Tell me something good. . . .

We dubbed our oldest child "The Reporter" not long after she began talking due to her detailed, accurate reporting of everything she experienced during her day.  You see she was not a child that hopped right into a new situation.  Even as an infant, she sat back, watched the world around her, soaked it all in, and then decided what might be worthwhile to dive into.  Soon we realized that she was not only making calculated decisions about her activities, but she was also taking careful mental notes so that she could later report this information back to the hubby, myself, and anyone else who cared to listen.  We learned each and every detail of her day at playschool, when visiting grandparents, in church nursery. . . if it happened, we knew about it.  For example, she wasn't much older than two when she came home and reported that she had Cheerios for snack at church.  "Great, honey".  But, oh no, not just any Cheerios--"COLOR Cheerios, Mommy".  "Fruit Loops??  They fed you Fruit Loops at CHURCH?!"  

You see, sometimes it really is better not to know. . .Much like the time I was on maternity leave on her first day of kindergarten.  She came home with a full report on all the children that "might be good friends for YOU mommy"--I am a Speech-Language Pathologist at her school.  *sigh*  At least she understands my job, I guess. . .

Anyway. . .

I never have to worry about not knowing what happened at school each day.  She provides an accurate and thorough report of not only her behavior, but how all of the other 20 children in her class behaved as well.  Oh yes, I know who "pulled sticks", who was "on red", who "kicked their shoes in the air during morning meeting". . . I hear it all.  However, since I have the privilege of working right down the hall, I often know details before she even makes it out to the car in the afternoon, so I cheerfully play along and act surprised at all the right times.  

Because of The Reporter's play-by-play of each school day, I rarely have to ask "How was you day?", but every once in a while I hear those very words slip past my lips and I shudder.  Here I am, an SLP-- My job is to get kids to talk and I am posing the one-word answer, shut-down question to my own kid?!  I began to think that I could do better than that, I wanted to know more than "fine" or "ok" or "I was on ___ (insert color here)".  

A few weeks ago, The Reporter and I came up with a new after-school game that we play during the car ride home.  We don't often have time to chat, just the two of us, and I wanted to start an afternoon tradition with her to help her not only rehash the day from a behavior or actions point of view, but from an emotional point of view, as well.  The first day I tried it, I didn't tell her what I was doing, but as we went along, she enjoyed it and asked for more to tell about.  Now each day we look forward to our "tell me something. . ." time.  In fact, last night she even posed our "tell me something. . . " questions to The Hubby at dinner.  He was a bit taken back at first and couldn't come up with answers right away (Really, what is "fun" or "silly" about his job?), but it made for fun dinner conversation nonetheless. And now I am not only using it with her, but I am using it with my therapy kiddos, as well, and recommending it to parents with kids that have trouble communicating about their school day!

Want to try it with you own kid?  

There is no big secret. 

It is super simple. . .

Start with "Tell me something. . . " and add an adjective.  

For example: Tell me something GOOD; Tell me something BAD. . .

But don't just leave it there, make it fun.  Some of our best conversations have come out of "Tell me something embarrassing, disappointing, funny, silly, delicious. . . "  The possibilities really are endless and the conversation can be too.  

I came up with a little Wordle to help with brainstorming some conversation starters. 

You can print it out and stick it in your front seat.  When your kiddo hops in the car after school, start up a conversation and see what happens!  

Ch- ch- ch- ch- Changes (or, Playroom Re-do, part one)

Our "playroom" has gone through many transformations since we moved in six and a half years ago.  In the beginning it was more of an office with toys in the corner than a playroom.  As The Reporter has gotten older and The Little Guy came along, our toy/kid stuff storage needs have changed and the room has become a definite playroom.  Little by little we have put away "office type things" and tried to incorporate kid-friendly furniture and decor.

Even when the room was an office/playroom, I knew that I wanted a way to display The Reporter's artwork.  I knew I wanted a "gallery wall" of sorts, but had no inspiration or ideas so I opted for hanging a collection of identical frames on a single wall with her artwork behind glass.

Here it is.  A sad, crooked collection of terribly ugly, plain frames.  BUT, I was showcasing her work and I had great intentions to change the art monthly. . .quarterly. . .yearly. . .um. . . .  Yep, five years later, the art never got changed.  (Total slacker mom moment.)  Truth be told it was just too damn much work to take the frames off the wall, remove the backs and find work that would fit in the windows.

Now that we have two little artists around the house, I am finding myself swimming in artwork and looking for a way to display it.  After scouring the internet through the help of Pinterest, I found some inspiration for a new playroom gallery wall.  My favorite idea came from here, so a few Saturdays ago, I started gathering together what was needed to transform this space from ho-hum-crooked to fresh-fun-kid-friendly!

We started with a trip to our local Hospice Flea Market store (One of my favorite thrift spots!).  The Little Guy and I went frame-hunting and came up with a box of wonderful finds--only after totally taking over an aisle in the store laying out different configurations and combinations, of course.

Check out those prices!  .25-$2 per frame!

After a little spray paint shopping. . . 

We were ready for action!

The Reporter had fun posing with each frame. . .

We arranged the frames on pallets for even spray painting. .  .
(Yes, that is an old barber shop sink.  I have plans. . .)

Primer on both sides. . .

Once the frames were primed and dry, I marked off a spot in the grass that was the same size as the wall space I was working with.  I arranged and rearranged the frames until I had them just like I wanted them.  Then I decided what color to paint each one. . . 

Cobalt Blue for these!
(The back 3 are for another project!)

Turquoise and Paprika for these!

Once the paint dried, I gathered up the frames and prepared for the next step. . .hanging them!

Most of the frames needed new hardware. . . not any easy job.

But once the hardware was on, the hanging began!  Thank goodness for my photos of the frames arranged in the grass!  I was able to look back at them and knew just what to do!

Wall One. . .

More Wall One. . .

The Whole Corner. . . sans artwork and clips. . .

A little something to remind us all to create each and everyday. . .
(My first attempt at computerized art!)

Office supply clamps and Seasonal Art were added. . .

And the Wall is Complete!!

I love it.  The hubby loves it.  And the kids especially love seeing their art in their playspace!  The Little Guy squeals and points to his "school work" and The Reporter loves bringing home new art each week in her Friday Folder!  I love it because changing the art will be so much easier than taking down frames!  I simply have to unclip the old stuff, file it away and display new artwork!

The "Gallery Wall" was only the beginning of some playroom re-dos. . .

Stay tuned. . .