I have already posted about Christmas on here, so I feel
like there is nothing holding me back from going all out with the holiday posts
now. I have to say however, it is hard to get anything done or even concentrate
because my head feels like it is going to explode. No, it’s not a cold, not too
much eggnog, not a bad reaction from a piece of questionable fruit cake, it’s
me trying to process ALL these TOYS!
I started innocently scanning through some ads we got in the
mail to get a feel for what might work for Emma for her first Christmas and I
was floored by the extreme toys I saw! Yes, when I was a kid I do remember a
bunch of different toys and it seemed like each one was special in its own way,
but when I look at any advertisement or walk down any toy isle now, I get dizzy
and feel extremely overwhelmed. No wonder kids have ADD, every gadget has 20+
functions and hooks up to the computer so it can perform 40 more. Even
understanding the simplest of items, a walker, felt like learning a whole new
language. All I wanted for her was a simple toy she could use to help her get
around, but instead I was bombarded with a barrage of strange objects that
seemed to do even stranger things. One walker had so much stuff on it it’s a
wonder any of the kids ever figure out there is a back side where they can
actually pull themselves up to walk. What a novel idea for a walker!
Anyways, I was tempted to get her the simple Little Tikes
walker that has the car attached to the front and that’s it, but it seemed like
it might be for older kids, so I ended up picking a middle of the road walker.
It has some musical stuff on the front of it, but not an overwhelming amount
and we saw it in action over at a friend’s house so we know she will enjoy it.
Bottom line though, I feel out of it, I feel like while I was off enjoying my
pre-baby adulthood someone turned up the overload button on toys. I am tempted
to buy Emma only simplistic toys but then would she fall behind other kids? It
seems that is a discussion for another post, but for now, I am going to try to
keep it as simple as I can. I mean she’s really going to pay more attention to
the wrapping paper anyway, right?
Ugh. I'm so with you on the crazy toys thing. After working with special needs kids, many of whom had ADHD, I did start to wonder what kind of an effect their toys were having on their brains. We too had trouble shopping for a walker when we registered. We ended up liking a very simple Winnie-the-Pooh one that had a few simple toys on trays that could be removed.
ReplyDeleteWe try to buy things for Doug that don't light up and make sounds or move on their own. We like things that he can use to stretch his imagination. I don't think kids who "miss out" on the crazy interactive toys and iPads will fall behind. They get exposed to so much stuff. Melissa and Doug is a great line of simple toys that promote imaginative play, btw. Their customer service is pretty good too (we had a broken toy, and they replaced it quickly). Their things are pretty sturdy and Doug loves them. He also loves his trains and cars, none of which have batteries.
So, I say, right on!