Mom-savers: Art Ideas that Help Parents Every Day

It strikes us that one of the best ways to be in tune with your little one's artistic life is to see life as just that: artistic.

We hear "art project" and we visualize a giant roll of butcher paper and four open, drippy jars of tempera paint. Gulp. What about a little something creative that gets parents through a tight spot? A tight spot like all the waiting we ask our little ones to do -- waiting while the traffic slows, while the airplane waits on the tarmac, while dinner cooks, while Mommy finds her other shoe, which was last seen on little sister's foot during dress-up...

Here are some Mom-saver ideas that get us through:

• A preschooler can work wonders with pipe cleaners. No stains, no mess, no muss, no fuss. And yes, you get a bag of 100 thick ones for less than $2. Savvy, indeed.
• Instead of lugging your little darling's collection of baby dolls wherever you go, have her make some new ones out of old-fashioned, round top wooden clothes pins. A bag of some clothes pins and a thin marker or two, and whole families of dolls await you.
• This wonderful doodle pad is meant to inspire some restaurant placemats, and it is great fun for an evening out. But it is also great fun at the breakfast table, on a plane's tray table and pretty much any ol' place. Except maybe Grandma's Thanksgiving table, unless she understands a child's need to draw at all times...

And some of our favorite Savvy activities that make waiting and traveling time fly:

• Make a Bold Impression
• Point and Shoot
  
• A World in a Box