Just Because Party

We haven't done anything outside the home as a family in a long time, so Ricky and I were brain storming ideas today and we came up with pottery painting. We found the perfect place because they let you reserve a party room which is perfect for a family of nine that values privacy and has little ones wandering around. Even better, food is allowed!

This morning we called a family meeting. The kids shouted out various curious?ideas about our meeting. The most popular of which was, "Moms pregnant!?!"

Hah. :) Nope.
It's cute though, this is their first guess no matter when a family meeting is called.

We announced that we were going to do something fun today. We told the kids we reserved a party room at a paint your own pottery studio to have a "Just Because Party." We've never done pottery studio painting before so I explained to them exactly what we were going to do and how it works.?I talked?slow and specific to the younger kids so they understood we don't make the pottery, we pick it out, and we don't take it home right away, they have to fire it in a kiln. Then I had to explain a kiln is a oven capable of heat of several thousand degrees. After explaining the process in detail the kids thought it sounded fun. The last?words were from Layla who said, "Yea, sounds fun. But I still think mom having a baby would have been more exciting." Hahaha. LOVE these kids.

We ordered a huge party platter of Jimmy John's sandwiches and a bucket of their delicious deli pickles to pick up on our way. We put together a platter of Girl Scout cookies for dessert and packed up some drinks and chips.

The pottery studio was really nice inside, the people were friendly, and the private party was a hoot. We had a lot of fun. Everett was a small challenge at first but once he learned his boundaries he settled in just fine. I was plesantly surprised that?even I?got to relax and paint in peace without Ricky needing to pry him off of me.

The kids?had received some Christmas money from Ricky's Grandma and recently a Valentines card with some spending money in it from my Grandma Smith. This helped to pay for the things they wanted to paint. For those of you wondering just how much pottery for nine people costs, it's a lot. :)?(We've spent more at Build-A-Bear in the past though.) I'm going to send photos of our fun time to our Grandparents, they'll love to see what a fun family time we had and what the kids picked out.

Sebastian (3)?picked out?a Hulk head that is hilarious.?As he's picking it out it's one of those moments where?we really just want him to get a plate or a cup to paint. Something he can use daily. Something that isn't going to be so...green and mad looking... and something that isn't five dollars over his projected pottery budget. Hahaha. But we let him pick out what he wanted?because we know he just loves superheros (and a little bit because he's so tired he could be on the verge of a meltdown at any moment.)?It was really a good thing for him to paint because mixing?or running many colors together wasn't an issue and we could touch up all the spots he missed easily. The top hair piece comes off and it's hollow inside, so he can use it as a piggy bank.

It was quite interesting that Sage and Ricky both painted mugs that are very, very similar to each other. Like practically the same. They weren't sitting near each other and each had picked out their own colors on their own plate. So funny. I was surprised?that our kids?that tend to finish art projects quickly spent a good amount of time on their projects. Our "Just Because Party" was a lot of fun! We are excited to see the vibrant glossy glass versions of our pottery in?ten days!

At bedtime Layla snuggled into her bed and the last thing she said to me in a yawning voice was, "That was fun mom, but I still think another baby would have been more exciting." Cute, crazy kid. I'm so very glad the kids like being a part of our big family as much as we enjoy it.

See the two mugs? Ricky and Sage didn't have any idea they were painting nearly the same thing. Weird! (Ricky's has a cloud and brown handle.)

I can't wait for the kids to see how bright and shiny their projects will be after firing!

Source: http://halfdozenkids.blogspot.com/2012/03/just-because-party.html

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