Cupcakes & Canvas Party

Happy (rainy) Thursday!  Here in the Midwest anyway.  Although temperatures have finally hit warm levels this week, we're taking it easy today as the rain pours down around us.  Right now, the kids are playing Angry Birds after a satisfying meal of spaghetti and asparagus.  And I'm finally ready to share the details of Ava's first-ever friend party, her Cupcakes & Canvas party!



A local woman recently started her own business, and as an artist she offers painting packages for various types of parties, both adults and children.  Ava had attended a similar party at a friend's house, and she was ecstatic to host one of her own!  We were lucky Nicole was able to fit us in the week of Ava's birthday.

Ava requested a mermaid painting and invited a small party of friends to join us.  We had to prepare very little, as Nicole came to our home armed with canvases, paints, brushes, tablecloths, and cupcakes!  She had painted a mermaid canvas of her own to show the girls as a model, and the basic format was drawn onto the canvases for them to follow.  Easy-peasy!  It took about two hours for completion, and the girls painted so beautifully!

 

At first, Hudson wasn't planning on painting a girly mermaid, but once the action started he couldn't be left out.  In fact, he was essentially giddy during the entire painting process.  He began trying to follow the mermaid outline, but once he found out that he could mix his paints together, he took off on an abstract tangent that was highly entertaining. 

 

In all, I would highly recommend this type of party for the seven-year-range.  For privacy reasons I didn't include any photos of Ava's sweet friends, but their paintings looked fabulous as well.  It was well worth the money and kept them entertained all evening.  By the time the parents arrived to pick them up, the canvases were dry and ready to be hung at home with love.

 

Thanks, Nicole!  We loved our painting party and were so thrilled with all your help.  It made Ava's birthday and her time with friends even more special.  My budding little artists are so proud of their paintings!

Easter

 

I awoke early, well before the alarm.  Darkness lay quietly in the room, and the only sound was the subtle rise and fall of my husband’s breath.  Nearby, in their own sweet rooms, my children slept peacefully. 

It was time.

I rose softly, donning an old familiar sweater and worn sneakers.  My hair was a riot of curls, and I could only hope the neighbors wouldn’t see me.  I gathered up my secret carton and crept into the lovely dawn of Easter morning.

It had been cold the last few days, but today was warmer.  And birds chirped unexpectedly as the sky began to lighten.  There was something so magical about dropping bright, candy-colored eggs onto green grass.  My spirit soared, and my task was completed much too quickly.

For a long moment, I stood there in the dewy grass and absorbed the first rays of sunrise.  My thoughts turned to resurrection, to sacrifice and to rebirth.  I thought not of my own family—Easter baskets already filled on the kitchen table, a busy schedule of gatherings for the day—but of a long-ago man near my own age.  It was thanks to Him that I was able to perform this bit of magic on this beautiful day, and wordless prayers filtered through my mind.

It was Easter.  It was a new day.  It was a perfect and surreal moment.

After a quick glance at the scattered eggs in my backyard and a brief smile for the happy birds, I turned to go inside.

 

“He Is Risen.”

Instagram Lately

Although we're still waiting patiently for the weather to truly turn spring-like, we've managed to find ways to keep busy.  I have several posts on deck (Ava's cupcakes and canvas party, Disney on Ice, Easter, etc.), but here's a photo strip of the past few weeks, via Instagram. 

 

In no particular order: