The Big Red Couch

It's a parking lot; it's a trampoline; it's the Big Red Couch. Rick and I bought it before we had kids. It sat in our dining room (!) for years--ignored, collecting dust. When we moved to our new home in 2007, the Big Red Couch became the epicenter of activity on the main level. The kids know it as the "fun" couch--our neighbors tell their kids "we don't jump on our couch, we jump on the red couch." All the cushions and pillows come off, and the kids jump and giggle and jump and giggle. Rick and I are relieved that we had the foresight to buy microsuede (the most easy-to-clean fabric ever) and a warranty.

I have to say that the sweetest moments are watching Jack and his friend Noah play cars on the Big Red Couch for minutes on end (I'd say hours, but we're talking about toddlers, and minutes--plural--of focused activity is an eternity). They play side by side, occasionally offering each other cars they're bored of in exchange for different ones. Their exchanges are polite and efficient, "Here you go, Jack." "Thanks, Noah." as we moms stand nearby with our hands to our hearts...aren't our boys sweet?

Needless to say, the Big Red Couch has seen a lot of action in the last eight months, and I'm so glad. In part, just so I can tell Rick, "See? It was a great investment, but like any investment it takes time to get a good return."