nearly-expired infant car seat
a baby swing
single stroller
double stroller
crib
about 5 toys (rattles, teething rings, musical objects)
All Keilana's toys:
stuffed animals
dress-up clothes (a fair amount)
tea set
4 barbies
a couple of cell phones
Cooties
Candyland
some odds and ends Happy Meal-type toys
All Dylan's toys:
several dress-up hats
a couple swords
small bucket of matchbook size cars/trains/planes
small bucket of action figures
5 large cars/trains (size of a shoebox)
half a dozen rubber animals
small toy tool set
small band-in-a box set
wooden blocks
giant Legos
Crawl N Play pop up tent and tunnel
These are literally all the baby items/toys in our house. I was taking inventory this week because for the first time ever, Keilana has told me she doesn't have enough toys. We have never bought our kids lots of "stuff". It started when they were babies. I've never had a "tummy time" mat, a bouncer, a jumperoo, a nursing pillow, a bumbo, or the other thousand things that just about everyone else I know has. Its not that I don't want them--I'm sure they'd be great to have. But the first two babies we were very broke/severely limited on space/about to move, so we bought only essentials (my mom generously picked up the swing for me when she came down for Dylan's birth, and it was a lifesaver! Trying to pack with a 20 month old and an infant is challenging). So by the time I had baby #3, it was like, well, do I really need any of that?
Christmas and birthdays they get a few presents. When we do spend money on them (or at all, frivolously) it is almost always in order to go do something. Keilana has an annual Disneyland pass, for Pete's sake. They have always been perfectly content with the toys they have and the fact that they have a built-in play mate in one another. The first few Christmases, when they were too little to know the difference or care how much they got, we either didn't spend much money, instead focusing on budgeting and growing student loan debt, or spent that money on things for family members or friends. They have wonderful imaginations and are often able to entertain one another for long periods of time with random household objects. One hour they're robots, the next they're bats, and so on and so forth. I didn't see much need for more stuff. I've been meaning to collect more craft supplies, as crafts are one of Keilana's favorite activities and are slowly growing on Dylan.
I thought that I'd squeak by with a few more years before the requests for "stuff" started, but alas, the time has come. So if anyone has ideas for good Christmas presents for a five year old girl, I'm open to suggestions.
1 comment:
We don't have much baby gear either, for the same reasons... But we're not so good at keeping the toys down. I think we both have this problem of seeing toys and wanting to be 3 again so we have an excuse to play with it, so instead we just buy them for our son! It's a terrible habit, I know- I'm trying to get better! But after taking him to other kids' houses, I've decided he really doesn't have as much as others do, so I don't feel too bad! I like the Disneyland pass idea!! We usually try to get him just one big thing for Christmas, then let whatever relatives get him fill in the gaps. I hate clutter from toys and am constantly getting rid of all the little things... I think this year he's going to get one of those hand-held game things with learning games for toddlers. Not sure though...
I like the craft idea too. We have a plethora of little kid craft things here. It sure makes a great activity for cold (or way to hot and humid) days!
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