our current favorite toy

I recently took River over to play at a friend’s house, where the dad engaged both River and his friend with this super awesome toy, the Battat take apart airplane.

I rarely buy new toys, but this was cool enough that I wanted to consider getting it for River. I asked the parents what it was called and where they got it.

“Don’t worry about it,” the dad whispered. “I’ve got two more in the basement and one will be appearing at River’s party.”

Though we had requested no gifts, they brought this 4x4 for River and I can’t complain as it is without a doubt his favorite toy. It comes with a cool battery-powered screwdriver that both removes screws or screws them back in, depending on the setting. While Mark initially had to help River, he’s now able to completely dismantle and reassemble this 4x4 by himself. I think it’s pretty empowering for him to be able to do that and the drilling is great for both hand-eye coordination and for figuring out how to put things together.

Still in our friends’ basement, and soon to be headed to another birthday boy, is this crane.

That’s going to be a happy kid.