Imagination + Cardboard

Jack's current thing is "Toy Story." He used the Christmas money he received from his uncle to buy a pull-string Woody toy (which may or may not have gotten abused the day it arrived from Amazon, and may or may not have gone to bed with Jack, and may or may not have kept him awake because it wouldn't stop talking).  Now he has his sights set on a Buzz Lightyear toy and decided he would get a jump on the whole thing by making a spaceship for Buzz.  He wanted me to help him make one and I had no idea how to even begin that process with the materials we had on hand.  I told him it couldn't be done.  He said that if I gave him a cardboard box, he'd make it himself.

Within 30 minutes, he'd finished the spaceship.  And he's loved it ever since.  Luke has done his best to destroy the spaceship but thanks to Jack's devotion and a healthy amount of packing tape, the aircraft has endured.

This afternoon Jack wanted to make a spaceport as a repair center and home base for the spaceship.  I asked him to draw me a picture of the spaceport, then we went to the storage room in search of boxes that would be suitable for the structure.  Note: there are times when being a pack rat comes in handy.

After Jack played with the spaceship and spaceport for a little while, we made this video, which features both creations.

I asked him if he wanted me to spray paint the whole thing black and he liked the idea, until he found out that the spaceport would be out of commission for a while if it got painted.  He loves it the way it is, and so far it's still in good shape.  We'll see how long it lasts...