Fun Friday ~ Scissors, Fingerpaints and Water Fun

This was their first time working with scissors at my casa and with some guidance (and lots of modeling), they began to catch on!
The gluesticks are another story. ;)







It aint Fun Friday without bustin' out with the fingerpaints.




Water play and paint rinse off.

A pleading from Rose

Found her sitting on my doorstep this morning in a white plastic bag.
How could we NOT take her in?





And to the kind soul who dropped her off, I'm flattered that we'd be considered a good home.

Love Thursday

I know this isn't a shot of a heart found in nature, but when I saw this card amongst other random items in a basket while while at my friend's Hindi playdate, I loved it.



Happy Love Thursday.

Mandalas

They're swooping through my mother's group and for good reason. Yesterday, I dug though Domi's art bag and pulled out one of his old Mandala books to see if it would help ease my chattering mind. It is said when you look at the designs, you will find a message about an issue you are dealing with. The contemplation and coloring of mandalas is used to slowly release the mind from its ever-present jumble of racing thoughts and results in a stress-free state of being.

It was harder to stay in the lines than expected, but then again, I was using colored pencils, not markers. I also found my hands to be shaky. As if my fine motor skills are not polished anymore because it's just been this long since I've colored? I hardly ever 'write' anymore. I type.

I began to have some clarity on the issue I was dealing with though.





Also played along with the tangram pattern blocks with the tots.

Hindi and Bindi

We went to my friend Anja's house for a Hindi and Bindi playdate! I've always been so intrigued by the Indian culture and was excited when we got the opportunity to get more exposure. Anja cut out stencils of our children's names in Hindi, we listened to Indian music, and devoured some delicious samosas. Several of us even donned beautiful Indian clothing--several Salwar Kameez and even a Sari. As always, I was especially taken with little Anika.











Anjalika showing us the map of her hometown.






Sophia's name in Hindi

Shrimp and Crabs

The hubby traveled to Louisiana last week to arrive in time for the opening of the long awaited Shrimp Season. Along with his father and brother, they worked about 10 hour days out at sea. The shrimp were small this year and since they missed 2 days of work due to weather, his trip was extended a bit longer than expected. By the end of the week, I was dying over here from exhaustion of holding the fort down solo for over a week, so he came home before they did all the final prep work (read, deheading) on the shrimp. So, that's what I got to spend all day last monday doing. Helping Mike dehead shrimp. It was pretty gross. However, after about an hour of it and getting past the ick factor, it was manageable and I became quite the quick deheader (is that even a word?). But I probably won't have him do that here again. The patio and yard REEKED of fish for 2 days afterwards. And then my BIL came over to dehead his shrimp. P-U!

I shouldn't complain though, we now have enough shrimp in our freezer to last us until next year.
My hubby is awesome.

Below is my BIL deheading away...






They also caught some blue crabs (and fish too).

One of My Favorite Couples

Everytime I see them, Daryl often has his arm wrapped around his lovely wife.
And they always bring a smile to my face.

The Birth of a Butterfly

L's mama brought over some butterfly larvae from her classroom. I was pessimistic as two previous attempts were unsuccessful, but alas, we got a butterfly! The red liquid you see on the bottom of the house is called meconium. It’s the left-over color and unneeded tissues from the butterfly’s wing formation.

We did a release almost immediately. They only live for a couple weeks after their birth, so I figured the sooner, the better.

Fun-Friday at Casa T.

It's Friday! It's Friday!
Parachutes and Body Art.

Carmen Lomas Garza

Even though we didn't grow up in a poor rural Hispanic community (but instead a border urban community), many of Carmen Lomas Garza's books touch my heart in a very profound way because they show the family always together. This is what I love about the traditions of being part of a Mexican American family.

These are from her Family Pictures and In My Family books.

Botanical Printmaking with Sculpey

I think I am in love. With Sculpey!

Today I hosted an Art Playdate (with Mama Tanya) and the kiddies got to make botanical prints. As a note: It rocks to cohost playdates (especially the ones that require materials). Mama Tanya picked up the Sculpey for us and rolled them into bolitas for the kiddies. One mama brought items she found on their morning walk, and we plucked botanicals from our trees and garden. The kids pressed the balls (with mom's help) on top of the botanicals (vein side up) and voila! I popped them in the oven and they were ready in 15 minutes. All the kiddies got to take their art home today.

They came out very detailed and better than the homemade playclay I experimented with last week. I think there's a time when it's worth it to invest in good quality art materials, especially if there are to be kept forever.



All of them came out beautiful, but my most favorite one is Che's. It has a very Zen feel to it.
Simple. And it came from a small twig.
Who woulda thought?


Wouldn't these look nice with just a few in a wooden bowl for decoration?
Or poke a hole through it before baking and make earrings, a necklace, or an ornametal gift tag?

Best Shot Monday ~ Childhood

I captured many beautiful things this weekend, however, my camera was particularly drawn to this lovely little lady. She reminds me of a Madame Alexander doll. And that's a tarantula she's got there in that jar. How cool is that? For my BSM this week, I honor childhood innocence.



For more Best Shot Monday photos, head on over to Tracey's.

Vintage Beauty

Yesterday, the kids and I joined the Osborn family for a crawfish boil at the beautiful historic home of Chris and Lori. Mike has been in Louisiana shrimping all week, so he missed out on this (and when does he get to ever GO to a boil instead of having one?).

Both Chris and Lori's parents were in town and the entire Osborn family was there with their kiddies. Lori is such a gracious hostess and so incredibly organized. I take notice in such lovely details because I enjoy doing them myself (what can I say, it's the Martha Stewart and Latina side of me).

We had an wonderful and such a relaxed time and I got to spend some time with sweet Natalie. I'm thankful to know such a beautiful and loving family. Dallas' crawfish even came out tasty! And like he said, I have high standards with the hubby being notorious for his boils. ;)

I wanted to take more photos because there was so much beauty there that day, but didn't want to come off as the crazy mamarazzi friend.
Nonetheless, here's a nice sampling...