Last summer when we were on our way up to MN and WI, I bought Luke a remote control car. This car is perfect for toddlers: it has just one button. Press and hold it once, you make the car go straight. The next press, it will spin. Press again, it goes straight again and so on.
Luke loves the car. Last summer his sisters were interested in it (especially Amanda) as well as his cousin, who actually figured out how to maneuver it with a purpose. But Luke has figured out how to turn it on, which gratifyingly makes flashing lights and zooming noises. Then he presses the button, sends the car off, and chases after it, giggling. He likes to make it run into things, especially himself and his mother. He likes to make it drive down the stairs, but we've almost trained him out of that.
He clearly does not have much of a sense of exactly what happens when he presses the button: he'll carry the car around while pressing the button, start and stop while expecting something different, etc. He also doesn't remember to turn the thing off, so I'll find the car making the noises upstairs while he's gone downstairs for something. But finding the car will make him smile, and he will play with it for about 15 minutes, which is a long time for an almost 2 year old.
I had been thinking that I wasn't sure if the car was worth it, mostly because it isn't really possible to have a conversation while Luke is playing with the car in the same room. It is so loud that hearing Amanda is a real challenge. But all doubts were answered today, while he was playing: He made the car spin around and around, he laughed and he started spinning right next to the car. He was completely pleased with himself, and having a great time. I think we'll keep them.
(I did try to get a movie of this, but Luke thought I wanted to take a picture of the car, so he kept coming to be next to me and out of the picture. Sorry, all.)
Luke loves the car. Last summer his sisters were interested in it (especially Amanda) as well as his cousin, who actually figured out how to maneuver it with a purpose. But Luke has figured out how to turn it on, which gratifyingly makes flashing lights and zooming noises. Then he presses the button, sends the car off, and chases after it, giggling. He likes to make it run into things, especially himself and his mother. He likes to make it drive down the stairs, but we've almost trained him out of that.
He clearly does not have much of a sense of exactly what happens when he presses the button: he'll carry the car around while pressing the button, start and stop while expecting something different, etc. He also doesn't remember to turn the thing off, so I'll find the car making the noises upstairs while he's gone downstairs for something. But finding the car will make him smile, and he will play with it for about 15 minutes, which is a long time for an almost 2 year old.
I had been thinking that I wasn't sure if the car was worth it, mostly because it isn't really possible to have a conversation while Luke is playing with the car in the same room. It is so loud that hearing Amanda is a real challenge. But all doubts were answered today, while he was playing: He made the car spin around and around, he laughed and he started spinning right next to the car. He was completely pleased with himself, and having a great time. I think we'll keep them.
(I did try to get a movie of this, but Luke thought I wanted to take a picture of the car, so he kept coming to be next to me and out of the picture. Sorry, all.)
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