My turn! I told the girls I had been wanting to paint canvases, as well... they asked me to join them, but I didn't want to start something I couldn't finish; (when Sierra woke-up it would be all over!) So, last night once the kitchen was clean and I was (somewhat) prepared for school, I decided to go for it! I turned on "Focus on the Family," prepared an iced coffee, and thoroughly enjoyed my evening of creativity!
The first canvas was inspired by something I found on Pinterest. You can see my inspiration here. The second painting I knew I wanted to do an elephant. I also wanted it to "match" the first painting. I just sort of went for it... decided to add a bird... then finished with the "tweet." I'm happy with the results, but not sure if 2 canvases is enough or if I should do a third. Either way, I will show you pictures of the finished nursery very soon. It's almost done!
I'll always remember being a junior in high school and taking a trip to Minnesota to visit colleges, as well as some family friends of my parents. Their house was awesome... right on a lake and wonderfully decorated, but what stood out to me the most was how the kids' artwork was everywhere! Ever since then, I have determined to have my kids' artwork throughout my house!
As I mentioned yesterday, our foiled trip to Scandia turned out to be a fun afternoon of art. I've been wanting to have the girls do canvases for their bathroom. They had 2 rules to follow:
- It had to be a beach/ ocean/ or surf themed picture.
- They had to use the colors I provided, (though they were free to mix colors, and they did!)
Tada! And, I couldn't be more happy with the results... I'm so proud of my 2 artists! I'll show you how they turned out in the bathroom as soon as I can decide on where to put them -- I have 2 options in mind, and can't decide!
When deciding whether to purchase the large or small bag for pear picking, we asked how many fit in each. The lady told us about 16 - 20 pears fit in the large bag. Somebody needs to tell her that estimate is a bit off. We got home, and counted 42 pears! Now it's time for some pear recipes.
I decided for our afternoon snack we should make some pear chips. Since we didn't have a science project today, Allison suggested, "This could be our experiment for the day since we don't know how they'll turn out!" And, she was right... I had no idea if this would work for pears!
Can't you just read Natalie's face: "That looks like fun! Wish it was my turn..."
Alas, it's your turn, Natalie!
I would call the experiment a success considering Allison loved them, but Natalie was not fond of them. (What fruit does Natalie actually enjoy, anyway?) Poor Sierra was sick and was a clingy, snotty, puky mess today! But, she happily enjoyed one pear chip! And, I actually got a semi-smile in this picture!
Stay tuned tomorrow as I attempt my first pie, ever! Yes, you heard me -- my first ever pie! Up until this point, my sweet hubby along with his little helpers has been the pie man. I'll let you know how it turns out! In the meantime, I may need more pear recipes: we still have a ton left!
What a beautiful day! Today we made our annual trek to Oak Glen, only this time we went not for apples, but pears!
The annual fall picture!
Before picking pears, we walked around the grounds, and look what we found beyond this path:
Oh, how I want to swing from these ropes!
We finally headed up the way to pick the pears. Sierra was so excited to spot the goats! She was even more excited when the man came to feed them, and they all began to "maaaa..." and "baaaa..."
There were pumpkin fields, berry patches, and fields of wild flowers. It is just so pretty! I caught this picture of one of the hummingbirds:
We came home with a HUGE bag of pears... 
... minus one. :)
"Making apple cider."
And, here is where I ran out of battery for the camera! Really, after this we were done.... we drove to Los Rios Ranch where we sampled apples and bought our apple cider; then we headed back down the hill to the heat. At home, I had Daniel pull down our 3 bins of Autumn/ Halloween decorations. I think I was feeling a little too overly optimistic. I am beat tonight, but look forward to decorating tomorrow. Happy Fall!
We did it... again! Today was actually the last day of the fair, so it was a lot more crowded. But, despite the crowds I actually enjoyed the fair a bit more this time. For one, it was a lot cooler! Secondly, we were able to go on more rides and see more new things. At the same time, we still spent a good portion of the morning at our favorite spot; the big red barn! This is how I feel about now:
Sierra was a lot more excited and a lot less nervous this time, as well.
Enjoying our chocolate and strawberry milk:
We decided to do the goat milking this time around. Only Allison wanted to actually get in the line and milk...
The petting zoo:
Just look how comfortable Sierra was this time:
We decided to splurge and buy lunch this time. I was thrilled; it smelled SO yummy! And, it didn't disappoint. After lunch, it was ride time!
We finished the day with a few exhibits. Here they are with the dinosaurs!
Until next year, fair!
