Taking inspiration from our new barn, my son has been saying “I have to leave in a minute. I have to go to work. I’m building a barn”. He made this comment so many times, my wheels started turning. “How can I give my 4 year old a barn to build?” I wondered, and off to Pinterest I went, down the rabbit hole that is kid’s crafts. I found the neatest craft where someone bought 4 boxes of Jenga (off brand) tiles from Dollar Tree and used these to create a barn. I thought what a great idea, and from there I set off on a Jenga hunt. This craft allowed my son and I to build the barn together as well as paint it.

From Pinterest I found a pin linked to The Crafty Shopper where she shares a DIY Jenga Block Barn, here. The supplies needed were minimal and things I already had on had (aside from the Jenga blocks). If you decide to embark on this adventure, do NOT make the same ROOKIE mistake I did. Watch the video ahead of time and take a few notes. Your future self will thank you. Her tutorial was great but my lack of patience and toddler assistant (whose patience is less than my own) were a recipe for disaster. The initial glue she started with proved problematic so she switched to another glue later in the video. Already having had E6000 on hand, I didn’t make the switch and sister, did it cost me time. Having to wait for glue to dry 24 hours really put a wrench in my plans. Working on this with my 4 year old, he quickly lost interest. So this project sat aside collecting dust for days in between until we would revisit it with new energy.

I found myself frustrated and discouraged. I was trying to make memories with my little guy in pockets of time where baby sister wasn’t attached to me, but also finding that this project would have been easier tackled by myself. Cue the Mom Guilt… I didn’t start this craft for me. I started this as something my son and I could do together. He helped me paint, helped me hold things together to set the glue, and most of all, he encouraged me when I wanted to quit which reminded me that once again I had set my expectations too high.

Toxic trait alert here: I set the expectations too high every damn time. It seems no matter the moment, project, or task, I am going to ruin it by trying to perfect it. But truth be told, this project, a sweet barn my son and I built together IS PERFECT. It’s perfect because we did it together. Will it last forever? Noway! But I took an idea my son had and made that happen, and though I spent about $6 (I bought an extra box to ensure I had enough), the time spent (paint drying and all!) was well worth it! Sometimes all you need is a change of a perspective. Try looking through the lens of your little people, and imagine what you would remember if you were them. Do you want them to remember a frantic mom freaking out shouting “no” or “not yet” or do you want them to remember the time you did something really special together and made the time for them? I know I’m far often the first mom, but I’m trying hard to let go of my expectations and be the second.