Anonymous wrote:So, no one allows their children to play with Legos? Magnatiles? Playmobile?

I don't like battery-operated toys because they are loud and annoying.

Imaginext is great plastic crap. No lights or sounds...but it is like the old school wooden Fisher price (only not as quality since it is plastic). My 3 year old can play for hours with their Samurai and Superhero line. He is constantly having battles and fighting battles...sometimes the dinosaurs get in on the action.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Maybe it's you. Not the PP, but my 2yo boy's "natural instincts" include calm play.

Or maybe it is b/c he is autistic.

That's a shitty thing to say about a child you don't even know.

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thank you for the well-thought out replies, I appreciate them, and they make a lot of sense. Now I have a follow up question: does your daycare also just use wooden/woolen toys? Or is it the kind of thing where when the kids are in an environment you can't really control, you don't worry about it? Or do some of you stay home? I ask because I appreciate your answers, and would think about putting away some of the more obnoxious toys, but I know in her daycare there are plenty of plastic toys (not necessarily ones that run on batteries, though). Thoughts on that?

Thanks again for non-snark (for the most part!)

Anonymous wrote:

I do not let DD play with anything plastic or anything with batteries. I am sort of an "old soul" and believe in calm play (no flashing lights, loud noises, distracting movements). I think it leads to ADD and other attention issues. I also hate the annoying sounds of battery operated toys myself. I also think it stunts the imagination.

Woah. Clearly you have a single female child, and probably a pretty young one at that. At least now we know who we are arguing with.

As a mom of two boys, I have to tell you that your ENTIRE PHILOSOPHY would go against their natural instincts. I've only rarely seen my 2 and 4 year old boys "play calmly with no loud noises or distracting movements." And that is even with our limitation on toys with batteries. My goodness, their favorite game in the world is to basically chase each other through the house yelling "aaaaaahhhhh!" Then the chaser becomes the chasee and they turn around and retrace their path.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone also point out that this is a class war? Not everyone can afford habba toys!

Anonymous wrote:I live such a simple life! Couldn't care less what the kids play with. If it it is loud and annoying, it stays in their room, if I step on it then it gets thrown in a bag. If I saw them licking the paint or or chewing off chunks of plastic, I'd probably take it away but otherwise they just play. So far the kids still seem relatively normal.

Anonymous wrote:does any of you actually get any toys as gifts at all? Our hour is full of toys given to us as gifts and most of them tend to be the despised battery operated plastic type. so, what do you actually do to prevent people from giving you these "wrong" toys as gifts? Are you actually tacky enough to tell people, your elderly grandparents, your best friends, your nanny, etc that their choice in toys is just hmm. inferior? That they should not ever give you toys made in China or having batteries, or made of plastic, etc?

It's funny, but my aunt actually purchased DS a nice truck set by the toy company based in Germany, the toys are made in Germany... from the good old plastic. Oh my! And she was so proud the toys were not made in China! I should probably go run to the nearest Home-depot and get started on the solid wood playset right away and go sew some organic cotton ragdolls stuffed with the premium quiality fair trade ingredients.

Yes, we can make choices to avoid certain products and market for the "pure" organic products is out there, but unless you are a total ass to people around you, you will not be able to shield your kid from such toys.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone also point out that this is a class war? Not everyone can afford habba toys!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Maybe it's you. Not the PP, but my 2yo boy's "natural instincts" include calm play.

Or maybe it is b/c he is autistic.

Anonymous wrote:For me, it is about buying high-quality, open-ended, toys that my DD will be interested for many years. It is about building a toy inventory that grows with my child and will be around for the grandchildren. It is also about not overwhelming my kid with flashy junk (that, yes annoys me!).

She has an awesome set (multiple sets) of HABA blocks, play silks, dozens of Holtztiger animals, a simple wooden dollhouse, a couple wooden trucks (Fagus), and simple wooden peg people. She also has a small kitchen filled with wooden and felt food, and two baby dolls. She plays with this stuff everyday, and has for years. She has never needed more.

I don't like buying things that will only serve me and my family for a limited period time, toys included. We are somewhat minimalistic. We live in a small place.

I also try to buy local, support small business, avoid made in china.

We are also TV free while DD is awake and put our foot down on electronic toys. Plastic is OK sometimes (she does have some playmobil which we love), but we do not need anything interactive like Leapster or TAG, or whatever. We do not buy any type of educational electronic. We read books together. We also plays tons of boardgames. And, we will play some iPad apps together. DD loves books. It was important to DH and I that she enjoy books. She sat on Santa and asked for more books this past year. And, at 3.5 she can read at a beginning of the year first grade level.

I am a WAHM. DD is an only child and can entertain herself for hours in imaginary play. I don't think I have too much time on my hands. I have done a lot of reading on this subject. We all have different priorities. Her preschool has no battery-operated toys, though plenty of plastic for pretend. I never care if she watches TV or plays barbie at a friend's house. But, we can control what goes on in our home. I don't feel like it is "controlling." It is how we choose to raise our family.