Several people have asked "Where is all of your stuff?" To that I reply, "We have a REALLY big storage garage. We had a LOT of stuff." My last several post have been about events I found rather humorous. But I would like to start addressing the transformation we've had to make.
Ava never had a lot of toys...somewhere in the realm of the volume of two storage ottomans, plus a big wheels, a scooter, a grocery cart full of fruits and vegetables, a bicycle, a drawing table and a shelf of books. With living quarters being so limited in our camper, real estate is priceless and modern toddler toys are fairly non-existent. Ava is limited to one backpack of toys and a bicycle. It’s really made Ben and I think about how families with children live.
I know I’ve walked into houses where narrow walking paths are made through drifts of toys. Some families dedicate entire basements to playrooms. Some children have enough toys on their bedroom floor to cover every surface of our camper...multiple layers deep! According to a book by Adproofing Your Kids “The average number of new toys a child in the USA receives in a year is 70.” In a U.K. News article, the average 10-year-old has 238 toys worth £7,000 ($11,000 USD)!
Today, Ava spent nearly an hour alone filling her shoes with rocks from our camper spot, moving buckets of leaves from one area to another and climbing in and out of the back of our pickup like it was the best jungle gym ever! She’s toted around 4 sticks for the last 3 days everywhere we went. I’ll give you that they’re not the most sanitary, but I don’t have to worry about it having lead paint (if you remember the 2007 China toy recall). Nor do I have to worry about its cost to replace if its forgotten, lost, broken or taken by some other kid at the playground.
I know I’ve walked into houses where narrow walking paths are made through drifts of toys. Some families dedicate entire basements to playrooms. Some children have enough toys on their bedroom floor to cover every surface of our camper...multiple layers deep! According to a book by Adproofing Your Kids “The average number of new toys a child in the USA receives in a year is 70.” In a U.K. News article, the average 10-year-old has 238 toys worth £7,000 ($11,000 USD)!
Today, Ava spent nearly an hour alone filling her shoes with rocks from our camper spot, moving buckets of leaves from one area to another and climbing in and out of the back of our pickup like it was the best jungle gym ever! She’s toted around 4 sticks for the last 3 days everywhere we went. I’ll give you that they’re not the most sanitary, but I don’t have to worry about it having lead paint (if you remember the 2007 China toy recall). Nor do I have to worry about its cost to replace if its forgotten, lost, broken or taken by some other kid at the playground.
I've research the importance of imaginative play. However, several examples I found were not what I call "imaginative". Here are some of the examples I found:
1. Get your child a kitchen set and have them pretend to cook.2. Find clothing kits and accessories for dress up play.3. Children can play with toy cash registers or pretend ATMs to learn and understanding of how to use money.
These options do not sound very imaginative or cheap. Ava is 3 and today she arranged coins to make a flower (complete with pistil, petals, stems and leaves), used shape and color flashcards as a memory game, and played the part of a dancing princess with a bath towel. Piles of rocks become snow piles. Big rocks are bunny eggs. Leaves are money. Depending on the game, sticks are magic wands or guns or fishing poles. Part of me worried about Ava getting bored without many toys, but without branded toys we’ve seen her imagination take off.
No comments:
Post a Comment