Self Help Painting

The finished products

For a few years now, a wonderful group of ladies and I have been meeting (semi) regularly for craft nights. Before arriving at the home of that evening's host, each girl meticulously gathers her materials and supplies with a clear plan for a fantastic project, ready for a night of focused crafting. Jealous? Yeah, don't be.... all lies. Here's the truth: SOME of us bring projects, HALF of us are late and ALL of us drink. Occasionally there's dinner, usually there are hors d'oeuvres and undoubtedly there is wine.
Lately, however, craft night has taken a bizarre and unexpected turn; we started crafting!
With our new found excitement for the arts, we decided to embark on a frightening new journey last night in the form of an organized group activity.  When I informed the gals that I had invented an art game, I was met with more than moderate skepticism. Despite their wild accusations about my "strict rules" and use of the word "chartreuse", I think they would agree that it was a fun and rewarding project.
Here were the guidelines:
*Personal Defense Disclaimer- I was quite flexible with the rules, thank-you-very-much! Does "Crayola Glitter" ring any bells?
The number of steps in the process is always one more than the number of participants. We had 5 girls, so our game had 6 steps.  Each person was given a blank mini canvas, an unlimited number of paint colors, brushes and painter's tape. Every 10 minutes or so, we would complete the next step then hand our canvas off to the person on the right. Eventually everyone would have contributed something to every painting.
The Steps:
1) Paint the entire canvas a solid color of your choice (pass to the right)
2) Using the painter's tape, block off a portion of the canvas and paint that entire section a solid color (pass to the right)
3) With only black paint, add an image(s) (pass to the right)
4) Add more detail using only white paint (pass to the right)
5) Now use color, as many or as few as you'd like to finish the project (pass to the right- the original artist should have their own canvas back)
6) Name your piece!

"Wouldn't You Like to Know" 

"Moon Over My Stage" 

"Victoria" 

"Starry Flight" 

"From Aime's Shelf" 

At the close of the night, we each had a different piece to take home. Interestingly enough, although we all began with various shades of blue, each painting looked vastly different. I think everyone surprised themselves too. One gal teased herself about her inability to paint, yet came up with a gorgeous "icy" effect on the painting of the tree which none else had considered. I believe everyone learned something from the experience, even if it was just "learning to be comfortable with being uncomfortable" :) 

First Birthday Chairs

Studying and sketching animals

For no reason in particular, I have a tendency to paint something for first birthday gifts. I wish I could say that there is some cool symbolism involved, but the truth is that I have no idea why I do it or when it started. I also wish I could say that I ALWAYS give hand painted gifts for first birthdays, but I'm simply not that consistent. If you know me and did not receive a personalized painted whatever, don't be offended!  My own son didn't get one! There isn't even a direct correlation between how well I know a person and how elaborate the gift. It is simply a matter of inspiration, motivation and of course, time. Best friends have been the recipients of on-the-way-to-the-party gift cards I scored at the local grocery store while assorted co-workers have been presented with a 150 hr hand crafted gem. It doesn't always happen this way either; again, I'm not that consistent.
One of my biggest regrets that I have worked hard (but not hard enough) to remedy over the last few years is never photographing the finished product. So many projects have been handed over, never to be seen again. Now it seems like if I tie Edward's shoes into a particularly perfect bow, it gets photographed. Its these darn first birthday gifts that I never get a shot of! Maybe its the fact that most of the time I'm still varnishing it on the way to the party or perhaps that I'm so sick of looking at it that even a glance through a lens would throw me over the edge. Whatever the reason, alphabet blocks, chalkboards, desks, name plaques, rocking chairs and countless other projects have been painted and forgotten over the years.
More recently, my variety of creations has been narrowed down to just chairs. This particular chair was quickly photographed on my friend's porch... at the party.

July 2009 

The colors were inspired by the color palate in her room. The butterfly was random.

Most of this butterfly was painted with my 1 month old sleeping in my lap

This next chair was more recently painted in 2010.... and 2011. This started out as a "Welcome to the world, Ben!" chair and quickly became a "So, how was that last year?" chair.

Africa 

The motif was also inspired by his bedroom decor. Think of the chair as a globe with each of the seven continents sprawling in their relative positions up the legs, seat and back of the chair. Each continent is represented by at least one animal and vaguely resembles the individual landscapes.

Antarctica/Australia/Asia

Central/ South America 

Add caption

The original sketches for this were far more detailed than the finished product, but since it had taken me over a year to complete, I was satisfied with the more simplified version. The most impressive thing about this chair is the fact that I took the time to take pictures of it.
So when will the next project endeavor strike? Who knows!? I have a whole vat of ideas just waiting for the appropriate level of motivation to make my hands do what my brain commands.

Toddlers As Teachers

Back when I was teaching kindergarten and first grade, one of my favorite things to do was throw parties in the classroom to celebrate whatever subject we had just finished studying. The students would take their parent(s) or family member around the room to various stations where a thematic activity awaited them. When he could, Alex would attend, playing the role of stand in dad for anyone whose parents were unable to come. Because they had been studying the particular theme for a few weeks, the students were able to wow the adults with their vast knowledge of the subject matter. Twenty four confident little voices using big words would guide their guests around to each activity, often reteaching them facts that had been forgotten long ago. The party would always end the same way: parents gushing over children who were already sufficiently impressed with themselves.

This weekend, Alex and I planned an event in similar fashion to the parties we used to plan for my classroom. We chose "Winter" as the theme and planned a few activities for the children to do with their parents. Each activity was marked by a single floating white balloon and a descriptive sign. We quickly learned, however, that all this preparation was unnecessary as all 13 children piled into the playroom and just played. The room quickly became an explosion of toys, games and art supplies as each child used their imaginations to repurpose the materials we had so carefully organized for specific projects. It was a delightful sight to behold! 

Here were some of our favorite moments:

1) "Snow Blocks": We took a great deal of time wrapping each of the building bricks with white paper to make them look like they were made of snow. The children were supposed to build snow forts, castles and habitats for the Arctic animals we had placed in that area. The concept was lost on most of them and the bricks just sat unused on the shelf until one little girl brought them to life when she discovered that they could be unwrapped like tiny Christmas presents. Before long, the block area was a tangled web of tiny hands excitedly unwrapping. 

2) "Building Snowmen": With white model magic, teeny top hats, clay carrots, googly eyes, glass beads and scraps of fabric, the children constructed snow people. This was perhaps the only activity with any degree of structure all day. 

Edward's Snowman

3) "Play Kitchen": For Christmas, we built Edward and Henry a play kitchen from a discarded piece of furniture we found (another post for another day!) It was awesome to see everyone "shopping" at the food market we have set up and "cooking" in the play kitchen.

Henry was busily cooking until he saw the camera

4) "Snowflake Fried Dough": We remembered this activity after the fact, so it was done later with my nieces and nephew. Clean scissors were used to cut shapes out of tortillas, making them look like snowflakes. We then fried them on the stove and covered them in powdered sugar and cinnamon. Delicious!

We enjoyed both watching the children and visiting with the adults. Although the activities did not always go as planned, we think they were more fun than we could have made them. For the next party, less planning, more exploring. 

Sammy Houdini

Quite famously, our over-sized Boston Terrier has a knack for escape. Perhaps his love of freedom and open space stems from his roots as a native Oklahoman. Maybe he does it for the greater good like Lassie or Rin Tin Tin. Then again, it could be that he is just in fact a very naughty dog.
After an epic escape about a month ago that ended with us posting an $80 bail to spring Sam from doggy jail, we decided to purchase a tether for the yard. We discovered very quickly that the fence which surrounds our yard is awesome for containing toddlers and useless for containing dogs. This morning, that tether proved to be a waste of $20 when, instead of a Boston Terrier, I found nothing but the tether hook at the end of the line.
It took no time at all to locate him as I quickly realized that he'd been mistaken for the neighbor's Boston Terrier and had been tethered to their front porch by another considerate neighbor. I stared over our fence as Sam pathetically whimpered back at me. With a sleeping baby, a sick toddler and freezing temperatures, retrieving Sam would be an annoying feat at best. I began the process of locating the leash, dressing Edward and checking on Henry when a knock came at the door. Our neighbor had returned Sam!
Unfortunately he was not returned before being fed, entertained by the neighbor's dog,  doted upon for his glassy blue eyes and sent home with a dog treat so large and appealing that I actually contemplated taking it for myself.
As if Sam needed another reason for adventure, he now knows that there is a doggie heaven right past the confines of our yard. I plan on writing a thank you note accompanied by a replacement for that magnificent treat. More importantly, however, I plan on asking her where she bought the tether from which Sam could not escape!

A Date to Renovate

The Summer of 2010 marked another turning point for our family when we packed up and moved back north to Massachusetts. We spent a year renting an apartment and searching for a home. During that time, we welcomed a second son into our family, Alex switched jobs and Edward turned 2. In October, after searching for months, we finally found the place we decided to call "home". 

The absolute worst room in the house was the kitchen. The only appliances in the entire space were an ancient electric stove and a refrigerator that clunked each time it achieved the set temperature. It was as if we'd stepped back in time to a world where dishes were hand washed and leftover food was scraped into the garbage can instead of the disposal. This may sound like unnecessary luxuries, but for someone that loves to cook and bake, this was culinary hell. 

Alex and I embarked on a 3 month renovation date, complete with midnight painting and early morning tiling. 

This is how the kitchen looked the day we moved in:

I always qualify this image with the disclaimer that it was actually much worse that it appears in the photo. There were many times during the renovation process when we would discouragingly look around at the debris and chaos that had become our kitchen. We would turn to the "before" pictures for some motivation only to find ourselves asking, "why did we demolish a perfectly functional kitchen?" Fortunately, reality would always set back in and we would be reminded of the goal ahead. Here were our issues with the space:

1) The sink was in serious need of plumbing work

2) The location of the sink would not allow us to have a dishwasher, ever. 

3) The way the plumbing was set up, we could not have a garbage disposal

4) The floor tiles were filthy, grimy and coming unglued

5) The countertops were faux marble, swirled with white and gold 

6) The cabinets had been around for a long time in a home formerly heated with oil. To the touch, they were sticky and gritty. 

7) There was fantastic moulding, original to the 1910 build that was virtually lost in a white washed scheme. 

 The first step was to remove the tile floor, cabinet faces and hardware and countertop. Next, we began the long process of sanding, wood filling and priming all surfaces. Due to the deficiencies of the plumbing under the sink, the entire cabinet was rotted through, so we had to remove it. In order to do this, we unbolted all the cabinets in the room and moved them about like puzzle pieces. To fill in the gaps, we purchased a total of 3 new, unfinished cabinets. Once we had everything in place, it was time to secure the cabinets, return the door faces and install the new countertop. 

My dad helped us out significantly, removing tiles, cutting pieces of countertop, measuring and devising ways to troubleshoot the countless obstacles we encountered.  

One of the biggest problems we faced was that the new cabinets were 1/2 an inch taller than the old cabinets. This meant that we either had to add on to the old cabinets or remove from the new. Either way, it was going to be a huge set back and lots of work. For many reasons we decided to build up the old cabinets. Once this daunting task was complete we were able to move forward. 

 Here are a few images of the progress we have made so far. We used glass tiles to create a mosaic backsplash. This was my first time tiling anything! It was easy and fun to do. We kept the existing sink, but replaced the faucet, added a garbage disposal and dishwasher. 

There is still a great deal of work to be done, but we are so satisfied with the results thus far. The hardware to the lazy susan was accidentally thrown away, so we are working on ordering a replacement. We are excited to continue finishing this massive project and look forward to posting more pictures of the rest of the kitchen! 

How Will Our Garden Grow?

       Staying home with Edward has given me the opportunity to finally flip through our stack of dusting cookbooks and get some use out of those fancy kitchen gadgets we registered for. Every Sunday, we venture out to our local food markets to purchase all the ingredients needed for the week. Along with the usual onions, carrots and celery, our produce list always includes fresh herbs. I have always had a love/hate relationship with buying fresh snipped herbs. While I love the flavor they bring to each dish, the herbs are only sold in pre-packaged bundles too large for the “pinch” I need for my recipes. By the end of the week, I am left with a refrigerator full of wilted herbs I am forced to throw away and re-purchase for the next week’s meals. This becomes wasteful and expensive, especially when you need just a bit of 5 or 6 different herbs!

         This Valentine’s day while people everywhere were buying long-stemmed roses for their lovers, we were buying potting soil and seeds to begin our own herb garden. One week ago today, we began the daunting task of sowing 500 tiny seeds into the150 separate slots of 3 different greenhouse containers. We planted 2 varieties of basil, caraway, chives, cilantro, dill, lavender, marjoram, 2 different kinds of oregano and parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon and thyme. We ran out of time after planting the first 80, so we finished the final 70 last night. The 2 large greenhouse trays are now sitting on an end table in our living room while the small one rests on the windowsill next to a pot of thyme we’re trying to salvage. The biggest challenge so far has been keeping the 9-month-old’s little chubby fingers off the lids!

           In 1 week, many of the seeds have begun to sprout, so it is time to prop open the greenhouse lid. It is kind of fun having one container of herbs a week ahead of the other because I am already learning from my mistakes. I compulsively overwater plants, and so far this time isn’t any different. Despite the fact that the basil sprouts and a few of the others look green, thick and strong, I can already tell that the wimpy yellowish stems of many others poking through the soil are due to suffocation by water. I am newly committed to leaving them alone and only watering when the soil becomes light brown as recommended. Re-planting is inevitably in my future…

       We will continue to buy herbs from the market until our little garden is ready to be harvested! For this impatient lady, that moment can’t come soon enough!

Bringing Back the Blog

I would like to promise that the Oklahoma variety Popes will be updating eveyone on

their goings on more than once a year, but our track record would make liars out of us. Again, we would like to happily blame our absence on another wonderfully involved event in our lives; a new addition to the family! As pictured above, we happily became parents on May 20th of last year. Our son, Edward James is 9 months old today and is constantly keeping us on our toes. His recent activities have included crawling around the house, turning on/off dvd players, videogame systems and televisions and babbling about.

Alex has been learning the wonderful world of banking while I have spent my days discovering the world of the Motherhood.

I will keep this post brief in hopes that there are more, frequent updates in my future. We hope that as you read this, you are well and happy. Make sure to keep us up to date with your lives!