real toys are NOT always required...

as i’m working away on my edits, i hear “miss amara eden” (we tend to use this version of her name when messes or knottiness is occurring), rifling in the shoe closet.  i, being somewhat of a neat freak ask what she is doing in the closet, seeing as we were not planning on leaving the house any time soon.  “miss eden” replies, “i need boats mamma”.  now I have to be honest, sometimes i don’t have the energy to redirect her and i let the mess ensue. when i finally leave my chair to see what she's up to, i realized how amazing this child’s imagination is.  she really did need “boats” for her little people to sail to “hound town” (as she later told me).  she continued to play for another 45 minutes with SHOES, and i listened to every word in complete awe of such youthful creativity. as they say… “it’s not the toy they play with, it’s the box”.  in our case it’s the shoes!