London - Digging in the Muck
My favorite part of being a parent is teaching my sons how to make and grow things. If it's not raining then digging in dirt and getting mucky is great fun, showing how to re-pot things, planting seeds and watching them grow is, I think, an important part of being a child. This is my younger sons' (who is nearly one) great passion in life. He digs about with his older brothers Brio spade and bucket but seems to eat more earth than he digs!
If it is raining then I love sitting down to build a sprawling metropolis of track, trains, people and animals with the boys, one chewing pieces and one trying to rescue them. Teaching them about how pieces fit together, how to use their imaginations and encouraging independent thought is, I think, a lot of what being a parent is about. My older son's (aged 5) Brio set has grown with him over the years, every Christmas or birthday he will get a new little bit or two that keeps it fresh and means even more endless layouts to be discovered.
Part of the beauty of Brio is in the simplicity of its design and the clever mix of wood and plastic that make it both traditional and modern. And boy is it hard to break! I can't wait to see the new "Network" as it will help explain to my son, and me, how e-mails work. I particularly like the look of the virus' and all those lights and sound effects!
Also in September I am opening a toy shop , with my friend Honey, on the Portobello Road called Honeyjam. I'm really excited that I finally get to buy Brio on a large scale! What joy to look at their beautiful catalogue and know that I can order whatever I think will rock kids boats! I can't wait to see the Network in action and as we both launch in the same month we are lucky enough to be able to stock it. It will be hard not to order too much!
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