Does anyone actually ENJOY messy play with their dcs?

[notnowbernard]

God, I hate it. Am rubbish at it too. Quite enjoy a felt-tip pen session and can cut out shapes but that's about it, really

Dd1 asked me to do "modelling" today. I told her the re-cycling bin was empty

She persuaded me to do painting. I persuaded her to do it in the garden. It still ended in a complete fiasco... mess everywhere, her COVERED in paint, my clean washing hanging on the line covered in paint

How do you do it in a relaxed and care-free way? Or is this why she goes to nursery?

[naturalblonde]

How old is your dd?
I quite like painting with mine, but she is only 1.8 so i strap her into booster seat, cover table with newspaper, take off as many clothes as possible and desperately try to stop her eating the paint!

[naturalblonde]

That's her clothes not mine

[beansmum]

how old is your dd?

I love all the arty kind of stuff, but only because I don't really mind the mess and it's better than playing with trains all day long. Making stuff out of cereal boxes and yogurt pots is our favourite, ds directs and I stick the bits together then ds paints and sticks bits on.

[notnowbernard]

lol... visions of me and dd1 rolling around naked in the garden covered in paint

What WOULD the neighbours say!

She's 4.5, btw

[beansmum]

what about clay, the air drying kind? If you cover a table with a plastic sheet there wont be any major mess and your dd can pretty much do it by herself. ds spent hours sticking cotton buds into a ball of clay yesterday, it's an alien apparently, or it will be once we have painted it metalic green.

[notnowbernard]

I always thought I'd be the sort of Mother that would really enjoy painting and stuff

Sadly it's not to be

I need to find another niche

[FairyMum]

Yes I really enjoy it, but I always regret it when I am tidying up and the kids are in hiding

[deaftowhingeing]

no, hate it. Not least because it keeps my DDs occupied for ooh about 3 minutes and takes 3 HOURS TO CLEAR UP. And they fight over the pink paint / pink glue / yellow play doh / gingerbread men cutters.... I HAVE TWO OF EVERYTHING FFS WHAT'S THE FIGHTING ALL ABOUT???

And relax....

[emkana]

That's what toddler groups are for, where somebody else will tidy up...

[deaftowhingeing]

Not so great if you run the bloody toddler group....

[notnowbernard]

I set dd1 up with multiple paint pots, a brush, plain paper and some pictures of fairies to paint

Somehow the fairies were left unpainted, the plain paper blew away and all the paints were emptied onto the table. Dd came out of it up to her elbows in a grey sludge. Her feet were blue and my biege linen trousers hanging on the line trashed!!

[toomanyshoes]

Agree about the 3 mins of entertainment and 3 hour clean up operation. I hate it but DD goes to nursery so gets plenty of opportunity to rub paint in her hair and eat playdough there. My house is almost entirely white so messy play is extra stressful

[GrimmaTheNome]

I realised just how wonderful DDs nursery teacher when they did face painting and the face with most paint on was hers (totally covered in brownish gunge) because she'd let the kids paint her, and she cheerfully remarked, 'and I've got to drive home like this'.

At least in summer you can hose them down or dunk in a paddling pool. If you're really muck averse, paintbrush and pure water for temporary art on paths and terracotta pots.

[notnowbernard]

I'm not muck-adverse

I just find the whole painting thing a right faff

And have suprised myself at my total lack of enjoyment or interest in the whole painting thing

I will stick with baking and felt-tips

[Feelingbetterslowly]

I hate it hate it hate it! Got her into stampers now though, and monopoly junior, and stickers-paint and sticking is for nursery-I'll do everything else!

[Collision]

I love playdough and I love hama beady things and I love our craft drawer and am always filling it up with things!

I buy pritt stick so we dont have gloopy glue everywhere.

Am less keen on painting but the children love it.

That is why ds2 goes to nursery though so he can get it out of his system there but we do lots at home too.

[notnowbernard]

You are all Very Good

[expatinscotland]

i like it outside.

i do love baking with DD1, however.

[Feelingbetterslowly]

As are you bernard!

[notnowbernard]

FBS - we have a sandpit, too

I do not mind this

[Feelingbetterslowly]

Aaaaaaaaaah, sadly you beat me then-we do not even have a garden-bad mummy! Took her to the park today to fly her remote controlled helicopter after nursery-she flew it perfectly and then I got it stuck in the v top of a 20 foot tree-it is still there now. Men were shaking their heads at me-she hates me, I got cross, and we left! I am a true bad mummy!

[Orinoco]

Message withdrawn

[IdrisTheDragon]

I do not enjoy craft. At all. But we do have a craft drawer. And some does get done.

I really dislike painting. I am a not good mummy in this respect.

[FromGirders]

I like most stuff - craft, sticking and gluing, playdough. Musch less keen on painting, but discovered the secret recently - let them paint, have a basin filled with warm water at the ready, and when they're finished, take the water to them, so they don't have to move and get paint all over everything on the way to the sink.

[Joash]

love it - love messy play, in fact I make more mess than GS does and he complains when helping me to clean up afterwards