Playing vs Building

Several months ago we separated all the Thomas the Tank Engine toys, keeping only a small wooden track and some engines, and sold them to a friend from church and donated a bunch to church. The track we kept is tucked away somewhere to dig out years from now when Kabe is all grown. I'm not a total pack-rat, just a memory-keeper in the sense that I want pieces of things (not everything) for the future.

I sent Kabe to his room to clean up but he showed back up in the living room with this piece of Thomas. In his defense, he wasn't playing - he was trying to take it apart.


This has come to make a little more sense to me in the last couple days ... okay I probably should have caught on sooner, I'm a slow processor. With the furniture Kabe has in his room, there isn't much room for playing so typically he brings his stuff to the living room to play. I am continually talking to him about 'playing' with his lego's or stop 'playing' and pick-up, etc. He is sure to correct me usually saying something like, 'Don't you mean building?' This 'building' is pretty serious business.