The BEST toy you ever received or gave.

[Anonymous]

The Christmas that I was 5 my mom saved up S&H Green Stamps to buy a pretend grocery store as a joint gift for my sibs and me. It had a cardboard front, a plastic grocery basket, and lots of little cardboard boxes and cans -- e.g., for pretend perishables. We loved it and played with it for years! For those of you over 45 and from the tri-state area (no, not DC/MD/VA, but NY/NJ/CT), you know what S&H Green Stamps were. For all others, think of them as the middle-class precursors to AmEx points.

When they were little, our kids loved those foam blocks, their play kitchen, their scooters and bikes. As older kids, their favorite gift was probably the year we planned a Christmas week ski trip -- and kept it a secret until Christmas Eve; they were thrilled! The looks on their faces were like the ones on that TV commercial where the kids come tearing out of their bedrooms to race to the tree on Christmas morning.

[Anonymous]

We still have the sewing basket my mother bought with Green Stamps. Really ugly, but I can't imagine ever getting rid of it. Thanks for the memory!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Growing Up Skipper. She was a Barbie type doll, but younger looking. If you spun her arm around she would grow taller and her boobs would form. Weird. But I loved her.

I loved that, too. That plus the Barbie Camper and Easy Bake oven were the toys I remember the most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Christmas that I was 5 my mom saved up S&H Green Stamps to buy a pretend grocery store as a joint gift for my sibs and me. It had a cardboard front, a plastic grocery basket, and lots of little cardboard boxes and cans -- e.g., for pretend perishables. We loved it and played with it for years! For those of you over 45 and from the tri-state area (no, not DC/MD/VA, but NY/NJ/CT), you know what S&H Green Stamps were. For all others, think of them as the middle-class precursors to AmEx points.

I TOTALLY remember those S&H Green Stamps! I remember licking and pasting hundreds of stamps to fill out those books, but I don't have a memory of actually GETTING anything with them. The grocery store sounds great!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, I can practically smell the pages of the Sears Catalog my brother and I used to thumb through, looking at all the toys and making our lists for Santa.

Favorites:

The original Mattel Football:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/FB.htm

I wasted more time on that thing than I have so far the Internet. And that's saying a lot.

LOVED the Sears Catalog. It was always so exciting when it came in the mail. I remember I always wanted a pink canopy bed from there. It was probably polyester and super cheap, but to my 10 year old eyes, it looked beautiful!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow, I can practically smell the pages of the Sears Catalog my brother and I used to thumb through, looking at all the toys and making our lists for Santa.

Favorites:

The original Mattel Football:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/FB.htm

I wasted more time on that thing than I have so far the Internet. And that's saying a lot.

LOVED the Sears Catalog. It was always so exciting when it came in the mail. I remember I always wanted a pink canopy bed from there. It was probably polyester and super cheap, but to my 10 year old eyes, it looked beautiful!

Yes, and I remember how my brother and I used to cut out the pictures of what we wanted - without the words - and glue them onto cardboard paper for Santa to see. Mom said something about how Santa needed the words so he would know the name of the toys. But we thought that was crazy, because he's just show the pictures to the elves who made everything. I could just imagine my mother looking at page after page, trying to match the shapes of the cutouts to the holes in the catalog so she could order the toys.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Growing Up Skipper. She was a Barbie type doll, but younger looking. If you spun her arm around she would grow taller and her boobs would form. Weird. But I loved her.

Holy shit, really!? I wish there was a You Tube of this...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you over 45 and from the tri-state area (no, not DC/MD/VA, but NY/NJ/CT), you know what S&H Green Stamps were. For all others, think of them as the middle-class precursors to AmEx points.

I'm 35 and from the South and totally remember S&H Green Stamps...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here - I loved my rock tumbler when a kid! Gave me many hours of fun - though can't quite figure out why now? Makes me happy just thinking about those simpler times....

I use a rock tumbler for work (I cut and polish gems) and I really enjoy my tumbler. I love the different stages and the beautiful pieces I have when I am finished. I have some stones that come out so nicely that I just drill a hole in them and string them on leather.

My favorite gift when I was a kid, wasn't even my gift, it was my brother's. My mom was in a whacky stage of life and gave him a pair of pleather pants (and a rubber chicken) and to this day even she isn't sure why. My brother refused to go near them but it wasn't long before two of my sisters and I discovered they could be used for something. There were three of us, but only two sleds, and some how we figured we could use his pants. They were awesome! We could put them over our pants, they were waterproof, they were slick, and we didn't have to drag a sled back up the hill. Nothing could hold us back.

OMG I love you people for making me laugh at the end of a long day! Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing Up Skipper. She was a Barbie type doll, but younger looking. If you spun her arm around she would grow taller and her boobs would form. Weird. But I loved her.

Holy shit, really!? I wish there was a You Tube of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVhTo4IarNg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, I can practically smell the pages of the Sears Catalog my brother and I used to thumb through, looking at all the toys and making our lists for Santa.

Favorites:

The original Mattel Football:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/FB.htm

I wasted more time on that thing than I have so far the Internet. And that's saying a lot.

OMG I remember those!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing Up Skipper. She was a Barbie type doll, but younger looking. If you spun her arm around she would grow taller and her boobs would form. Weird. But I loved her.

Holy shit, really!? I wish there was a You Tube of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVhTo4IarNg

PP here -- you made.my.night. You rock.

[Anonymous]

A sturdy carton

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Totally agree with PP. The Design & Drill is absolutely the best toy that I have ever purchased for my son. I recommend it to everyone. I got it for him when he was 3, and he still plays with it all the time at 5. His friends come over to our house to play with it. I just purchased one for my nephew for his birthday. It's very sturdy and is great for hand/eye coordination and learning to follow patterns.

WHere'd you get this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Totally agree with PP. The Design & Drill is absolutely the best toy that I have ever purchased for my son. I recommend it to everyone. I got it for him when he was 3, and he still plays with it all the time at 5. His friends come over to our house to play with it. I just purchased one for my nephew for his birthday. It's very sturdy and is great for hand/eye coordination and learning to follow patterns.

WHere'd you get this?

http://www.amazon.com/Design-and-Drill-Activity-Center/dp/B00012O42W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1260069425&sr=8-1