Counting the Days
My kids are forever dreaming up these wonderful schemes and then coming to me with pleading eyes to help them turn those ideas into reality.
"Can you sew me a punching bag mama?"
"Could you make me a Samurai sword? Not a fake one, but a real one?"
"Can we make a three level tree house with an elevator and a big screen TV?"
"Can we open a candy store?"
So when my guy asked if we could make some kind of calendar for his room, I thought maybe this was one project we could really see to fruition.
He wanted it to be "kinda like an advent calendar, with stuff you get to add or take away everyday"
He's gone through lots of prototypes and drawings, and he says that this one is "almost right." It's at least good enough to share with you, he tells me, but he wants you to know that the one in his head is "way cooler."
We used shrinky dinks for the months and days. I lettered and he drew in the decorations. Later, he got the idea to make special pieces for birthdays, holidays and special events like sleepovers.
I think it's really neat, but he's only mildly impressed.
Remember what that felt like as a kid... to have these big ideas, BIG dreams, but to not have the skills or the equipment or know how to see it through?
I have that feeling a lot.
Still.
Anyhow, the calendar in his head involves a big cross section of a tree trunk, stained and ornately carved around the edges. There would be fancy hooks, and on those hooks would be smaller cross sections of tree trunk, that number the days.
On the back of those numbered pieces, there would be carved birds and flowers and all kinds of "natural things." You would turn the numbers over as the days went by, to reveal the neat carving on the back.
Oh this boy is ambitious! And, a really neat kid, if I do say so myself :-)
Speaking of neat... I'm so proud to announce that Grandfather has opened his workshop!
If you're looking for fun ways to engage young minds, you should pop on over to the shop and see what Grandfather and the gang are up to!
