I introduced my three-year-old son to the auction last week and can I just say, “I’m so proud.” He kept his eye on the prize, and before the night was through, he brought home the item of his young-hearted second-hand affection.

Mom and I took my little guy to a small auction in Oklahoma while I was in town for a few days and my son, like a moth to a porch light, zeroed in on an old green engine and it took all the control he could muster to keep his hands off the toy train. In fact, we had to “visit” it several times during the night.

Finally, about two hours later, the toy table finally made its way to the front of the room. I intended to bid on the “gem” of an engine but was seriously hoping that no one else would be interested. To up my odds, I grabbed my son just as the auctioneer picked up the train and stood him up on a chair, hoping that the rest of the room would surely not bid against this cute little guy of mine.

With an opening request of $15, I barely got my number in the air when my son shot his arm straight up and hollered, “Me!” We just happened to be at the very back of the room and everyone turned around to see who was possibly so excited about this not-so-good of a deal. The tactic worked and not a smiling soul dared bid against us, and the cheerful auctioneer was half way back to our seats before yelling “sold” and handing us our prize.

I’m not sure my son’s smile (and eyes) could get much bigger as he realized the little toy train was his. . . come to think of it, the smile on my face was probably pretty matchless too.