We set up our first story tent of the year on the deck on Friday – it was a big hit.
If you’ve never done this before it’s a phenomenal way to switch things up a bit and re-vitalize story time. I make the tent using old tablecloths, furniture and bulldog clips. We line the bottom with blankets and cushions, my son populates the tent with all his teddies and ‘friends’. We grab some books and read, my son especially likes it when I leave him alone in there so he can read to his teddies, make them tea and generally camp out.
…Full disclosure though: As tranquil as this scene was, my inspiration for it came from my internal panicking about how much I had to pack in the crazy small amount of time before we were due to head out the door for the weekend.. It worked a treat – we read a few stories then he played by himself for a couple of hours and then invited me to a ‘lunch party’ in the tent at lunch time, just as I finished the packing. Wonderful.
Sometimes I think that the definition a ‘good’ parenting day is when you successfully manage to be one step ahead of your kid.