Showing posts with label art projects. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art projects. Show all posts

Monday, April 16, 2012

Pinata making: the paper mache hot air balloon and bunny

The last month, Jackie and I have been making pinatas. It started when we made a hot air balloon for my Relief Society party. We got some old newspapers and mixed about 1 part water with 1 part flour to make a paste. Then we dipped long strips of the newspaper into the paste and flattened them over a large balloon.
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Jackie's friend McKensie came over to help with the second layer of paper mache, but the two of them got bored quickly and went to dress up as princesses and play with toys, which gave me lots of time to finish that layer.



Then I hung it up in the closet for two weeks. By the time I got back to putting on another layer, I was running out of time and had to use two large fans to dry it and then quickly decorate it for the party. Still, I was rather happy with how it turned out.
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Sunday, April 1, 2012

Happy birthday, Grandpa Steve!

Today, April Fools Day, is my dad's birthday. He's endured years of unflavored jello, beautifully wrapped empty boxes and frosted sponge cakes (made with real sponges). But, this year we decided to do something nice.

This last week, Jackie and I went to work to make him a birthday card. We sent it Thursday and amazingly we learned today that it arrived 27 hours away in Utah on Saturday. Since we didn't think it would arrive, we posted the electronic version, Dad. We love you and Jackie had a ton of fun coloring, drawing, painting, gluing and putting stickers on for this card. I put together the materials and came up with the ideas. It's our attempt to do better at honoring birthdays, which in the past have been lucky to merit even a simple phone call. I modified the song Twinkle, Twinkle because it's become Jackie's signature piece of late. She's been known to start singing and going on and on and on. Here's our new version:

Twinkle, twinkle little star
how I wonder what you are.
Up above my Grandpa Steve so high,
like a beacon in the sky.

Twinkle, twinkle little star
how I wish I could travel far
to see my Grandpa Steve today 
and wish him a Happy Birthday!


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My wedding cake

My wedding cake
My sister, Christie, made my wedding cake -- all five layers of it. It was fondant, covered in fresh red roses and green ribbon. For a more modern look she chose to make a square cake.

Trip up the canyon

Trip up the canyon
OK, here's the truth, what Renn and I really look like when we wake up. After our first backpacking trip as a couple, Renn's hair looked like grass growing on his head and mine lay flat and matted as we walked out of the mountains.

Karen and Renn in Mexico

Karen and Renn in Mexico
This is us on our last day at the Hummingbird Inn in Maneadero, Mexico. It was a fun week of service with Engineers Without Borders. Renn and other USU engineering students helped put in drain fields at an orphanage, The Gabriel House, for children with severe disabilities. I helped dig some holes and wrote an article for the newspaper about the experience.