countdown chain

this idea is not a new one… it’s age-old, in fact. but i feel like it is a great way to make something as nebulous as passing time quite concrete and visual for little ones. a paper chain!

we visited family on the east coast recently, and ever since we left, N has been looooonging for my mom. chin quivering, holding back tears at the sound of her name. sobbing at the sight of her picture. saying that “seeing her on skype just isn’t the same!” telling me several times a day how she misses “gwee” so much that her heart hurts. (that’s what she calls my mom.) this is hard for a momma -who just moved across the country from gwee- to hear. i’m grateful she can name such a complex emotion, and i’ve told her how normal it is to miss people we love who are far away.

the good news is that my mom (and sister) are coming for a visit to california in about a month. the other day, my mom told N that she bought her plane ticket. ever since N heard that, she has been saying (a few times a day) “gwee is on a plane right now coming to see me!” or “gwee will be here when i wake up from my nap today, right?” so i’ve had to explain the passing of time to her a few times. we’ve looked at a calendar. then i figured we’d better make time more concrete.

besides, i had some old magazines and scrap papers in the recycling bin…

so i cut them into strips that were about an inch (or 1.5″ maybe) wide, all about 9″ tall. let’s face it – i can barely cut in a straight line, and that much cutting with those tiny toddler scissors just isn’t gonna happen with my 3-year-old.

then N and i counted the days on the calendar until gwee’s visit – 31. she picked out and counted the strips, as i taped them together into loops. (she lamented at how long the chain was getting, understanding it’d be that much longer that she’d have to wait.) then we hung the chain off of the bookshelf near our dining room table, and decided that we’d cut a strip off each night at dinner.

now this would be a great time for her to practice with her scissors! (one of these days we’ve gotta put the CUT in paintCUTpaste over here!)

so the countdown to gwee begins…

 

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05.12

2010


by jen
posted in recycle
8 Comments »

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  • http://twolittleseeds.blogspot.com/ twolittleseeds

    This is a fab idea! I will use this too! It has endless possibilities!
    Thanks x

  • vivi patunas

    Great to be reminded of these things, thanks.

  • http://www.mycreativemonsters.blogspot.com Donica

    I just about melted reading this! How precious, and a great idea.

  • http://alwaysarting-colorcolorcolor.blogspot.com/ Gail

    I really like this. We always seem to be waiting for something, this is a great way to work through it. Thanks!

  • http://www.bkudesign.com Brooke U.

    I love, love, love your site. I am a working “career” mom who has an art degree but little time to do things with my 3yr old at the end of the day! Your ideas are all so simple…. so creative (w/o being a crazy detailed Martha stewart) and cheap! I love how you find fun in the everyday around the house… brilliant! Thanks!

  • Violet

    That is sooo cool. Love it…and it helps with a concrete way of counting days.  Was just thinking while reading you could work it the other way as well…. adding a ring to the chain every day and then use it as a decoration when Gwee gets there. I’m sure she would love it.  Lol….I could just imagine if I was a five year old I would then give it to Gwee when she left with the instructions that she can cut off one chain a day so nanna could keep an count of how many days before her next visit was due.

  • http://paintcutpaste.com/ jen | paintcutpaste.com

    thank you, violet! i love your idea of adding to a chain and then using it as a decoration or garland for the visit! sweet thoughts. thank you.

  • Violet

    Wow you just got me thinking. A great idea is like a seed ….it can grow into bigger things. You could paint the paper with watercolor then write one thing  you llike about Gwee on each chain OR for another use do a thankfulness chain adding one thing we are thankful for each day….then when you are feeling blue you could go back and read it.  :) or keep it to read on thanksgiving.