03-21-2005, 07:57 AM
I don't know. I think that in many cases toys have become so cheap that they're pretty much disposable. People can buy their kids huge mounds of toys at low prices, and many kids have so many cheap bits of plastic lying around that there really is no need for them to take care of any one toy particularly well (or explore the toys to the point where there's any degree of depth in their play).
When today's kids grows up, for example, I don't think that nearly as many of them will remember which particular model of anything they played with. My memory of toys from my childhood is biased (of course), but I'm pretty sure that today there's a greater variety of toys available, but a smaller degree of real differences. Even the "nostalgia" toys that have been re-released (My little pony, care bears, strawberry shortcake) have been expanded into huge product lines these days. Who cares what model you have any more? Just get it all, mom, and by the way can I have a bigger room to keep it all in?
Legos at least provide some degree of problem solving, creativity, and thinking skills. We buy plenty of legos here, although I'll admit that Mr. Gris probably enjoys them the most (we have the same Vader and R2D2, btw, but they were taken apart when we moved and haven't been put together again just yet). I am also a big supporter of more "rocks and dirt" play myself, although I'll admit that we do have huge piles of molded plastic around as well, and not all of it has nearly as many redeeming qualities as the legos do.
I'm probably not helping any with "my" collection of stuffed cthulhus, though! :whistling:
PS- Dee, it looks like the pinkie toe has recovered nicely! :)
When today's kids grows up, for example, I don't think that nearly as many of them will remember which particular model of anything they played with. My memory of toys from my childhood is biased (of course), but I'm pretty sure that today there's a greater variety of toys available, but a smaller degree of real differences. Even the "nostalgia" toys that have been re-released (My little pony, care bears, strawberry shortcake) have been expanded into huge product lines these days. Who cares what model you have any more? Just get it all, mom, and by the way can I have a bigger room to keep it all in?
Legos at least provide some degree of problem solving, creativity, and thinking skills. We buy plenty of legos here, although I'll admit that Mr. Gris probably enjoys them the most (we have the same Vader and R2D2, btw, but they were taken apart when we moved and haven't been put together again just yet). I am also a big supporter of more "rocks and dirt" play myself, although I'll admit that we do have huge piles of molded plastic around as well, and not all of it has nearly as many redeeming qualities as the legos do.
I'm probably not helping any with "my" collection of stuffed cthulhus, though! :whistling:
PS- Dee, it looks like the pinkie toe has recovered nicely! :)
Why can't we all just get along
--Pete
--Pete