The Artful Parent

My Kids' Favorite Building Set -- Using Straws!

When I interviewed Maia the other day, she claimed her straw building set to be one of her favorite Christmas gifts. I thought I'd follow up and share a few of the structures she's built with the straws as well as other things she's done with them. 

First, though, here's a picture of the straw builders and connector pieces in their box:

Heart Pancakes with Sprinkles :: A Valentine's Day Breakfast Idea

I made heart pancakes for the kids for breakfast yesterday. They were a BIG hit. Maybe it was the color and the sprinkles. I've cooked plenty of shaped pancakes over the years, but this time I tinted some of the pancake batter first and experimented with shapes within shapes. The valentine pancakes were the most successful.

Here's how I did it:

Glitter Rock Valentines :: A Fun Valentine Craft Project for Kids

Need a fun Valentine craft project for your kids (or yourself!)? Here's a super simple one that involves three favorite art materials of every child I know—rocks, glue, and glitter. Seriously, how could you go wrong? 

We made these this afternoon as an afterschool playdate activity. Here's the how-to and the (gratuitous) pics.

5 Lessons Learned in 5 Years Blogging

Yesterday was my five year blog anniversary. Five years! This blog is my middle child. She is two years younger than Maia; two years older than Daphne. I've nursed her along, encouraged her, watched in delight and pride as she grew, been frustrated by her needs, and, at times, thought the thought that is echoed by parents everywhere—

Wow, this can be hard work sometimes... But it is so worth it!

In way of blogiversary celebration, I have decided to take a more thoughtful approach this year and share some of what I've learned on this journey.

Sky Color :: Another Children's Picture Book about Creativity

Have you read Sky Color with your kids yet? Peter Reynold's newest children's picture book on creativity is about a young girl who is in charge of painting the sky in the class mural. When she notices that she is out of blue paint, she learns to think outside the stereotypical object-color identification system and really observe all the colors that the sky can be. 

Riding home in the school bus, she sees the sky at sunset, bright with oranges and yellows. 

The next day is rainy and the sky is decidely not blue.

An Interview with Maia

It's been a while since I interviewed Maia. I posted one a couple of years ago, but I often ask her interview-type questions every couple of months and write them down in my current notebook. Last night, after dinner, she asked to be interviewed, so I asked her the following questions...

Note: The photo is her second grade school pic.

JEAN :: What is something you'd like to learn how to do or to do better?

MAIA :: I'd like to learn how to sew on your sewing machine.

(pause...) And I'd like to learn to drink water better (giggle). And I would actually like to wash the dishes a little easier (giggle, giggle).

Best Art and Creativity Quotes for Children & Adults

"Creativity is an area in which younger people have a tremendous advantage, since they have an endearing habit of always questioning past wisdom and authority." -Bill Hewlett

Feel free to substitute "frustrating" for "endearing" in the quote above, as the situation warrants. I know I do. But either way I know that questioning is a good thing overall—just not necessarily when they're questioning me. :) Okay, I digress.

I just wanted to share another of my favorite creativity quotes today and decided, also, to include some of my other favorites that I've posted in the past.

Welcome January Sponsors!

Please welcome my blog sponsors for the month of January! Some are new and some are longtime sponsors. They all help make this blog possible and I am very grateful for their support. I hope you will take a moment to visit their sites and see what they have to offer.

• Stubby Pencil Studio :: Fun and eco-friendly art and school supplies
• Revolution 46 :: Cool Shirts for Cool Kids
• Let's Talk Chalk! :: Chalkboard labels, wine charms, and more

• Olive Juice :: Playful and classic clothing for kids
• Kiwi Crate :: Themed activity & craft boxes
• Artterro Eco Art Kits :: Beautiful art kits for the whole family

• A Rainy Day Play :: Children's dress-up clothes and costumes
• Grasshopper Store :: Cute & imaginative toys, books, and art
• Rustics Reborn :: One-of-a-kind coatracks for one-of-a-kind people

• Discount School Supply :: Affordable, quality children's arts and crafts supplies
• Earth Grown Crayons :: handmade, earth-friendly soy crayons
• Latchy Catchy :: Open and close interior doors silently

Observational Drawing with Kids :: Using a Wood Human Figure

This is not a big how-to post or anything, but I thought I'd share something we've been having fun with lately. Or rather, Maia has been having fun with lately. She molds contorts a small wood human figure that I picked up super cheap at Ikea* into all sorts of poses and then draws them.

Valentine's Day Crafts & Recipes in The Artful Winter

As everyone begins to think ahead to Valentine's Day, I thought I'd highlight some of the family-friendly Valentine crafts and recipes from my Artful Winter eBook. Some are activities that I've posted about on my blog (in which case I'll include the link), some are new to the book. 

Projects pictured above (clockwise from upper right):