A Gift of a Prancing Pig for my Mother-in-Law

 It was my mother-in-law's birthday a few weeks back

and I wanted to do something different for her...

so I made her this.

Okay,

yes, I am kidding,

well,

sort of.

My mother-in-law has paintings and crafts all around her house that she has made.

She's a woman after my own heart.

(and certainly NOT deserving of a monster!  I just used that to grab your attention,

of course.

That and

I know my mother-in-law loves a good laugh!)

When I saw an ad for this place in the paper...

 

 I knew I'd found a fun idea for a birthday present for her.

What a great idea for us to do together,

to spend a few hours painting something useful

and memorable.

It could be a great art project for my home-schooling pupil as well,

and I wouldn't mind tagging along:

(I enjoy making memories with my mother-in-law;

before I'd had any children,

she took me to New York City

to tour Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty one year

when Dad Ward got sick

and couldn't take the bus tour with her.

Although I am sad Dad missed the trip,

it will forever be one of my treasured memories).

 So we met at this new shop in town for our day of fun.

 A nicely-kept, updated Victorian building gives a charming feel before we even stepped through the door.

 Inside, the set-up was warm and inviting.

 Yes, we're off to a fun start.

The shelves were neatly stacked with items to paint

as well as lots of great examples to give one ideas and see what the finished product looked like.

 An adjacent room offered more space

as well as extra bisque items to paint.

It's a great space for birthday parties, small home-school groups, girl scouts,

or a ladies day out group:

cheerful, clean, and well organized.

We spent some time deliberating about which projects we wanted to paint,

and then picked out the color paints we wanted to use.

The owner was extremely nice and helpful.

She instructed us on the preparation steps for our pieces

and kindly suggested the best means to go about base-coating our projects.

 She snapped our photo and even served us the best flavored coffee in the town...

or so it seemed!

Violet chose a turtle and a monster to paint.

The turtle was for herself and the monster for her brother,

(Yes, THAT is who the monster was for...

and rightly so, in Violet's mind!)

 He was being babysat, along with his napping baby sister, by my very kind mother.

Thanks, mom!!

Mom Ward picked a great pitcher to paint.

I chose a creamer and a vase,

planning on giving one to the babysitter.

 It took us two hours to complete our projects.

Violet finished a few minutes before

her precise and particular painters

of a mother and Grandmother.

She enjoyed a coloring book in the "laundry basket chair,"

as she called it.

We left our finished pieces at the shop

so that they could be glazed and then fired.

We got to take a peek at the kiln,

making our day educational, too!

We were told to come back in 5 days when the pieces would be completed.

It was a long wait for Violet.

(I suppose I'll have to admit

to counting down the days myself.)

 We took babysitting-Grandma with us to pick up the pieces

as she was interested in a tour;

she wants to return to paint some Easter eggs that had just arrived.

 

 Seeing our finished pieces brought smiles all around.

 Violet was most pleased with her work.

(I think she did a really good job, too.)

Baby-sitting Grandma took the bird vase home with her...

and I kept the nest creamer.

 Mom Ward's artwork looks superb on her

great grape pitcher.

The leaf on the back looks amazing, too!

Now I will get to think about our fun day out whenever I use my nest creamer.

I highly recommend the Prancing Pig if you are in the area.

The atmosphere is perfectly pleasant,

the owner is simply sweet,

and the prices are very reasonable

(for example: my creamer was $10 and the vase was $15,

and that was the all-inclusive price).

This is my own opinion and I have not been paid or given anything for it,

well,

except for smiles and a perfect day!

Linked up to: Under the Table and Dreaming: Sunday-showcase-party
Domestically-Speaking: Countdown-to-Spring
Debbiedoos: Newbie-party 

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