Leighton's Pink pump-pump

Leighton's a tough act to entertain! She enjoys watching a handful of shows (The Wiggles, Olivia, Little Bill, Sesame Street, Scooby Doo and iCarly) but she won't watch an entire episode. She gives it about 15 minutes (at most) before moving on. I let her choose a show to watch while she's having breakfast, before her nap and before bed. If you add that up it's about 45 minutes each day where I have a for sure way to keep her entertained. She's awake for 9-12 hours each day. 45 minutes is nothing.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays she goes to school for 3 hours and she loves it. She gets to play with her friends, sing, read books, paint, play outside, have circle time, snack, etc. I am so thankful for those two days and for the help in stimulating my busy toddler whose mind is constantly spinning.

Lately, I have tried to come up with our own little activities to help keep her attention. When she picked out her baby pump-pumps at the pumpkin patch last week I promised she could paint one and Leighton doesn't forget anything. Her memory amazes me so I wasn't surprised when she asked to paint the pump-pump every.single.day until I finally got everything together to do it.

The only paint I had around the house was pink and white which was perfect since pink is her favorite color :) I covered her picnic table with her old Elmo mat and put on her paint smock. She was so excited about this process she could barely sit still while I got the paint and water ready. It was the perfect time to bribe her for a smile!

She was quite a serious artist. She would dip her brush in the paint and choose the perfect spot on the pumpkin to paint. She really enjoyed cleaning off the brush in the water and was very creative with mixing the paints.

This kept her entertained for a good 20 minutes and then she simply told me, "All done Mommy." I was pretty amazed she managed to not only keep her smock completely clean but her hands too. She really is a tidy little girl :)

I love how simple and pleasing life can be for a two year old. A 30 cent pumpkin and some paint I had around the house turned into an exciting project for her. Everyday she has talked about how she painted it pink and has such pride in her work. It is pretty cute. A pink pumpkin for a pretty princess :)

The added bonus for the project?!! She was super eager to take a nap that day because when she woke up her pump-pump would be dry. The project was a win for all involved. I'm excited to try others with her too. Any suggestions?!!