First Friend Phone Call

The other day the phone rang, and based on the caller ID, I expected it to be Zack’s mom. Instead it was Zack himself, asking to talk to Ethan. It was very cute, apparently with Zack needing to tell Ethan right that moment about something he had seen, and ending with “I love you” on both sides.

This morning Ethan wanted to play “family” with me and his stuffed animals. There were a bunch of boy brothers who were teasing the sister (played by a male lion stuffed animal). When I asked Ethan why the boys were teasing the girl, he said because she was pretty. (? Is that how it works?) Anyway, Ethan played the dad, and did a good job tucking all the boys and girls in. Some of the smaller ones were scared, so Ethan got even bigger stuffed animals for them so they wouldn’t be afraid. In the pretend morning, everyone had to rush to get their breakfast and their teeth brushed so they could go to church for Jen and Tim’s wedding. One of the animals, the biggest boy, got to carry the ring and Ethan pronounced that he “wasn’t afraid”.

I’ve learned that these role playing games take very little effort on my part, and in fact are better if I only say something when told to. There have been a bunch of articles recently about the importance of free play for kids. Truth is, no one knows why mammals (and only mammals) play, although it’s been correlated with cerebellar development (one of my favorite parts of the brain –responsible for balance). And although there are lots of opinions, no one knows for sure what happens if kids don’t have free play. Since I tend to trust in natural systems that have evolved over long periods of time, I favor the ‘free-play’ school of thought, since that’s what kids seem driven to do.

Ethan is at the ‘Quarium right now with his dad, looking at the fishes, while mom tries to get caught up on work, etc.