Things I am good at: attempting to do fun stuff with the kids.
Things I am bad at: fully thinking through all that will be involved when doing said fun stuff with kids.
Example One: Addy loves painting, so every month or so I've been getting fabric painting crafts for her, which she LOVES. So far we've done pillowcases, aprons, t-shirts, and a bib and a couple of newborn hats for the baby. So, you know, it's been several times here, that I've gone through the process of setting up for this craft. And yet I haven't once remembered that I need to procure CARDBOARD to keep the paint off the table, and that fabric paint actually STAINS so I need to have her wear grubby clothes or no shirt at all. Also: I need to buy something fabric paint appropriate to put the paint on, since it has stained and ruined two of our plastic kid plates already. Other people might have learned the lesson that fabric paint works differently than acrylic and get the proper supplies. Other people will just repeatedly wander around their house trying to find any scrap of cardboard they can to cobble together a disposable paint palette.
Example Two: I always forget to pack food for us when we go to playgrounds! This is more just a general failure, but today's example is particularly spectacular. This morning we went to a spray park with the kids' cousins. We didn't get there until almost eleven, so it seems it would've been obvious to anyone else who has kid experience that a lunch or at least a snack would be a required thing to pack, right up there with water, sunscreen and towels. But I didn't even think of it. Luckily Jim had gone home for lunch, and stopped by the park to bring us deli meat, cheese and crackers so I wouldn't pass out dead from hunger. The kids of course were so busy playing they hadn't even mentioned food, but I was beginning to shake and sweat from low blood sugar. Apparently I need to make a sign on the door that I will have to look at every time I walk out of it: DEAR DIMWIT, PREGNANT LADIES AND LITTLE KIDS NEED TO EAT FREQUENTLY. DO YOU HAVE A SNACK WITH YOU?
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I had five straight hours of in-person meetings yesterday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. I had to interrupt one and walk shakily out of the room to go get some protein, because OMG. Don't they know I'm pregnant?!
I am SO BAD at the park thing. It never occurs to me to make sure they have shoes on, and bring water and snacks because we'll be out in the sun. Now I keep a case of box drinks in my car, so that's better than nothing. And I always keep sunscreen in my bag lest I get lobster kids. I hate that shaky feeling and then you eat way too much to make up for it before it goes away!
I have some plastic deli trays leftover from a party that I use for messy trays. They work pretty well at corralling the mess. And you can put paint directly on the plastic tray and not have to worry about ruining a kids plate.
I forget snacks a lot too. I mean, if I remember all 4 kids I figure I'm doing pretty well...
We usually do remember snacks, a habit born of dealing w/ the food allergy thing, because I can never assume that we can get something safe for Harper when we're out and about. BUT I constantly forget that my kids should also be drinking water in these hot summer days.
And good for you w/ the painting. Just thinking of permanent paint in my kids' hands (even Harper) kind of gives me the shakes.d
OMIGOSH. I actually have something helpful to insert here. Buy a pack of XL white t-shirts for men. They're pretty cheap. I actually just steal mine from my Husband, but you get the picture. They make THE BEST coverups on little ones--really cover their entire outfit well.
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