Toys

I’m a firm believer that you never outgrow your need for toys. In a way, I’m convinced that closed minds developed early due to a lack of creative play opportunities. If you can’t explore the universe through play as a child, how prepared are you to explore it as an adult?

For me, this is not a trivial matter. As children, our kids flooded the floors with Brio trains, Legos, Polly Pockets, crayons, and papers. As a result, my wife and I spent carefully on toys that could be adapted to many uses. It was great fun listening to our four children explain the scenarios they had created.
But, adults were also tripping on fortresses, trainyards, castles, and mazes in the dark. Clean-up was “challenging” because there was always something snaking its’ way between the boys’ room and the girls’ room. There were lots of small pieces for a cat to chase. And a cat to be chased away from an active play site.
I know that many people are concerned with media influences on children, which was also an issue in our household. But our response to it was to offer alternatives early on rather than fight a losing battle later.
we did not want our kids turning into little cabbages passively soaking up what was showered on them. Instead, we wanted them to shape what was offered.

So yes, I have a family that never outgrows its need for toys.