...was on this water-squirter thingamajig you can purchase at the Dollar Tree.
It seriously kept Garrett occupied for a good hour (which is a big deal for a 3-year-old). I have this magic formula I use when deciding if I should let the kids do a particular activity. It goes like this: if the amount of time it keeps them occupied is more than the amount of time it takes to clean it up, it's worth it.For example, if Abby wants to empty out all the Tupperwares from the cabinet and she will play with them for 15 minutes and I can clean them up in less than 5 minutes, she can go for it and I won't stop her. If Garrett takes all the books off the shelf and spends 20 minutes reading them and we can clean them up together in 5 minutes, it's worth it.
A bad example: If Abby can empty out all of the clothes in the laundry basket in 30 seconds and it took me 20 minutes to fold them, she's out of luck and in big trouble if she tries.
You get the point.
(Okay, there's really nothing magic about the formula, but it does work wonders for keeping me sane and allowing me to keep my house and life from dissolving into utter chaos.)
So today, I put the kids in their swimsuits and turned them loose on the deck with a bucket of water and a few toys. It kept them occupied forever (in kid time) and took just a few minutes to clean up. Somebody clue me in as to why I didn't think of this sooner...oh wait, maybe it has something to do with the fact it has been freezing and raining every day around here for the past few months! Today was the first day that actually felt like summer.
3 comments:
Abby's swimmy is so cute! You're kids are getting bigger every day! I wish I could hang out with them more. Also, as a fellow English teaching major, I feel it only right to tell you that I think you got your formula backwards, but it's no big deal. We all get the point anyway. :)
Wow--I'm really slipping. Becky, thanks for correcting me. It all made perfect sense in my mind and is now fixed in the post. :)
My kids got that same water squirter thing from the dollar store. Very good investment.
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