Take a good look around your home. Any room will do. There it is: PLASTIC. Everywhere. Trucks, dolls, make-believe stuff, games, utensils, vehicles, playhouses, animals, you name it. Brightly-colored, scuffed up, mostly electronic. And let’s face it, after the few minutes of new-toy interest wears off, you’re stuck with it. The only good news is, it’s so ugly you’re actually glad to dispose of it. Another $14.99 down the drain.
If yours is like most homes, you have a toy box. Big,deep,lidded. Large enough to house all those cluttery toys and keep them out of sight. Toss them in and forget it, right? Think about it. If your toys were valuable, would you want them thrown on top of each other, every day, then picked over and thrown around by your child, until s/he finds the one s/he wants? Is this method of storage teaching your child to care for their toys and to treat them with loving care? Of course not. After all, they’re plastic.
So this leads me to the inevitable. Get yourself a nice big box or trash bag and fill it up. Just get rid of the plastic. It really can be done. Eventual substitutes for the plastic/vinyl will cost more, but will be so beautiful that they will be around when you’re having your grandchildren over. They feel better to children (and us!), they look better, and they’re non-electronic, so those annoying noises will be gone. Dolls made from natural fibers, wool hair and cotton faces are so much more pleasing than that horrible Barbie bright-pink (not to mention the obvious message you’re sending to your child). Try a wooden kitchen, wooden playstands with rainbow silks for roofs, hand-carved wooden animals, stables, dollhouses, wooden tree blocks (instead of legos). The list goes on and on. The exception: balls.
If you think it can’t be done, try it. I did. In the best way I knew how. I relegated the plastic to outdoor toys only, the vinyl to tub toys. Now that the weather is warmer, I took his plastic trucks and moved them out to the back yard. His vehicles are all lined up next to each other on the side yard, and that’s where they’re staying. Everything he got for Christmas and his birthday was made of some sort of natural material, and if it wasn’t, it was returned, given away, or tossed. Yes, the brand-new trumpet-playing cookie monster was put in the toys-for-tots bin. The dark-purple sunglasses and matching battery-operated “disco” player that played obnoxious sounds was tossed (I didn’t want ANY child to experience this). The plastic Mr.Bubbles Bubble GUN didn’t even make it out of the package before disposal. I purchased stacking shelves for his toys, and baskets for the smaller things. No plastic bins with brightly colored lids. No big toy box. Don’t get me wrong. My home is far from looking like it did pre-child. Our coffee table is a train table, and his little wooden kitchen is the first stove you see. But it not only looks good. He happens to love his kitchen, as well as his other toys. And better yet, I do, too.
So, where to find all these beautiful toys? If you’re an e-shopper, you’re in luck. For games, classic toys (from when we were growing up), train sets and dolls, try Back To Basics Toys. This site is part of the Amazon.com family of sites, so don’t let that throw you. For a more complete selection of all they have to offer, get their mail order catalog 1-800-356-5360. We ordered my son’s wooden kitchen and train table from BTB and they are GREAT. For a terrific selection of natural toys according to age group, The Playstore is about as good as it gets or, if you happen to be in Palo Alto, CA, visit their store it’s a real treat. Just take a look at the site and you’ll see what I mean.
For beautiful dolls, silks and make believe toys, as well as a wealth of books, games and items for the nature table, visit www.hedgehogfarms.com. Nancy, the proprietor is an absolute delight, and this is a family-run business that you’ll be happy to do business with. If you’re in the market for playstands (a fort-like structure with a draped silk for a “roof”), run to www.bornnature.com. Their playstands have an awning for the silk, and is just one gorgeous piece of furniture. For the widest selection of beautiful, natural-fiber dolls and accessories, get yourself a Magic Cabin Dolls catalog (1-888-623-6557). They have a frequent buyer club discount, which (for a $40 fee) enables you to purchase anything in their catalog at 20% off the list price, including discounted items. There are more than just dolls in this catalog, so moms of boys, get one too! another site to visit is Bungalow Toys for Brio and Thomas The Train.
If you want to see and feel these toys for yourself, you may be lucky enough to have a Waldorf school in your community. Most of these schools have an on-campus store where you can purchase many of these toys and games, as well as books about how you can create a more natural environment for your child. If you just don’t have the cash, think about what’s available in nature; rocks, pine cones, shells, water, mud, or everyday items found in your home when you’re gardening or cooking, such as pots and pans, rakes, hoes, pie tins for mud pies, etc. It takes a little effort, but your child is worth the time it will take to assist them in using their imagination, rather than having a toy do it all for them. Think back to your most beloved toy. Chances are it wasn’t plastic. Childhood toys should be treasures, not disposable trash.
How did you get rid of the plastic? We’d love to hear your ideas, and welcome your comments and suggestions so we can post them for our readers. Please contact us at momtomom@athomemoms.com. We welcome your feedback!
