Looking for new toy ideas for the kids?
Have you tried the attic?
Yes, your kids know the latest and greatest toy in the store. But the times you don’t buy those, repackage, repurpose, recycle the toys you already own–and loved.
Contrary to popular opinion, kids are pretty flexible. When they realize that they’re not going to be able to play something this morning (say, for example, anything with a screen), there will be a certain period of disbelief, anger, mild depression, then quick recovery. This process can be sped up with an alternative activity, say, something without a screen. I dug out some tracks I saw the other day and some cool cars that, when you pull back on the cars, they shoot forward with impressive speed. Enough velocity for a double loop-de-loop–twice! Well, that did the trick. They were busy for the next two hours.
Warning: this goes against the grain of the minimalist’s “What attic boxes?” philosophy.
With the exception of when I say we’ll get ice cream “later,” my kids have the memory of a goldfish. But even if they do recognize a toy or a game or a puzzle from their younger years, you can still spin the story to make it sound appealing. “It’s a classic! I played this when I was a kid!” Of course, this is also tricky if your child is in the “anything you guys did is from the olden days” and is thus disqualified from being anywhere near hip. You’ll probably lose that uphill battle. Move on to something better, dig deeper in the attic. Do you have a basement?
If you really want to go for broke, wrap the old toy as if it were new. What’s the worst that could happen? You’re either a star or a complete dork. “Star” and “dork” both get laughs in my family.
Bonus/today only/special offer/you’ll only hear this here at The Cream: this works for adults too.
Pull an old game off the shelf. Do you ever box up old clothes or do you get rid of them? I figure I’ll be roughly the same size for years, I box clothes. I open up a box years later and, “Hey, I don’t remember buying that.” Put it on, I’m a rockstar. Or a dork. Either way, I smile.
Looking for toys for the kids. Have you tried the attic?
