++Fast Food Nation?++

This picture is here just because I like it. The real stuff starts below.

I don't think I have alluded to this in the past, but I have a new guilty pleasure: garage sales. They make it pretty easy down here. All the neighborhoods only allow garage sales twice a year on predetermined days so it's not like you have to drive all over for one garage sale, there are like 15 of them all in the same neighborhood on the same day. Most of it is junk. I only shop for one thing: toys. I figure that really it is the one true thing that could still be perfectly good but the kids are just too old for it. I've seen this happen with Wyatt already. So, I drive around and look for brightly colored plastic stuff and if I can see it from the street, I stop. If not, I go on. Here are a few of my recent finds (all of which Wyatt seems to like better than toys purchased at full-priced fancy toy stores).
--Fisher Price Little People Airplane (to supplement is Little People bus passion)

--Plastic Lawnmower. Super cheapy. I paid 50 cents for it. He and the neighbor kid, Alex, are constantly vying for it.
--Plastic toolbox and tools.

--Various Thomas and Bob books.

--A Wiggles CD (I had to see what all the fuss is about...still not quite sure)

The problem with garage sales is that you have to make spur-of-the-moment decisions. No time to think about it and come back later, you snooze, you lose. I made one of those decisions on Friday and spent the rest of the day wondering what I got myself into. Meet Wyatt's new toy:

Do you see the smile on his face? How could I resist? Did I mention it makes all sorts of fabulously appetizing sounds like grease frying and burgers sizzling?

It also came with an extra cash register with a scanner (never seen them scan anything at McDonald's but Wyatt thinks it's great).

Finally, it's not just the kids that get to have fun with these toys! (Sadly, this event happened after Wyatt was in bed...hey, I need to keep my job skills up somehow!)

So here was my dilemma---yes, the thing is fun and I would have LOVED it as a kid (there's a drive-through--or should I say "thru") window and everything---but what am I teaching my kid? It violates a lot of my parenting principals on so many levels, yet I bought the thing! It didn't come with any food or cups or accessories. I looked online and I can get a whole bag of stuff for about $10. Should I stock it with authentic food or should our McDonald's sell fruit? Ok, so I am over thinking it. I would never have bought it if we didn't have a big room upstairs fully devoted to play. If Wyatt has a weight problem or never aspires to be more than a fast food worker, I can only blame myself :)

On another note, today was Collierville's annual "Fair on the Square." Now that we have Wyatt we are all about any free event with lots of people and stuff to look at. It was a really nice day and we had a good time. He went to the petting zoo with dad (I stayed out to "take pictures" a.k.a. "animals like that scare the crap out of me"). He loved them all and fed them right out of his hands.

Here's a close encounter with a goat.

We had lunch there as well. Here's Wyatt telling me all about what he saw.

We also hung some more pictures today. One step closer to finally being done with that task. Phew.