Cornelia is now two months into her
fourth year. And her imagination is in full bloom. Every game we play together involves some
sort of pretend play. It always starts
by assigning roles. Coco does the
assigning, of course. “Okay, Daddy, I’ll
be the [princess / mermaid / knight, etc.] and you be the [king / prince /
bad guy, etc.]. The game usually
involves someone being bad (usually my character), someone being good (usually
Coco’s character), and someone needing help or rescue (which might be the good
guy or the bad guy). Often there is a
trap involved, which is usually a ribbon masquerading as a snare of some sort. Sometimes Coco changes the roles or scenario without any advance warning. “Okay,
Daddy, now you be the king and I’ll be the bad guy. ‘Haha!
I’ve trapped you!’” she says as she wraps my wrist in a ribbon. Then she turns around and is the princess
rescuing me. “Hi, I’m a princess. Are you trapped? Who trapped you? I’ll help you.”  |
| So, you have a pirate-themed birthday party for four-year-olds in three hours? Not a problem if you're Ken Wingard. Simply poke around in your craft box for some random material, some felt and a needle and thread. "Viola!" A pirate outfit! |
Her
favorite game is “Big Bad Octopus.” I
think we’ve played “Big Bad Octopus” every night for it seems like years,
although I’m not sure exactly when it started.
The game is simple. I’m the Big
Bad Octopus (which is nice because all I have to do is lay on the floor which
is, frankly, a welcome position after a day of work and when I'm in a
constant state of mild sleep deprivation) and Coco is a mermaid who is swimming
by and gets trapped by the Big Bad Octopus.
“What is a mermaid doing in my ocean!
I don’t like mermaids!” (grabbing
her by the ankle) “Now you are trapped
with me at the bottom of the ocean and you must [read me bedtime stories /
dance for me / be my friend, etc.] forever and forever!”
Coco, as the mermaid, then asks me why I’m
bad which leads to a bit of Big-Bad-Octopus-therapy. “Because no one will be my friend and I’m lonely.” Then she says she’ll be my friend and then
I’m nice again and then we’re friends and everyone is happy.
Flynn and Margot are usually in supporting
roles. Sometimes they are prince and
princess mermaids I’ve trapped and must be rescued by Coco (also a princess
mermaid, of course). And then sometimes
they are little Big Bad Octopuses who help me trap the mermaid.
Last month we went through a period where Coco acted out scenes from Frozen. She was always Elsa and I was always Anna. It went something like this:
Scene:
The castle ballroom following Elsa’s coronation (the entry hall at the bottom of the stairs).
Anna (played by Daddy): “Elsa, I
want you to meet someone. This is
Hans. I’m going to marry him.”
(Sometimes
Flynn is cast in the role of Hans if he happens to be in the vicinity. Fortunately, it's not a speaking role.)
 |
| "Today the role of Hans will be played by Flynn" |
Elsa (played by Cornelia): (With the best scolding tone and frown a
four-year-old can muster.) “You can’t marry a man you just met!” (And,
yes, I'm happy every time Coco utters that line and will be eternally
grateful that Frozen taught her at the age of four that she cannot marry a man she just met.)
Anna (Daddy): “You can if it’s love at first sight!”
Elsa (Coco): “I said no!”
Turns away.
Anna (Daddy): “Elsa, why do you shut me out?” Grabs her
hand and pulls off her glove. (Coco sometimes
uses a gardening glove for this scene.)
Elsa:
“Leave me alone!” Turns and blasts ice power all over the ballroom (the entry hall) and then runs up the
North Mountain (the stairs) singing
“Let it go!” She then crosses the great ice glacier (the TV room) and the bursts onto the mountain top (the deck on the back of the house) still
singing “Let it go!”
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| Coco working the tiara and heels at the playground. |
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| Lest you doubt me, here's a closer look. She's running up and down those hills in full-on heels. |
