Don't get mad....Get the Camera.

How many of you are repulsed by what you see and would take one good look at this and put an end to it right away?

It gets better. 

It started with painting seashells...

Then Little Man asked me if he could paint his arms like an army guy. Are army guys painted?

"Um,  I don't know... I am thinking about it..." I responded as tried to buy some time and quickly scanned the scene to see what the worst thing that could happen. The paint was toxic free and washable right? Was it just about the clean up that I was worried about?

 "Well, okay but we will have to wash you off before you go off and play."

Begins to paint his arms immediately.

He obviously was excited and proud of himself.

He then looked at me with a grin and began to paint his face...did I say he could paint his face? 

I guess I didn't specificy and obviously when you are going into battle you will need some face paint to really blend in.

Could I really be mad at such a cute little face? So,  I just grabbed the camera instead.

The best part was watching his reaction when he saw himself in the mirror. 

The laughter was priceless.

But let me share with you a few things I have learned from not only using paint in my work but at home.  A few things make messy projects easier.

1. Put down a roll of plastic that you can throw away or reuse for easy clean up.

2. Paper plates and cups are great just to throw away without having to rinse out.

3. Baby wipes and paper towels that are close by make it easy to clean up spills and  hands- that is unless you child decides to paint his entire body- then you may need to use the sink...or bathtub :)

4. Remember it's just paint- washable paint at that. No need to get upset over a little mess.

This day came in perfect timing because I just received an email from a fabulous magazine called Seeing the Everyday- (you have to go check them out- I love the giant photos and messages- I have talked about them before!) about experiences people have had where they choose to not get mad but just grab the camera.

 You can read about it here.

If you have any experiences like this you can post them on their FB Wall here.

besitos, xo

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween. Enjoy this day!

{Little Man's "Four scary ghosts"}

 *Halloween Art Made with paper paint and googly eyes!

{Little Man's Spider and Spider Web}

Don't forget to enter the giveaway for $100 worth of cloth diapers and products right here!

Besitos,

xo

Candy Corn Feet

My sweet neighbor watched Little Man yesterday evening while I was teaching a parenting class. When I came home I found this. 

Is this not genius? 

And super easy and cute.

Just paint their little toes with yellow, orange, and white...

and stamp their feet...so cute!

Great sensory activity for kids as well!

Now,  I just want to munch on those feetsies! 

I love October.

Besitos

Challenge: Make a Mess.

I have been wanting to do monthly challenges for myself to share with anyone who wants to join me for awhile now and I have decided that it's finally time to start...why wait- so, to follow up with this post of me as an anxious slightly OCD child who was afraid to make a mistake- I've decided this month's challenge is to:

 I am not that child anymore- in fact, I think I just may be more slightly on the opposite side of the spectrum of that child. I don't really consider it a good or bad thing to be the way I was... but I do know that I feel way more FREE.

 I attribute this shift to my field of study and going through a crazy three year graduate school program that really had me tapping into my personal patterns/issues and then making the conscious decision to let go of that little pleaser in me.

I also, attribute it to finding an outlet through photography and expressive arts that allows me to find my voice.

And lastly, I also attribute it to surrounding myself with people including the children and teenagers I work with who are so genuine and so real and for the most part not afraid of what other's think. 

It is a reminder to me that we all have inner children who need to come out and set us free from our so serious adult mess-avoiders.

So...

to get started- I want you to get your hands on this book and read it. You can read more about this book and my love for it here.

or

watch this video here:

Then I want you to grab some washable finger paint or regular washable paint and a large piece of paper and come back tomorrow to see what I am going to have you do with it...

I'm off to go do my challenge...post my photos tomorrow!

besitos, 

xo

Got Art? Make a Mother's Day card!

I have so many finger paintings around my home from Little Man that I am not sure what to do with them all. At first, I just hung them on the fridge (until they fell off each time opening the fridge) or on a little art display wall and admired at what talent my little boy had in making incredible squiggles and hand prints... that is until we made more... and more... and more art... and the piles around the house began to grow. Yes, it's true. I confess- I am a pile person. I have a problem of piling something that I plan on putting away later. (sometimes it could be months though)

And obviously- I don't have the heart to throw out these beautiful lovelies. After-all, it is his self-expression and his own little art journal.  But I am afraid if   if I don't do something quick then I am going to be on The Hoarders episode titled: "Buried Alive in Finger Paintings" 

So here is a cute idea my friend Nicole came up with to make Mother's Day cards that are similar to Eric Carle Books. If you don't know these books...you are missing out. I LOVE them!

1. Take your child's masterpiece (with their permission of course) and find different interesting shapes.

2. Cut out shapes. 

  

3. Glue it to your card.

4. Give this to your mom for mother's day. 

Easy huh? Here are some other flowers I laid out.

It's perfect for a last minute mother's day card don't you think??

Besitos, xo

P.S. Thanks for those of you who commented or emailed for the visual schedule printables part one. I am working up some more and will have a way for you to download right here on the blog! So-stay tuned.

and that is exactly what I did....

I told you I was in the mood to art journal... and that is exactly what I have been doing lately. 

I decided to make this new little journal (check out here how I made it) my Gratitude Book. It is a place where I can put all the daily things I am grateful for. I printed off my Instagram photos and decided to use those to represent all the things I am grateful for.

I am grateful for being able to make a wish on a dandelion every time I see one.

 I am especially grateful Little Man also loves to stop and blow dandelions with me. 

 

I am grateful for my education. 

I am even more grateful that I get to spend the majority of my time home with my little man.

I am grateful for my husband and his ideas. Crazy and not crazy.

I am grateful for being able to enjoy downtown Boise. 

I love going to the farmer's market.

I am grateful for autumn walks.

I am grateful for being a mother.

 I am especially grateful that Little man still lets me hold his hand. 

 I am grateful for cupcakes and Oreos. 

Especially when it is an Oreo cupcake.

I am grateful for my art gratitude journal.

 Read more on how I made these pages here on Howdoesshe.com

xo

Never too young for art...

Two years ago (wow has it really been that long?) I was at Babies R Us feeling overwhelmed about what to register for my first baby. My therapy with kiddos had been with ages 4 and up- so I was totally clueless about babies.

So what did I do? I joyfully went around scanning the things I knew...

TOYS AND ART SUPPLIES. 

Forget the bottles and diapers- I was ready to PLAY!

 My friends laughed at me when they saw the random list of items and probably were a bit concerned of my cluelessness (is that a word even?) about the needs of infants. 

But I just knew that one day I would incorporate art and play in the daily lives of my children.

 That is important to me. 

 I really believe a child (supervised) is never too young to engage in some form of expressive art. 

It is a way that they can explore their world, process their feelings, build their self-esteem, and learn about their surroundings. Here are some things we learned in this 10 minute moment of drawing. 

#1 Learning to SHARE and ENGAGE with others

#2 BONDING with each another

#3 LEARNING about the colors as he repeated them to me.

#4 Practicing on the FINE MOTOR skills

 #5 Feeling PROUD of his accomplishments

For those of you who are wondering what we are coloring with...I discovered these babies.

They are triangular to help with little man's grip and they also don't need a lid (the ink is inside)- all you do is press down and the ink then comes to the surface! They are fabulous!

Now go and add some art in your daily life!

besitos, 

PS. DON'T FORGET TOMORROW IS THE LAST DAY TO ENTER FOR BIANCA MERKLEY'S NEW ALBUM....GO HERE TO ENTER! SHHH THIS IS A SECRET BUT THERE WILL BE MORE THAN ONE WINNER SO THE ODDS WILL BE IN YOUR FAVOR I PROMISE!!

My little piece of therapy...

So wanna know what I do for my own personal therapy these days? Art journaling. I started an art journal a few years back... and it has enhanced my love for art therapy even more- something that I use on a regular basis in my counseling practice. 

I have such a love for art journals and I think you should too...okay don't be afraid of the word "art." I know the first thing that you are thinking right now... "but I am not an artist" or "I am far from being creative"- excuses excuses....that is the beauty of this book... it is not meant to be pretty. In fact, the less pretty, the less perfect, the less symmetrical- the better. Think of it not as an "Art Journal" but more of a little Book of Random thoughts...or the "Just Is Journal." Hmmmm still not sure what to call it...I will work on that. 

I am going to be walking you through how to create one of these babies...however, I have THREE rules before beginning:

#1. No placing judgement on your art   random book- rid yourself from that inner critic.

#2. No placing judgement on yourself... like saying : "I am not an artist" or "I am not as good as..."

#3. Dare to experiment with color, brushes, fonts, images, stamps- whatever....constantly ask yourself "I wonder what happens when I..." See where it takes you. No pre-planning involved- just all in the moment.

Lastly...Before you begin- you GOT to read the children's book  "Beautiful Oops." I am doing a giveaway right now with this book... enter right here.  It is amazing and will hopefully rid your fear of your inner critic tell you that you are NOT "an artist"- whatever that means. You are. Everyone is.

Here is list of supplies that I used for these pages and may be helpful to begin a book of_______ (fill in the blank):

Sketchbook with mixed media paper (thicker paper is my fave)
Acrylic Paint
Rub Ons
Magazine Clippings
Stamps/Stencils
Tape/Glue
Scissors
Modge Podge
Gesso
Brushes
Watercolor Crayons
Photos


Now go gather supplies...and I will meet you back here next week and get you started!! For now GO to the giveaway for that amazing little book!

Besitos,