Summer Art (single line drawings)

Single line drawing.

Let's break it down.

Single as in one.

Line as in what happens when you put pen to paper and move your hand.

Drawing as in a picture.

Today we made pictures by putting our pen to paper and drew the whole picture before picking our pen up again.  We practiced first by trying to draw our hands, then moved on to plastic animals.  The big kids (10 year olds) grasped the concept the best but still had to really think about how to add details like eyes and spots on a giraffe.

 We use permanent pens for the drawings and painted over them with watercolors.

Aren't they beautiful!

Now you need to give it a try.

Draw something that is sitting right in front of you.

Remember, don't pick up your pen until you're finished!

My baby daddy

This one made him a father first.  (And she might or might not look just a little bit like him.)

He has been a wonderful daddy since the day she came into our lives.  He's kind and patient, holds them gently, makes them laugh, plays pretend better than Bill Cosby, tucks them in and tells impromptu bedtime stories.

This year we celebrated Father's Day by taking him (and us!) out for ice cream at Collins Lake.

The boys checked out the big fish that have been caught at the lake so far this summer.

Then I tried to get a picture of Jono with all the kids.

They love to torture me.

And this is the best one.

Thanks for being a fantabuloso dad, Jono!

We love you!

The bearded mime

This might be the most disturbing combination I've seen come out of our dress up box.

The white mime mask by itself kinda freaks me out.

But add a bushy beard.

And a cowboy belt.

(shudder)

That's scary.

You can reference this post in October when you are looking for a costume idea.

Splatter Paint Birthday Party

Living at a camp definitely has its advantages.

Like when it's your birthday and you want to have a splatter paint hullapalooza and there's a room all set up for that very thing. With black lights even. And upturned barrels for paint to go on top and drumsticks to beat them with so paint goes everywhere!

We also had squirt bottles and paint brushes to make sure everyone was adequately splattered.

Here's the birthday girl in all her splatter glory.

and the crew...

A dip in the lake helped to get a little of the extra paint off.

Fun times.

For more info about the camp where we live, click HERE.

Meanwhile back at the lake

The fish are back now that the water has warmed up!

Note:  the safest way for a young, not fully coordinated person to look at fish while leaning over the edge of a deck is to lie flat with only your head over the water.

It takes a Georgia man to catch a fish like that.

This was Abby's contribution.

The Fourth Child

Jono and I are not huge planners.

I would say we are more "go with the flow" people.

Spontaneous-ness happens more often than not.

That's pretty much how all our babies happened.

There was no trying to pick the perfect birthday month.

No research done to determine the perfect amount of spacing between siblings.

We had Blessing #1, then #2, then #3.

 (and it is a blessing to have such easy pregnancies. I know what a struggle some people have to go through.) but after baby #3 we thought our family might be complete. 

Thought about it too long.

Hello, #4.

There's a quote by Mark Twain that I love.

"To get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with."

Dylan is our fourth child.

That makes us a good size family.  Larger that average America but smaller than Sister-Wives.

Unexpected.  Unplanned.  A surprise.

Surprised by joy.

Dylan makes me laugh.  The pictures are proof.

And the miracle is not only does he make me laugh, he makes #1, #2 and #3 laugh.  Joy is multiplied because I get to see four smiling faces.  Hear four gorgeous giggles.  And I don't have to worry about writing all down because between all of us, somebody is bound to remember it and retell it at a later date for us all to laugh about again!

Joy multiplied.

Thank you, God, for all of our surprises!

High-tailin' it into summer

The last day of school was the day that never ends.

Celebration after celebration.

We started in the Mouse House (aka pre-school).

Took pictures with everyone's teachers.

We love these people!

Class awards were handed out.

I'm so proud of my rock star kiddos!

And LOTS of fun and games!

Somehow, boys crashing the manicure station is a last day of school thing.

Oranges on the head will be the next big thing.

Now

Bring on SUMMER!