When Ben was born, one of my friends gave me two Thomas the Tank DVD’s that came along with wooden trains. I thanked her and set them aside. Afterall he was just a baby and wouldn’t be watching them for quite some time. I hadn’t really heard of this cheeky British train that she gushed about her son loving. What was the big deal with Thomas???

At a shower another friend said “Hey - do you want our Brio train table and wooden tracks?” I shrugged, I didn’t know-again, he was just a baby. My friend Angela, overheard the generous offer,  squeezed my elbow firmly and emphatically said in my ear “SAY. YES!”

Last summer Ben was at the doctor for an upper respiratory cold. He needed to be nebulized - “Put in a DVD to get him relaxed.” she said.”He should sit still while he breathes in the steam.”  I remembered the Thomas DVD’s and popped one in. Our life hasn’t been the same since.

All trains.

All the time.

Now, his trains are the first thing he wants in the morning. “TT! (Thomas), Percy! James!” he calls and looks for them in the house. Then he plays independently with them throughout the day. Concentrating on each movement and placement of each train, he rolls them across the coffee table, along the countertops and across the couch. And the last thing at night he even kisses them goodnight. “Night night T.T.”  

The DVD’s we have are narrated by George Carlin or Alec Baldwin. I amuse myself by imagining George Carlin having the trains say the “Seven Words You Can’t Say on the Island of Sodor.” Or perhaps Alec Baldwin would snap and suddenly Sir Topham Hat would call Gordon the engine a “Rude thoughtless pig!”  (Gordon really can be, you know.) But thankfully the worst I’ve heard uttered on The Island of Sodor is a frustrated engine exclaiming  “Cinders and Ashes!” or “Well, bust my bumpers!”

I became so aquainted with Sir Topham Hat over maternity leave I was worried I would use some of his common phrases when I came back to work. “Thank you. You are a very useful engine.” or “You have caused much confusion and delay!” Now where’s my marmalade?

I hear the train thing is either a passing fancy - or a passion that lasts well into adulthood. Hence places like this.

Any toddler obsessions going on in your house these days?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 6th, 2008 at 9:35 am and is filed under Family Life, Main. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.