Johann received a set of wooden food toys today for Ukrainian Christmas. The set is a really nice one from an old-fashioned style toy store catalog we like. The set includes a variety of food items from all the food groups and has four miniature wooden carrying crates to hold them. We have been playing games with them all day. First, we organized all the items into the crates they came in by food groups, then by color and finally by shape. Eventually, Johann started shopping for the dinner menu, which he proudly announced to “my dears”. After shopping for everything on his menu, he carried them to his kitchen on the couch and carefully put each item away in the “‘fridgerator” or the pantry. After our own dinner, he lavished us with a fine meal, which he prepared course by course right in front of our table. On delivering each course he announced the name of the dish and it’s key ingredients, always ending with “Here you go, my dear!”, as he handed a plate to each of us.
We decided to get these for him after he played for nearly an hour and a half in the understair cubbyhole that the folks at “The Gray Goose” ( a kitchen store) have set up for the children of customers and workers. It is a tiny space, just big enough for a single 4 or 5 year old to fit into comfortably. There is a counter, a cooking range, an oven and a sink with a variety of dishes and food. During that 90 minutes Johann charmed all the ladies working in the store as they frequently passed right over “his” kitchen. A few of them even stopped to talk to him and observe his wonderful preparations. One woman said as she had to get back to work, “Okay, well I’ll let you get back to your cooking.” Johann answered her, “Okay. I have to keep cooking dinner in my kitchen.” Anything that can keep him so imaginatively engaged for so long is a worthy investment.