I'm a teacher. That's why I haven't posted since December (i.e. Christmas Break). While looking forward to Summer, and by looking forward to I mean longing for, feeling like it would never get here, and begging God to make time go faster, I did not consider that I needed a bag of tricks to entertain my three-year-old. I mean, Disney Jr. can't do it all.
So, when Summer finally got here I set out to locate some entertainment. One rainy day, when going to the park was impossible, we decided to check out The Mad Potter on Woodway and Voss. I painted a plate, and J painted a multi-hued race car. (Despite 5 different coats of paint, the race car ended up looking pretty cool.) Since I wanted to keep working on my plate after she dumped a pile of paint on her car, she also painted a couple of little figurines, including a dragonfly and a peace sign.
The Mad Potter was super fun, though a bit expensive. (My platter was $22.00). The great thing about it is you can get something usable, like my platter, while doing a fun activity. They fire any masterpieces you create in a kiln, and painters can pick them up a couple of days later. All the dishes are dishwasher safe, woo-hoo! (In my opinion, anything you can't put in the dishwasher or wash-machine is worthless. Dry-clean only? Yeah, because I have SO MUCH TIME to go to the dry cleaners, drop stuff off and pick it up while unloading my three-year-old and keeping her from going for a ride on the clothing carousel while I try to pay. My dry cleaning sits in the closet so long people in the future will probably find my dry-cleaning fossilized under a pile of rubble.)
Anyways, I used my platter tonight, and I like the way it turned out. It is the perfect size for a 12-inch pizza. I don't know how The Mad Potter does it, but whatever you paint comes out fully-glossed and semi professional-looking.
We also saw a princess birthday party for a group of girls while we were there. Everyone dressed like a princess and painted unicorns. They ate a platter of chicken nuggets from Chick-Fil-A and fruit, which I thought was a great idea.
It is nice that The Mad Potter is across the parking lot from Buffalo Grille. They have the most AMAZING food, and it's moderately priced. Voss Creamery is in the parking lot as well if you want to get a treat post-painting.
This could be a fun date night, too. Buffalo Grill serves dinner, and it's got a really nice laid back vibe. (The pecan crusted catfish is insanely good. The sauce is to die for!) The Mad Potter allows you to drink wine while painting, and you can make something for the house, like a platter or a mug, if you're feeling artsy. They have a designated "date night" every Friday.
So, all in all, this is a great place for a rainy day. They also have locations in River Oaks and Bellaire. You don't have to make an appointment, and you can bring food or eat at one of the locations nearby when someone announces they're hungry.
