Bean Leaf Craft

So lately (well for quite some time now) I have been totally addicted to Pinterest.  I sit on my laptop and pin things I want to make and do with Addie and fool myself into believing that it will be a magical experience and that we will laugh and joke around and look back fondly at the items we created together.  In real life, however, things do not go very smoothly most of the time.

My latest attempt was a pin that led me to this site and project idea. I was a bit rushed so I grabbed some construction paper, glue and beans that I picked up at Dollar Tree.  I drizzled glue on a piece of construction paper and let Addie have at it.  I traced a leaf cut-out onto mine and glued beans in the shape so Addie could watch how mommy took 1 bean at a time and placed it onto the glue...she was not hearing it!

The top pic is what Addison's project looked like when she was "done" and the bottom pic is what it looked like when I emptied the extra beans that weren't attached with a single drop of glue.  She did have a lot of fun making this and maybe that's what I have to take away from our projects.  I get so frustrated with the mess and that she's not following any instructions.  I have an idea in my mind as to what we're doing and as I try to show her how to use certain mediums (i.e. glue, paint, clay, etc) I get so frustrated when she goes off track.  I can look back and say she's experimenting and learning how to use these different items and I'm lucky enough to be the one who teaches her and share in these memories that we're building together.  I will try to focus on these positive points and not the ruined project and wasted materials...maybe if I repeat that to myself 5 times in a row during future crafts I will be more likely to enjoy the time we spend doing these things.