What I almost got...

A lot more gift options opened up for our nephew James's birthday this year. Now that he, the youngest of his siblings, just turned three, the possibilities seem endless. All those ages-3-and-up toys are no longer verboten.

In the end, I went with simplicity: this adorable little red wagon filled with sidewalk chalk.


I figure that after he uses up all the chalk (with the help of some older siblings I'm sure), he can still cart stuff around in the wagon. As we know, boys like things with wheels.

What I almost got - the thing that drew me to the chalk section in the first place - were these giant stamps that you wear on your feet, so you can make animal stamps in your driveway. How fun is that, right?!

(Pretend there's a picture here. I seriously cannot find one. I'll try to sneak one next time I'm at Target.)

But I talked myself out of it. I was worried that they would be too big for his little feet. Or that he'd get bored with it after walking down the sidewalk a couple times. (Not really a multi-functional toy.) Then I realized you fill the foot things with a (potentially messy) colored chalk powder. And that's what sealed the deal.

My sister-in-law and I have a good relationship. I try to keep it that way by not buying her kids anything that will drive her crazy.


So we went with the sticks of chalk. In a cute little wagon. But I can't say I didn't have some second (and 3rd, 4th...) thoughts about that.

As it turns out, though, James was really only into things that shoot.