late April or early May. I can’t remember which.
1701 Drury Lane, Nichols Hills, OK - Google Maps

Last week was the first party for the house – the undecorated party. This is when everyone comes in to see the “before” — before anything has been changed or ripped up. It was a lot of fun. Out of our typical scene, definitely, but a lot of fun. I met a lot of really interesting people, and it was fun to get kinda dressed up in the middle of the week. I pulled an old skirt out of retirement. I’m so glad the trends are turning towards hourglass shapes again – full skirts, defined waists. This is right up my alley!

White Theory button-down stretch shirt, J.Crew earrings, black BCBG belt, Club Monaco skirt, Target tights, J.Crew suede wedge heels.

Otherwise, it’s been back in the swing of things now that the snow has melted and we’re experiencing 70 degree weather. Oklahoma is so weird.

One day during the snow storm, I looked down and I found all of Jude’s Playmobil people climbing up my laptop cord.

Does this look comfortable to anyone? No, I didn’t think so.

Ok, if you’ve made it through this post full of uncategorized, miscellaneous items, I give you a high five. Oh well, that’s life these days!

I also wanted to say thank you for the amazing welcome you guys gave to my Etsy endeavors. I have been blown away by the response and I am so thankful!

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15
Feb

“Doe a Deer”

posted by rachel, February 15, 2011

We watch a lot of The Sound of Music (aka, “Doe a Deer”)around here. It’s a good story with no language I have to filter or be embarrassed by, about a big family with catchy music and beautiful scenery, not to mention the kid appeal of 7 children. When Maria comes onscreen, Jude squeals “MARIA! IT’S MARIAAAAAA!”

This morning, as I was getting him ready for school, Jude looked at me and said, “Mom, I want to give you a kiss.” Of course I love this and think it’s precious. So I offered him a cheek. ”No, Mom,” he says forcefully. ”No. I kiss you like in Doe a Deer.” And then he leans in and pops a kiss right on my mouth.

Admittedly I was a little surprised by this. We are not mouth kissers around here, folks! I mean, me and the Mister are, of course, but not w/ our kiddo!

“Jude,” I said haltingly, “Uh, just who is it that kisses like that in Doe a Deer?”

Jude put a finger on his chin as he thought. ”Ummm … uhhh …” I could see the wheels turning. “It was, uhh, her? The girl?”

“Liesl? When she kisses Rolf?”

Jude lights up. ”YES!”

Hmmm. I’m thinking the song might be “I am 3 going on 17.” Oh deer dear.

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22
Jan

Le Week-End

posted by rachel, January 22, 2011

I’m sorry, is this the weekend already? Because I wouldn’t know. I’ve been trapped in the house for the last 2 days (until today, thanks to my dear husband). Remember this story of our OHoly Night of Barf? I promise not to get into the nitty gritty details again but let it suffice to say that what we experienced on that particular multiple-day stretch of stomach flu could not hold a candle to what has gone on the past 3 days here.

So while I was moping around the house and reading all the Tweets about Alt Summit, I was suddenly pulled back into reality by a very, very sick little boy.

We’ve been eating lots of soup this week. I made a really yummy French Onion soup recipe (via Martha Stewart)earlier in the week, and I keep dreaming about it. It was so absolutely delicious with a big crusty loaf of French bread. And my parents came to our rescue yesterday with a special delivery of Don’s Alley’s chicken ‘n noodles (a local comfort food favorite) and their yeasty buttery rolls. YUM. Oh, and popsicles for Juder.

Our lifesavers this week: Clorox wipes, Tide, and the sanitize cycle on our washing machine. We have literally washed every single towel in this house, 2 pillows, multiple pillowcases, a duvet cover, a twin size down blanket, 2 down-filled throws, 5 pairs of pajamas, 2 pairs of my pants, 2 of my shirts, Simon’s favorite green hoodie, and our kitchen rug. LG, you’ve got a quality product in that thar washin’ machine.