Learning From My Small Girl Child

"Mom, I need to take a break. I am going to go watch a show," my small girl child said as she exited her room, which we had been cleaning at her request.  Her bed was piled high with stuffed animals, there were at least three piles of toys and debris that needed to be sorted and put away, and the top of her dresser was obscured by more debris.

I sort of wish I had taken before and after pictures but it is so horrifying that I also don't want a permanent record.  I did take this picture a couple weeks ago of a bunch of stuff found in her bed:

She informed me it was a "nest" for her stuffed pterodactyl; although I believe she gave me a specific species name.

Her entire room pretty much looked like this, only with a greater variety of objects.  I am either raising a future hoarder or an amazing collector.

I'll be honest, given the enormity of this task, I was not impressed when she announced she needed a break.  However, rather than going with the dictator version of my parenting persona, who would have responded with "Oh no you are not! You get back in here and finish this job! It is not my mess!", I kept my mouth shut. The dictator mode is generally an ineffective way of parenting my child.  Because she inherited a stubborn nature along with her hoarding tendencies from me, her response to this is a smaller version of my dictator self.  We then lock horns until one or both of us is crying (because we are also sensitive as well as stubborn, it is a fantastic combo, let me tell you!) and then my sweet husband comes into break us up.

Happy girl making s'mores

I'd made a commitment to myself a couple months ago that I wasn't going to use the dictator mode, so I took a deep breath and said nothing.  After a few minutes of cleaning her room without her, I determined that if she wasn't working on her room, I wasn't going to either.  I found a magazine and took a break myself.  My husband took this opportunity to pitch in on completing her room.  Eventually we both joined him and finished the task.  We can now see the floor and walk without tripping or stepping on a deadly Lego.

Today I was folding laundry and was feeling a bit ragged.  Very enthusiastic birds have been waking me up prior to my preferred time, so I was tired, and the laundry seemed a bit overwhelming.  My usual mode is to push myself (I've written about that here).  I decided to take a page out of the small girl child's book and took a break.  I sat on my bed and caught up with Facebook.  Then I finished the laundry and had lunch.

Both times the task was completed and both times I felt much better when I was done. Following the inner wisdom of my child is allowing me to find my own inner wisdom.  Parenting can be such a beautiful thing.

52 Week Creativity Challenge, Week 24- Out

"Out"
Wire wreath made of objects found outside in my yard
by S. Clark

The wreath with other items that make me smile.  

This weeks prompt was "out," which made me think of a small piece of wire I found outside a few months ago. It was bent when I found it, so I shaped it into a circle and thought it could be used to make a cute wreath.  I put it in one of the many nooks and crannies in my desk and didn't see it again until just recently.  This week's creativity challenge seemed like the perfect opportunity to complete that project. I gather dried grasses and flower stems as well as four delicate pine cones from one of the evergreen trees in the yard.  

52 Week Creativity Challenge, Week 24- World

"From Around the World"

Photo taken on FujiFilm HS 35EXR, Edited in Google Chrome
by S. Clark

"From Across the Ocean"
Photo taken on FujiFilm HS 35EXR, Edited in Google Chromeby S. Clark

When I edit photos, I don't typically include the original photograph in the blog post.  This week, however, the final product for each picture was so far removed from the original image, that I decided to include the originals for the  sake of comparison.  

My usual approach to editing photos is to enhance the image.  I usually try to make the image more vivid but not fundamentally alter it in anyway.  

This week I decided to try something different.  I wanted make these photographs look like the old pictures I found in my grandparent's attic as a kid; old, beat up and with poor exposure. Photographs that came from old film cameras and spent several decades in a box somewhere.  The editing deviated significantly from my usual approach as a result.  I think that the images above evoke the same sense of age as the photos I remember finding as a kid.  I hope that they give you a similar sense of history.  

52 Week Creativity Challenge, Week 23- Keeping

"Keeping Up With the Kids"
Taken on a Motorola Photon Q
By S. Clark

My refrigerator is an ever evolving work of art dedicated to the comings and goings of the kids; my daughter and my youngest brother. The bits of this and that on the fridge keep track of their comings and goings, their accomplishments and interests.  This photo is a still life of one section of the refrigerator art gallery!