I’m a Grownup.  I have a job.  I’m a mom.  I’m all responsible and stuff.

So why do I keep buying toys??  Because I’ve been repainting them.  And that automatically turns it into an “art project,” right??   Some people even make these repaints into a business.  I’m not really good enough to be in that league, though–I just do it for myself, for fun.

I’m not going to play with these dolls (which the 7-year old doesn’t quite understand).  I just like looking at them.  I stick them on a shelf when I’m done, and they make me smile.  It’s similar to the little twinge of heartbreak I feel when I happily build a lego kit and it gets destroyed once the kid starts playing.  I have to fight the urge to Kragle lego kits with superglue because I realize I am secretly neurotic.

So here’s one of my “grownup” art projects:   repainting a Monster High doll!

Ages ago, when I played roller derby, these little roller derby Monster High dolls came out, and they were SO cool.  But I talked myself out of them, because I was a Grownup.  I have trouble justifying buying things for myself that don’t serve a purpose.  I admire when people can collect things just for the fun of it, but I seem to have trouble with it sometimes….

So when I was telling my daughter about them, she asked to see photos.  I showed her my favorite:  Lagoona Blue, who came with finned roller skates and a helmet with an awesome fin on it.

I told her how I had always wanted one, and she said, “you should just go ahead and get one, mom.  If it makes you happy, you should just DO it!”   …which is easy for a kid to say, but since this is pretty much the same advice my husband gives me, I decided that after 6 years or so, I was just going to go ahead and get her.

And since I’m a grownup, I justified to myself that if I repainted her, she’d at least have a purpose: she’d be an Art Project.  (Don’t ask me why I always feel the need to justify these things to myself.)

When she arrived, I wiped her face off with acetone (nail polish remover), and started painting her in acrylics.

Once the paint is dried, I sprayed her with Testors spray, and gloss varnished her eyes and lips to add some shine.

And here she is.  And she may not be such a big deal, and she may not bring about world peace, and she may serve no other purpose than to sit on a shelf with my other dolls and look cool, but she makes me smile. And I guess that’s okay.

At age 42, I’m trying to get used to the idea that there’s validity in things not having a major purpose–other than just simple enjoyment.  It’s a “stop and smell the roses” sort of thing.  It’s an “enjoy the little things” kind of thing.  And with all the things in the world, why not have a bit of that–ESPECIALLY as a Grownup?

So enjoy the little things today, grownup or not!  Look around for the simple things that just make you smile, and enjoy them, just because you can…