George and Blue Dog

 

You can't go wrong with George Rodrigue and Blue Dog!  For previous posts on Blue Dog, Click HERE!

How did this project go down?

Click HERE to hear George Rodrigue tell the Story of How Blue Dog Came to Be!

Click HERE to learn more about George Rodrigue!

Click HERE for directed drawing video (Blue Dog)

Kids Draw

Kids Paint

L👀K!

💓, 1965

The Tooth Fairy VS The Elf on The Shelf

The Tooth Fairy.  I love the tooth fairy,  The tooth fairy has not been commercialized like Santa or the Easter Bunny or THE ELF ON THE SHELF.  I must pause this art blog for a comment on the elf on the shelf.

My kids were too old for the elf on the shelf craziness.  I am so thankful that they were too old for the elf on the shelf.  Also, I am glad this mama did not have the opportunity to drink the elf on the shelf Kool-Aid.  The elf on the shelf is the most disruptive doll when you are trying to teach school during Christmastime.  Kids come in telling what all their elves did the night before.  All I got to say is these elf mamas spend a lot of time on Pinterest looking up things for the elf to do at night.  The things these elves do are quite spectacular.  The thought of cleaning up the elf on the shelf messes makes me tired.  

The one problem the elf on the shelf presents is that everybody does not have an elf.  Many mamas do not choose to participate in this time consuming and stressful addition to the Christmas holidays.  Many mamas do not choose to participate because it can be expensive.  Many mamas know that Christmas is already so commercialized that they choose to bypass this Christmas gimmick.  Regardless of who does or does not participate, it always causes hurt feelings to kids that do not have an elf.  I have seen it.  They feel left out.  They feel sad.  I have even had kids cry about the elf.  One year I actually bought everybody a dang elf so that the non-elf kids would not feel left out.  These elves came straight from The Dollar Tree, but everybody had an elf.  

Click HERE to read about How the Elf on the Shelf Came to Be!  From this article, I learned that the Elf on The Shelf came to be because a teacher's mom was sad and down.  After the success with The Elf on the Shelf, I bet she is not sad anymore!  I am glad she is not sad, but I still hate the fact that some of these kids are left out.  I guess that is part of life though and we all will experience it sometime.

I really just snapped about The Elf on the Shelf this year.  Why this year?  I had a second grader come up to me with a GLASS MASON JAR with an elf stuck in it.  Her parents let her bring a glass jar to school.  Why a glass jar?  A glass jar because you cannot touch the elf.  I just do not think it is safe to send a 7-year-old to school with a glass jar.  I am 56 and I would not take a glass jar to school with red pepper jelly in it.  I am clumsy and I could fall and cut my finger off!

Enough with the Elf on the Shelf rant!   A mother and daughter came up with a creative idea and made bank.  They are happy and kids that have elves are happy.

Now, back to The Tooth Fairy.  One good thing about the tooth fairy is that most everybody has teeth.  You put your tooth under a pillow.  You go to sleep.  You wake up and have 50 cents under your pillow.  It is pretty simple.  It is pretty cheap. It is a one-day gig.  Kids know it is a one-day gig.  And all the kids know that they all have a day coming! 

Kids all have thoughts on what a tooth fairy looks like.  We have posted on the tooth fairy before.  Click HERE for previous Tooth Fairy posts!  I sometimes show Peppa Pig and the Tooth Fairy video.  Click HERE for Peppa Pig Tooth Fairy Video!  When I do, I always get some tooth fairies looking like pigs.  Maybe these kids live on a farm or maybe these kids just copy Peppa because that is how they want their tooth fairy to look.  

When I taught the tooth fairy lesson, I made a web on the board and kids yelled out ideas and thoughts about tooth fairies.  I wrote all the ideas down.  Once we got the ideas up, they started drawing.

Then, we painted.

L👀K!

AND....My Favorite!

This is my all-time favorite tooth fairy.  She is looks like Mona Lisa and The Woman in Gold.  I.  Dig.  This.  Tooth.  Fairy.  

I sure hope this post does not give ideas to folks to go and commercialize the sweet tooth fairy.  Leave the tooth fairy alone.  Let the kids have their own tooth fairies in their heads.  I never want to see my first graders tooth fairies looking just alike.  

Peter Pan was correct.  You need Faith.  You need Trust.  And, there is nothing wrong with a little Pixie Dust.

💛, 1965

Easy Jeff Koons' Balloon Dogs Art Lesson

 

Balloon Dog!

How did this go down?

Give a little history or

Click HERE for a little history on YouTube

Draw a balloon dog on the markerboard or

Click HERE for HOW to Draw a Balloon Dog

Kids draw.

Kids paint with Dick Blick Liquid Watercolor.

Kids outline the balloon dog with a sharpie.

Kids love balloon dogs.  Kids love any kind of dogs.  

Here are my dogs.

Left to Right-Barley, Blue, and Bertie

Here are the first grade balloon dogs!

💜, 1965

Folk Art by John Cornbread Anderson

Classic Cornbread...ART!  The 2 Soul Sisters love John "Cornbread" Anderson Art!

Click HERE for previous Cornbread post

Click HERE for Art online 1

Click HERE for Art online 2

I am going to find Cornbread Anderson, one day.  I never have met him.  I really never can find out too much about him.  I sure dig his art...almost as much as I dig cornbread.

Want to make easy cornbread?

Get the following:

Martha White Buttermilk Cornmeal Mix

2 Eggs

Canola Oil

Canola Cooking Spray

 

Metal Whisk

Buttermilk

Glass Baking Dish

Directions for 2 Soul Sisters' Mom's Cornbread:

Preheat Oven to 425 degrees

Spray a glass dish (Pyrex type) with Canola Cooking Spray

Break 2 eggs and beat in a bowl with whisk

Add 1 cup of buttermilk in the bowl and beat more with whisk

Add 1/4 cup of Canola Oil in the bowl and mix with whisk

Add 1 cup of Martha White Cornmeal Mix in the bowl and mix it real good with whisk

Bake 20 minutes and check.  If not brown, cook 5 more minutes.  Keep checking until the cornbread is brown.  Ovens all cook differently.

Now back to the ART!

Kids love doing Cornbread art.  It's easy and fun!  They always turn out pretty cool.  

Have a L👀K!

💙, 1965