Time is Everything

(These boys let me join in their game of Roll the Hula Hoop)

(Talk about a tear-jerker.)

(According to S, the "man" in the middle is supposed to be me.)

Air Dried

We ended last week with an art lesson on Maria Martinez.  For those of you who may not know about Maria, she was a Native American artist, best known for her coil pottery.  Naturally, the girls then tried to make their own clay bowls using coils of clay just like Maria.  We used air dry clay because, let's face it, it isn't like I have clay mixed with volcanic ash just hanging out in the school room.  All was we. 

My personal experience with air dry clay is...nonexistent. So what? I figured that I have plenty of experience with normal clay. Why should air dry be any different?  And it says air dry! So that means we should have it dried up in no time!

Wrong.

It could be that it took forever to dry because we live in a perpetually damp climate.  Or a three day drying period might be the norm.  Either way, the girls were chomping at the bit to finally get their bowls out today.  J's completely fell apart.  S's stayed together... mostly.  I reminded them how I told them to really press the coils together, or the bowls would fall apart.  Now, we're using paint to glue the pieces together.

At the end of this elongated project, I can't help but see the lesson in this for me as well.  God is depicted as a Potter in the Bible at least once.  As He twists the coils of my life together, how often have I said, "No, God, this way!" only to blink away tears of disappointment when everything I've built falls apart?  Then I watch in amazement as He chooses to pick up each piece, paint it up, and build something even more precious than I could imagine.

It's the start of a new week that could hold a host of new hiccups and bumps.  I'm grateful, at the very least, for this reminder of God's loving patience.

And don't worry. I'll post pictures of the bowls once they dry.

Pictures that Aren't of Food

 

(Helping each other with flower crowns)

 

(Waiting for the helicopter)

 

(This week's artistic efforts, to be used as thank you cards)

Art and Gardens

 

(J's most recent project, learning about Frank Phillip Stella.  S was sick this day.)

 

(Watching beans grow)

 

(The kids love catching Baka-Baka in and around the garden.)

 

(Overcast view from our most recent hike.)

Teaching Pop Art

Just a quick photo update with a little blurb because I have some time AND internet this morning.

In honor of Valentine's Day, I taught a lesson on Jim Dine's heart art.  The girls got to experiment with pop art and repeating patterns.  We liked the results so much that we decided they needed to be shared!

 

(J's masterpiece and the artist at work) 

 

 

(S and her finished product)

 

(My example piece)