The perfect gift

Several weeks ago I drove past a small garage sale, and on a whim decided to stop and see what they had. What I found was the perfect gift for Ada's birthday--a little wooden kitchen sink and cupboard and stove (for $10!). The next several weeks it sat in the basement and then, in the true spirit of procrastination I started scraping off the stickers, cleaning it, and painting it just days before Ada's birthday. On Saturday I rushed to finish it so that it would dry in time for the party. And despite my rushed and less-than-perfect paint job, it turned out pretty stinkin' cute, and Ada loves it. She immediately set her new pots and pans on it and started cooking. Later when we put it up in her room she put her dolls in chairs and scooted them up the the stove (copying how she and Cambel push up their chairs to the counter to help me cook) and said "don't touch it!" Then she put her hand on her hip and surveyed her kitchen (do I really do that?). She and Cambel have put in a lot of time playing restaurant since Sunday...for $10 I have managed to please 2 children and keep them occupied for long periods of time--and you can't put a price on that.