Babes in Toyland

Here we sit in the aftermath of Christmas and my house looks like a bonafide toy shop! A Robo-Pet (which Ian wants to name Robo-Jim, but not until his birthday?!?!), a Smart Globe, two I-Dogs, a new video/digital camera, Lincoln Logs, various cars and trains and tracks not to mention all the goods that Ainsley received (an Exer-saucer, soft blocks that jingle, crinkle, or quack, an interactive elephant and loads of soft, fuzzy animals and rattles). All of this stuff is great and I am pleased that my children had such a wonderful Christmas but I have to say, WHY on earth do toy companies have to make every toy ding or sing or buzz or quack or whatever?? Does no one believe in the idea of pretend play or, for the love of Pete, ANYTHING QUIET these days?? I specifically had to leave the house last night to go read my book in the relative peace and quiet of a local coffeeshop because I was bombarded all day with a Robo-pet that barks and makes cyber-pee and cyber-farts, two I-Dogs that when played individually aren't so bad, but when played at the same time have the most brain-crushing discord you can hardly focus on anything else! Not to mention all of Ainsley's little toys that sing Twinkle, Twinkle and Mary Had a Little Lamb, with the added bonus of Pop Goes the Weasel from her Jack-in-the-box (honestly that one is less annoying since it is more like a little music box). But seriously after a day, not to mention two weeks, of these kids and the noisy toys, it makes my head want to explode!

Now I don't want anyone to get the idea that I'm not grateful and that I am complaining. The kids, especially Ian, are in heaven. Life couldn't be better for him right now and that is SO cool. It is just me. I have to get a grip on the fact, like every parent does, that life is not like it was when I was a child. I spent most of my time playing quietly with stuffed animals, pretending, building with blocks, coloring in my little books, reading and so forth. The most hi-tech thing I remember having was the 3-story Barbie mansion with a little elevator on a pulley cord! And then of course once I reached high school age I had boomboxes and the such. Now I have to admit that I am lucky in the sense that although alot of these toys sing silly, little, annoying songs and maybe buzz or bark, they don't talk to the kids or tell them they love them. I knew a kiddo that had a Barney doll that said "I love you!" and it drove me crazy! If your child needs to have a stuffed toy tell them they are loved then that is a sad state of affairs. I prefer for my kids to love and interact with their toys on their terms and to know that Mommy, Daddy, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends love them. They don't need some stinkin' Barney doll to tell them they are needed, loved and worthwhile!

As I write, I hear the kids in the other room playing with Ainsley's kicky toy that sings "Aloutte", "Itsy Bitsy Spider" etc... and I cringe. But I suppose maybe, just maybe, "Chopsticks" is a little less annoying than a crying baby (the jury is still out on that one). Now the next step is to talk Ian the Horder into letting go of some of his older, less used toys to make room for all the new ones. Not to mention the fact that he has a birthday coming up, YIKES!!! So I embark on yet another day of gleeful children playing with noisy toys and I take a deep breath and look for the bottle of Tylenol, cause I'm gonna need it!