MIMI'S SECRETS

Our House B.C. -- "Before Calvin"

When people come to our house and ask for "the tour", I walk them to the doorway between our living room and kitchen, pointing to the bedroom beyond it and the bathroom behind the refrigerator, then say "There, that's the tour. You've seen it all but the guest area downstairs, which you have to go outside to reach." Which is why we always keep the bedroom door shut when Little Goober comes to call. You see, Mimi has some secrets!

No, it's not my art table and the shelves full of art supplies that I was hiding. It was the stuff beneath the table, and all around it that I was hoping he wouldn't discover just yet -- all that stuff passed down to me from my BFF when her grandson outgrew it.

 
Why? Well, up until now, with Calvin it was out of sight, out of mind. We went long enough between visits that he would forget what he'd played with before, and be perfectly content with the three or four things I'd set out for him in the living room. Alas, no more. Just a day or two into their latest visit, someone let their guard down, and that little booger managed to sneak between their legs before they could shut the door behind them. Our world hasn't been the same since.

Our House After CAlvin

From that point on, he was never satisfied until every single toy was out of the bedroom. I tried to resist. I really did! But the kid was relentless.  To give credit where credit's due, however, I must add that his parents have been teaching him to help put them all away at the end of each day, and he's really pretty good about it. They tried to make it a daily habit right from the get go, rather than waiting until he was five or six and suddenly springing the notion upon him, and it seems to be working.

Out of all those wonderful playthings, know which two got the most use and kept him occupied the longest?

That's right. His uncle's old train set and his mama's old Sesame Street playhouse -- classic toys with no bells and whistles that force a kid to use their imagination, instead of doing everything for them. And, speaking of imagination, check this out.

When he got tall enough and curious enough to start sliding open the lower doors on this cabinet, I purged and consolidated my stuff in the upper cabinets, and turned the lower ones over to him.

I see great things in it's future, including hours of imaginative play with various grandkids, where it might be a barn for animals one day, or a dollhouse or vet clinic the next!

I also emptied out most of the drawers on this little Chinese medicine chest, which are already beginning to be filled with all sorts of treasures!

Thankfully, Mimi still has one secret up her sleeve, since he failed to discover and open the linen closet door in the corner of her bedroom, where all the toys for ages 3+ are stashed.

Bwahaha! Fooled you, little master!