Torture

Captain Hook got this toy for Christmas:

He likes to keep the animals safely behind (under?) closed doors. Actually, a more apt description would be he needs to close them. It is an intense, driving need. Even now he is hurtling across the room at top crawl because he heard me open them up to take a picture. Sometimes he'll notice it during his play, and drop everything to ensure proper closure.

We like to play a game with him. He closes the doors and we pop them back open. He will play this game as long as it takes for us to get tired of it and leave them closed in peace. Quite the opposite of how most games with him end.

One of my favorite variations is when I let him get them all closed. He will look suspiciously at the toy and at me for a moment or two, then proceed to another toy. Just as he gets there I pop one open again.

I almost feel guilty, but so far he's always met the challenge with a smile.