First Finger Painting Foray

I am on a Pinterest roll these days! Granted, I should have been doing fun Pinterest-y things with Riley all summer, but at least I eventually got my act together, even if it was right before school starts. {Tomorrow! I still can’t believe it. Sniff.}

I’m not sure what inspired me to do so, but during Rory’s morning nap last Tuesday I decided I wanted to try finger painting with Riley. I remembered pinning this project from one of my favorite blogs (Hi, Ami!) a long time ago and thought, why not give it a go.

Once Rory woke up and had a bottle, the three of us headed over to Michael’s to get the supplies we needed for the project: 18x24 canvases, acrylic craft paints in assorted colors, sponge brushes in assorted sizes, and wooden letters.

I had talked with Karen that morning, and she thought that Molly and Nathan would enjoy painting, too. So we all met back at the house, me with painting supplies and Karen with lunch for everyone.

 

Duly fortified with Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets and waffle fries, I set up a designated painting area, outfitted the kids with old t-shirts, gave them their canvases and paints, and told them to have at it. (Of course I had to chase Riley around the house and make him abandon his trucks to come paint, but that just added to the fun.)

They all opted to use their fingers and not the brushes. Molly, being the oldest, painted an actual picture, while the two boys chose to create abstract works of art. Riley started off doing great, sticking with one color at a time. Before too long, though, he smeared everything on his canvas together, yielding a lovely shade of brown.

Then things got really interesting…..

…..when Riley decided to paint himself.

More specifically, his face. Including a little bit around his mouth, so I’m pretty sure he got a taste of the paint. Good thing it’s non-toxic.

Despite the wonk potatoes being, well, wonky, it was a really fun activity. And I’m glad Molly and Nathan could join us, not in the least because Karen was a big help to me with Rory. Thanks, Kare!

 

And speaking of Rory, I decided that I couldn’t leave the little one out of the painting fun, especially since I also happened to have an extra canvas. So this past weekend, I set up the painting area again and enticed Riley to paint using a truck, a dinosaur, a foam block, and a round cup while I worked on the wooden letters.

 

After I finished up the three wooden letters for the big kids and Riley had been cleaned up and put down for a nap, I finally got a chance to paint something for Rory.

 

Riley is so excited to have his painting hung up in his room, and I’ll put Rory’s up in his as well. I’m not sure painting is something Riley will want to do over and over again, but I really liked it. (I also couldn’t help myself: I “fixed” Riley’s painting, just a little bit.)

With our paint supply firmly established, as well as canvases being so cheap at Michael’s right now, I just may have to come up with more works of art to adorn the walls around here.