Celebrating Spring!

     These days we have been consuming a lot of eggs- like every day pretty much for breakfast- they are the new- old favourite around these parts- especially when topped with salsa and avocado- maybe a smattering of feta- delish and now I am faintly hungry. Needless to say we have several empty egg cartons loitering around the recycling station just waiting to be returned to the egg vendors at the Farmer's Market- the thing is- said recycling station is also in our studio- AKA craft room- so I see those egg cartons a lot and they were begging to be used in a craft!

    Hearkening back to my own Spring days in the old school house- which is way too long ago so we won't say how far back we are hearkening to- I had a vague recollection of Spring flowers made from egg cartons! Eureka! Surely I am the only mother to think of this since the 1980's! I clearly must be some sort of  craft genius!

      We get all set up- adding a few things like colourful tiny cup cake holders for variegation in texture- along with the basic paints and pipe cleaners- the great thing is this is all stuff we have in the house! We are happily painting away and I am basking in my ingenuity when The Boy pipes up "oh yeah we all ready made these at school last week". Totally nonchalant like in an off handed manner that reveals he clearly is unaware that my world as most clever mom is crumbling!

     The Littles continue to happily make a giant mess paint as I ponder this new information- we finish up the painting and I mop down the walls before assembling the flowers onto the pipe cleaners and adding crepe paper leaves- OK I added the crepe paper leaves because at this point two out of three crafters have moved on to better things- Miss Lo is the last crafter standing.

    So although a few kiddos were not so into this craft and my world was shattered at least Miss Lo had a great time- especially after she put together her bouquet and started re-enacting her role as flower girl from her older cousin's wedding last summer. This is the perfect craft for a girly- girl who is into flowers and pink- not so great for boys who really just want to paint all of their flowers black and brown!

      Just to let you know I googled egg carton flowers after we were all done our own project- and there is a plethora of really lovely designs out there- I was shocked that grown women with no toddlers in sight have devoted what seems like a fair amount of time and energy to crafting with egg cartons! I am impressed and humbled at how far this beloved school days craft has evolved- it might be old hat on the interwebs but it was brand new and totally awesome to one crafty gal on a rainy Spring day- and that is good enough for me!

Searching for Signs...of Spring

       On our walk through the neighbourhood today the Littles and I chatted about the changing of seasons once again- fresh in their minds is Fall and how all the leaves turned colour and fell to the ground. This is the first year that they grasp the concept of the trees resting or hibernating all winter and then starting to grow again in warmer weather. They understand this happens as well with plants- planting the garden last summer at Momo and Poppa's house really gave them a solid representation of what was happening.

     These wee animals of mine- for that is what they are little creatures of the forest still- wild and unsullied (sort of) by the world of adults- they are still very much in tune with their physical surroundings and they are aware that the days are getting a tiny bit longer minute by minute and day by day. They sense the earth starting to warm again and if you look hard enough you will see some sure signs of Spring! Nothing conventionally pretty yet- just a lot of tiny branches turning red with sap starting to flow again, tiny Daffodils buds and Crocuses pushing through in warm areas right down by the ocean. It's hard to believe when you are under four feet of snow reading this but at the very edge of our country the thaw is starting- city block by city block!

    At any rate we were searching for signs of elusive Spring- still many weeks away officially- and surely these cheery Daffs were transplanted by some gardener's hand but we could certainly feel the change coming in the air! The thing about Spring on the coast is that unlike it's much more showy predecessor Fall- it is a much more mono chromatic season- really a season of grey to start. We felt we needed to inject a bit of colour into a day that while not at all Spring- felt like it aught to be- and please note we are still bundled in winter coats it's cold!

 
      A few bundles of smart orange tulips came home with us to brighten our kitchen table- a little instant colour to make us all smile- a very small luxury in exchange for some peace of mind. For the Littles we felt a stop at the candy shop was in order and the colour there surely did not disappoint- really when doesn't a little treat make everyone's day a little brighter?

      For this Momma a new magazine- oh Martha- you know how to do Valentine's Day up right! Lots of fresh ideas and as always great photography- plus I'm loving the cookies on the cover- we have a few birthdays coming up this month that these might be perfect for!

     So Fall, Winter, Spring- it doesn't really matter what the weather is like outside- it is whats inside that counts- the colour of the glasses that you are peering out at the world through- clearly today mine are rose or hot pink coloured!