'Me and Mommy' cards
Over the last few months, C and I have been creating home-made blank cards. We have a small suitcase full of scrap booking paper, embellishments, glue, tape, stickers and scissors that we take to the hospital so that we can set up production in my mom's room. C loves crafts and making cards helps to pass the time during these many visits.
This activity was a learning experience for me. I can be a perfectionist...so when it came to making cards, it was difficult at first for me to let C flourish in her own creations. I was concerned about wasting supplies, using items I needed, or making cards that would have no use. She got upset when I didn't use her ideas and I quickly realized that I had taken the fun out of the activity. I knew I needed to change. I gave her her own cards and paper and told her to do whatever she wanted. The speed with which she put together an orange card with metallic balloon and heart sequins and big green maple leaf gems on it, I was sure she'd complete all her cards before I finished even one. But over time, I saw her creativity and confidence grow as she moved from random designs to imitating my card designs to designing her own ideas. Here is a picture of the I'll-miss-you cards she created and gave to her friends on the last day of school. I was very impressed with them.
Here are some of the other cards we have created. C suggested the snowman as a card design. She drew a picture of a snowman, and then I cut out coloured paper to match the shapes she had drawn.
I told C that we needed a name for our card making company. I made a few suggestions, one being Mommy and Me. C said ..."How about 'Me and Mommy'". I know grammatically it's incorrect, but I liked it. So as a finishing touch we write 'Me and Mommy' on a small label and stick it to the back of each card.