Extreme Gratitude

My blog is mostly about the art or crafts I make, but today it is about gratitude. If you know me, you know my husband and I have 1 son, Michael. He brings us the most amazing joy and we are very proud of the man he has become. When Michael was in collage we use to send him care packages, a tradition my parents did for my brother and sisters and I in collage. Every now and then we still send one to our son, just for fun. Well, today I went to get the mail and guess what was there? Yes, a care package from our son and his girlfriend to us. It had art supplies for my classroom, music, games, and a picture of Wrigley Field for my husband who loves baseball. My heart was so happy, yes for the sweet supplies, but more for knowing we have raised a son that is kind, loving and who always has us in his heart. I am filled with gratitude and love for my family.

Re-Make

I'm back at school so I don't have as much free time on my hands. The first week is always the craziest, but I'll try to keep up with my blog. There may not be a lot of written text, but I'll put some project pictures in. I'm excited about my job this year. I have tons of new lessons, a new principal, and lots of great kids! This little make-up bag is recovered with a bit of crazy quilt. I love hearts, so I stitched one on the front.

Yarn "Bombed" Stool

I left my stool outside and the birds picked the seat apart to make a nest. I yarn bombed it and I think it is better than ever!

"Baggy Pants"

I have been making little pouches out of old jeans and bits of leftovers. I showed my husband and he said, "Oh, I get it, baggy pants." I started laughing, and thought that was a great name for my pouches! Here they are!!

Back To School Organization

Once again I am preparing my classroom for a new year. On my to do list was fixing up a storage container to keep my lesson plans and supplies needed for each day of the week. I already had the container, I just needed to label the drawers. My extra drawer will be ready for a sub. Next were the little things! Labeling clothes pins with the days of the week, adding ribbon to paper clips, putting glitter on clothes pins that will be hanging up and I can't forget my sticky-notes! It's the little things that make my art room special, and when kids come in my room they look forward to seeing what's new.

What's New?

Calendar Frame

I saw the neatest idea on the web at sasinteriors.net. They made a big calendar with a place for notes, all fixed up cute, and put it in a large frame with glass. You can write on the glass with a dry erase marker and change the calendar print each month by wiping off the glass. How cool is that! One frame and you have a calendar that lasts forever. You can make it as big as you want, and decorate it however you want. I made mine with things I had on hand. My frame is 26 by 21 inches. It cost me $1.00 at the thrift store. I painted it white, then drew out my calendar page on blank paper, added some pretty paper at the top and side and attached a blank tag at the top for the month. If you go to the web page I mentioned, they give you the directions for the project and you can download the calendar page. I love when people share great ideas! Here is the calendar I made.