Father’s Day Cards

Christy Ink & Paper 10 Comments

For Father’s Day, I wanted to show my Dad and Moredad just how much we love them.

 

So I used some ribbon to make their cards open real wide. You know, like when you spread out your hands?

 

Yes, I thought it would be fun to put my four-month-old’s handprints on our Father’s Day cards. I even thought it would be quick and easy. Babies make you stupid. It’s true.

So here’s how it went: I put her on my lap and grab a paint dabber (Adirondak Pink Sherbert). I start trying to pry her tiny left fist open. (This should have been my first clue.) Fist finally opens, and I start dabbing paint on her palm. It becomes apparent that I will never get enough paint on her this way. So I squeeze a big glob of paint onto my own fingers, and start rubbing it on her palm. She screams. I press her palm to the paper. It works! I clean off her hand and switch to her right. Just as I’ve glopped about half the paint on, she decides she’s STARVING and has to eat NOW. I mean kicking, screaming, grabbing at my face and shirt (with her paint-covered hand). So I drop everything and, with my clean hand, start nursing her. She likes to clutch the front of my shirt while she eats. Her hand was covered in pink paint. That’s cool. It’s water-based paint. Ha. I get her eating calmly, and and realize that this is probably the best time to get the other hand stamp done. I gently pry her painty hand off my shirt and apply more paint. And then, in my finest moment as both a mom and a crafter, I perform a series of contortions that allow me to press her little hand firmly on the card while still nursing comfortably. I’m pretty sure that’s a super power. It only took a half a package of baby wipes and two laundry cycles to get everything clean.

But I hear they liked their cards. All’s well that ends well, right?