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Why I Encourage My Toddler to Make a Mess

February 28, 2018

This post is sponsored by Kleenex but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

While I admit that I’m a bit of a helicopter mom trying to take steps back and let my independent boy be himself, there’s one thing I’m 100% on board with:

Encouraging him to make a big ol’ mess.

My husband is a major creative-type. He draws, plays several instruments, makes incredible videos, and a million other things, so it’s no surprise takes after him in that respect.

Right now he may just be painting with watercolors and making dinner out of PlayDoh, but it’s important to me that he doesn’t hesitate when flexing the right side of his brain.

I cannot tell you how many times my husband has dropped Fox off at school with a small disclosure of, “Sorry he has faint cat whiskers drawn on his face” or “Fox has a slight green tint to his skin because he was experimenting with art.” It can be a bit embarrassing and sometimes we get a few stares, but I’ll never remember those…

Only the cute mental snapshots of him having the time of his life being 3.

With mess comes clean-up, which we generally handle by laying down newsprint or dipping him in the bath. But on the go and in a pinch, I keep wipes on hand.

I recently picked up a new product at Target (also available online) called Kleenex Wet Wipes. They are only $1.49 per pack and come in three varieties: Gentle Clean, Germ Removal, and Sensitive. These are going to come in clutch for me on the huge drive from Los Angeles to Buffalo.

Dirty hands and messy faces be gone!

 

Oh, yeah — did I mention I’m driving solo with Fox in a caravan behind Tyler in a 26′ moving truck? I should probably just buy stock in these wipes, otherwise our car seat will need to be quarantined without a good scrub down before we begin our drive each day.

Follow along with our journey on Instagram: @thefebruaryfox.

Sarabeth, The February Fox

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