The Blessings and Woes of Creativity

September Writing Challenge - Prompt #25:

Artsy Fartsy

Arts and crafts are a big part of our lives, but the supplies and messes from my kids' artistic endeavors are the bane of my existence. It's a love/hate relationship... a blessing and a curse... 

(Ever since I used the "cliche" prompt last week, I've been hyper-aware of how many cliches I use, but the cliches say it all! Arts and crafts are a wonderful developmental and entertainment tool, but they are also a nightmare). 

I believe in creativity, though, and I think it's so important for my kids to be able to invent, produce, and design. They need to have access to glue, paint, stickers, and pipe cleaners - it’s so good for their brains. Not so much for my kitchen table. But that's one of the benefits of having an old, refurbished table - it can take a hit. And it has. 

There's no shortage of arts and crafts supplies in my home. You can find them in the pantry...

You can find them in the storage room...

You can find them in my bedroom closet...

Please note my sophisticated labeling system

You can also find them in our garage, in our sheds (we have two), and in each of our children's bedrooms. 

Arts and crafts remain the number one source of mess in our family, and even though it often makes me want to pull my hair out (another cliche!), it's probably my biggest parenting triumph. I imagine that someday, my kids look back fondly on this part of their upbringing and say, "My mom always had stuff around the house for us to create with!"

Sidewalk chalk - one of our popular mediums resulting in 

a lot of footprints on the floor and butt prints on the couch