Paper Pie

This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Amanda Soule 

Is It Really February?

I could tell when the sun was coming up this morning that it was going to be a beautiful day. On days such as these, I am itching all through breakfast just to get outside. The three of us headed out for a short walk before Ryan left for work. I love it when we do that, when we take a moment and start the day together. The weather has been nothing short of glorious the last few weeks, far nicer than our weather last summer. Really. By the time we returned from our walk it was hot. Not warm, or temperate, but hot. Rylie was in no way ready to head into the house, so we had some fun with a little bit of water. I gave all of our plants and fruit trees a drink. When Rylie tired of helping me, she made a small puddle in the yard and had a grand time running back and forth. She has three words for water that she uses quite specifically. Wa wa is for drinking water. Splash is for the bath and wash is for fountains, bodies of water and puddles (the latter she let me know just today.) Strange that just yesterday we were all about warm and cozy sweaters and today it is sunny water play.

I have noticed all the signs of spring so many weeks early this year. The birds are visiting our feeders, the few trees around these parts that do lose their leaves have buds already, and I spot flowering trees every time we are out. One of these days I will remember my clippers and get a cutting or two. I love the sunshine and it is hard to complain about an 80 degree day in February, but I hope that the farmer's are holding up ok with the drought. I worry about that. And I worry about what these strange weather patterns may mean in the larger context of the natural world. I know that most of the country has been experiencing above average temperatures this year, I just hope it is all cyclical and will balance out. I have faith in the wisdom of nature and hope that these weather patterns are not man made. I was on the phone with my mom the other day and she told me they had a thunderstorm one night last month. A January thunderstorm in Michigan? One thing I do know for sure is that is bizarre. And my sister (also in Michigan) said it has been in the 60s. Is it really February?

Paint!

We have gotten into the paint around here, oh yes, yes we have. The photos above are from a few weeks back when we used finger paints for the very first time. I had the table covered in craft paper and all of our tools and materials ready to go when Rylie woke from her nap. After a nibble on a snack, she was ready to go. She was hesitant at first, checking out the scene and examining all of this new stuff. We started with a small amount of paint in a pie tin. One thing I will do differently next time is keep the bottles of paint out of sight because they became a bit of a distraction for her. I had picked up a few fun things to experiment with along with the paints: combs, cookie cutters, straws, chopsticks. All of which are ideas that I got from this book.

This week we got out the brushes and a canvas I had on hand. After reading this post, I was inspired to let Rylie create her very first painting on a canvas that we could hang on the door to her new toy & art closet. To prepare the scene, I laid a drop cloth on an area of our living room with the most space and covered a low table with craft paper and set her up with three different colors of paint. These paints are easily washable so I had no reservations about her painting in such close proximity to our couch. Towards the end she did get bored with the canvas and began studying the surrounding area for other surfaces to paint upon. That's when I said, Rylie do you want to Splash (this is our saying for bath time) and her focus was shifted from painting on furniture to coloring on the walls in the tub. This was a fascinating exploration, and just like Meg, I snapped oodles of photos, more than I can count.



I was intrigued while watching her work through all of the different thoughts and ideas she was having about the whole experience. She would not be restrained to just the canvas. No way! She used her whole body.






And she is already exhibiting signs of a trained artist. Here she is summoning her muse:

Mixing paints to create the perfect avocado green:
And signing the back of her painting: I am eager with anticipation as we take the first steps on this art exploration together. As long as Rylie shows interest in creativity and making things, I will always be there to provide gentle encouragement. It is a true privelege to watch her personality and creative spirit emerge. I sit in rapt attention (when I'm not clicking away at my camera) to see what she will do at the next turn. Between the two of us there is oh so much learning going on.




Here is her lovely canvas now, dry and prominently displayed in our living room.

Hello From Sunday

What did you do today?

This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Amanda Soule 

The Casual Organizer: Rylie's Kitchen

I have been working on this little project for a while now. This sturdy, simple play kitchen was gifted to Rylie on her first birthday from Mama and Papa (although, we did not actually order it until November. She didn't seem to mind.) I have been collecting little bits here and there and she is officially well-equipped. She is most fond of her rolling pin and dinner bell.


I've been making some things for her too, like this apron. The pattern is written for a 3-5 year old so I sized it down, maybe a little too much because it fits Rylie perfectly right now but I think she will grow out of it soon. It was a quick project though, so I can easily make her a new one when the time comes. The fabric is called Out Of Doors and it is a part of my Domestic Bliss line. We have a new routine; I go over to where all of my aprons hang and put one on and tell Rylie to get her apron on it is tme to cook. She beams from ear to ear and runs to her apron, I slip it over her head and we get busy. I also stenciled her the litte green canvas grocery bag that she can take with us when we go to the market.

The kitchen was love at first sight for Rylie. This morning she was putting every single dish in the sink and once it was all full, she started throwing them on the floor. I saw her using her creamer to pour cream into the teapot the other day too, so cute. She also loves to climb all over it and her favorite thing really is to open the oven and to use it as a step to reach the top shelf.

While I was setting up her spot, I decided to organize our collection of favorite photos on the side panel of the refrigerator. There are pictures of all of Rylie's cousins, pictures of mama and papa, one of my favorites of my sister and I as little ones. I used clear contact paper to stick a square of the same fabric as the apron behind them. And what is a kitchen without some fanciful art? I grabbed the framed black and white silhouetted postcards at an estate sale years ago and the red and pink one is from last year's letterpress calendar.

This little spot was such a joy to put together for Rylie. I loved dreaming up how I could make it special for her. It is such a quality, durable item, we can hand it down to siblings and to future generations as well. I was thinking that Ryan and I should write a little message to her on the back - must remember to do that. It makes me smile when I think of all of the memories and hours of play that will happen in this little corner - right now, and for many years to come.

It's The Simple Things

Today we are slow and easy while recovering from being sick and caring for Ryan who is home from work and very ill on the couch. I decided early on that Rylie and I needed to keep our distance if we stood any chance of moving past this haze of blah that has been circling in our house like a perpetual storm system. I moved Rylie's table and chair into the studio and looked for an activity to pass the time and to distract us from our sniffles and itchy throats. It really is the simple things that Rylie gravitates towards and keep her in rapt attention, so I put two small bowls in front of her one was full of cotton balls and the other water. It was fascinating to watch her dive right in and explore the materials. She is very familiar with water and water play, but the cotton balls were a new thing for her. First, she dunked them into the water and watched them dribble; the drips getting longer as her arm went higher.

There was also a lot of moving around of the table and chair and climbing on top. These sort of acrobatics and full body art experiences are quite typical of Ryles Davis.


And then some intensive studying of the composition of a cotton ball.
All while Zipper sat upon his lofty perch and supervised of course.

At the end of it all I found this little bundle left on my chair: 2 cotton balls and a scrap of fabirc tucked into one of the bowls.
I am so excited to be starting down this road of creative exploration and process art with Rylie. She has no doubt been exploring and investigating every square inch of her environment since she could sit up (and before.) Now that she is completely mobile and developing her fine motor skills her penchant and appetite for discovery grow by the day. Her favorite objects include, but are not limited to, every empty container in the recycling bin, the roll of toilet paper and the clean and folded towels and washcloths in the linen closet.  It is fascinating to watch her development in action and I dream of all the fun we have in store. It's just the beginning.