Toy Soldiers

One of our boys favourite things to do is to play with their miniature soldiers. They received a bucket of toy soldiers for Christmas that had British, American, Japanese, and German soldiers in it (all coloured differently). I cannot tell you how many hours they have spent playing with these soldiers. The bucket had 200 soldiers to begin with and I think we probably still have at least 160 - unfortunately, there have been quite a few causalities. After their rest time we will walk into their room and find soldiers lined up in all different areas in very strategic line ups. It is not unusual for me to hear them assign who is in charge of which colour soldiers - something like 'Jack you be British, I'll be American, and Addie you can be the Germans.'


This is often what their room looks like:

And sometimes the soldiers even 'modernize' and use the multi-story parking garage as a look out point:

Just last week the boys received the following email from my mother with the subject:
Good news for General Jack Anderson and General Theodore Anderson

An American MIA soldier was found under the bed. He appears to be in excellent health. However, there will be a required hospital observation and debriefing. The best guess is that he will be returning to his unit which is presently stationed in London, England on May 11, 2012. Please address any inquiries regarding his health to PFC Scarlett Abbott in Missouri of the USA. PFC Scarlett (the dog) will be recommended for a promotion for her role in assuring his good health by not chewing him up.

My mom is one of the most creative people I know. She breathes creativity. The boys were thrilled to know that a soldier would be returning to their unit in just a weeks time. Very fun memories.