• Miscellaneous

    Vegetable Garden Set – Epoch Sylvanian Families / Calico Critters

    March 26, 2024 - By 

    One of the things my daughter did when she was 2 was to scold crows (real or imaginary) and tell them to go away, à la Rabbit from the Hundred Acre Wood. When I noticed the Sylvanian Families / Calico Critters Vegetable Garden Set, I imagined Small Sophie scolding the huge-in-comparison stuffed crow as it tried to enjoy vegetables belonging to the hardworking Sylvanian animals. I generally like toys that that offer more/different play opportunities and prompt usage of different vocabulary and scenarios. (Also, my only Sylvanian Families food was ice cream, so that was the main diet of the…

  • Life

    Learning Locking Blocks at 14-15 Months

    May 24, 2022 - By 

    When Small Sophie first played with these round locking blocks at a little under 15 months of age, she did not know what direction to put them in. She understood that the round part aligned and accurately placed those—— but upside-down or right-side up? She had to try both if she first went with upside-down. By the second day, she understood that they go right-side up and consistently placed them correctly. However, she often left blocks halfway locked. We would help her lock the blocks now and then, else the towers would fall. (She put them back up if they…