We've traded our ugly duckling highchair for a Svan

Once upon a time, when I had my first child, the high chair you "had to have" was an Italian plastic padded rolling contraption. Oh how I loved that highchair when I first got it. And then oh how I hated it. Granted - it was great for solo bottle feedings, between about 5-9m of age. But then came the food. I hated how the food got stuck in the crevices and how hard it was to clean. I hated how it took up half my kitchen and most of all, I hated how it looked. In my serene beachy wood-and-stone toned kitchen, that hunko hunk of navy and white plastic was an eyesore. It was only a matter of time before it got the boot! Finally with kiddo #3 we are enjoying an upgrade. We've got a Svan.

At first I was worried how my son was going to react to the change. He was somewhat attached to his hand-me-down plastic throne. There were those special little holes for shoving peas in - an activity that had brought him countless hours of joy. I actually felt a little sorry for him as we put our Svan together (note:this was far easier than I thought - the first glance at the directions and all the parts had me panicked!). Fox studied the Svan with much glee and fascination as we assembled it. He smiled and then did the funniest thing. Before it was even completed, he marched over to the Plastic-o highchair and shoved it out of the kitchen, down the hall, all the way to the garage door. He then, singlehandedly, pushed the Svan to the table, and demanded to be seated in it! There should have been a camera rolling. I cannot make this stuff up.

Poor kid, I guess he really wanted to sit at the table with the rest of us. And we kept parking him at a table for one. It's tough being pre-verbal.

Ever since that day, the ol' Plastic-o has moved out to the garage. It's familiar territory for that highchair, and where it has spent most of it's life. The Svan, on the other hand, has taken pride of place and will be sticking around *inside* for years to come. I love how it sleekly morphs from baby highchair to toddler chair to big person chair. There is a video showing the transformation on the product site. We're still using the tray for snacks and even though it is wood, which had me a tidbit worried, its a breeze to clean. Best of all - no icky crevices! Hurray!

Gwen Stefani, Brooke Shields, Jennie Garth and Bill Bellamy are all fans of this chair. If you are thinking of getting one, check out www.ToadsandTulips.com - they offer free shipping on the chair in a choice of four finishes, sure to complement your decor.