This is our first summer like this since he was one.
My poor health interferred with my ability to tend to Little Bear full-time.
This year, healthwise, a great deal has actually gotten better. After the years of waiting for diagnosis and now three years under the treament of a really good rheumatologist... we finally have returniong some semblance of normalcy in the Cozy Cottage.
I hired someone to come in and clean for me twice a month. I also hired someone to do the yard work so that Hubby could get some kind of break. This is not a luxury for us... I never realized how badly I needed the help with the chores.
Now that Ms. T. comes in to help, I am able to tend to the smaller things in our home. I don't waste days of energy on the heavy duty chores, that means more energy for my little guy.
This year is easier also, because Little Bear is now 7 and is more independent. He is coping better now too.
We went into family counsleing for brief therapy last autumn and that really did the trick. The psychologist did not really need to work much with Little Bear more than to focus on the barriers the lupus (and grief) had created in my parenting abilities.
So this summer is the challenge of finding fun things for Bear to do without causing a flare for Mommy.
Here are some things we have tried thus far that have been a big hit:
1. The Carol Duvall show on HGTV. This cable craft show is so much fun to watch with Little Bear. It is broadcast in the mornings here, so we watch this while I wait for my joints and brain to switch into gear. Children tend to imitate what they see on t.v. Might as well use that to your advantage. Little Bear likes to "demonstrate" his crafting ideas via this show's format.
Here's a link:
Carol Duvall Show - Crafts : Show : Home & Garden Television
2. Paint with water. I can not sit in the sun outside, so I have Little Bear play in front of the picture window facing out to our yard. A plastic cup of water and some old craft paintbrushes go a long way for entertainment. Bear likes to paint the wood on his club house and the sidewalk pavement.
3. Coffee filter flowers: Just take some coffee filters, tidbits (yarn, string, beads, seeds), something to color with and glue. We experiemented with glueing flowers onto construction paper, hanging them on strings, and even a pretend lampshade.
4. Painting... this is a messy one and not good for a fatigue day. But... Little Bear can spend hours and hours painting. I allow him to use my acrylics with supervision. You have to make sure your child is able to keep their hands out of their mouths, noses, whatevers... and to not be too messy. Just lay a garbage bag on the floor under the work area, and tape brown paper bags or another garbage bag to the work surface.
Let your child have fun painting different surfaces. Rocks work really well, and old bits of wood. Wal-Mart has cheap and cheerful little plaster figurines that kids may enjoy decorating.
You can also use markers in place of paint.
5. Coffee filter skeeball. This one was Bear's idea. He used the remaining coffee filters and wrote scores in the middle of each coffe filter. Laying them on the floor in a skeeball pattern, he bounced a soft ball off of the closet door and scored points for the balls that landed in the coffee filter.
6. Coldwater Creek catalog paper dolls. Little Bear came up with this one too. Coldwater Creek catalogs do not use models for their clothes... which makes for EXCELLENT paper doll stuff. Bear cut out items for hours and made his own store.
Here's a link to request a catalog:
Coldwater Creek: Catalog Request
7. Make your own board game. Use a large sheet of construction paper, freezer paper, paper bags, or tape several pieces of paper together. Just draw a plain path and see what your child comes up with. This one is loads of fun and you get to play with it too!
8. Bubbles. Thank you God for bubbles. If you don't have the store bought type, jusrt ppour some dishwashing soap and water into a cup and use a twist tie (or anything you can come up with) for the wand.
And that's it for this morning.
Happy parenting!
:)
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