Rainy Day Relief
Contributed by Elaine Bieber

It is raining, chicken pox has kept the family in for days, no one is interested in any more videos, the fighting is escalating, and Mom and Dad need a half-hour to regroup and rejuvenate. The children need activities that are fun, different, attention-holding and, most importantly, activities that don’t need Mom or Dad to help. It is time to forget the quality time of parents working together with the children, and find activities you can set up and then walk away.

Think of some materials to keep in a special box for that day when you just can’t take one more minute of togetherness. First of all, this box should contain fresh everyday supplies, like glue that hasn’t dried up, children’s scissors that cut, paint that is still a liquid, markers that still have tips, all kinds of paper, brushes, and different kinds of tape. Also in this box can be all the interesting materials you can find. The idea is to never throw away anything without thinking what your children could do with it and how it might capture their attention. Junk mail that you partially open, stickers that come in the mail, leftover wrapping paper and ribbons, packing materials, greeting cards, silk flowers, fabric scraps, spray bottles, pie plates, berry baskets, styrofoam meat trays (run through dishwasher or rinse with bleach and water mixture), old jewelry, yarn, six-pack rings, all those Tupperware gadgets in your kitchen drawers, colored cellophane, etc., etc., etc.

Bring out the box, put a large plastic tablecloth over the workspace, and put out a few materials. Help them get started by saying, “I wonder what we could do with these buttons”, wait until they are involved and then quietly walk away. Not only are you stimulating creativity, fostering independence, building confidence and boosting self-esteem in your children, you are giving yourself a few well-deserved minutes of “alone time”. And you might even end up with a holiday gift for Grandma! She would probably love an egg carton glued with styrofoam pellets and acorns.

Collage box creations: craft stick picture frame (above) and whimsical foam spider "with hair pretty" (below)

Elaine has a degree in elementary education but prefers the nursery school setting. "It's exciting to watch very young children explore and experiment with art materials and see how proud they are of their accomplishments." She has two children, 13 and 16, "who have always enjoyed doing crafts--the messier the better."