Cardboard Magic: A Boat That’s Not a Boat and A Plane To Make Imagination Soar

My recipe for Cardboard Magic:

Mix one grown husband with 2 kids and a large cardboard box. Instruct husband on sharp object safety. Cover  eyes and try not to think about it. Leave the premises.

MacGyver strikes again!  I escaped to run a few errands and came back to find a cardboard plane sitting in my backyard.  My husband even rigged up an old kite reel behind the propeller so it could spin. Absolute craziness mixed with brilliance!

My daughter creatively decorated the inside of the plane.  I especially love her hand-drawn button reading: “sky fliyer.”  She proudly told me that I could press the button if I ever felt the need to parachute out of the plane.

It was a sad day in our household when the plane had to be dismantled for trash day.  Apparently, our cardboard plane could only handle a few attacks from the backyard sprinklers. Thankfully, a bookshelf purchase soon provided another large box for my kids (ahem, my husband) to renovate.

“Um Honey…did you just make the kids a cardboard coffin?”  MacGyver was a little annoyed that I didn’t see his creation as the boat it was intended to be.  But seriously, how funny is it that my kids kept laying in the “boat” like this…

…and then popping up there heads exclaiming, “It’s so comfortable in here.  We could stay in here FOREVER!”  Classic!

I must admit, I love being married to a man who still plays with cardboard boxes.  The fact that his creations have also inspired our children to take countless imaginary adventures is just icing on the cake!

Need More Cardboard Inspiration?

• Unstructured Play with Cardboard Boxes
• Children Opt for the Box Over the Toy from Slow Family Online