My kids are messy. Your kids are messy too, I’m sure. A tip I got long ago, when I was just a mom to one, was that there’s a price to pay for creativity. My kids are happiest when they’re elbow-deep in kinetic sand, fingertips stained with markers, or splashing in a shallow pool in the backyard. They love to feel and be and create. My floors tonight? Dotted with purple kinetic sand, drips of green acrylic paint under the table that I didn’t notice until the nightly vacuum, little teeny tiny pieces of paper that were snipped off paper doll creations have fluttered, forgotten, into the corner of the kitchen and hard balls of playdoh crumbs litter the rug by the sink. I’ve made my peace with this years ago, seeing the fruit of the natural existence of children. That’s not to say we don’t have boundaries or chores, but I have learned to turn a blind-eye to the messes of the moment in favor of relationship. I have found so much peace and healing in joining them: crafting my own art right there alongside, intentionally seeding permission to take those quiet moments into adulthood, even while the laundry waits. There’s a verse in the Bible, Proverbs 14:4, that says, “Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come from the strength of the ox.” I don’t want a pristine barnyard if it means no life. So, let the kids watercolor, and play with clay, and cook with you in the kitchen, and use the markers. Then, teach them how to clean up the messes and continue on with the rhythm of being in a family.