If you, like me, have a number of sprogglings underfoot, and an ever greater number of home-improvement projects to execute before your mother-in-law comes over for Turkey Day, you’re going to need the extra help.  Of course, we are talking 2 yrs old here, so it’s really more of a chaos-management thing than any real progress.  It is, wierdly enough, a great way to bond with your 2 yr old, it makes them feel proud, it makes them feel like they are making a real contribution to the life around them, rather than just being stuffed in a stroller and trundled about.  It makes a mess though, so get ready to just smile and roll with it.

1.  Put down newspaper wherever you don’t want paint on the floor.  I’d recommend against using plastic, but it really can be dealer’s choice here.  Paint soaks into the paper and dries.  Paint sits on the plastic and becomes a slipping/tracking about the house hazard.

2.  Tight-fitting old clothes for painting in.  Little ones will dip sleeves into paintcans and/or lean up against freshly painted walls.  It’s inevitable, just roll with it.  In fact, if they are not shower or bath averse, just put a pair of shorts on them and let them go mostly nekkid.

3.  Get two piantbrushes.  Don’t bring out the rollers.  4 yr olds can handle rollers with reasonable alacrity (and responsibility).  2 yr olds, in this situation, can be relied on to roll *everything* (including you if you turn your back long enough).  Rollers are just way too fun for this age!

4.  You dip the brushes.  In fact, I find it’s helpful to dip your own brush, then transfer the paint to theirs.  They will get enough paint on there for them to feel useful, but the inevtiable dripping is kept to a minimum. 

5.  Paint WITH them.  Give them their own wall to paint, you do a different wall.  They will be adamant that this is THEIR wall, so let them have it, they will be thrilled.

6.  DON’T EVEN TRY to explain painting to them.  It’s a built in thing.  Instead, model the correct panting stroke yourself (don’t say “hey watch me paint!” they will observe out of the corner of their eye and adapt) 

7.  PUT ON YOUR PATIENCE HAT!  Don’t correct them unless they paint something like the shower doors.  Let them go nuts, you can always paint over it again after they get bored and THEY will carry the memory that they painted the WHOLE THING.

8.  NO RULES!  Let them stop when they are bored, let them slap the brush on the wall, let them finger-paint if they really want to (just be sure you’re using acrylic paint).

9.  NEVER LEAVE THEM ALONE WITH THE PAINTING.  You will simply regret it, ’nuff said.