My children only have a handful of movies that they can actually sit through and do enjoy, and those include – Finding Nemo, Polar Express, and most recently… Tangled. And I think Tangled has definitely jumped to their #1 favourite film – EVER! In fact, we have never seen them so interested and so obsessed with anything since their exclusive love for Thomas the Tank Engine.
They simply adore Rapunzel. I think she has become their heroine and they admire every aspect of her, including her long, long, long, long hair. The movie has now been watched at least 10 times, the soundtrack plays almost daily, and my children know the words to many of the movie’s songs. And each time they watch the film, they seem to understand it a tad better, and to ask fresh questions about what’s going on. They are reciting lines from the movie by heart and know the names of all the characters as well as their personalities. That’s just part of it.
The other part is that they are constantly re-enacting the scenes through play. And while they currently do not own any Tangled-themed toys, that simply doesn’t stop them. A Thomas & Percy trains can easily transform into Rapunzel & Eugene (“Flynn”); their fleecy blankets attached with clips to their hair quickly become Rapunzel’s long-hair, and you can often catch them walking around with plastic frying pans from their kitchen and pretending to smack random things! And lately, they have discovered that their two My Little Ponies also have incredibly long hair, and that has been the most recent craze to re-enact Rapunzel. Our dining chairs become ‘castles, and when outside at the playground, both are always engaged in a Tangled pretend-play game.
A couple of weeks ago, Natasha spotted a Rapunzel Barbie at the Superstore and decided she NEEDS it. Yes, my daughter who has never paid any attention whatsoever to dolls, is dreaming daily of owning a Rapunzel Barbie. It’s currently on her birthday wish list and I am planning on buying it for her birthday! Needless to say, all this is incredibly cute and I am curious to see how long this phase would last.