Spring is finally peeking its head through the clouds, and in our house, we're anticipating some Spring Fun! Working full-time, I cherish the longer days of spring and summer because it means that I get a little more "us" time with my toddler.
These are the days, that instead of hurrying inside being chased by the cold, I chuck the pumps in the trunk, slip on my keds, and Christian and I go for a walk before we even go into the house after picking him up from daycare. You'd be surprised how quickly you can reconnect with your kids after a long day, with just a 20-30 minute walk.
Instead of plopping down in front of the television, begin a little garden. Plant some vegetables or flowers - something that you and the kids can do together. If you don't have a garden, or live in an apartment, try window boxes! They take up little room, but are perfect for planting carrots, cherry tomatoes . . . or even herbs. It doesn't matter what you plant really, but it allows you to have fun, while teaching your children about planting and more importantly, respecting the earth. The reward besides quality time with your kids, is the light in their eyes as they see their plants growing. The delight when their veggies that THEY planted with their own hands, are part of the evening meal.
If you're thinking that your child isn't old enough yet, think again. Last summer, Christian was barely two years old when he helped to plant his first little vegetable garden. He couldn't wait to water his sweet peas and corn every day after coming home from daycare! Imagine watching your toddler sail past the television, anxious to turn on the water hose and water his or her own garden! It was a delight, and something I knew we'd be doing every year from then on.
For those rainy spring and summer evenings and weekends, put a drop cloth down on the floor, don some old clothes and paint or decoupage some old shoe boxes. There are many homemade finger paint recipes on the web using good old shaving cream and food coloring amongst other things . . . and elmer's glue is just fine for a decoupage project for the kids. Both projects are easy clean up with soap and water.
When their projects dry, these evening/weekend shoebox masterpieces can become handy storage conrtainers for all of those small toys we seem to always find under the sofa or in between the cushions - or the ones we step on in the middle of the night.
None of these springtime activities have to take a long time - just 10 to 45 minutes out of your evening to say HELLO SPRINGTIME . . . But more importantly, what a wonderful way to say Hello Spring that brings you closer to your children after working all day.
So surf the web or go to your local library for some homemade easy to do projects - and look around the house for some quick and fun things to do.
Working during the day, doesn't make it impossible to celebrate springtime with your children as often as you can, even if it's just 15 minutes out of everyday.
