Imagination

When I was little I had a very vivid imagination. I thought of such scenarios that my parents often wondered what the heck I was thinking. My ghoulishness surfaced early, like the many plots I had for how Barb.ie was going to be kidnapped and tortured and how Not-K.en (meaning ME) would save her (from the peril I put her in).

When I had Michael, I was so excited to venture into imaginative creative play. However, children with ADHD issues have problems with non-directive play (i.e. when they are supposed to lead the play using their imaginations). Of course, at the time I had no idea (otherwise I would have probably tried something like this). So, instead of these elaborate playscapes, he was into characters fighting each other. Over and over. And over. You hold the character out...he would bash it with another character (or a truck or dinosaur). Don't get me wrong, he eventually enjoyed Legos and other things like that (I did a lot of crafty projects with him). But the idea of imaginative play pretty much went out the window.

With Willow, I can see the imagination take off. And it has been wonderful to see her go off somewhere and have conversations (sometimes very loud) between characters. She often comes up to me and asks me to play "the mommy" character. (Her scenarios seem to mostly be about family groups--there is a mommy and/or daddy and children...the smaller toys being children).

The most surprising thing about her burgeoning imagination though--her imaginary person. She has an imaginary mom. Named Coco. (I think this springs from issues with her changing from a family daycare to preschool...her daycare provider went from being a "mother" figure to her going to school and having teachers). Coco is a menace to my existence. She was cute (and somewhat alarming--I mean, I have images of Coraline in my head). But Willow uses her as a way to express her opinion, a way to try to manipulate the situation. For example, Michael has a new action figure. Willow wants it. She grabs it and says that "her Coco" gave the action figure to her. Or, if she is mad at us (for, oh, the unreasonable demand that we made that she eat her vegetables) she will say "I don't like you. I am going to Coco's house." (I am curious where Coco lives...she has by definition, lived in a rock, the woods, a playground and in Willow's room). So far, I would say that Coco is a WONDERFUL mother who gives Willow juice boxes and chocolates and gum whenever she wants...

Maybe I want a little less imagination in my life....