Simple fun can be wonderful, no batteries needed

Sometimes simple really is the best. We know it, yet we tend to complicate life. That is why kids are here to remind us.

People often make jokes about not needing to give little kids toys because they love playing with the box. Their imaginations take them a long way. In these days of electronic everything for toddlers, it’s refreshing that the simple things still hold up.

Experiment for yourself. Borrow a three year old for a day. We recently did. No video games, no tablet, no television. Just pretending and stories and playing.

A garbage bag full of Beanie Babies from a bygone era holds timeless appeal. The doggies, the kitties, the bunnies, oh my! All the other odd creatures from Claude the crab to Spinner the spider. So many ways to hold and arrange and rearrange and group and count and imagine scenarios.

Line ‘em up. Put them on the couch. Stack them up. Place on the windowsill. Cover the floor. Try to pick just one to get to take home. Group by color. Group by kind. Mess them all up and start something new again. How many can be held at once?

What could be more fun than Beanie Babies?

Dirt.

We went to the flower store to get pretties for the pots. The flowers didn’t get much reaction but the sand and gravel and limestone of the walkways were immensely magnetic to three year old fingers.

Sifting and scooping and filling trays with tiny little rocks was pure joy and endlessly fascinating.

At home, the decision of what flowers for what pot was not interesting. The empty plastic containers and a big bag of dirt were the main attraction. Provide a hand shovel and an afternoon of entertainment ensued.

Line up pots. Count the pots. Fill with dirt. Pack down. Empty back into dirt bag. Repeat. Again. Again. Stack the pots. Unstack the pots. Stack the pots inside each other. Take them apart and line them up again. Refill. Pack. Dump.

Squeeze dirt clumps with bare hands to pulverize. Delight in feel of dirt. I’m not a three-year-old and I like to play in the dirt. I wear gloves though.

Our little angel woke up the next morning and asked to go “work in the dirt” again. So we did. Same thrill as day before. Yep, simple stuff satisfies.

The only other thing that was just as enticing as filling plastic pots with dirt was a mattress on the family room floor in the basement. College boys who don’t necessarily like to play in the dirt  anymore still like to create a bedroom anywhere. Three year olds think it’s heaven on earth to have a mattress at ground level.

Daddies and grandpa’s of three year olds think it’s pretty fun too to toss and play and bounce with a three year old on a mattress on a floor. It’s not the same as jumping on the bed so no rules are being broken.

Squeals. Laughs. Giggles. “You can’t find me” being called out while hiding under a blanket. That’s the stuff you don’t hear while playing a game on some hand-held device.

I appreciate technology for all it gives us, I really do. I also appreciate the simple stuff. Tickles, hide-and-seek, and playing in the dirt. Kids today can still have a lot of fun.

No batteries required.

(Kelly Epperson Simmons is author/speaker/book coach and Nana to a three-year-old. Work with Kelly by contacting info@kellyepperson.com or call toll free 888-637-3563.)