Drawing Out Our Family Creativity

I am worn down by a miserable cold at the moment, but I thought a little writing might help me out of my funk and I've been anxious to share one of our new favorite family activities.

Last year, we discovered a wonderful idea in one of my favorite new books, The Creative Family by Amanda Blake Soule. That original idea was family drawing time, in which we would put an object on the table (or just name an object) and everyone would draw their version of it. After about 10 minutes of drawing, we would each share what we made. I loved seeing everyone's unique perspective on a particular object and I especially loved all the positive feedback we gave each other. The kids became quite good at mentioning specific aspects they liked about each person's drawing rather than just a generic "That's really good" kind of comment. And I discovered something I hadn't realized about my husband prior to this new family activity. He's really quite good at drawing.

While all of us seemed to enjoy family drawing time, I felt like it wasn't quite clicking as much for me and the girls. Although I enjoyed exploring new areas of creativity in the safe setting of our family kitchen table, I've never been a big fan of drawing. I typically prefer capturing images from behind a camera or capturing a moment with the written word. Annie and Caroline have a passion for writing as well. Rather than see this once enjoyable activity fall by the wayside due to lack of enthusiasm, we decided to put a new spin on the original idea.

Our new version works like this: We pick two random words and Steve and Theo have to draw them while the girls and I write stories that incorporate those two words in some way. Some of our word combinations have included "car and monkey", "balloon and sailboat" and "bus and thunderstorm". We generally stick to a time limit of 10-15 minutes and it is amazing what happens in that brief period of time. Everyone is silently working near each other and you can almost feel the creative energy in the room. Smiles appear and even the ocassional squeal of delight when one of the girls gets an idea they particularly love, but for the most part everyone is very focused and "in the moment". There is no talking, no t.v., no one making light saber noises or complaining that someone is poking them. There is just togetherness and creativity and inspiration.

When everyone is done, we share the drawings and the stories and each time I am in awe of what my family creates. I continue to be impressed by Steve's drawings and Theo is so creative and adds so much detail to his pictures. The girls write stories that are unique and inspired and descriptive and always leave me wanting more. And I am happy, because I don't have to ask my children to "please be quiet" while I finish a thought because we are all finishing our thoughts and expressing ourselves at the same time. I'm getting writing practice time and doing what I love and I'm watching my family do something they love as well. When it comes to being in my "happy place", it doesn't get much better than that.