Tristan is quickly developing an obsession with Thomas the Train.

We picked up some trains and tracks the last time we went to Ikea – couldn’t have been too long ago, maybe three months?  And at first, Tristan needed to be supervised with them.  He got INSANELY frustrated whenever he couldn’t get the trains to stick together properly.  They were taken away a lot because he’d seriously lose his shit over it whenever the line of trains disintegrated.  Since we refuse to encourage him losing his shit unnecessarily, he needed to be gradually accustomed to the system.

Fast forward past our Vegas trip about a week, when I gave him the battery-operated, SELF-MOVING Thomas.  And it all began to click.  James has spent a LOT of time with Tristan playing with the trains and showing him how to have fun.  After all, battery-operated trains can be used to push uncooperative little trains around in a line.  And so we expanded our set with a second battery-operated train (Percy, the green one), a shitload more tracks, and a couple more from the Thomas line that were less active.

Last night, we had the following – a Thomas video on, a Thomas iPad app being played, and trains in clear sight and frequently approached.

This article was interrupted by Tristan waking up and resuming the Thomas-thon.

When my little brother was obsessed with Thomas, I tried very hard to pretend that no such trains existed.  Now, I’m glad to hear George Carlin’s voice narrating the videos (RIP).  Too bad he doesn’t drop the F-bomb a bit in these; they might be more interesting that way.

But Tristan is now firmly interested in a stereotypical BOY interest.