Consuming or Creating

Before I had kids, I used to teach young children with special needs.  My job was to use different toys (home made or store bought) to teach them different cognitive concepts.  When I was in graduate school, I even wrote an article on how a specific toy teaches multiple concepts/skills to children.  Therefore, after I have children, I thought about toys a lot, especially when they were young.  At that time, I often felt that if I buy that toy, it would teach them this or they could play with it so I can have a little break.

One day, when Dana was 2, she was playing with the paper doll Maisy and the book that comes with it.  She wished that she could have all the Maisy’s pals (Tallulah, Cyril) to play with.  My mom and I then set to work, drawing, cutting, and making the moving hands and feet for the characters.  Dana was in charge of coloring.  We made those two characters and several of their outfits.  They were as good as store bought ones (if the store actually sells them) and we all had a great time.

This year, when Halloween came, the girls made their own costumes.  Dana and her best friend used garbage bags and duck tape to make dresses while Kate used my old cape, cardboard, and face paint to dress up as the grim reaper.  When they were younger, they also dressed up as Belle (as in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast) and Gypsy with the clothes and materials they found at home.  All these experiences not only contribute their sense of achievement and fuel their creativity, they also save us money and reduce waste in the long run.