As I was biking home from church on Sunday I spotted a yard sale with kids toys. I am always a sucker for a great deal and we have been looking for a little walker toy for Annikah. I stepped on my brakes and turned around. I saw this little beat up wooden walker toy and I was sold. I love items with a story, experience, and history and this little walker had it all. I asked the gentleman in the front yard how much it was was and he replied “if you got a dollar it is yours.” I quickly counted out my quarters and dimes (those who know me know I NEVER carry cash so it was a miracle I even had a dollar:). Luckily I had just over a dollar so the lil’ wooden toy was mine. Biking home the rest of the way proved to be a challenge but when I got home I presented Anni with her new treasure. I love this toy because of its sweet simplicity; no lights, no music, no cartoon characters. Just a wooden box on 4 wheels with a handle. Understated yet brilliant. She immediately knew what to do with it and was soon walking all over the house, up and down the long hallway. She loved it so much that about 10 minutes later when we decided to go outside she cried and we peeled her little fingers off the handle. Jason agreed that I made the best purchase ever and we pondered how many other little kids had learned to walk on this walker and how Anni is now part of that legacy. After a good cleaning and some TLC it was ready for her and since Sunday night Anni and her lil wooden walker have been inseparable. She even learned that she can transport her other little goodies from room to room by putting them in the wooden box. I was watching her walk with it the other night and started to tear up. She seems so old, so independent. She was walking without any help from me. First, walking with a walker, then walking, then school, a drivers license, then college….for the first time I really resonate with what other parents always tell me “appreciate it now, they grow so fast.”
http://i204.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid204.photobucket.com/albums/bb212/roxanne_engstrom/lastdaysofsummer012.flv

  1. Anonymous says:

    What a cool walker and independent little girl!