Toys

[towertheatre]

Two of my grandkids just went back home after a week's visit. As I always do when I know they are coming, I went by the Dollar Store and grabbed a couple of new toys so they'd have them when they got here. It started me thinking. My childhood took place in the 40s and the toys were less . . . frantic.

Comments

[incandragon]

Kids still tend to have more fun with a big cardboard box! Or a chair with a blanket over it.

But what you said about the frying pan reminds me of my argument to a woman -- I said that toy guns were a non-violent toy. Give a boy a toy gun and he'll point it and go "pow pow." *Don't* give him a toy gun, and he'll pick up a stick and hit something!

;-)

Some toys are definitely WAY complicated! Give the kids some chalk and a sidewalk while the parents figure out how to get the dern thing put together!

[cabin77]

You are right about boys and their toys. We have tried to keep toy guns out of our house, but it doesn't matter. Buddy can make a gun out of Leggos, a stick, a spoon, etc. So now our only rule is that he can't point the gun at anything living!

A great example of the difference between little boys and little girls and the way they play: Some friends have one of each. Their daughter was playing with her Barbie doll in the living room. She talked to it, groomed it and then lay it on the sofa, sang to it and covered it up with a washcloth for a "nap". Their son came by a few minutes later, saw the doll all tucked in for her nap, picked it up and promptly used it as a hammer.

[cabin77]

You know, with all of the "gadget" type toys around, Princess will still play for hours with just her Barbie dolls. And Buddy's favorite thing to play is "bug the sister"!

We've tried to make a conscious choice to stay away from the really expensive, high-tech stuff. I know that they advertise that the high-tech stuff helps kids develop this or that, but I like hearing them make up dialogue between characters that they have created. One day we'll get them some sort of video game system, I'm sure. I know that they'll need some sort of skill that comes with that when they go out into the world because practically all of their peers will have mastered every game out there. But there will be strict limitations on when and where they can play!

Thank you for hosting my kids! They always have a great time at your house!

[rkimedes]

I had this babysitter who taught me how to build houses for my Barbies out of plywood and furniture. I had a room full of Barbie stuff, but the thing I had the most fun with was building bigger and more elaborate houses and then decorating them.

As for the actual Barbies, when they would finally move in, Ken would come around a lot to visit, and they'd kiss a lot. Then they'd get married, have a baby, and lose interest in one another. I think I was scarred by popular culture...