Candy anyone?

G has a new "like". Candyland. Months ago, cleaning up last minute before company came over I shoved T's Candyland game under a living room chair. Well, recently G found it under the chair. One of his animals rolled under it and "AHA", another discovery. He yanked out the game and whipped off the lid. In that one incident it all started out cute-T set up the game and instructed G how to play. G layed across the board messing up T's best intentions. I had to laugh.

This weekend Grayson OWNS the game! All this time I haven't had the heart to put the game away. It is hilarious watching him pull it out. Like he knows it really isn't his to touch but somehow he can. Everytime he slips it out from under the chair he smirks this big grin. Yes, it's still here! Instead of tearing it apart he now manipulates each piece. He picks up each color card, inspects and then tosses it aside. It's as if he saying to himself, " Yep, green card. Just what I thought. Yes, double red, just what I thought." I don't know what he is thinking to himself. But the wheels are turning.

In this pic I yelled, "show me red" and he raised it up high for me to see. No, he doesn't know his colors receptively, just the command 'show me'. I am a ruthless dictator ya know.

Sometimes he carefully chooses (and I mean truly contemplates and then makes a selection) one or two cards or a card and a character piece and shuffles away with his stash. Giggling, waiting for T to notice and chase him. Is it the bright colors of the game that attract him? The scrumptious candy? The fact that he is getting access to T's belongings? I am not sure but it sure is adorable. He truly has created his own rules to the game and it has become his little routine. He loves carrying his little tokens around as he crawls or cruises around the living room. His little treasures. With that huge grin of his all the while.

And today he added another level to the game. The past few weeks, he has really been into handing us items from buckets, bins, or anything he finds on the floor ( I can't tell you how many cheerios or crumbs he brings me like he's helping out the cause). We just tell him thank you each time. Well, he has taken 'thank you' and overgeneralized it! Candyland is thank yous all around. After he picks up cards and examines them he hands them to the nearest person and beats us to the "thank you" part. He places them in our hands and tells us 'thank you.' I love it! Especially since he said 'thank you' about 2 mos ago and I havent heard it since. Now I get to hear it 8-10 times in a row. And what was his inspiration? The classic game of Candyland! How simple life can be!