Wednesday, November 14, 2007

A little bit retro

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...at least in the stores. Here in Ohio there are still green leaves on the trees. But sooner or later, the calender will actually catch up with the marketing. And then the question becomes what to get folks this year.

Kids these days are inundated with ads and commercials that hype every new toy like it's the ONLY thing that will make them complete. I look at these toys and long for the ones that I grew up with. The old standards, when to be a toy did not mean that you also had a Saturday morning cartoon (though it was a bonus). I know that every generation claims that "their" childhood was the best, but mine was pretty carefree. The most contested rule that I remember during grade school was our "24" hour Lincoln Log rule. We could build whatever we wanted in the living room, but it had to be taken down the same time next day. A lot of strategy was put into the exact time the Wild West was recreated.

I found a site that lists 13 All-Time Favorite Toys. It was a great trip down memory lane and it's inspired my own Christmas buying list for my nephew. Sure he's into Bob the Builder and Veggie Tales, and there's nothing wrong with that. But I plan to use this holiday season to open up his eyes to some oldies, but goodies. At least I know that if he doesn't enjoy them, I will. What's on your gift list for the children in your life?

1 comment:

Sue K. said...

I'm making "Time Out" benches for my grandkids. I had a easy bake oven when I was little. I thought I was really cool!