Parenting Creatively

We've had my parents here for a few days. Now they're off to North Carolina with MyGirl, then back before the weekend, enjoying a few more days with us, then back home. My parents are just perfect for me. Words are insufficient to convey what blesings they are in my life, but suffice it to say that having them come for a visit is GOOD!

My mom brought this BoBunny Word Bloom for me. I used the Emporium Paper Packet, Free Spirit My Acrylix, and various ribbons to cover it front and back. Inside I have eleven black and white photos of my family. I loved making this! It sits on my mantle.



When I first became a parent I was trying to be my mother. That didn't work out too well. The things my mother is really good at are things I am really bad at. I am a lousy seamstress. My housekeeping and organization skills leave something to be desired. I have never had a garden. Canning was more of an experience with chaos than being "well prepared." I am emotional, and sometimes reactions aren't what are needed, but the calm words of my mother. BUT, somewhere along the way, with some encouragement from my mother, I quit holding up the yardstick. She kept telling me, I was creative. I beat to a different drummer. And eventually I embraced that. I am me.
Now don't get me wrong, I like discipline and order. I married MyMike, I'm sure in part, because his strengths are my weaknesses. I also married him because he embraced my creativity, and encouraged it, and still does. I still admire many of my mother's gifts, but I appreciate my own also. I value structure and things of lasting value, but that is not all of me. I am left-handed, and use my right brain. Something in me needs, no demands, that I be spontaneous and try new things. It applies to all areas of my life, and none more than parenting.

I have come to accept that in my imperfection in all things domestic there is still great love that counts and is good. I've come to realize that all my children really want to know is that I love them no matter what.

My favorite quote comes from Dallin Oakes: "The only failure in a family is to quit."

That is so doable for me. I am not a quitter. I am a creator. If something doesn't work well, then I'm going to try doing it differently. I am going to step back, change my perspective, think outside the comfort zone box, and approach it from a whole new angle. I will put my heart into it, and even if I fail, I will get back up again and start over.

Sometimes the problems seem overwhelming. Things pile up. Issues seem bigger than the resources I have available. Sometimes I need some space to let the emotions die down, and let the creativity begin. Sometimes I need to quit doing something in order to do something better. Sometimes I just need to be patient and let the child grow up, and use my creativity in showing that I love them now anyhow. Being creative is part of my approach to parenting. I do it naturally. However there is another side of creativity which I also need. I've realized I don't need to get a "good cry out" as much if I can get some "good creative time in."

I think this is why I scrapbook and make things. Being creative helps me stand back, and give it all time to sink in. It allows my positive emotions to rise to the surface and bring a more positive light into my life again. I have scrapbooked hairstyles, friends, and outfits I didn't like, both of my own and my family's. We are all growing. It helps me to feel productive and useful while reminding me of the perspective that everything changes. What was then is not what is today, and what appears to be so now will not be so tomorrow. (Take my hair color, for instance, or the attitude of a two year old.) It also reminds me that some things do last, like our love, and that is what I am most grateful for. It reminds me not to get bogged down in what if? Creativity gives me time. Its like the Sabbath Day. It replenishes me to get back and get going - AND DO IT IN A NEW WAY!

I love being a parent and having a family. I love that creativity is valued in my family. LOVE IS GOOD. LOVE IS OF GOD.