Where Have All the Toys Gone?

I got off work at three - a bonus for the holidays! I work for a great place. Maybe I can get a jump on my Christmas shopping for the grandchildren. This year I have three! Ages 3 months, 1 year, and 2 and a half. It should be fun to buy some little kid toys.

I head for the toy section of Walmarts and wander up and down the aisles. I never had a girl, so guessing what might be appropriate for a young lady is a daunting task. Especially considering that I was such a tomboy and never a "frou-frou girlie-girl," as they say. There are rows of electronic gadgets, computerized learning tools, the latest action figures from unheard of movies that are all the rage.

I am seeking those wonderful activity toys - you know, the stacking blocks, the shape sorting barns, the imagination encouraging sets of wooden blocks and TinkerToys. I do not find these "old-fashioned" toys in Walmarts. I suspect I will need to go to a Toy Store. I head in that direction. But the toy store is so packed I can barely get through the doors. I exit as soon as I can push my way to the door.

I go online to look. Now I find puzzles, toy pianos, robots, astrology aids, ant farms, chemistry sets. I try another search for younger children and discover the Nursery Guide for Baby Toys. They suggest appropriate toys for the age and developmental stage of the child. This is helpful. I find that phones for the one year old to encourage speech and music instruments and tea sets for the two year old and play mats with bright colors and animals for the 3 month old are suggested.

Still, there is the matter of actually finding these sorts of things in a store somewhere. I remember that there used to be an excellent toy store in the Pittsford Canal area. That's where I bought the boy's wooden train sets and villages and other engaging toys. I look it up - out of business. There also used to be a toy store in the mall that sold cool kits for building things in what ever area your child had an interest - astronomy, chemistry, electrical engineering, etc. That's where I bought the Build a Robot sets and the marbles and ramps things for the boys. I look it up - gone.

I put it away for later, still needing to do a few last minute things for Thanksgiving and run a choir rehearsal. I will eventually find what I want (which really is to be able to play with my grandchildren, and in my absence, make sure their brains are being challenged and they are not just sitting in front of a TV). It just may take a little more digging than I realized.