Christmas Shopping

Looks like Amazon is doing their Melissa and Doug sale again.

Up to 50 Off Select Melissa and Doug Toys

This Year's Big Miss

Christmas shopping for the kids this year was pretty easy.  We kept it simple.  We made one trek out to the stores and were done after a stop at Office Depot and a stop at Toys R Us.  (What?  Doesn't everyone do their kids' Christmas shopping at Office Depot?)  The Toys R Us shopping was arrogantly gratifying as I headed to the registers with only a few items in my hands as I outmaneuvered parents with as many as THREE shopping carts full of toys.  Three overflowing carts.  Unless you have enough kids to get your own TLC show, that seems a bit excessive.  But whatever... tis the season.

Now despite making some thoughtful gift selections for our family, we have one glaring FAIL on our hands.  The one thing that should be under our tree but isn't: The Angry Mob Playset.

What?!?!

Damn if it isn't too late to truly make this Christmas bright.  An angry mob playset.  What kid couldn't use this in their toy collection?  I don't know how many times our action figure play sessions have come to a halt because we were lacking an angry mob.  "What's that you say, Chewbacca?  Iron Man just pillaged the town and ravished Polly Pocket?  Round up the townsfolk and lets hunt down that cur!"  Oh wait.  We don't have the Angry Mob Playset.

Let's go play Chutes and Ladders instead.

So it looks like this year's Christmas is incomplete.  Thank you, John, for giving me the heads up on the Angry Mob -- there's always next year.

Oh, and if the Angry Mob isn't your thing, their website also carries such treasures as The Crazy Cat Lady action figure and the Horrified B-Movie Victims figure set.

Simplicity

Right now, the reigning champ of bath tub toys in our house is a simple pair of blue swim goggles that were previously sulking in a basement utility sink as they lamented the end of summer.  Rejoice, cheap plastic eyewear, your services are in demand again!

Toy Deal

Amazon.com has an awesome 50% off select Melissa & Doug toys today.  We have many toys from this company and they're usually high quality, sturdy, and ideal for imaginative play (as in no batteries).  I highly recommend them!

The Boys

(Click this image for more fatherhood related blogs.)

It still blows my mind that I have three sons. And that I'm supposed to raise these boys to be men. It seems like such an awesome responsibility -- one that doesn't come with a manual or handbook. Though I guess it doesn't make sense to have a manual for raising men because the first page of the man manual would say "men don't read manuals."

Manual free, this Friday I got the opportunity to do some serious fathering when Julie's mom offered to take Amelia and Darwin for the day. With the house to ourselves, Jameson, Truman and I wasted no time delving into one of finer elements of manhood: Hot Wheels.

This was actually an issue we had been itching to tackle for some time. We have an extensive collection of cars, but let's be honest, it's not about the cars in and of themselves. It's about the jumps. The ramps. The air. Coincidentally, we just came into possession of a hundred feet of Hot Wheels track (thanks Curt), the key missing ingredient to truly appreciating our 1/64 scale hot rods and muscle cars. And without mom's better judgement to hinder our manly intentions, we set out to conquer gravity the way God intended -- with a Hot Wheels stunt track that spanned an entire flight of middle American prefabricated residential stairs.

In the words of Jameson, "this is going to rock."

Our official launcher.


The launch assistant.


The track.


At first our ramp was created with just a few DVD cases.


Even with such a small ramp, we were getting some sweet jumps.


I had to place myself in the line of fire to get these awesome shots.
Yes, it was dangerous, but it was worth it.


Relatively speaking, you'd need 1/64 scale marbles the size of, um, marbles to drive this track.


Why yes that totally sweet jump cleared the kitchen table. No biggie.


Badass!

Don't Tase Me, Bro!

Toys Are a Waste of Money

A complete waste of money.

Jameson saw a little boy on TV stacking plastic cups (for sport?) and asked if he could have some cups to stack. It just so happened that in cleaning out the liquor cabinet, er, pantry, I came across a bunch of little plastic cups (presumably left over from Julie's white trash jello shot days?) that were perfect for stacking. I set them on the kitchen table and let him have at it. He sat there and played with these dumb plastic cups for two hours. WTF? I can't remember the last toy he got that occupied two consecutive hours of his time.

Plastic-ware from here on out for my kids. But only the good shit, like Solo and Dixie. None of that generic store brand crap.







Jameson's attention eventually turned from cheap plastic to expensive plastic -- namely my DSLR. The rest of these shots are his. This was the first time I set up the tripod for him and he really got a kick out of using it. I'm also beginning to think his photog skills will soon surpass mine. I liked the one shot of me so much that I made it my profile photo. (He had taken my previous profile photo, too.) I also showed him how to set the self-timer and he quickly became infatuated with it. The rest of the afternoon it was the only way he would take any pictures. I love the last photo, which was one of his early attempts at setting up a shot and then running around the camera to make sure he was included in the frame.

HULK PAINT!!!

Big score with the easel purchase. I came across this gem on Amazon while shopping for my godson and thought it would be a good purchase for Jameson now that he's home everyday instead of going to daycare. It's a Melissa and Doug product with all the usual thoughtfulness put into its design. It works as a dry erase board, chalkboard and paint easel. It's designed to handle rolls of paper for painting and makes it easy to tear off one piece of artwork and move on to the next. The paint cups are well designed to pretty much eliminate any major spills. The trays and cups can all be easily thrown in the dishwasher. The whole easel folds up easily for storage or moving to a different location (like outside).

And the best part is that it was on sale at Amazon for $46.92. A total steal. The companion set (that includes all the paint, brushes, chalk and a roll of paper) can be had for under $30.00.

Now, here are some pictures of Jameson in action.

LED Faucet

Check out this sweet LED faucet attachment. (Yes, I know I'm a nerd.) You can buy it at ThinkGeek.com. Simple to install and GREAT for getting three year olds to want to wash their hands and brush their teeth.

Probably also great for stoners, but, you know, whatev.

Oh yeah, and it changes from blue to red when the water temp hits 89 degrees. Here are some shots with the lights on and off. Warning, with the lights off this just might blow your mind.

Toy Review: GeoTrax

One of the best toys we've ever bought for Jameson is the Fisher Price GeoTrax toy train. It is a very creative take on the toy train concept. It meets all the necessary criteria for an active 2-year old. 1. It's easy to assemble and operate: Though the various train sets are fun and complex, setting up the tracks and various components is very simple and Jameson can easily put together railroad systems without supervision. 2. It's rugged: Everything is designed for heavy toddler abuse. Jameson enjoys destroying his creations Godzilla style as much as enjoys building them. There's no concern about wear and tear whatsoever. 3. It's engaging: It's enjoyable just to sit and watch Jameson think about which piece of track to lay next. Once everything is up and running, he gets fully immersed in the world he's created as the trains carry out their "jobs" and the people go about their lives. Unfortunately for them, it usually ends in some disaster involving head on collisions... but it's still great to see his imagination at work.

The GeoTrax system is basically made up of separate sets, each with its own unique activity or theme, that can be linked together in limitless combinations. The track pieces snap together easily but hold together well enough to withstand being trampled by a little monster. The trains themselves have very simple remote controls with great sound effects and they are relatively simple to set on the tracks. Each train also comes with a small "action figure." (The sets include many small pieces, so this is not a good toy for kids prone to eating toys.) Jameson loves to play with his "tain tacks," but the great part is that it will only become more fun as he gets older. Maybe one of the best aspects of this toy is that I can see it being a favorite of his for years and years. Oh yeah, and Dad loves to play with it, too.

Since these photos, we've added several more sets. We'll post some pictures of the full train complex that now nearly occupies the entire room when fully assembled.



Even at two years old, Jameson has no trouble putting together the tracks. He's still working on the finer points of track layout, though.



The trains are rugged and easy to set up and use.



Always obey all traffic signs!



Yet another Jameson Railways disaster (and I'm sure another class action lawsuit by the little Fisher Price citizens).