The Grand Finale Weekend

It was bittersweet to return to Nashville for a hockey weekend, so I was determined to make it a fun farewell for my twins. We drove all day Thursday, and Captain stayed here with his father who is in the hospital. We woke early on Friday for 7:10 a.m. mass at Father Ryan High School with Quinn, Caleb, and Aaron. Then we ate breakfast at a 1940s diner near Vanderbilt with Jimmy. Such an intimate setting for close friends to put their heads and hearts together and see where God is leading everyone. The Holy Spirit is definitely at work and consoling my sons along the way with Godly friends who will last a lifetime eternity.
We started our tourist adventure downtown:
1. Viewed the Civil Rights photo exhibit inside the beautiful Library

2. Took self-guided tour of State Capitol
(only 33 senators and 99 representatives who were not in session today).
3. Stayed the longest at the Frist Art Museum. Wonderful exhibit of European impressionists paired with nearly-identical Japanese works from same time period.

We were delighted to see three Mary Cassatts, four Monets, a Van Gogh, Degas, Lautrec, Renoir, and even a Munch (not The Scream, of course). We learned a bit about the war in Baghdad from an artist's perspective...

and the war in Spain against Napoleon in 1808....

4. Went to Centennial Park to see a full-scale replica of the Parthenon (complete with Athena statue inside)...

 and Parthenon Doors.

5. Stopped at Centennial Ice Rink to see if the Nashville Predators were practicing... but they weren't.
6. Drove by the Cathedral and Union Station and Carnton Plantation... too many sites for one day.

Prodigal Son

Meggar calls him the "Prodigal Son," since he hasn't come back since college began in August. But Dorito looked so grown up when he walked in!
He is claiming a "No Shave November" look, and told us stories of being swamped with studying and socializing at K-State. Spencer liked his Phi Kap jacket, and the twins liked hearing about the sorority girls he has met. Dorito was also on the evening news at the Free Bacon Night at Bramalage Coliseum.

This weekend, we tried to roll out the red carpet for everyone with homemade food (including three desserts) and visits with friends. The boys went skating, watched movies, and enjoyed NHL hockey at Buffalo Wild Wings. We girls drank tea and went to the craft shows and estate sales around town (including the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art). Saw several people we knew. At the Rusty Chandelier Gift Expo, I came upon a booth of antique button jewelry and the "Closures" name seemed very familiar. So I asked the owner... Sure enough, I remembered her! She began her button jewelry business in Salina roughly 20 years ago. I bought a bracelet of Civil War buttons from her the summer of 1996 at the Smoky Hill River Festival (we lived in Salina that year). It has 12 pretty brass buttons in a row, and I spent a fortune on it. Well, $30 was a fortune to me back then as a stay-at-home mother with a toddler and baby. Best coincidence of all, I was wearing it today! She was tickled to see my bracelet, and she offered to replace its missing button--for FREE.

That Girl - With the Pearl Earring

She is in Atlanta. Only through September. We are in Atlanta. Only through Sunday. So I drug took the twins to the High Museum of Art to see Vermeer's famous painting. She. was. stunning. Only about 15"x18" yet totally Gorgeous! The whole time I kept thinking how beautiful she was. And the technique that created her was so impressive--even to my amateur eyes. I immediately thought of that small Leonardo da Vinci painting in the National Gallery in D.C. The same fineness of features and brush strokes. She had a calming effect on me. I didn't burst into tears like I did at Monet's gallery in Giverny. But I was overcome. And so glad that I have made art an important part of our homeschooling culture.

Sewing and Crafting

Meggar has been busy with decorating five little onesies.

 For you know whose baby.

Ghost Dancer

We took a field trip to see the new exhibit at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art. The advertisement promised Native American paintings based on the Battle of Wounded Knee. Artist John Thein was there to meet patrons and discuss his work. What a nice professor from Creighton--and very talented! Gave us a chance to discuss history and Indian life, and later to paint our own "masterpieces." Here is his painting:

And our attempts:

s:

Victorian Silhouettes

Pam helped me cut them out. (Using very sharp scissors and photographs already the right size are the key to Pinterest-worthy success). The twins helped glue them on ivory-colored backgrounds. We now have 60 silhouettes made for "Aboard the Titanic" Prom this weekend! I think the students will enjoy trying to guess their friends and find their own picture during the social hour.

Book Club Looks at Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin was a New Orleans writer who also loved Chopin music. (I don't think she was related to the pianist/composer.) Yet, how clever for Constance to bring her iPad speakers and play her favorite Nocturnes while we all enjoyed hors de ouvres and tea at the start of book club. It's been a long while since Meggar was able to join us at the library, and I was pleased this short novel enabled her to finish the reading during her week-long college break and participate in our discussions. "The Awakening" is well written with a prominent bird motif, but I must say that I liked the music and food best of all. There was crawfish, file gumbo, and shrimp jambalaya. We always have a lively discussion, and it's delightful to compare and contrast with authors we have previously featured. Constance was well versed as the discussion leader and had some great handouts. She even brought calling cards for us to decorate.

Take a Time Out from Hockey

The long break between games on Saturday left time for Captain and I to spend an afternoon together. We walked around in the St. Louis Art Museum--always a great visit to see their masterpieces. Plus we went to the shoe store in the mall (what wife doesn't like that?!) and had chocolates and coffee together.

Tea Bags Styled Clipboards

Last summer I made this clipboard for Meggar, using the colored tea bag wrappers I had been collecting. I put the best ones on the front ...

and Hannah designed the back using red, yellow, and green AGD colors. The polkadots are so cute! And more people see the back of the clipboard than its top. We drink mostly English Breakfast tea (hence the plentitude of red bags).

On mine, I put tags between the wrappers instead of the pinwheel design (above). It all started with Etsy and Cynthia's origami craft at book club. Once she gave me the idea of repurposing them, I had to carefully open and save all the tea bag wrappers I encountered. Friends even donated some to my collection. Not only the fronts, but the backs are also interesting with little stories about the tea or the tea company.
(Note: several coats of Modge Podge keep it shiny, but I have found that papers stick to the front over the long term. I'm trying a coat of polyeurethane spray today.)

All in the Details

I wanted to show the mini wedding cake topper I made for the gift package. Using three upcycled bottle caps and string pearls, I decorated the three tiers and added a lace doilie. (Note: The original inspiration comes from an American Girl Mini Craft book showing how to make items for playing dolls.)

Big and Small Connections

I planned a field trip for myself today: the opening of a new exhibit at our local art gallery. AKMA always hosts a nice kick-off for the artist to meet the community, plus a cash bar and free hors d'oeuvres. Angela went with me, and we fondly recalled the Flapper Party at this museum when we first began our friendship. Tonight's exhibition is a jointly-created book and CD: photographs by Megan Wyeth (who I knew was local) and world-renowned guitarist Anthony Glise (who I just discovered was Wyeth's local classmate). His antique guitars were captured by her lens -- then creatively formatted alongside his poetry  with original songs, too. We loved his performance of two songs and poems on the stage, and afterwards we wandered around to see several of her photographs hanging on display here for the next several weeks. 

We bumped into my artsy friends, and Angela was surprised to bump into her dad's musical friends! After complimenting Angela's late father, Anthony gave me suggestions for places for Dorito to visit while in Vienna.

Finding Things that Pinterest You

I was interested, but had been putting it off. Meggar gave me a tutorial today on Pinterest, and now I have a board to "pin up" my ideas and interesting pictures from other people around the world!

Mosaics of Mary for Art Co-op

Our last homeschool co-op started with potluck lunch (yummy) and ended with a pinata (fun).  My art project for students was to create a mosaic of the Blessed Mother during her special month of May.

My inspiration came from the mosaics which are beautifully pictured in a poetry book given to me by Aunt Barbara and are found in the Clyde Monastery. Those Missouri nuns are known for baking Communion wafers and for their relic chapel.

All the kids started off very enthusiastically cutting and gluing squares, but after half-an-hour they complained, "This is hard to finish" and "It doesn't look very good." But I assured them that art appreciation is partly about experiencing different mediums and partly about recognizing how hard the gifted artists did work to make their masterpieces.









Here is Winger's mosaic.

 Here is Dorito's mosaic. (Polar Bear's mosaic is not finished yet.)

Picking up candies.

Making Art is Important

 We took another field trip/art class at the Nelson-Atkins Gallery of Art in Kansas City today. The boys made landscape collages with torn paper, pastels, and paint. Dorito added the Eiffel Tower beyond the mountains :-)

Crafting: Pi Phi Invites

I couldn't resist the chance to make homemade/scrapbookish cards for the upcoming Pi Phi luncheon for our "Golden Arrow" award recipient.

Art Class Paints Crucifixion

For our monthly art co-op class, I chose for the older students to copy Fra Angelico's Crucifixion with St. Dominic. I used Ana's suggestion for a close-up cropping of the Sacred Head and its crown of thorns. There were 8 painters + me. Luckily, I had plenty of egg carton cups for mixing paints, and many brushes accumulated over the years of homeschool projects.

This project was great for Lent, and would give them practice in mixing paint colors and sketching a head-down perspective. I was also determined to paint too, and show them my suggestions along the way.

Dorito painted a smaller and more detailed Christ, adding clouds and a ray of sunlight from heaven. He also featured more drops of blood.

Polar Bear worked on his longer once we got home, changing the once too-skinny arms to better reflect the overall scale. Plus he made a shinier halo and crown with more thorns. Once the paint is dry, it is fairly easy to correct/change.

Winger really enjoyed making a dark blue background, and carefully took his time to fill in the spaces completely.

My own "masterpiece" with a green background instead of blue. The splotch of sunlight is a camera effect, not my painting goof. I must say this was a fun and personally fulfilling class!

Back to the Studies

Meggar drove with some AGD friends to Panama City for Spring Break.

Meggar's last days of spring break were at home: working at Old Navy, shopping at antique mall, tea parties with friends-- I miss her already!

I helped with the four-year plan so she would pick the right courses and graduate on time.











Hannah helped us finish the tea-bag-decoupaged clipboard. I designed a colorful pattern for the front (oops - forgot photo), and she put all red tea bags on the back with "AGD" letters cut from green and yellow tea bag wrappers. Then several coats of Mod Podge for a high gloss finish. I think Meggar will return to campus as the Pinterest Queen.

First Trip to Milwaukee

Hockey trips are usually north, where there is better competition. (Lots more snow for yours truly to contend with, but the highways were clear.) This is our first time to play in eastern Wisconsin, so we went early to spend time with my second cousin Marie and her husband Paul. He's a retired dentist and she was a music teacher. Their daughters played violin and cello. So we had much in common. Our lunch was tuna sandwiches and blueberry cobbler a la mode! We all retired to the music room for a few fiddle favorites from the twins, followed by all the "Mary Poppins" songs Paul had on his grandfather's player piano!

Sing-alongs are fun, but then we were late to the downtown museums. We wanted to see the Discovery Center, but it closed early (at 4:00). So we spent our last hour at the Milwaukee Art Museum instead. The Museum is a work of art by Calatrava--being shaped like a huge white ship on the lake shore. It even has sailing wings that open and retract!

Paul was a great tour guide, and I believe he has the whole art collection memorized. We "sailed" past a full suit of armor and an Eyptian sarcophagus to go view the entire room of Georgia O'Keefe paintings. She was a Wisconsin native. There was also a painting by Picasso, Klimt, Kandinsky, and a Chihuly sculpture (the glass blower). Paul is quite a glass-blower-artisan himself.

We finished up with macaroni and Wisconsin cheddar cheese at Alterra, a 130-year-old pump-house coffee shop.

Art for a Date Night

The boys are gone to Scouts, so Captain and I slipped out for a little date to the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art. It was their Membership Show Awards program, which we perused with a little wine and cheese fortification. Our artsy friends, the Schiebers, accompanied us for a very delightful evening. And we bumped into Dr. Smith, who helped with Dorito's broken finger last month. He swapped hockey stories with Captain, and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting his wife. Their son is at the end of his hockey days as a senior at the University of New Hampshire.

Co-op Art Class

This month, I led the Catholic homeschooler co-op in a watercolor class using pumpkins and gourds for our still life.  It was FUN for me, too--my attempt at an acorn squash and crooked neck squash is smaller than the students' works. Dorito chose a black background and Polar Bear did a watery-gray background. Winger wasn't finished by the end of the hour... Happily, the beautiful results from my three sons are displayed in our kitchen window for these first weeks of autumn.