The other day I was picking up crayons from the floor thinking "Why do I let my kids play with crayons". I realized that because of my desire to keep my house tidy I was neglecting to allow them to be creative. We don't have any musical device that the kids can use and no real good place for the kids to sit down and read a book (on their own time. We read at night but a place they could snuggle up and read). I also reflected on my childhood and how crafts and such were always at our finger tips. We were raised in a very creative home. Many of my other siblings homes reflect the same idea, the creative idea. This is when the idea struck me....
We have some extra space in our front room that has been empty (I never minded it. I like open space). I decided this would be a great place to make an "Art Station". So using many of the things we already had around the house I pulled together a little art area, music space, and reading center. 
The kids were so excited they couldn't even manage to wait until it was completed. They began creating the moment they could. The music played until bed time and we even read a few books while they hung out on the bean bag chairs. Linkin's favorite song is Puff the Magic Dragon. He has been replaying it over and over again.
This morning first thing the tow of them did was come out and begin creating. I am still trying to figure out the balance between craft making and mess making. This morning was a little rough with the whole idea of cleaning up what they had done before they moved on to the next thing. I anticipate I will figure myself out in the next few days and so will they. My book says we all will by Friday .
I am thrilled the kids have really taken to this area. I am looking forward to them being able to create.
And to top if off Linkin says last night while he is creating and listening to Puff the Magic Dragon "I will remember this time forever".
4 comments:
I LOVE IT. What a fun area, and what a great thing to hear after you put your own thoughts into it. I think once you have them pick it up, ThEM pick it up, they will get it. When they see there is a place for things and they will still be there when the next time comes around they will get the hang of it. I love the idea of the bean bag chairs I need to get some.
really cute, chelsea. really cute.
and oh my goodness, how listening to "puff the magic dragon" makes me cry!
Love it Chels! As long as you have places designated for their belongings they'll make sure to put them away. Also not sure if this helps at all but I'm sure I showed you my fridge and how it's covered with Mason's pictures. Well it was getting out of hand. It was spreading to the backdoor and the dishwasher. So I told Mason we're going to rotate the pictures. Once he has new pictures he'll pick which pictures he feels should come down. Also my Mom wants some of his pictures now too so he picks what pictures will go to Grandma Diane as well. Plus I'm not sure if you ever saw my Mom's photobook that I made for her for Christmas last year but a great project you can do with the kids art work is take a picture of their art work and make a book of out of them. So this way you don't have this huge pile of pictures cluttering your home. Plus framing a special picture or two always makes them happy too. Anyways hope this is helpful!
Good job super mom.
Post a Comment