Little People

Levi woke up an hour earlier than usual this morning.  Maybe his eyeteeth were bothering him.  Maybe he was hot.  Or hungry.

I'd like to think that he woke up early because he sensed that there were a couple surprises waiting upstairs for him.  One was a wonderful (and oh so big!) pretend garage, a birthday present that arrived late last night from his aunt and uncle.

The other surprise was my solution to Little People.

He received one lone Little People figure in December and held onto it everywhere he went in the house, including during diaper changes.  I noticed that he took a strong liking to the Little People sets at school.  I saw how he liked to grasp each figure and tote them around with him as he roamed.  The size is just right for his little hands.

He also began to mimic "walking" with the Little People, bouncing them up and down.  Although he isn't engaged in pretend play yet, he is observant when I pretend to chew on a wooden carrot or pretend to feed a doll.  Sometimes he plays along.

I also saw how easy it was to strike up conversations about the figures because despite being generic, there were enough distinguishing characteristics.  Our conversations went like this:

"Hat."
"Yes, this boy has a hat."
"Glasses."
"Yes, this girl has black glasses."

Unfortunately Little People is of Fisher-Price fame (or infamy, should I say?).  In August 2007, Fisher-Price recalled millions of its toys after reports about lead paint surfaced.  Since then mama bloggers have complained about their vagueness whenever contacted about the paint in today's toys.

I realize that there will be toxins everywhere we go, but I can sleep better at night knowing that I am at least trying to keep Levi's lead levels low.  We live in a townhouse that is more than a hundred years old.  Lead is heavy on my mind.

Being the obsessive resourceful researcher I am, I combed through the parlance of concerned mamas and environmental watchdogs online for healthier alternatives to Little People.  I passed over the wooden pegs.  One day I will buy a pack and paint them myself, customize those people to represent our mixed family.  But not now.  I needed something quick, easy.

I read about WOW Toys, a London-based toy company that brags high quality standards and PVC-free plastic.  Cute!  Amazon sells them.

Wow Toys

Then I discovered Playmobil 1.2.3.  While Playmobil caters to the 3+ crowd, Playmobil 1.2.3. is designed for littler people who might still mouth their toys.  I read luminous reviews about their figures and thought they resembled Little People the most.  Our local toy store, Minijake, has a pretty big collection of Playmobil and I have store credit, so I thought I'd pass over Amazon.com and go to the store myself.  Last night I handed Levi over to Pop and ran went to the store.  Score!

Playmobil 1.2.3.  I got Levi this exact set.

I never imagined I would be this passionate about something as frivolous as...Little People?

But for my little person, of course.  He grabbed the bus and went crazy over the side compartments.  He explored his new garage with a fake Little People figure in each hand.  Score!