Witching Hour Game: Butterfly Catch

1. be a very fast set up. See that? I made ‘very’ bold, italicized and underlined. FAST. Like a hungry cheetah after an antelope fast. 
2. use stuff we had around the house. 
3. teach or reinforce. If I’m going to direct her play, it’s going to teach or reinforce something. 

Earlier that day, we had been talking about the weather because it was one of those windy days where ponytails were the only hair style choice if you wanted to be able to see where you were walking. I love the windy Spring days – it’s like they’re here to blow away all of the winter gloominess. 

 

Close at hand was a net we keep out for impromptu fishing expeditions – in the tub. So I said, “self: your little girl likes the net.” 

Now, both of these goodies were purchased at Target in the dollar section last year so it’s not like they are hard to come by. Be on the lookout for a butterfly net if you don’t have one and you do have a toddler. I can’t tell you how many times this little thing has saved a happy girl from succumbing to a sour mood. 

And, although the net was only a dollar it’s the most amazing part of this post. Why? Because it amazes me that this cheap crap has survived for more than a year, getting used multiple times per week! 

Amazing, right? Someone should call Guinness! Perhaps I should be more specific – it’s the records group, not the beer group. Although if someone called the latter, I probably wouldn’t complain.

From butterflies to beer. How is it that I’m responsible for a human being? 

Our game was simple: let the butterflies fly (mom launched them flat so that the wind would catch them) and try to catch them in the net. Although she never caught one, she chased after them with gusto! Even the too-long-cuz-it’s-Springtime-in-the-Pacific-North-West’s grass didn’t slow her down. 

We played about three rounds of this before we had to go in and start dinner. That didn’t stop the fun, however. She loved this so much that we reenacted the fun inside for Daddy when he got home.