Momma can I help you?

How do you learn? Are you a visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learner? I can tell you right now I am kinesthetic. Let me get in there and learn on the go. If I mess up, that tells me more than just reading some instructions. Well, I like to think that toddlers are very similar.

Think about it, our littles are doing all the things for the first time as they are growing up. That is so cool to me because that give us such a beautiful opportunity to watch their little minds form. One thing that I love about my little man is that he always wants to help me. I know sometimes that can be infuriating when you just want to get the job done, but I honestly love it.

When I moved into my last apartment, I bought a new coffee maker. Nothing fancy at all just a good ole Mr. Coffee coffee maker. The first morning me and B had there was one I will always remember. I was getting ready to make coffee when he looked at me and said, “momma can I help you?” Honestly, I didn’t think much of it. Sure bud come help me make my cheapo coffee so momma can function for the morning. He asked what it was and I told him it was a coffee maker and it was how momma’s coffee was made. I thought he would just be fine with pouring the water in then letting me do the rest – I was very wrong. He wanted to put the coffee filter in, pour the water, scoop the powder, and push the button.

Did we make a mess? Oh yes absolutely. A two year old trying to scoop coffee grounds into a coffee filter was not a task that he was great at, but he learned. We learned. B will be four soon and any time he is with me in the morning, he always says, “momma can I help you make the coffee?”

What is the point of this post? Why share a random story about a kid putting coffee grounds in a coffee filter? Well, because it created a core memory for us. It also started this morning tradition almost two years later of making coffee together. The toddler’s mind is curious and wants to soak up as much information as they can. They ask a million questions and want to do the things they see their momma and daddy’s do. They want to be a part of it, so let them.

The next time your little asks to help you, let them. Will it most likely lead to a massive mess? Yup sure will, but who cares. It is a mess that can be cleaned. It is another chance to teach them something special. We made a mess no big deal, we clean it up. They are going to learn so many lessons in their little life, why not be the one teaching them things that you can do together for years to come. Let them help you cook a dinner, bake a cake, wash a car, put clothes in the laundry, or whatever little task you are up to. Some of the things B and I do together are so simple and things I genuinely need to get done, but doing them with my little man makes it even better.