Mommy, can I please have a train table?

A few years back, my husband and I had the great idea to buy my daughter a train table for Christmas. It seemed like it would be the perfect gift for her because she always loved the train tables at friends houses and at the stores. It was like pulling teeth to get her away from them, and she would never forget where there was a train table. We used to go to a bookstore that had the kids section upstairs, and in it was a train table. Guess where she would head as soon as she was through the door? Yup, up the escalator to the beloved table. So, what could be a better gift for her?

That Christmas Eve, my husband spent hours building the table and setting up the entire city on it. When he was done, it looked something like this:

Within moments, the table looked something like this:

Yes, she dismantled the entire city. But wait, it gets better... That was the last time she ever "played" with her lovely train table. It now sits collecting dust in our spare room.

I've often considered putting it on eBay, but I know what would happen. Suddenly it would become a toy that she couldn't live without. I'd hear what I always hear from her when I try to get rid of something of hers- "I've been looking for that toy for a long time!" Yes, it's been cleverly hidden for the past 3 years.