Keep Them Questions Coming...

Question: why do you want to avoid fisher price/little tykes toys?

I think I've mentioned a couple of times lately that I'm kind of trying to avoid the fisher price and little tykes toys. I don't think I've really explained why or my reason behind it - and really it's not some big deal, just a personal opinion.

1. These toys are SUPER common. When I go through toys r us they still seem to carry the same items that they had when my brother Chad was a baby.. AND they were the same then as they were when I was a kid. So I know that they're probably really easy to come by used for much less than they are available in toy stores. So, it makes so much more sense to get these items used. In addition, considering they have been making money off the same models for years now, they prices keep going up! So reason #1 - money. But you can bet if Jude does get Christmas gifts from mommy and daddy, they won't be used (yes, I'm aware that sounds snobby)

2. Plastic surfaces are a breading ground for bacteria. This obviously can be avoided by wiping them down regularly - but why not try and go for wooden toys which have natural antibacterial effects? I'm not talking about plain brown wooden toys, but ones with water based paints, etc. that in general would be better for a baby who's shoving everything in his mouth. As I said above though, I'm not against them in general, but when it comes to purchasing items myself at full price, why not go for those? That being said, I have found some solid brown items that I plan to purchase, simply because they were the most basic building blocks I could find.

3. Bright lights! Sounds! Most FP/LT (I'm not targeting these two, they're just the most common names) are SUPER stimulating. I feel like toys that are a little more simple (like THESE blocks) might instill a little more sense of imagination than some of the more typical toys.

4. In general, I don't want a million toys laying around the house and I feel like alot of those types of toys are large and bulky and tend to take up a long of space.

so... I'm not protesting large corporations... I just think some of the other options I'm finding online are so adorable - so if I only plan to have X number of toys in the house, I'd pick them first.

That being said, I still love my Lamaze plush toys (probably even bigger bacteria holders) and baby einstein exosaucer!