Sydney has really gotten into her "Little People" toys lately. For the longest time, we had all of these sets and she didn't really play with any of them for more than a few minutes at a time. Lately, though, she has been spending more and more time with them and it's been absolutely amazing to watch her imagination at work.Prior to this summer ('cause it is already summer as far as I'm concerned), when she played with toys, she played in a very functional* way. By that I mean she was exploring the function of a toy. She put things in and took things out. She made cars and trains roll. She put blocks together and took them apart.
All of a sudden, she has started imaginative* play... telling stories as she plays. Sometimes one of the characters wants to go in the house and the others won't let him. Sometimes one of the animals chases everyone out of the house. Often, the toys have conversations with each other, in which Sydney provides all of the dialogue. Once, I overhead a game of "Ring Around the Rosies" being played by three Little People.
It is unbelievably adorable to listen to her play. I love that her little imagination is already starting to grow and develop. And I can't wait to see what she will come up with next.
*I totally made up these words to describe the ways she plays. They aren't official "early childhood" jargon. I feel like there should be some jargon to describe these things, but if there is, I don't know the exact terms. (I felt the need to disclaim since I do work with little kids, lest anyone adopt my terminology and then get called out as being wrong by some real expert later.)
I am excited for you! Not only do you get relive your love of things little, but you get to watch your daughter enjoy the same things you did!
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly what I was thinking... and deciding when to break out the PlayMobile dollhouse set from the attic, and then when to get out the Sylvanian Families sets. And how long do I have to wait for a real dollhouse that we can put together ourselves?
ReplyDeleteSpeaking as one who has a 3/4 finished real dollhouse, I'd say she would probably need to at least 6 or 7 to really help you with it.
ReplyDeleteI confess... we dug out the little people during my visit and made an entire little town! i had no idea which pieces belonged to which set, so we just had all the people visit each other lol
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you guys played with the Little People... they are her new favorite thing. Currently, Cookie Monster, Super Grover, Donald and Daisy Duck, and Mickey Mouse are all living together in the one house. Super Grover is also very busy saving Little People animals who fall down the elevator shaft in the garage.
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