When you think you're ahead of the game but it turns out your're just about hanging in there

Last year, I had hearts of rage even though I generally have a reasonable affection for Valentine's day (but must admit to never having seen the relics of the venerable saint in my town of birth).

This year, I was all prepared with ideas in my head and a saved template on my computer. However, I had the wind taken from my sails by a post on Z1's class blog with the class list and an assurance that writing out each name would be a great writing exercise for the children. My schemes had mainly avoided Z1 having to write out much as I felt it would be tedious. Also, the bookmarks I had planned, glittery hearts with her name on them stuck to a lollipop stick - ta dah - a bookmark - were not conducive to having names written on them. We overcame the latter problem by putting the bookmarks in envelopes and, as for the tediousness, it turns out I had underestimated her tolerance for writing and she completed the task as well as decorating the envelopes with each classmate's favourite colour accompanied by frequent declarations about how awesome it all was.

Z2 helped a bit with glitter painting his hearts but I did most of the work. As for the beautiful bag you see in the righthand panel of the picture, Z1 decorated it but it was chiefly my effort as bedtime was nigh by the time we got 'round to it. Sadly, I was not paying attention to detail and the other side of the bag has an upside down heart. However, on a positive note, it did not fall apart when we were carrying it to school despite the fact that I ran out of sticky tape (Z1 gets through miles of the stuff for her various projects) and had to use a glue stick to put on the ribbon handles and seal up the bottom. Furthermore, it turns out there was a book fair at Z1's school this week making the bookmarks so very appropriate and on theme. I win after all.

When Sunflowers Are Too Slow

There are at least four sunflower seedlings bravely pushing up through our increasingly meadow-like back garden lawn. I fear for their safety when we next decide to cut the grass as interest in them and their not-as-rapid-as-the-grass growth has waned and they could be mown down without a second thought.



Just peeping out

I do go and check on them quite regularly and pat down the grass around the plucky little seedlings to allow the sun to get through the dense grass forest that surrounds them. There has been rain and sunshine too so they are getting what they require. One has been partially eaten by a slug, though.

In light of this, and to halt the endless flow of Netflix-streamed children's programming into the house yesterday afternoon, Z1 and I embarked on a flower craft. I'd had this one in mind for quite a while - before the blossoms even came on the trees, in fact.

 

 



Fully grown

The ingenious bit is that the straw is inserted in a hole in the bottom of the cup and can be pushed up to let the flower 'grow'. I also like our use of brown paint (actually, we got very resourceful here and mixed red and green to make brown) and tissue paper for the earth.   Z1 enjoyed it but lost interest fairly quickly as there were other things going on in the house.  I had many further grand plans - decorating the outside of the cup, multiple flowers in the same pot, more glitter glue on the flowers... (I know some people have a a bit of a horror of glitter glue but it's definitely still one of my favourite things to use for craft. Ordinary glitter is a bit troublesome in its ability to get everywhere and never be fully gone leading to a high likelihood of heading into work with inappropriate glitter on one's cheek or eyebrow*, however, I find that this is not such a problem with glitter contained within the goo of glue or paint.)  I guess simple and rustic is good too.

We actually made two flowers and Z1 wandered around holding the other one for a couple of hours a bit like a wand.

 

 

*On this note, how sad it is that glitter should ever be inappropriate

 

 

 

A twinkly tortoise

Sometimes, when Z1 is watching television, she gets jiggly and fidgety. My first guess is usually that she needs to go to the toilet but, in fact, it is more frequently an urge to go and make or draw something that she has just had an idea for but can't quite pull herself away from the screen to get the materials for.



Glitter glue tortoise

Destroyed glitter glue tortoise

On Saturday, she turned to me in the middle of Gnomeo and Juliet (the weather had changed from early summer back to winter and I was damned if I was going back outside after having dragged the three of us off to ballet in the morning) and she asked told me to draw a tortoise with glitter glue. Just like that - no warning or preamble or context. I think I rose to the challenge. Sadly, she ruined it. The carefully executed tortoiseshell has been destroyed.

She then went on to draw this. Despite appearances, she assures me it is not a clown.



Not a glitter glue clown

Pine cones! Glitter! Christmassy!

Before
(with snowflake tablecloth)

Oh my, today was fun: from picking up pine cones in the playground of Z1's school garnering funny looks from other slightly early lingering parents (also from Z1 through the window though I didn't know that at the time) to squidging the glitter glue and pink glittery paint onto the cardboard ready to be spread about. Z1 even declared it to be "a lot of fun" a couple of times. Z2 joined in too.

Working hard
(note egg carton Advent calendar
in the background)

I think the beauty of glitter glue and glittery paint is that it's really easy to tidy up and wash afterwards. I am not in the least bit obsessive about things being clean and tidy, it's more that I don't like cleaning but I do feel an obligation to attempt to keep things clean. I was perfectly happy for the Zeds to squidge and rub and smear in a way I am not with other paint. Although, as I type that, I realise that poster paint is equally cleanable so it might be to do with the fact that even the mess of glitter glue looks pretty. Aaaaaah, sparkles.

The Husband and I wanted to hang them on the tree but Z1 wanted to put them on display so, without further ado, here they are.

Glitter pine cones
(in vase in the centre picture)

In other news: The heart shaped Borax Christmas decoration turned out nicely.