From Mama’s blog: Imaginative Play

Mama has a blog & sometimes we cross-post it here.

Yet another difference between my two boys: Gabe did almost no imaginative play as a preschooler; Finn acts out elaborate dramatic scenarios involving cars, trucks, plastic animals and astronauts, pretzels, pieces of cheese, whatever he can get his little hands on. I love eavesdropping, hearing his characters argue and resolve their disputes (well, maybe not resolve, exactly, since someone almost always ends up squashed and/or thrown into the abyss). Finn uses a full range of voices to differentiate all the personalities.
Usually, I hear this play from another room, and if I get out the camera, he freezes and refuses to perform. But yesterday, he let me record him, and he even drew me into the action. I’m so glad I will always have these: When he’s all grown up, I don’t ever want to forget that he used to do this, that he used to say “ambuhlance” and “space mans,” that he so keenly wanted me to notice what he was doing, my sweet, funny, loving little boy.
I imagine that unless you are Finn or one of his parents, these will probably be boring to you. I’m posting them mostly so we won’t forget; and for him to watch when he’s older.
Part 1: …in which the Weeble firefighters rush to put out a fire! Finn, 4 years, plays out the most wonderfully imaginative scenarios. Usually he won’t perform on camera, but today he was game. I’m so glad–I don’t ever want to forget this stuff.
Part 2: …in which the tow truck arrives! And Finn sings Jingle Bells!
Part 3: …in which the fire truck parks in a handicapped space, a monster attacks, and the space mans drive the tow truck!
Part 4: …in which the ambuhlance and another fire truck arrive with gas, but the ambuhlance sounds sick.