Uncle Rick would be proud

I remember (I think) the first year my brother got Lego for Christmas. It was a fire station - and he played with it for HOURS - letting me play with it to0, if I recall.

He and I had many many different sets of Lego over the years - with my tastes running to the castles and medieval sets - and his predominantly in the city sets.

But I still remember those fire trucks.

And now my Munchkin has a fire truck of his own, thanks to his oldest cousin. And excellent taste in toys...

Yesterday as I put his coat on, he told me he needed a zipper in the back.

When I asked him if he needed a zipper so I could put his batteries in, like a toy, he said...

"Mommy, toys don't have batteries"

Sniff sniff - made this Mommy proud!!!

(and just to be honest - some of his toys do - but not many)

Turtle of the Day - T is for Turtle

This little guy was part of a set of alphabet animals my mother in law had - I am not sure if she had the entire alphabet, or only some of them, but in any case she gave up the "T is for Turtle" one to add to my collection.

This is just a little turtle - probably about 2 inches across, and made from painted wood. It has the letter "T" on the back.

I love that my mother-in-law has most of her children's toys - from puzzles to my husband's wooden airplane - to games and more. Even better is that the Munchkin is getting to enjoy many of these toys. In fact a whole bunch of classic wooden tray puzzles just made their way from her basement to our play room. The Munchkin is in puzzle heaven!

A few years ago I used the phrase "fun without batteries" to describe the type of toys my mom carries in her store, The Mercantile. Puzzles, tops, kites, puppets - the type of toys that you play with rather than the toy "playing" for you. Lucky for us BOTH Grammas are great supporters of this type of play, so batteries driven toys are a rarity in our house. It is so great to her my little one "talking" for his toys and role playing different stories, rather than just pushing the button and watching or listening to someone else's idea of fun.

What was YOUR favorite toy growing up? Mine was probably my "Sunshine Family" dolls, and the A Frame wooden playhouse my brother made for them. I would spend hours and hours making up stories about their lives, or practicing my early sewing and knitting skills making clothes and bedding for them (that is about how long my knitting career lasted - a 4x4 doll blanket was about the extent of my patience with that). My best friends Lydia and Ursula also had these dolls - and the grandparents that went with them - so the three of us had great fun with our "neighborhood" of families.

Of course the blocks and the kites and the bicycles and the ice skates were all great fun as well. Growing up in a rural area also gave us lots of options for outside activities. Anyone know where I can find some tadpoles to show my son what that is all about? Or a chrysalis? Or lightening bugs that are not dimmed by having too many streetlights about?

Hubby and I are looking forward to our first family camping trip - hopefully this summer if all goes well.

T is for turtle... and F is for good old fashioned FUN!