My Toddler Sat at the Table for 30 Minutes Thanks to This $5 Racetrack Plate (It Keeps Selling Out!)

My almost 2-year-old son is deep in a “beep-beep” stage. Buses, cars, trucks — they’re all “beep beeps,” and he’s living for them.

So when I saw Target’s new Hot Wheels and Pillowfort collaboration drop last week, I urgently needed the $5 racetrack plates. The only problem? They keep selling out.

I found two in stock at a store in Long Island, and my friend’s mom drove 25 minutes to pick them up for me — you know you have good friends when they’re willing to drive nearly an hour round trip for a beep-beep emergency.

I spent a few days after the pickup figuring out how to debut the plates. As someone who loves to truly commit to a bit, I decided to spring for these car cookie cutters from Amazon, and when the day came, I cut out pieces of toast using the cutters. I lightly buttered them, and then used sliced blueberries for the “wheels” and cut up strawberries for two “windows.” My son and my 5-year-old daughter were delighted. And my beep-beep lover stayed at the table for a full 30 minutes (he did not, however, eat any more breakfast than usual).

I was a little worried at first about introducing a toy at breakfast, as we’re usually strict about no screens or toys at the table. But my son seemed to understand that this was a special occasion, and hasn’t asked for the plates at any of his meals since. I think they would be especially great for a restaurant activity while waiting for food. The plates are 11.25 inches and made out of a lightweight recycled polypropylene, so they’d be easy to throw under the stroller or in a bag. They’re also dishwasher safe, which was helpful because I absolutely didn’t have time to hand-wash breakfast plates after creating car toast before work and school.

The only problem is that the plates keep going in and out of stock. As of this writing, they were showing up as available for shipping and for pickup at certain stores. I recommend you keep refreshing periodically if you don’t see them in stock, or you can try one of the other items from the collection. I also got the $3 garage place mats (also in and out of stock) and this car lamp for his little room. And I’ve been eyeing this travel storage case for our growing collection of toy beep-beeps. 

If you want to stick with serveware, note that they also have a three-piece dinnerware set as part of the collaboration. Or you can try these car-shaped plates from Uncommon Goods, which have removable single and divided sections.