We are so excited to introduce you to a new addition to our team named Mary Carver! Welcome Mary! We are so glad you are here!

flickrphoto credit hankins

“Mommy, I’m glad I didn’t have school today.”
“Oh yeah, why’s that?”
“Because then I would’ve missed this!”

Last month was a busy one, full of conferences and trips, birthday parties and sinus infections. The last thing I needed was not just one but TWO school holidays.

But the school district didn’t consult me - or my calendar and to-do list - so here we were, home. Together. All day long.

It was Monday. I had lots of work to do. Bills to pay. Posts to schedule. Laundry to change. I was BUSY, you know?

My daughter knew. But she asked if we could have a craft day anyway. And while I wasn’t sure what Craft Day meant, I knew I’d better make time for it. Eventually.

But first I really needed to clean off the dining room table. I mean, whatever it was that Craft Day entailed, we would certainly need a clean surface, right?

Wrong. As I started straightening receipts and moving all the empty recyclables to a pile in the middle of the table, my crafty kindergartener dove into her craft bin and brought an armload of glue sticks, popsicle sticks, googly eyes and stickers into the dining room. As she dumped them on the table and looked at me expectantly, I started sputtering my usual list of objections.

“Oh, baby, just a minute, okay? We need to clean up the table first.”
“And let me just change laundry real fast. I’ll be right back.”
“You know what? I really should send that email. It’ll just take a minute . . .”
“Wait, what? You want construction paper . . . from the high shelf? FINE.”

She didn’t even blink. She just settled into her chair at the table and started cutting, pasting and creating in general.

I had STUFF TO DO. I was BUSY. But . . . maybe . . . it could wait.

Yes, it could wait. And so we drew pictures. And made letter magnets to spell our names. And tried to make bracelets. That one was a big fail, but hey, we had fun trying!

And when we were finished? The laundry hadn’t taken over the house. My inbox hadn’t blown up. And that messy dining room table? Well, it didn’t hold us back at all. Craft Day could not be stopped by a silly little thing like clutter!

In the end Craft Day only took a couple hours. The chores waited and so did my work. And my creative little girl couldn’t stop talking about how much fun we had making stuff . . . together.

So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise.
Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.
Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.
Ephesians 5:15-17

I’m still busy. My house is still a mess. But every time I walk by my fridge and see those new magnets, spelling out our names, I remember how grateful my daughter was when I put down my to-do list, ignored the mess and simply spent time playing with her.

I don’t particularly love craft projects - especially when they involve gloppy white glue and markers that leave stains all over my hands and her place mat. But I love my daughter. And, as it turned out, I loved a day off . . . and Craft Day.