week 2 of summer art camp!

this weeks project came from this post over at Deep Space Sparkle.  (really all of our projects will most likely come from this site because it is awesome.  

i wanted to explore the color wheel because i am fascinated by the process of mixing color, and feel like learning about primary and secondary colors is the real basis of art.  (color art anyway)

since we did black and white line drawing last week, the girls were itching to paint.  

 we started with the color wheel, and i had them paint the primary colors first, then mix up each secondary color and paint it in the appropriate spot on the wheel.  no matter how many times we do a color mixing project, the girls act like it's magic as orange, green and purple appear.  

 it really is fun though, to see what mix they come up with.  Avery's orange was spot on pure orange, orange.  but she kept wanting her purple to be more grape and less violet.  

 Anna was surprisingly the messiest with this project due to over mixing. 

 Madeline was surprisingly meticulous about her mixing and painting "in the lines" not wanting to spread one color over the other.  

once we were finished with the color wheels, we painted a face and body, and had a color wheel clown!  

clearly this was a fun project, but it was also good and long.  it took us close to 2 hours to complete, perfect for a hot summer day!

art camp!

the kids love art, and art projects, and we are always coloring in our coloring books, etc.  but i wanted to offer them more of a "curriculum" this summer to look at art and creativity differently.  so while were are still constantly coloring each day, on Friday while Colin is napping, we're trying something new and calling it: Art Camp.  

this week's project comes from this wonderful resource.  

it's a simple project to work on line drawing and pattern play.  at first, the girls couldn't believe there was no "color" involved.  but when they were pasting their creations onto their chosen color construction paper, they caught the vision!  

i'm not gonna lie, i got into this too!

1) i demonstrated how to make a big upside down U for the shell, and then a series of other U's for the underbelly, feet, tail and head.  

2) then i showed them how to cover the shell in a bunch of free form lines

3) and showed them how to draw a pattern in each free form area

after that, i thought i'd take a little (well deserved at 8 months pregnant) break on the comfy couch, and check back in when the patterns were done.  but, i was having so much fun, i just stayed and did the whole project with my girlies.  

here is our gallery:

(once Colin woke up, the gallery quickly traveled to higher ground) 

 Anna's turtle"

 Avery's turtle:

 Maddie's turtle:

 i love how each of their turtles turned out so unique.  Anna's is pretty bold, with large black spaces, and most of her patterns are stripes and polka dots.  Avery's is so delicate, small, with sweet swirls and a decidedly vertical orientation.  Maddie's is plump and covered in hearts, she said there's a heart for every person that she loves.  

i think Art Camp is already a success!

first swim of the season?

the temperatures are starting to soar, but i'm not sure the pool has caught up yet.  the girls begged and begged to go in, so:

they stayed in there for a while, despite the squealing.  

happy Valentine's day

this year the girls wanted to photo Valentines as seen on Pinterest.  so we snapped these photos them, and then popped lollipops in their hands to treat their fiends.  

the surprise is: it's not a surprise!

so, we have never found out the gender of our babies.  but this has always been my choice, while Jason would have preferred to find out.  at some point in our negotiations for #5 i may or may not have suggested i would agree to find out this time if i could just have one more baby.   and though Jason laughed this off at the time, assuring me this was not a bargaining chip, he still through it down once baby #5 was a reality.  although i really prefer not knowing, i figured i got my way 4 times, so i gave him his way just this once! 

after a lengthy hour+ long ultrasound (designed for woman over 35, yikes) we finally discovered that our sweet new baby will be our 4th daughter!  Colin did not attend the ultrasound, but he was not surprised to discover he would be having another sister.  "brother" is not in his vocabulary!  

the girls were actually excited (Maddie was a little mad to lose the betting pool) but they could not muster up any enthusiasm for this photo after such a long time in the ultrasound room.  

we are thrilled to welcome another beautiful daughter to our family this summer.  we know she will be as sweet and lovely as her sisters (and brother).  

California Christmas Part Deux

Christmas Eve was again a splendid party.  we had such a nice time with friends and family.  and Colin had so much fun with his best pal Nalu.  

 a special visitor came to surprise the kids.  the girls were so excited and whispered their cute wishes to the man in red. 

 Colin on the other hand was not very excited to visit with his old friend.  while i was trying to place him in Santa's lap I said, "I just want you to say hi to Santa."  and this is what he did, obediently and tearfully waved and said, "hi."  poor kid, his mom just won't quit.  

 Colin was all pictured out, but I was dying for a shot of all my cuties on Christmas Eve.  

 the clan (minus Barrett's family, and Elder Beardsley):

 i am feeling pretty lousy this pregnancy, I was not a super energetic party goer. 

 Chritmas morning was a bit of a waiting game for the kiddies.  were were able to Skype with Collier, so we let the kids empty stockings, but made them wait to open presents.  here's Avery asking, "is this my Rapunzel doll?"  

 this kid had some unwrapped presents in the mix, so he rode, 

 and hammered and sawed until the opening began.  

 Christmas cuties:

 Avery did in fact receive a life-sized Rapunzel this year.  

 while Anna and Maddie both got just what they asked for too!

 Caroline, the American girl doll from 1812.  

 they got nearly every Caroline accessory (thank you grandma and grandpa), including matching jammies.  

 Tashy and Ian hooked the girls up with these darling magnet boards.  

 and buddy occupied himself with tree ornaments, and...

 the four footballs he got!  

Colin is obsessed with football.  it's his first word in the morning, and if you turn the TV on he is relentless with the question, "football? football? football?"  he and dad had some fun running plays in grandma's yard.  

we had a very Merry Christmas most especially because we were surrounded by family, spoke with and saw Elder Beardsley, and reflected on the birth and love of our Savior.  Merry Christmas to all!

a hunting we will go!

while I was in Washington with Anna and Colin, these two little cuties went on their first hunting trip!

 i think Jason had to pay the girls to pick up the birds.  

 so, when we got home, Anna wanted in on the action.  Jason took all 3 girls out dove hunting.  check out Anna's face, and the very tiny bit she's holding that bird.  i think she was only in it for the fashion statement. 

 (i can't help noticing that Jason is beaming with pride.)

here, they look much more relaxed holding their after hunting slushies.  

i think our favorite part of dove season is having all our friends over for a post hunt swim/bbq party!

Pinterest in July

Pinterest has really come through for me this summer.  as i've spent 5 weeks homebound with no driving and a double daily dose of pills that make my brain crazy, i've needed to get really creative to keep these kiddos busy.  Pinterest to the rescue.  

yarn crafting.  this one was an awesome use of things i already had in the craft box:

finger paint in a ziplock.  yay!  no mess painting!

how to draw (insert various animals here).  the girls loved practicing some new techniques.  

month one of no driving down, 2 to go!