One of the biggest dilemmas I have been faced with as a parent involves toys. I completely understand now how some kids are incredibly spoiled and the parents have no idea how that happened. I walk through the toy aisle at stores and see so many toys that I just "know" my kids would love. They look like so much fun!
Then there's the toys my nieces or neighbors or other random kids in my life would love, and surely deserve to have. Don't get me wrong, I don't spend money on toys for every child within driving distance, I just fantasize about being the cool aunt who can afford to spoil all those kids rotten :)
The problem is, how can you tell what toys will be good, quality toys that will be something your kid plays with for more than a day or a week? My parents buy my boys cute little toys, but soon, my boys go straight back to what they had before. How can you predict the toy preference patterns in your home?
I have already bought several toys that just didn't make the cut for my kids and am so disappointed that that money went down the drain so quickly.
As I have been dejunking lately, I have looked around their room and honestly considered which toys have been played with recently (or at all). The hardest part for me is wondering, what if they start liking this toy later? Am I robbing them of fun by getting rid of it? Truth be told, and I have to constantly remind myself, if it's not fun for them now, they won't miss it later, and they will probably still love the toys they love now.
The only problem is future toys that enter our home. I really want to focus on educational toys, because kids can have fun with them without even realizing they are learning. Some of K's favorite toys are his alphabet blocks. He loads them in his dump truck and drives them around the apartment.
In the end, my kids would probably prefer I play with them more than any toy in particular, and I have to make sure I spend as much time with them as possible. Bonds have more impact than things ever will on my children's lives.
Disclosure: Though I was sponsored for this post, the opinions expressed herein are 100%, completely, and entirely mine. Have a great weekend!
How does the sponsorship for your post work? Just curious. :)
ReplyDeleteThis post is so easy to identify with. One of my criteria in looking at toys is what does it do? Actually the more it does the more she is NOT doing in some cases. Balls will always be win, win. I like toys that she can find 100 uses for rather than the toy that sings and dances.