Are you looking for the best advice anyone could ever give you when it comes to toys? Well, here you have it. For free. Because I’m generous like that.
Stop. Buying. Them.
- I am not a material girl. I’ll like my share of comfort, but I don’t care too much about stuff. But when it comes to Little Boy, I seem to have lost control. I’m aging completely nuts. Lots of what I buy is second-hand or thrifted, but still I have a problem. That child has way too many toys. And the thing is: give him a set of his old plastic spoons and some empty yoghurt cup and he’s the happiest kid in the world. The best toys seem to be the things that aren’t toys.
- You would be surprised at the quantity of toys that can be created by upcyling. I recently did a post about empty milk tins, but even if I look at my bunch of 17-year old guys at school, I’m stunned with how they make the most fantastic airplanes out of two pencils and a paperclip.
- No toy can beat playing outside. Take walks, watch birds, look for some chickens in the neighborhood (or deer of rabbits or whatever animal can be seen through the neighbor’s fence), let your little one pick up pine cones, gather rocks, hide behind bushes… We just recently installed a very cheap sand pit and it’s a hit!
- Ever bought a toy you really thought your kid would love and then been disappointed when he didn’t even look at it? Once I was very proud to discover a toy he had played with for an entire hour at the doctor’s office. I only paid a few euros for it, but he has never touched it. Apparently there is some rule that states certain toys belong to certain places.
- At numerous occasions, I was planning on taking some of his old toys upstairs to store them, when I discovered Little Boy was finding new ways to play with them, even if he would be ‘too old’. The same toys, when offered at different moments, can be an endless source of fun because the time lapse and the evolution of your little one’s capacities make up for a different perspective.
I really should listen to my own advice by the way.
Sharing with
Kathy @ Titus 2 Tuesday linkup
Kirsten @ Works For Me Wednesday
Beth @ Wedded Wednesday
Songs of Home 