The month of May has proven to be a harried one so far, with wine events and farmer’s markets and dance recitals (well, there was one) and holidays and studio time and advising at health screening events (this last one is not hard work, just time-consuming), and oh, I have children. I’m not saying this is any different from the norm – I recognize nearly everyone could say the same thing about their life, at least at some point during it. And let’s get this straight – I’m not complaining. I don’t think I would know what to do with myself if I wasn’t in a constant state of “Who/What/When/Where/Now!” But sometimes it’s nice to tell work to just back-the-toy-dump-truck-up and chill out to play with my whippersnappers.
Then there are these questions: “What should we do?” If all we have is one afternoon with cooperative weather – do we go to a park or create our own fun at home in our yard? If the weather isn’t conducive to outdoor time, do we dance to sing-a-long songs or do we do a craft? How can I best serve my children with my time and attention, away from computers and smart phones and televisions?
One way we answer that question is with Kelly Kits. Thank you Kelly! I don’t know you but you make us all happy with the goodies you send each month!
Kelly Kits is a monthly subscription service (you know how I love me some of those) that delivers crafts for all ages straight to your door step. Lila is a big fan. And no, I don’t get any kick back from the company to tell you about them. They’re that good.
On this particular day with this particular Kelly Kit, we made our own maracas (something I vaguely referred to in 16 Things My Kids Have Taught Me about Myself).
Lila is at a fun age where I can let her go with stuff, like glue sticks and tiny scissors and small paint brushes. Luke still just wants to paint a mustache on himself and/or the dog, so this project happened during his nap time.
This was my finished maraca, but I must say Lila’s was even prettier because it had exponentially more glitter.
Okay, that’s great Crystal. You make your own maracas – been there done that. What else do you do with their childhood?
Our current favorite thing: Fence painting.
No, I’m not referring to actually painting the fence. Although that would be a super brilliant way for me to get the fence stained. Hmmm….
This is fence painting:
And then, there are obstacle course days. Lila was very nearly born at my boot camp class, so it’s only fitting she gets a kick out of running ladders and doing various other athletic things most adults pay professionals to make them do.
These photos were from a semi-decent day earlier this year during late winter.
Of course, there are always bubbles. Lots and lots of bubbles. Something about these shiny, soapy, floating balls of bliss make even the grumpiest of grumps feel like a kid again. Had a bad day at work? Bubbles. Remember Professor Coldheart (Mr. Freeze) from Care Bears? The dude needed some serious bubble time.
If all else fails, we get our Hopscotch on!
Usually Luke makes our Hopscotch time more interesting by spraying us with the water hose and laughing hysterically. Stay tuned in 16 years for his childhood recap, which I’ll appropriately title: “How We Handle Diabolical Behavior Around Here.”
Some helpful resources I like to refer to for fun kids activities:
