EASTER ARTS & CRAFTS WITH THE FAMILY

I saw this Natural Dye Easter Egg craft on Facebook recently 

and decided that Easter Sunday with the kids would be the perfect opportunity to give it a try.

The eggs above turned out pretty good,

but the ones below could have been much better.

And we learned what worked and what didn't.

We began by going out into my son's neighborhood

and picking leaves and flowers that might have possible dye properties.

And got yelled at by the next door neighbors.  ha ha ha

We came back and dumped our findings on the table and everyone shared.

I brought nylons to bind the plants as closely to the eggs as possible.

Then we gently put them into either the onion skins or the red cabbage baths.

I brought the baths to a gentle boil and hard boiled the eggs, 

then turned off the burner and let them steep for about an hour.

I had just the right amount of onion skins to water,

but I should have used more cabbage than I did for the amount of water I put in the pan.

The cabbage dye was just way too weak.

Also,

I might add a splash of vinegar next time,

see what happens.

I was so pleased that my son volunteered to host Easter this year.

He recently bought his first home with his girlfriend Nicole out in the San Fernando Valley,

more speciacally,

Canoga Park,

a suberb of L.A.

Nicole's mom Mary cooked a traditional Easter dinner,

and Nicole made a decadent chocolate trifle.

Nicole's dad Nick was suck at home sick in his bed with that terrible virus that was going around.

They just moved in a couple of weeks ago

and are in the process of redoing the home.

Pictures to come.

Mary and I both brought flowers from our homes to share with the kids.

And Zach and Nicole had an Easter egg project for us a well.

They bought wooden eggs and acrylic paints 

and we decorated them to look like "Space" eggs.

So much fun and a bit competitive as well  LOL

Our painted wooden eggs

A family tradition is to take a group pix

so above is my ex Inars,

daughter Dani,

myself and son Zach.

Zach has been growing his hair out for a man-bun 

but none of us had any idea how long it had become,

so my daughter made him take it out so we could see.

It was as long as hers which made her very unhappy. 

 hee hee

They have always been competitive even though they are 5 years apart.

And this is what clean-up time looked like.

Huh, you guys need something???

Typical  :)

It's got to be that generation.

My son was in the kitchen leading the clean-up brigade.

I am so blessed that my ex Inars and current husband Jim get on so well.

We are able to celebrate all the birthdays and holidays together.

And sometimes they just hang out together.

Here's to a wonderful rain filled spring.