I had no idea what a backhoe loader was before my first son was born. But I quickly learned. It seemed like he practically entered the world obsessed with trucks - construction vehicles, semi-trucks, buses, vans, mail trucks, garbage trucks, you name it. Eventually, he added trains to the mix, too. His passion for everything with big wheels lasted for years. And he wasn't just interested in playing with toy trucks and trains; he loved watching them do their work, reading about them and seeing them on the TV screen.

Among the best videos we found for our transportation junkie were the Little Hardhats Movies. They're fast-moving, entertaining and educational shows for kids with behind-the-scenes looks at what it's like to drive and take care of a huge vehicle. They have DVDs about garbage trucks, planes, farm equipment, construction vehicles and more. I think our son's all-time favorite was the Fire & Rescue show.

They also have other transportation-related stuff for kids at http://www.littlehardhats.com/ - t-shirts, hard hats, books, and toys. They even have the book that could capture our little guy's attention for hours - The Big Book of Trucks! I remember an eight-hour car trip when he was two and he must have looked through that book for seven of those eight hours!

Great news! The folks at Little Hardhats are offering My Sweet Angel Pie readers 10% off your purchase now through 12/25/09. At checkout, just add the code AF1. Vroooom!


a la mode (sweet tip on the side)
The best list I've found of online transportation resources for kids is on AOL, with links to sites where you can design your own car, watch videos of construction vehicles at work, download a space shuttle coloring book and more.