Drastic Measures...

Last week I completely stripped Rory's room of all toys! He has to earn them back. But here's the funny thing - he really hasn't missed them. So while it seemed like a good 'learning' tool - now I'm not so sure. He doesn't really seem to care if he earns them back or not. All he has left in his room are books, puzzles, crayons and paint. Yesterday he found a nice round rock which he decided to paint for Grandma. He even found a pretty box and a gift bag to make it even more special.

If taking away toys encourages some creativity, I'll see it as a success either way.

The one thing I haven't taken away is his bike. We bought that for him last spring and he never got the hang of it. But all of a sudden this spring...he got it! And he just loves biking between our place and Grandma's. She hates it because he's on the road but Ladger and I have decided to let him as long as he tells us so someone can go out to the road and watch out for him. He knows that he is supposed to pull off to the grass and just stand there with the bike until vehicles pass by. And he's been doing well. We don't get much traffic but I want him to learn to watch for it. And he loves the new independence.
I'm taking this picture from the edge of our driveway - watching Rory on his bike. As you can see, it's not hard to see traffic from a long way!