Giraffes and Rocket Ships

I'm pretty sure my love of wood is genetic. Oh, stop it with the dirty thoughts.

Growing up, some of my earliest memories are of my dad's wood shop. On the commune that I grew up on (my parents would have me say "intentional community", but commune is more funny) dad's shop was out in the woods, over the fallen log that the grouse thumped on, and perched on a hill. I could probably walk to path to get there in my sleep, nearly 23 years after we moved away. There were shelves of tools, a treadle wood lathe on the far side, and nearly every non electric wood tool you could imagine. I help sharp draw knives and rasps far before they were age appropriate toys. I loved the wood shop quarter in school. I got an A.

Even as an adult, I've been drawn to woodworking. I've made bandsaw boxes, sculptures, and am the proud owner of a tidy little collection of tools myself. I can safely say, of all of the kinds of sculpture out there, wood is one of my favorites.

When M was born, I didn't get many wood toys for her. The problem with having a dog that loves to chew on wood is that blocks just don't have the same appeal. However, I'm pretty sure that if the Little Alouette toys had been available, I would have considered duct taping the dog's mouth shut. (kidding nice people at PETA) As it is, I'm trying to not order one just to sit and fondle it all day long.

I "met" Amy through the Citizen of the Month great interview project, but it wasn't until I got a chance to touch her wood (sorry, it is just too easy) at BlogHer that I really fell in love. I bought a cute hippo toy for my friend's baby, and it has taken me three months to give it to her. I just didn't want it to leave me. It wasn't until my niece's gift arrived that I could bring myself to do it. I had better make another order before Christmas, for me, just so I can part of the adorable farm set.


As if I didn't need another reason to love them, they've got both a Pirate and an Ninja set. (just how much of a geek do you have to be to get that?) Now, I'm partial to pirates, but I think I may be in love with the giraffe and rocket ship too much. What do you think? What does my cube need?


Disclaimer: My gushing about this was purely my idea. In fact, I had to ask Amy if I could grab some of her adorable photos, otherwise she had no idea. I just really really love her stuff. She's also a kick ass blogger.

Photo credit: Little Alouette, all rights at the discretion of the owner.

Look, a rainbow threw up in her room

We live in an old house. (60+ years) and like many old houses, it has no insulation. That means that while we have new windows, we are constantly fighting the cold. Add to that a love of keeping our money, an old gravity furnace that wasn't designed to heat this many rooms, and you have well, a cold old house.

Which is fine when you're newlyweds and you're happy to snuggle together under blankets and invest in down slippers. When you're married with a skinny little toddler with no body fat to keep her warm and love of running around without socks it isn't nearly so much fun.

We got M some slippers she likes wearing (bear feet, ha!), and we keep her in sweaters, but we've wanted her room to be more cozy so she'll play in it more. With the addition of her new kitchen, it really drove home that we needed to do something. So, while roaming the isles of Target yesterday, I found these. On clearance (yay!). I snagged what I could, then hunted down more at another store (which actually cost me more because of some odd thing about "different markets" 10 miles apart).

They aren't a perfect match to her decor, but we noticed the temp in her room seemed to go up. We finally removed the glider, giving her more space. We created a little reading nook by her bookcase and moved all of her books to lower shelves so she can get them out (and put them away). We custom cut some of the tiles to make everything fit, and put her other rug back down to help make it easier to get the doll stroller over the edge. It is well... bright! However, it is warm, and she loves it. Really, that is all that matters. Right?

One cute win for baby signing

M has been signing since she was around one. We started with more and all done to help with meal time. At the new daycare they really work the signing and she has picked up a bunch more signs like please, thank you, apple, banana and cracker. Not as much as some kids I know, but it has definitely helped while her speech caught back up. It has also lead to some interesting uses of the signs. She makes her dad's sign "more" when she wants him to bounce her on his lap. (like many fathers he is the human jungle gym) She signs "banana" when we talk about her Nana (my MIL).

Today however she showed off what she knows, it what may be the sweetest way possible. She brought her baby over to me and requested I read her a book. I read to her a little and then M wanted to take over. She made the baby sign "more", then made her sign "please" and then read the baby the book. Pointing out everything in it that she knows. Mouse, puppy, truck, banana, car, ambulance... She even made the baby turn the pages (something we've been having her do for a long time).

The baby in her room reading later in the evening.

I named the baby doll Hazel

For me, toys are one of those things that evoke a serious emotional response. They were a sore spot of my growing up, and in hindsight one of my greatest joys. My parents were different than every other parent I knew as a kid. There was no searching, no waiting in line for the best new toy. Toys had to be educational and encourage creativity. I thought it was because my parents were boring. It was more likely that as self employed part time organic vegetable farmers, they were picky with a limited budget, and wanted to make sure I got the most out of their disposable income. They were also not into stereotypes, or giving in to the marketing drama.

I wanted a Barbie, I was given a baby doll from the collection of a woman who could never have children. One of her favorite baby dolls that she gave away in later life, long after her dream of having her own family had passed. I treasured that doll, sewed clothes for it, and never once gave it a purple mohawk.

I wanted a Cabbage Patch Kid, and got a hand made knock off made by someone in our community. She was perfect, she even looked like me (a choice of doll wasn't an option at the time, when you were lucky to get one, let alone have choice in appearance), and I named her Mary Lou, after Mary Lou Retton. It was 1984, the year she got the perfect ten.

I don't know if I had gotten what I thought I wanted most if I would have appreciated them as much as what I did get, or gotten too much out of them. At 30, I still have an active imagination, and that creative thinking helps me with the problem solving I need to be successful in my career. (who says art majors can't work in IT, and not as a designer either)

With M we are challenged to balance the flexibility we have because of our careers, with helping make sure she appreciates what she has. Add to that the issues with lead paint, the constant barrage of electronics, and it seems there are far more challenges than my parents had to deal with. Fortunately, so far we think we have found some balance. At her first birthday she didn't receive anything that required batteries, and as much as I want her to have everything I didn't, I am learning to be reserved. I do my research, I try to support independent businesses and ones that are more careful about the products they release. As she gets older, we are also going to make sure she knows how fortunate she is by encouraging her to be generous with those who aren't as lucky.

This post is a part of a Parent Blogger Network blog blast, sponsored by Hasbro. They're giving away a huge toy prize package, see the details about how to enter yourself at the PBN blog. Small extra plug since it is for a good cause, if you shop at Hasbro right now in addition to free shipping, they are donating a toy for every toy purchased, up to $400,000. You know, and they make my favorite preschool game from my own childhood. (we already own it for when M is old enough) Chutes & Ladders!