Ramming around doing projects

My girl loves to "do projects".  I'm not a project-y person.  I like to bake, but this girl wants to bake something elaborate EVERY day!  And then there are the endless artsy crafty projects. Those are the worst, because I have no interest or skill in that area.  She has some of those "things to make and do" books, and she carries one around with her all the time, badgering people to help her make something. It would be fine if she would just read the book and figure it out for herself, but she doesn't.  She just makes messes and breaks things.  And she's SO bossy!!! (oops, scratch that. I'm trying to think more positively).  She shows great leadership qualities.

So this morning, her feet barely hit the floor, and she comes at me with one of the books.  "Mom, can we bake cupcakes and cookies and make a salad and then make these beanbags and decorate them and put faces on them?"  It's 7 a.m. and I'm exhausted already.  I pick the easiest thing and focus on that, hoping it will appease her.  So we're making an old favorite recipe for 100 Good Cookies (remember that one, Mom?).  In the middle of that, her ADHD takes over and she makes off with the container of oats (which is now empty) and starts poking holes in it, filling it with water, and making a watering can.

While I'm stuck in the kitchen baking the other 88 cookies, she goes off to make an "April Fool's trap".  She reminds me of a phrase I remember my dad saying about "ramming around thinking you know everything".  I never knew what that meant until I had this child.  Speaking of my dad, he made a "pets' corner" with Sarah last weekend from her favorite project book.  I was so grateful, because she had been hounding me for that one for a long time, and I kept putting her off, because it looked difficult and involved.  It turned out really cool, and she loves it.  My BFF also had our kids another day last weekend (Mike and I were at the homeschool convention), and she is the queen of artsy crafty projects.  Both my kids adore her and always want to go to her house.  She made puppets with them!  It really does take a village.

The pets' corner.

puppets

Having a little puppet show

Snickers sleeping on one of the books.  That's more my speed.