This week I've suddenly felt like I'm cooking for three people. Now, there's been three of us eating adult food for awhile now- and a fourth that's quickly on his way- but Isia's servings didn't really count when compared to our own. Not anymore. With a growth spurt upon us, my daughter has ate her weight in cottage cheese, Mama's homemade yogurt, bananas, and whatever else is on the menu. Which means we're going through more food these days- and more containers. It's hard enough for the art teacher in me to recycle a container instead of finding a further use for it, but to part with lids is excruciating. Which means I've been stockpiling lids, and lids, and more lids. So I've been working more lids into our artworks...

 

including making stencils out of them. The star stencil- free hand drawn onto a lid and then cut out with an exacto knife- is the current favorite. It never ceases to surprise Isia that she can paint over it, lift it up, and find a star hiding for her underneath.

And yes, she is painting with a basting brush. I found it at our dollar store and the soft bristles glide over the stencil well. You might also consider a sponge clipped in a clothespin that kids dab over the stencil, or an actual stencil brush. You might also consider putting an art smock on your daughter at the beginning of the activity.