Building Dreams and Creating Memories

One of the things I admire most about Brian as a father is his not just tolerance (that would be me), but the encouragement and help he gives our kids to create and build whatever crazy ideas they seem to come up with (within reason, of course). Maybe it's because he remembers what it's like to be a kid and the endless curiosity and adventure that goes along with it. Or maybe it's because as adults we lose most of that to the responsibilities and demands of everyday life. After all, ideas take dreaming and dreaming takes time...and we all know what happens to time as we get older.

So, here are some of the boys' latest "creations". Blake loves the outdoors, so he's often busy building and/or growing things and every time we go to Home Depot he is sure to return with his next project. When we planted flowers on Memorial Day, Blake randomly scattered sunflower seeds in our front yard. I have to admit, I wasn't going to be disappointed if they didn't grow since they weren't part of the real landscaping. But the joy on his face as he saw first the sprouts, then the buds, and now the flowers and studied their progress every day made me realize that the pride he took in this process was more meaningful to him than anything I could have contrived. Even if they didn't match the rest of the landscaping.

And every time I step foot outside our front door I am reminded that just because his goals aren't necessarily my goals, doesn't mean they aren't valuable. Just look at the beautiful sunflowers that now decorate our yard.

And the same goes for the lovely bird buffet he built for the neighborhood birds. (The sign is for the dog, too bad she can't read...). We now have multiple birds outside our windows throughout the day.

Garrett's creativity seems to manifest itself in different ways. He loves to draw and paint. Here's a wood block he found, painted with water colors and "framed" himself with rubber bands and glitter glue. I'm pretty sure I never would have thought of this.

Then there's the fruit dish he created (pretty much a smoothie but stirred instead of blended). He is happy to give you the recipe if you ask. And just so you know..."not all the great chefs eat their own food" according to Garrett.

He "invented" what he calls the Air-O-Nator which is an empty sports water bottle which, when squeezed, gives a puff of air. This comes in handy for blowing up balloons and on a hot day. Garrett is constantly building new and novel "models" from Legos and continues to invent whatever comes to mind. He's even written out his own set of instructions to go with it!

He reminds me that having faith in him and believing in his ideas means more to him than whatever it is he is building.

Leave it to their "silly" ideas to teach me how to be a better parent. Who knows, maybe one day they will invent or create something extraordinary! Until then, I promise to tolerate and encourage their goals, ideas and creativity. Even if they don't think that having a clean bedroom is a goal worth striving for.