It's ok, I'm calm now (honest)

And so to today...

Well we've been to the Scrapstore again.

Oh dear! As if we don't have enough scrap in the house! The teetering tower of potentially creative materials has reached crisis point and now a hard hat is required just to open the filing cabinet.

<--Filing cabinet, to be opened at your own risk (worryingly this photo actually makes it look tidy in comparison to real life)

I like to think I give my kids free rein to save junk, make mess and be creative. However there there comes a time when enough is enough and my tyrannical minimalist alter ego bursts out and demands that I have a clear dining table so we can actually eat a meal without having to contend with polystyrene packing chips, empty pringle tins and glitter. Admittedly the dog is doing a good job of working his way through the packing chips, but even he struggles to keep up with the influx of stuff.

Anyway back to the scrapstore. As usual the kids were there to do voluntary work, though I wonder if they make more mess and trouble than they actually help solve. This time, the kids were given the job of coming up with some interesting uses for the various items of scrap that were in the scrapstore so they could be displayed for inspiration to passing customers. Ds1 was in his element! So we all joined in, making masks, castles, a star wars light sabre and even a dalek (yes, that was my contribution, not quite finished yet). Unfortunately I'd forgotten to take my camera, but maybe on our visit next week I'll be able to take some photos of their imaginative creations.

This morning (before the scrapstore visit) they'd already warmed up their imaginations by making 'aquariums'. Tying fish-shaped beads onto pieces of cotton and suspending them from the lids of plastic bottles was entirely their own idea and a rather good one I thought. Shell-shaped beads and - yes you've guessed it - split peas were used on the bottom for sand/rocks/shells. Ds2 made a shallower version in an old plastic humous tub.

They might not win any prizes for beauty, but it's a wonderful example of children's imaginations working without - or despite - parental input.