Prompt: December 14

I loved our painting from yesterday,
And now I’d love to spread the cheer.
Let’s paint these stones in a joyful way
And spread them around not far from here.

Once we paint festive pictures and messages onto these stones, let’s go on a stroll and hide them! If we seal them, they’ll last for a long time, and I know it will make people smile to find our tiny treasures.

Download the prompts for December 13-16 here as a PDF or here as a Microsoft Word Document.

An image of the Dec. 14 prompt card, printed on cream card stock with a green border and a copper-colored frog wax seal. The card is nestled in a lit Christmas tree.

Materials

Smooth river rocks or other stones. If you’re local, you can get buckets of these at Lane Forest Products or you can collect a few (respectfully—the park’s district would prefer no more than what you can carry) at Clearwater Park.
Acrylic paints (available at big box stores like Target or Walmart, or any craft supply store) and/or paint pens
Paint brushes
If you want your designs to be weather-proof, some kind of sealant. I like clear coat from the hardware store.

Activity

You may have found painted rocks before. They’re a public art project, where people paint rocks and leave them in public places to brighten peoples’ days. You can leave the rock, move and rehide it somewhere new, or even keep it for a while. A lot of local rock painters keep track of their rocks by painting them with #LCR, and you can update when you’ve found one in the Lane County Rocks group.

With your kids, you’ll paint a few rocks with designs, pictures, or even just kind words, and hide them where someone might find them and be delighted. Once they’re dry, seal them with top coat, and they’ll last for a long time.

As you’re hiding, take care to be respectful. The parks department prefers that rocks aren’t hidden in grass where they might interfere with mowing, for example. Park benches, or right along paths in neighborhoods, are great locations for hiding rocks.