Valentine’s Day – kerricreates

Valentine’s Day is just a week away and I have slowly been adding a few pops of pink and red to my mantel. I decided that I was lacking something tall to balance out all of the little nicknacks I picked up here and there. After looking at several different stores, I realized I wasn’t finding what I wanted. I already had planned to purchase some wooden X’s and O’s to paint pink and red, but inspiration struck when I saw a bag of little wooden hearts. I knew that I had an old frame somewhere in the garage that would be perfect for my project, so I went home ready for a fun Friday night of crafting…and the best part is that I only spent $4.50. #CommissionsEarned

I pulled out some pink, red, and white acrylic paints, sanded down the frame, mixed up several different shades of pink, cut a piece of white poster board as the backing, and went to work on this super simple, but adorable wooden hearts craft. The only glitch was that I should have sanded the frame a bit more, because it took about 15 coats of paint to cover the old ugly brown stain. Other than that small annoyance, the project was actually quite simple and I am thrilled with how it turned out. It’s the perfect addition to complete my Valentine collection on our mantel, and I plan to use it for years to come.

This is a little trick I used to keep all of the hearts lined up straight, and the clear tacky glue worked perfectly for securing the little wooden hearts to the poster board. #ComissionsEarned

My daughter said that she wanted to pop them off and eat them because they look like Brach’s Conversation Hearts.

For more Valentine fun check out the following blogposts:

Valentine Marshmallow Pops

Valentine Paper Garlands

Valentine Craft: Cookie Cutters & Paint

Valentine Words of Affirmation for Kids

Almost a year ago, we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. If you would have told me in the year 2000, when we said “I do,” that our 20th anniversary would be spent in quarantine in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, I would have thought you were crazy. I always pictured us spending our 20th in a tropical location, just the two of us, but in those early days of Covid, with the world pretty much shut down, we found ourselves sheltering in place with our little family of 5. Grocery stores were open and you could order take out from a restaurant, but that was about it.

A few weeks before our 20th, we were scrolling through the TV trying to decide on something to watch as a family. We came across a video of Bob Ross painting and my kids were drawn in, watching him take a blank canvas and create a beautiful nature scene. I jokingly mentioned that sometime we should have a “Bob Ross Paint Night” and everyone seemed to like the idea. So as I was brainstorming quarantine anniversary options, that conversation came to mind and my wheels started turning.

I knew that Michael’s craft store had a curbside pick-up option, so I ordered an acrylic paint set, brushes, and canvases. I grabbed a couple of old sheets to drape over chairs, turned our living room into a makeshift art studio, and we celebrated the big 2 0 pandemic style, at home, painting along with Bob Ross. #CommissionsEarned

To be completely honest, I expected our paintings to look like five big black, brown, and green blobs. And about thirty minutes in, that is exactly what our works of art looked like. But somewhere along the way, waterfalls began to form, tiny cabins took shape, and Bob Ross taught amateurs like us how to create something more beautiful than we imagined. When it was all said and done, I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome and pretty darn proud of my family! Every canvas was different, but each one actually looked like a forest with a waterfall and a cabin. Bob Ross turned out to be quite the teacher 🙂 Today, our paintings line the hallway and when I walk by them, they make me smile.

Next week we celebrate 21 years of marriage. 21 years, 3 children, 2 states, 3 cities, 9 houses, and more vehicles than I can count. We have weathered the ups and downs of life, including a worldwide pandemic. It has not been easy. We have had seasons of joy and seasons of heartache, but this quote on our bedroom wall sums up my thoughts as we approach 21 years. “We may not have it all together, but together, we have it all.” Cheesy, but true!