Home Art Gallery

Yesterday afternoon, while Lucas was napping, I decided it was time to break out the girls' new watercolor paints and paper.  They have been asking every day (several times a day) to use them.  We spent a good hour just hanging out in the kitchen together.  The girls busy at the work of creating art and me in the kitchen whipping up some chocolate chip cookies and getting dinner started.  

I glanced over at their masterpieces drying on the dining room table and casually said, "You guys should have your own art gallery show."  The girls looked at me and said, "Ok!"  And that was that.  A simple painting session plus a simple statement sparked a totally new idea.  We got right to work.  Leah chose the gallery name ("The Family Gallery") and painted a sign.  Hannah chose the location (the hallway that leads to their bedroom) to display their works.  Together they started giving each painting a title, then signed each one personally.  I gave the girls some tape and a step stool which they immediately put into use.  Before I knew it, the hallway was full of artwork from top to bottom.  At the end, they decided that all the work on the walls looked the same (all watercolor paintings), so they pulled out some crayons and pens and did a few illustrations to show their "artistic range."  They really wanted to have the gallery ready for Daddy to view when he got home from work. 

And they achieved their goal.  When Mike walked through the door, he was met with joyful cries of enthusiastic little artists.  "Come and see what we did, Daddy!!"  He patiently walked the hallway, carefully looking at each painting and making encouraging comments.  When asked which ones he wanted to buy, he said, "All of them."  The girls were so proud of themselves.  I love it when they spend the afternoon creating and using their imagination. Who knows, maybe they will have their own sister gallery show one day?

 Getting started

 Hannah working on a "scary pumpkin" painting.

 Leah carefully beginning a rainbow

 Getting the gallery ready for opening night.  It's blurry, but I liked the effect.  They were like little tornadoes whirling around in a frenzy of hanging artwork.

 Hannah painted her foot, then turned it into a "scary monster".  She clearly had a "scary" theme going on.

 Leah's multi-colored foot.  I thought her use of white space was interesting.  She wanted to leave the other half blank.

"Candy Factory" by Hannah

Off Brands And Impatient Shopping

Do you buy off brands?  Otherwise known as store brands, "the cheap brands", etc.  The debate between name brand and store brand was a joke between my mom and her sister.  My mom was a devoted name brand buyer.  We religiously used Dial soap, Crest toothpaste, Gain laundry detergent and Downy fabric softener.  My mom bought those brands no matter the cost because she liked them and she knew they worked.  My aunt was not at all brand-loyal.  She read the stores' sale circulars, decided what the best deal was and picked it up-- store brand or name brand.  Saving money was most important to her (she was even known to have an entire kitchen drawer full of condiment packages).

I find myself as a blend of the two shopping methods.  Like my mom, I find myself leaning toward brand names of things that I really, really like.  But, like my aunt, I love a good deal, and have no problem buying off brands for things.  I tend to make snap decisions when at the store.  I quickly scan the different items and choose one that seems like the best deal at that moment.  If I can't make up my mind, I just go with what I know works and then move on.  I am not known for patience when it comes to shopping, which can be my downfall at times.

Take, for example, a quick trip to the store to buy a Christmas gift for my niece.  We had already purchased a cute t-shirt for her, but I wanted to add a toy to the gift.  What four year old is really that thrilled about a t-shirt?  So we ran into a store and browsed a few aisles.  I spotted some My Little Pony items and zeroed in on them.  My girls still love My Little Pony, so I figured it was a sure thing to buy.  The price was right on a My Little Pony "Fancy Fashions Boutique", so we bought it and took it home to wrap it up.  It was then that Mike noticed I had actually picked up an off brand of My Little Pony called "Lovely Little Pony".  Without even realizing it, I had picked up an off-brand (blame it on very creative packaging and my shopping impatience).

Then we read the sentence at the top of the box.  

"Owning it is you best choice come to own it together!"  

Yep, I was slightly embarrassed.  But we got a good laugh out of it and figured my niece wouldn't know the difference (the toys still looked like fun).  I showed my sister-in-law and she laughed at it too (Thanks, Rachel!).  Sometimes I guess it does pay to slow down, read the labels, and go with the name brand item.
Lesson learned.

What about you?  Are you brand loyal?

My Sleeping Companions

These two felines have not left my side since our return from the east coast. Due to flight delays we didn't get home until 2:00 this morning. Even at that hour, they were waiting at the door for us. *Sidenote: I have been in near zombie mode all day due to lack of sleep. Not scary, flesh-eating zombie mode, but slow-moving, stumbling, blank-staring zombie mode. Just to be clear.

Anyway, now they are snuggled up with me as I sit in bed reading and blogging before turning out the lights. Tundra always sleeps with me, but Ellie (our black cat) usually sleeps with one of our daughters. Tonight, however, she has chosen me. While I am flattered that she is gracing me with her presence, I am not sure how I am going to stretch my legs out.....

Flight Home

We are about to head to the Newark airport for the long flight home. Already I am missing the carefree days we spent with our family. Wish we could sneak everyone in our luggage and take them home with us. I am so thankful for the memories we made this week!

Merry Christmas

Hope your day has been merry and bright!

Christmas Eve

Food. Family. Presents. Love.

Merry Christmas Eve!!

Day Four

Oh what a mellow day we had today. It was much needed too. We slept in and took it easy all morning and did a little shopping in the afternoon. We finished the day up with a night on the town with Mike's brother, Juan and his wife, Tracy, as well as Mike's sister, Rachel and her husband Juan (yes, I have two brother-in-laws named Juan!). We went out just the six of us--no kids! We ate dinner at a funky Mexican place called Tinga, then walked to the movie theater in Westfield where we watched the new Mission Impossible film, and capped off the evening with coffee and dessert at a fun place called Rockin Joe's. I sure do love all my brothers and sisters-in-law. We all get along so well; we laugh a lot, and I am so grateful for each of them.

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve! I can't wait! We have gift wrapping and lots of baking on the agenda.