Savannah's new playroom, the mudroom, didn't work out. She has a real need to put things in their special place, and leave them there, a long time. Tonight I reached for the roll of toilet paper so she could blow her nose. It sat on top of her Pooh Bear hat boxes. On top of the toilet paper, she had stacked three miniature board books. On top of that sat a pretend plastic bottle of doll shampoo. Even with a fever she told me to put everything back how it had been.
In her playroom, she had parts to two tea sets, some metal plates, about 25 pieces of pretend food, five dolls, three of the dolls in little chairs, several pots and pans, a puzzle, a puzzle still in its box, a trivet she painted herself, her Lucky Ducks game and four pictures drawn by her own hand all placed in their special places on her kitchen, the rug and the slate of the mudroom floor.
I had explained the rule when we set it up. We have to be able to walk through the mud room, thinking she'd keep everything on the rug in the corner. She has a mind of her own.
So when Daddy took her outside to shovel snow on Friday, I made a space in her bedroom for the kitchen and carried it upstairs. I thought she'd be upset because she'd been proud of her new playroom, taking Alex downstairs last Monday to show it off. But she was perfectly fine with it, only showing interest in I could have gotten it to her room. We told her I was strong and that she'd be strong like me someday and we could arm wrestle.
So the new rule is, before bed, her floor has to be clean enough to walk across it. So far, so good.
