Yesterday was one of THOSE days... you know the ones I mean? Where, by the time you fall into bed, you feel like the worst _____ (wife, mother, employee, friend, etc...) EVER! I had been working with the boys over the last week or so, to put together a box of toys for a little girl whose parents are divorcing - to give her some toys to play with at her mom's new apartment. So far, all had gone well. I should have known better, but decided to try to sort through the boys' Du.plo Le.gos with them on what had already been a crappy day. Let's just say the day just got steadily worse, the Le.gos are still mostly unsorted, and everyone went to bed early,... except mom who was likely the one who needed to the most...
I recently got involved with a site called Swap-bot. There, I've been introduced to the concept of an Artist Trading Card or ATC. I've checked out ATC swaps and gone to members' sites to see samples and I've liked what I've seen. I also like the idea of the size of the cards - 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" - very do-able. So instead of going to bed, I pulled out my paper trimmer and some card stock and set to work. One of the upcoming swaps involves finger painting somewhere/how on the card, so I started some with paint and then tried out another idea with markers. Here are the results:
I haven't decided yet if I'm going to just put quotes on them or decorate them more. I do know that they made a fun end to an otherwise crappy day - so were worth it even if they just go in the recycle bin!
Here are some of the afternoon's activities prior to the Le.go sorting - Doodle #1 wanted to play chess, Doodle #2, paint a garden stone we started the other night, and Doodle 3, take a nap (which was oh so easy to accomodate!)
Thankfully, opening and closing paint pots and cleaning brushes was pretty easy to do while playing a game of chess. The difficulty comes in when working with a 5 year-old to help him learn how to play chess without needing to cry each time his opponent takes one of his pieces. Doodle #1 is very competitive, so learning how to play chess has involved learning about good sportsmanship as much as it's been about learning the rules of chess. I'm really hoping that gets easier with time!
Here's wishing you all a smooth, tantrum-free weekend!
I recently got involved with a site called Swap-bot. There, I've been introduced to the concept of an Artist Trading Card or ATC. I've checked out ATC swaps and gone to members' sites to see samples and I've liked what I've seen. I also like the idea of the size of the cards - 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" - very do-able. So instead of going to bed, I pulled out my paper trimmer and some card stock and set to work. One of the upcoming swaps involves finger painting somewhere/how on the card, so I started some with paint and then tried out another idea with markers. Here are the results:
Here are some of the afternoon's activities prior to the Le.go sorting - Doodle #1 wanted to play chess, Doodle #2, paint a garden stone we started the other night, and Doodle 3, take a nap (which was oh so easy to accomodate!)
Thankfully, opening and closing paint pots and cleaning brushes was pretty easy to do while playing a game of chess. The difficulty comes in when working with a 5 year-old to help him learn how to play chess without needing to cry each time his opponent takes one of his pieces. Doodle #1 is very competitive, so learning how to play chess has involved learning about good sportsmanship as much as it's been about learning the rules of chess. I'm really hoping that gets easier with time!
Here's wishing you all a smooth, tantrum-free weekend!
7 comments:
Hi Laura! This is Gabriella from SWAP BOT - Promoting your blog 4. Just wanted to tell you that I found your blog to be quite fun and filled with all sorts of craft information. Do keep the good work! XO, Bluegirl.
I tried out ATCs a few years ago, too. They were soooo much fun to make! I did a lot of decoupaging for them since I'm not much of an artist. Maybe I should get back on that train. You'll be my inspiration. Good reason to try my hand at drawing again, too.
Hi Laura! I found your blog through Quilting Gallery. Since I'm also in MN, I started with MN blogs!
Wow, your Doodles & Dog are so cute! Loved reading about you teaching the one to play chess, that is amazing that a 5 year old is interested in learning to play! Even I find it tedious haha. Its funny how kids have their own little personalities, even from such a young age! Love the blog, thanks for sharing!
I love those finger painted ATC's. I have to try that some time.
Mary (purple24) from Swap-Bot
This is homekeepingheather from swap bot for the check out my blog swap. I like the rainbow atcs - so many possibilities for those! Your boys are adorable! :)
Hi this is Anna, my nursecoach from Swap bot. Nice ATC. I always wondered what ATC stood for. Great and colorful cards.
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