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Holding Up The Fort
January 24, 2008
By Mary Forsell, Contributing Editor
 Especially during the cooler months, my daughters' forts have a way of
multiplying around this place like kudzu, turning our already cozy (i.e.,
cramped) living room into a shantytown. They always begin with a soft floor made
from sleeping bags or sofa cushions, and the sides are structured from a
combination of cardboard boxes and folding play structures. A parachute draped
over the top gives the various "rooms" a cohesive look. When the girls want to
expand—and they always do—they set up card tables covered with sheets and use my
exercise mat as a front porch. Trains on wooden tracks chug mysteriously in and
out of rooms conveying secret messages. Pet food cans strung together with twine
serve as telephone service between boxes.  Once, they stole a domed lettuce
keeper from the kitchen and taped it over a hole in the top of a cardboard box
as a "skylight." A variation on that was a bubblewrap roof and windows, which
the cat enjoyed attacking. The bubblewrap also allowed me to peer in and
discover many missing items, including my cell phone, all the flashlights, and a
half-eaten bag of potato chips. The girls hang out in these forts on rainy
afternoons for hours, acting out some alternative reality where they set the
rules and adults don't exist. There's an interesting book on this topic:
David Sobel's Children's Special Places, which examines kids’ need
to construct secret hideouts and why it's important to their emotional growth.
Learn more at http://wsupress.wayne.edu/literature/childrens/sobelcsp.htm
There's also a how-to guide that could spark ideas: Tom Birdseye's A
Kids' Guide to Building Forts . So think
twice before you throw out those metal cans or shipping crates!
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I loved this. Great writing + a great a
topic = a great read. Thanks for the minute
of fun reading during a crazy day!
Posted By: Anna Seip
I miss the days when my children made forts
all through the house. The dining room table
made a nice cave and the treadmill with a
sheet over it was a tiny hiding spot for my
youngest. Boy, does this bring back memories!
Posted By: Betty @ http://shessewpretty.typepad.com/
Wow, what a coincidence. My 3 year old
grandson is into building forts. I always
liked forts when I was a kid. Thanks. Lynn
Posted By: Lynn Williams
All kids need is a place to do it. They
don't really need directions, just a spot and
some blankets. The picture of the girls'
fort is great. They are so lucky to have such
a patient mom.
Posted By: csv
Some of my favorite photos are those that I
took of my daughter when they were young
doing just the same thing. Grabbing
flashlights and snacks, books and stuffed
animals. All the makings of a perfect day.
Posted By: http://theholidayqueen.blogspot.com/
Brings back memories for this great
grandmother of when her own children were
small. Now there are 2 great granddaughters
I'd like to make hideaways with and share
the fun. Am getting the Birdseye book for
my grandson's wife to inspire her to let the
girls make a mess and make memories,
something she, sadly, was apparently not
allowed to do as a child.
Posted By: Great Nana from Long Island
Thanks for making me smile and remember
Batman's cave that my brother always built
by taking the cushions out of the living
room sofa and draping blankets all over. I
used to get so embarassed when my friends
came over to play Barbie!
Posted By: www.viechaotique.com
Yes! I'm joining the others in appreciation
for the walk down memory lane and the for
the suggested reading source. Allowing
children the freedom to express what's in
their magical minds can only reap huge
benefits. I'm gonna be warm all day
remembering the forts & caves of 4 children-
oh, and wait! Just remembered mine built in
the woods with a floor made smooth by our
bare feet.
Posted By: The Handmaiden in Louisiana
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