Using their noodles

I love it when my kids play nicely together. I especially love it when they play nicely together and use their imaginations to direct their games. My heart just swells when I hear creative banter and glance around the corner or over the counter and see what sort of world they have created and are inhabiting. I don't know why it seems like such a big deal. That sort of play is the only way I used to play when I was growing up. My sister and I had elaborate tales we spun about our dolls and their personalities and our lives with them. That was all we ever wanted to do. They didn't have much on TV for kids back in my day which I think is a big difference between my generation and my kids. We didn't really have the option of TV where as my kids can always find something on if that is what they want. Welcome to the world of "on demand".

I am not blaming my kids lack of interest in creativity on TV. It is my own fault. We could certainly limit their TV or cut it off entirely. In all honesty, the only one that would miss watching would be Spencer. The other kids have never been into TV and still show no interest no matter how hard I try to push Elmo or Dora their way. Believe me, that 22 minutes of free time is like gold. Sadly my pan is coming up empty.

I have to blame laziness on my part as well. It is not hard to get kids interested in something - at least not my kids. If I start a dialogue and get ideas going in their heads they immediately pick up and run with it. Evan especially - that kid has the best imagination. The only drawback is that it is fine to play "camp out" or "fire in the cottage" for a half hour or so, but then Mommy has to do her "real Mommy" work and the pouting lips comes out and the tears start flowing and I start to hear what a bad mom I am because " I am never going to get to play in the Rose Petal cottage with you for a hundred years!" (Everything bad in Evan's life revolves around him not getting to do whatever it may be for a hundred years.) Dramatic huh? And here I am thinking they lack creativity.

The froggy puppet show at Mirabel's house.

Yesterday Evan was pretending that he was a fighter-fighter and wanted to wear his Halloween costume. He told me that Hailey needed a costume as well. He didn't want her to be a cheerleader or a dinosaur (because dinosaurs don't live in houses). I found her princess costume in the back of her closet. She wore it for Halloween when she was nine months old. It still fits -except now it is tea length. They both looked so cute and played together so well you would have felt sticky from the sweetness in here.