Easiest silhouettes ever

I keep seeing pins for DIY silhouettes that are time consuming and involve fancy programs like Photoshop- two things I do not have. I even see people selling them on Etsy for a small fortune. Nonsense, I say.

I have been in love with silhouettes since about the first grade when school pictures always came in a silhouette format and have always promised to have them made of the kids. And at some point I really would love to have them cut by a silhouette artist, but until then I will make do with my spray painted version.

Here's how I did it: I took side profile pictures of the boys and blew them up to a size I liked and printed them on card stock. I cut out the picture, spray painted it black and mounted it on top of a white piece of paper and placed it in a frame. That's it. Embarrassingly simple.

First Day

 I was the only mom there with a giant camera, but hey, it was a big day!

Not a traditional name in the whole bunch. Guess Anderson was placed in the trendy class, ha!

This is how we left him, with play dough and a girl named Kaylin.

Truly, the most beautiful piece of fire cracker art I ever did see.

Anderson | On your first day of preschool...

Anderson,
Today you started preschool. Preschool! OK, summer school preschool which is kind of like pre-preschool, but it is school, nonetheless! We have been so fortunate that you have always been home with Daddy or me, but you were so ready for something new, ready for change. It seems that no matter how creative we think we are, Daddy and I just can't compare to a room full of kids your own age. Eleven other kids, to be exact. With Baby Beck it is just so hard to keep you occupied and engaged every minute. I am constantly worrying about balancing structured play with learning time and just plain old fun. I guess it goes with the territory. I worry daily that I am not challenging your mind enough, not nurturing your interests enough, not socializing you enough. I am hoping that going to school a couple of days a week for a few hours will put my mind at ease at least just a bit.

I always hear people comment about how "advanced" or "bright" their children are at such a young age and I wonder exactly what composes their frame of reference. Are you advanced or gifted or maybe just plain smart? I don't know. You are 3. You are funny. And cute. And you sing and dance and keep me on my toes. But who is to say if you are going to excel academically or achieve greatness in the arts? Who knows if Mrs. Berry, your new teacher, will be the one who inspires something within you, who helps you uncover a passion or a talent that was buried deep inside?  As a teacher my only hope is that you enjoy school, that you see it as a place of opportunity. Whether you are at the top of your class or right there in the middle please, please just don't be at the bottom, what matters most is that the love and excitement you had this morning as you entered your classroom for the first time carries with you through the years; that the pride you have for your toilet paper roll fire cracker (first school art project ever! but why can't it be flat so that I can store it neatly? ughhh!) comes through in everything you do.

Some people act like preschool is no big deal and that it is just glorified play time. Maybe that is true. But to me it is the beginning of so much more. It is an opportunity to learn, to grow, and to make new friends. It is a place to learn how to be you when Mommy and Daddy are not there watching, a place to learn how to be a student, a place to learn to respect teachers.

You made me one proud mama today, Anderson. That toilet paper roll fire cracker holds a most special place in my heart for all that it represents. I love you, baby boy.

xo,
Mommy

Quilt

I finally finished my quilt and I'm pretty proud of how it turned out. It was super easy, if not very time consuming and I am already thinking of the next one. Baby Beck is in love and has all but declared it his new peek-a-boo blankie.

Library

I took the boys to the library this week for the first time in a year. We purposefully avoided story time and went for the sole purpose of getting acquainted with the children's area, enjoying all of the fun things that the lbrary has to offer hello, waterfalls and giant sail boat! and, most importantly, checking out books. Who knew you could check out up to THIRTY children's books at a time?! Thirty! OK, every other mom in the city probably knows this, but I was floored. And, of course, I acted totally non-chalant about it as if checking 30 books at a time is the norm and that I actually wish we could get more as my chldren are so incredibly gifted that we blow through and memorize 30 books in a matter of minutes at our house.

So the boys played and I tried to wrap my head around finding 30 books I was willing to read countless times over the course of the next week. I think my strategy in the future is going to be to tackle one row at a time. Like, find 30 books from authors whose last names begin with the letter A and so on. I was a total amateur jumping from aisle to aisle trying to remember titles of books I had seen or heard of or authors of some of my favorites. In the end I pretty much just grabbed whatever was on display because, well, that was just easier with a certain recently walking one year old trying to escape to see the fish.

In the end we ended up with 11 books, which seemd like a ton, but we have already gone through them all about 8 times and I am ready for some new ones to add to the mix. And my favorite part? Anderson insisted upon checking out the Jennifer Capriati: Teen Tennis Star book for some reason. Too funny, that boy.

One week down

The goal this summer is to have an outing a day because, well, a busy 3 year old is a happy 3 year old. And a happy 3 year old makes the whole family happy. Money is tight (blah, blah, what else is new) and so we are on the lookout for fun, free (or at least super cheap), and local activities. We are taking advantage of the time off and the great weather to explore as many parks, playgrounds, museums, and children's activities as we can this summer.

This week we visited the children's "show" at Bella Terra, the lake, the library and Atlantis park. We spent every afternoon in the pool and had a dinner "picnic" every night. I even got in a few hours by myself to run errands and maybe slip in a pedicure while Rosa was here on Tuesday. The days have flown by and have been full of sun and plenty of water. Everyone is enjoying taking things a little more slowly and discovering new adventures- just what summer is all about.

first day, far behind, and catching up

My first official day off of the summer and I am tired in that got stuff accomplished, had fun, soaked up the sun and made the most of my day kind of way. I organized the garage a bit, visited the dentist, took the kids to a children's event, made smoothies, played for hours in the sun and water, made a Target run, barbecued and had a dinner picnic in the backyard with all my boys, and kissed everyone goodnight before 6. Time for ice cream, a little internet-ing, and Mr. Grey. All in all a good day.

I am so far behind in keeping this blog up to date but I have made my self a promise that this ball will get rolling tomorrow. Or the next day. Well, at least this week, anyway.

a bucket of water  +  Baby Beck = a good half an hour of relaxing in a lounge chair

Overwhelmed

Pulled in many directions these past couple of weeks as work winds down and the temperature rises. So many photos, so many projects and so much to do. Hopefully I'll be in a groove by the end of the week.

Project

Excited to start a new project. Hoping to find the time to get it underway this week.

Outside

We've been spending a ton of time outside these last few weeks. Lounging in the yard, drinking lemonade, taking long walks in the afternoon, blowing bubbles, and swinging in the park- we are ready and anxious for summer. I have a sneaky suspicion that June will bring us many gray and dreary days so I am taking advantage of every ounce of sunshine until then.