Thank Heaven for Creativity, OR How to Keep a Toddler Happy

Sometimes I even impress myself. It's true, I'm not bragging or anything, I'm just stating a fact.

See, your Creative Genius is like a pet. It must be fed, nurtured, taken out to the park now and then. Otherwise, it gets lazy and just wants to hang out in front of the TV or something.

The more you use your noodle for problem-solving and creative solutions, the more easily great ideas will come to you.

For example:

The other day, my husband and I were in Home Depot with our toddler. She had woken up from a nap and was not terribly hungry, so we grabbed some juice and snacks and made a dash for the store. (We just got a new 6-foot grill, so we're building a small deck for it in the backyard.)

Unfortunately, because it was snowing and we were in a hurry to get into the store, we inadvertenty only grabbed the juice and not hte snacks. And suddently she got hungry.

When I wouldn't let her drive the forklift (didn't really seem like the "safest" idea to me), our little princess got fussy. Which I knew was because she was really hungry, since she hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast several hours ago.

Normally, I would just run out to the car and grab a snack. But today it was snowing. And cold. And my husband was having lumber cut, so he wouldnt' be able to watch her while I went to hte car (nor could HE be the one to go to the car, becasue I had no idea what lengths he needed this stuff cut).

Time to improvise.

In other words, time to call on my Creativity to save the day.

Everyone knows (well, doens't everyone?) that the best way to calm a fussy toddler is with DISTRACTION. Ah, the joys of parenthood. Our noodle is put to the test nearly every day to discover new ways to distract our toddler from sharp knives, breakable knickknacks, and danger zones.

Sure, you can explain all you want, but you still gotta keep 'em safe.

Sure, you can TRY to move all the hazards, but then what happens when you go to someone's house or a "non-kid" place?

We believe you gotta TEACH and DISTRACT. Period.

Anyway, this isn't a parenting lesson, this is a Creativity Lesson for Success.

So back to distraction...

I'm thinking, what is safe for a toddler to play with in Home Depot? Sure, lots of items look tempting, but Homer (the Home Depot mascot) says "safety first."

I racked my brain. I turned down a few aisles (no small feat with a fussy toddler and 60lbs of concrete blocks in a flimsy orange shopping cart). Then, suddenly.....

A-HA!!!

PAINT CHIPS!

No, not the kind we used to eat as a kid--I'm talking about those little scraps of paper you pick out. You know, the ones that are about 1" by 3" and are supposed to help you decide whether you want to paint a 10'x12' room that same color. (Maybe "paint samples" is the politically-correct word for it...)

Not only does Home Depot have paint chips galore, they have Mickey-Mouse SHAPED paint chips. I grabbed my little angel-slash-monster one of each "Crayola 8-pack" color and she was in toddler heaven.

Then I realized I could use some of these paint chips in my Feng Shui work in our new home. So I started snagging some purples, greens and golds (no Mardi Gras reference intended) while Princess entertained herself (and everyone who passed by) with her mickey "stickers" as she called them.

Once again, creativity (and blessed distraction) saves the day.

So what's the moral of the story?

Well, when Princess got fussy I had a few choices (which, incidentally are the same choices you have in pretty much any challenge):

1) I could give up. Which would not have solved the problem at all, and I would have most likely gotten frustrated.

2) I could give in.Which would mean taking me and my toddler back to the car, in the snow, for an unncessary trip.

3) I could ask for help. In this particular case, that probably wasn't an option. "Hi, total stranger? Yes, could you watch my kid so I can run back to the car to get string cheese and graham crackers? OK, Thanks!"

4) I could get creative. Which is exactly what I did.

Because I skipped steps 1-3 (OK, I thought about step 3 for a second--just a second), I immediately went into solution-mode, and teh answer came to me within moments.

WHICH MEANS...

you can waste time getting frustrated, you can waste time on alternatives you know won't work, you cna waste time thinking "Why is this happening to me?" or you can just get creative and get it done.

This was a simple, meaningless challenge, but surely one that anyone with children has expereinced.

You can use these same skills, these same tools, to solve ANY challenge that comes your way.

The moral of the story is: Don't get stressed, get creative.

Here;s your success question of the day:

What challenge are you currently facing that you can use your own creativity (beginning RIGHT NOW) to solve?

Go for it!