We have an affinity for monsters in the Connelly House--monsters who love a good mess! I'd like to introduce you to the two wartiest members of our family, the Gobbler, and the Grublin.
Our Gobbler is a large drawstring Grab Bag (I sewed it from a piece of 1 1/4 yard fabric) that loves to chomp up little trinkets and toys that litter the floors. Whenever there's a big mess that takes just too long to sort out, his belly begins to grumble, he gives a loud growl of warning, and the Gobbler comes out of hiding to gobble up toys! And oh, how you should see the kids scramble to snatch them away before--CHOMP--he swallows them into his big monstrous belly. Teehee.
Once a week, however, his belly begins to lurch and--BLEEARGH!--all the contents emerge again. The kids have to act fast and stow them safely and properly away before he gobbles them up again! It's so much fun! And our house has never been so clean! (If you're thinking of adopting a pet, I'd highly recommend one.)
(Some people have asked me where I got this idea--the books
The Entitlement Trap and
Teaching Your Children Responsibility by Richard and Linda Eyre are chock-full of this stuff. In their family, they made a toy bag called the Gunny Sack. I loved the idea and adopted it. I also modified their family peg board to create our Chore and More Charts--they left a sweet comment on my blog. Thanks, Eyres!)
Our other pet monster is the Grublin. I wrote a book about him for Lorelei in 2009 and Snapfish wanted it for an example, so they gave me the book free and two other book credits. I've been meaning to make Gryffy a book too, if only I can carve out the time. Oh, the story of the second child...
So here's The Grublin, decomposed by Wendy Connelly (c) 2009
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