"Keep it simple, stupid."
Wise words from my medical registrar when I was struggling with the complexities of lymphomas and leukaemias. As soon as I realised it was her job to worry about that stuff and mine to get on with the day to day ward work, it all got a lot easier!
I liked the phrase and it has been a useful concept over the years.
It probably started when we got some big cardboard boxes. It was exciting thinking about what I could make and I got really interested in making a castle. Loads of images on Pinterest are, of course, really quite elaborate creations.
You can also buy them ready made...It's all a bit intimidating.
When we first got the boxes, we purely used them as tunnels, which Little E loved.
However, they were losing their structural integrity, so one nap time, I opened them up and made a big circle. It looked pretty lame, but no time for anything else.
Little E came down from his nap, his eyes lit up and he cried out "A castle!" He played with it for days and we still get them out from time to time.
We also have a box full of packing pellets leftover from Christmas, which I don't think we ever leave my house.
This has been a sensory toy, something to hide in, fake snow/rubble for the diggers, "leaves" to sweep up and currently...a bubble bath!
We also have a cardboard tube from a roll of wrapping paper that Little E loves. It even makes it into bed with his cuddly toys. It's a sword, a magic wand, a tunnel for cars, a trumpet... We have done nothing to it to make it these things, it just transforms in Little E's head.
It's made me realise that sometimes when we try too hard and make something for our children, we are ruining it for them! A box can be anything, but a cardboard car is a cardboard car.
Keep it simple, stupid!
No comments:
Post a Comment