Art Therapy

Today I felt defeated before I even began.

I've been tired lately. Not just mom-with-two-kids tired. My MIND has been tired. I haven't had the motivation to do anything, and with my physical state of regular-mom-tired, it pushed me into a state only once removed from "walking zombie". 

I felt like I had been in a fog that I just couldn't see the end of. Everywhere I turned, all I could see were things that discouraged me; dirty dishes in the sink, a carpet that needed to be vacuumed, a to-do-list that never gets crossed off, my writing notebook waiting to be opened. I actually sat down in the middle of the kitchen floor for a few minutes, feeling like I couldn't take another step, couldn't look at anything else.

My toddler came over and gave me a hug. :::oh!:: That gave me just enough motivation to make some coffee, which lifted my spirits, and my energy level a bit.

As I sat at the table trying to suck up every last drop of caffeine, my older son dumped out the art box all over the floor. I just watched, and let it roll off, I didn't care. The place was already a mess. I had given up. He took out some little foam cut-out pieces, found some paper and asked me to find the glue. 

I threw back the last sip and sat down to do some crafts, helping my toddler who wanted to play too. It was so cute watching them stick little moons and stars onto the paper, while naming the colors and shapes out loud.  I thought about how great it would be to have a "craft room" in our new house. A room where it didn't matter if you colored on the walls or dripped paint on the floor; where all their masterpieces could be on permanent display. Somehow, it was just what I needed. It flipped a switch, and just like that the fog was gone.

I still haven't had breakfast yet...but I feel like I can tackle the day now. The dishes in the sink don't feel so daunting, and I feel inspired to tackle that to-do-list. Maybe we'll break out the paints later, or I might even take the kids to Barnes and Noble (something my 4 year old has been begging me to do for weeks!). 

Who would have thought that some glue and foam shapes could make all the difference. The cute boys helped too...

Here's to the little things. They are actually the big things. :)