Give him a stick of chewing gum and a coke bottle and he will create a speed boat. That is the power of improvising and creativity learned from the classic TV show, MacGyver. It turns out, parenting is like an episode of MacGyver.
My baby just turned one the other day. This past year has been an entirely new challenge for me. The mundane tasks of folding the laundry, letting the dog out, cooking dinner, etc. have now become difficult. I have had to come up with creative solutions in order to function while I am alone with her.
I will never forget the three minute stand-off of my daughter standing against the glass sliding door while I was on the other side chaining up our dog. I wanted in and she wanted to make fish faces on the glass. Finally, she fell onto her butt and I could open the door. Lesson learned.
I have found a couple of ways to keep her entertained. Once, a deck of cards or tearing up a magazine will keep her busy for a solid ten minutes. Not to mention, she is an excellent “shredder” for old mail. That is a double victory for me.
While washing the dishes, I giver her measuring cups and a bowl. She loves to bang them around and all sorts of silly stuff. Meanwhile, I get some chores accomplished. Extra bonus is to give her metal bowls. They are not friendly to your ears, but the entertainment value is endless.
Clothes baskets with a few articles of clothing are gold in the baby world. When I have a bunch of laundry to fold, I dump it all out on the floor and give her the basket. Put some towels in there and some t-shirts, I am set for the day. It becomes her fort/car.
Although I am not building a speed boat from a Coke bottle or solving complicated algorithms with a golf ball, finding new uses for everyday stuff has saved my patience and honey-do list accomplishment on numerous occasions.