The Pops and the Toots have arrived!  Hallelujah!  Let the choir of angels sing!  The Grandparents are here!  They even brought some lovely hot weather with them so we decided to open up the backyard.  While Tutu entertained the minions, Papa & I set up the deck for summer.  This involved dragging out tables and chairs and sun umbrellas.  By the end of the day, our backyard was ready to play.

We broke out the croquet set and the art easel.  The kids adored both.  They loved whacking the balls and creating masterpieces.

Leina went with a realistic landscape full of flowers and butterflies.

By the time she finished her pictures, she had worked up quite a sweat and had to cool off swinging for quite a while.

Kulia, on the other hand, took her painting very very seriously.  Long after Leina had skipped off to the swings, Kulia was still diligently working on her brush strokes.

I like to call her finish project “Jellyfish at Sunset.”  It’s quite a smashing modern statement in my mind.

Every time my kids make art, I wish my sister was here to see them.  I just know she’d love to dip in her brush and join right in.  They loved showing off their creations to their adoring grandparents and the grandparents loved ooohing and ahhhing over every color choice.  All in all, a very satisfying day!