5 Reasons to let your toddler get messy

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Does your toddler like to make a mess? I have joined up with Swiffer and Mom It Forward to bring you these five reasons to let your toddler get messy.

Toddlers make a royal mess.

While I normally like to stick to the philosophy of “maintenance is everything,” when it comes to my toddler, I prefer to clean up after him for a number of reasons.

5 Reasons to let your toddler get messy:

1. Sensory Exploration – Toddlers explore with all five senses, including touch! And they like to get messy doing so… It’s part of the natural learning process, discovering everything around them.
   
2. Creative stimulation – One of my favorite ways to let M get creative is with various media. He likes to paint, glue, and let things get messy while doing so. I allow this so that he can continue to be creative, and learn in a new, exciting way.

   

   The good news is: our generation is getting better at this!Seventy-five percent of millennial parents, compared to fifty-nine percent of boomer parents, agree that allowing our children to make messes think that letting kids make messes helps encourage creativity.*

3. Independence – Toddlerhood is a time when children start to show signs of independence. It’s part of the growth process. I allow M to self-feed, even though he hasn’t quite mastered the art of using utensils (and he loves eating thick soups…) For him, being messy is part of the growth process.
   It also makes for a great learning opportunity! Allow your child to clean-up (alongside you) to develop this independence in a positive way. Nearly all parents agree that cleaning up a mess is a great learning experience!*
   
4. My own sanity – As I mentioned above, I normally like to keep my tiny home clean with proper maintenance. However, when it comes to “maintaining” a clean home with a toddler, it can be a never ending process of chasing, wiping, and cleaning up. For my own sanity (which is a huge factor in parenting) I allow him to make a mess during the day and clean up at night.
5. Calmer atmosphere – I like to create a calm, positive atmosphere in my home, and allowing my tot to get messy as needed helps relieve a lot of stress!
   

 Swiffer and actress Sarah Michelle Gellar are encouraging parents of young kids to embrace the messes that toddlerhood comes with. You can say “yes to the mess,” because Swiffer allows clean-up to take minutes! Their easy-to-use sweeping, mopping and dusting tools help me get a thorough clean in minutes, making it easier for me to say “Yes to the mess”!

The Swiffer line includes: the Swiffer Wet Jet – the all-in-one system that cleans using solutions designed especially for tough messes, the Swiffer Sweeper – a 2-in-1 system that sweeps (dry) and mops (wet), and the Swiffer Duster – the amazing duster that traps up to three times more than typical dusters.

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I love using the Wet Jet to clean up the post-activity mess! It helps me allow my toddler the freedom of creativity while getting rid of the toughest messes more easily. It’s easy to use, with special solutions for hardwood floors too. The vibration helps release the dirt and the built-in spray makes it easy to use as needed (especially for people like me who like to avoid handling anything wet).

I hope to share with you next week some fun, creative activities for toddlers so that you can say “yes to the mess!” 

M and I are looking forward to meeting with Swiffer and Sarah Michelle Gellar tomorrow and getting messy! We are going to do some fun messy activities, which I’ll be sharing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, so make sure to follow along.

Do you allow your toddler to get messy? What are your favorite messy activities?

* According to Swiffer Cleaning Survey Index results.

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