crafty girl

i've been trying to make it a point to let Mayden "help" me whenever she asks. it's about 1000 times easier to say "no" and just do it myself but she'll never learn that way sooooo... new plan.

recently she's been asking to help me with my crafting which has been taking up more of my time since Christmas is right around the corner. i should have learned a long time ago from my beloved Soule Mama to let kids be creative as i believe they naturally are. i have not been very good with this. learning more about myself this year i've discovered that i tend to be controlling. i am most comfortable with things are neat, organized and perfect.... this as you may have guessed is nearly impossible with children! so anyway i need to be more conscious of my tendencies and to let go much more (especially if i'm going to unschool)

about a week ago Mayden brought me this:

i knew it wasn't going to happen but i thought she deserved to give it a try if she wanted to so i humored her. she got frustrated very quickly but if we do this every few weeks she might actaully pick it up in a year or two.... who knows!


this week i've been in a mad rush to get my crafty christmas gifts made. Cameron had been sick so i was very far behind. Mayden askd if she could help me and my first instinct was to say no (i mean i was dealing with a sewing needle after all) but i got to thinking and decided maybe i could use a little help. plus Soule Mama's kids use the sewing machine and needles all the time.... i needed to give her the benefit of the doubt and see what she could do.

much to my surprise she totally did it! i mean i was blown away that she didn't once poke herself with the needle. proof that i need to let go and let her do things more often. letting go can be good, letting go can be good, letting go can be good... my new mantra!

the Christmas gift for her cousin that she did all by herself (minus the end tying) i promise you'll see more of these awesome little gifts once Christmas is over!