Aug

24

When Toys Aren’t That Fun

Posted by Summer M

August 24, 2007 |

I remember being a kid and playing in the yard with rocks and sticks. I filled a wheelbarrel with sand and made it everythign from a beach to park. Two big leaves with some mud inbetween were the perfect tea party snack. I stil recall with joy when Tommy down the street shown me how he learned to make mud bricks and soon the driveway was a fortress against any intruder who might be thinking of coming up.

But times have changed. And gosh don’t I sound old! I feel it too. I think I age a little more every time I read the news and here that The list of toy recalls due to lead paint has grown again. How? Why? And when did we get to the point when we need to buy kids 30,000 pieces of plastic? Where’s the imagination in that? And how did we get to the point where we let toy companies sell us on every piece of junk to the point that they could give our kids marbles dipped in nuclear waste and we’d buy it if the marketing was right? I get the “poor things, mommy won’t let you have toys” comments from time to time. But I’m not digging through the toybox in the middle of the night having nightmares of lead poisoning. Yes I’m on my high horse, and I’m going to enjoy the view. Children don’t need a million dollars worth of toys, they certainly did just fine for a few billion years playing with what they could find.

If we got back to the basics, told the toy companies that our kids will be just happy with all the junk they’re trying to get rich on, and just let them play free I suspect we’d see a lot happier kids. And hear a lot less whining in the stores over the newest whatever that they “just have to have!!!”. If you’re going to buy toys look for safe wooden toys that will last longer and pollute less. Not to mention that are less likely to kill our kids.


Comments

6 Comments so far

  1. Lisa on August 24, 2007 7:27 am

    So true. Our problem is the Grandparents - trying to convince them not to “spoil” our kids with the latest and greatest plastic junk that never gets played with and clutters up my house. Sigh…

  2. singledad on August 24, 2007 8:20 am

    Simple is best. It worked for me.

    ken

  3. Linda Walsh on August 24, 2007 8:59 am

    I agree with you! I am a wife, parent, stay home mom of three little ones, homeschooling family and work out of the house owner of our online store at www.familytravelgear.com. My husband and I are always amazed as well as shocked at the selection of toys for kids now a days. We sell travel toys on our website to help parents out while they travel with their little ones, and I am always looking for safe, quiet, education toys that work with a childs imagination. I would love to talk to you about a product review if you could contact me. Thanks and I absolutely love your blog!
    Linda Walsh
    lwalsh@familytravelgear.com
    www.familytravelgear.com

  4. Little Miss Know it All on August 24, 2007 9:49 am

    You are so right! I have to fight the grandparents tooth and nail, they buy so much junk! Add in Happy Meal toys, and its a mess. Recently we took a trip overseas to visit my husband’s family. We allowed them to take their Leapsters, some coloring supplies, and a couple of toy cars. When we got there we bought chalk, bubbles and two soccer balls. What got played with? The bubbles, the chalk and the balls. The Leapsters sat in their bag for two weeks, as did the cars. For two weeks they were perfectly happy entertaining themselves! We’ve spent the past week clearing out their toy boxes–its amazing how much we took out, and they haven’t even noticed its gone!

  5. Grace on August 25, 2007 7:08 am

    Would you believe, we can go to Toys R us and come out without buying anything and our 3 year old doesn’t whine! We don’t buy her toys because we think that children who has too many toys have less focus. We buy books instead.

    But our house, of course, is not toyless. We get toys from friends as gifts but our daughter would rather bang empty cans and plastic bottles, even aluminum food covers with joy.

    BTW, I will include this post in next week’s carnival of family life (I am hosting).

  6. Sandier Pastures — desert living, Dubai style on August 28, 2007 1:35 am

    […] Babble presents When Toys Aren’t That Fun at Mammy Babble. Kids did just fine for a billion years playing what they could find. Are toys […]

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Speak your mind

<< Post Navigation >>

« « How Are You Raising Eager Readers? | I Go For The Gold » »