I remember when my daughter was born. Visions of her and I dressed in pinks and purples sitting in her lacy pink room playing dolls danced threw my head. A year later my son was born ;My husbands vision of sports and trucks revved around like mad men threw his manly mind.

Those dreams were simply that dreams. Little did I know there are lessons for parents to learn about children’s toys and who are children will be.

My daughter plays with dolls. She plays with clay and gets her hands dirty. She plays in the dirt, climbs trees and races her trucks around ,he plays kick ball , base ball and can run as fast as any boy.

My son plays with trucks and builds with blocks, he colors and plays ps2 and he plays house with my girls rocking babies and feeding them.

There was a time my husband would bark to my son “Put down that doll!” until we came to the realization that play is really a child’s preparation for real life. Our daughter was learning sportsmanship and how to be a team player from all the sports she played. My son was learning compassion and parenting skills from those dolls. It’s amazing to me to watch my son now with his baby brother…I can see the compassion he has learned threw us and his play and I know some day he will be a good father I see my daughter line up her brothers and sister for a game of kick ball. And I see how she has learned to take the lead and take charge. I know some day in what ever she put her mind to see will be a success.

My message to parents is not to limit their child. Toys and sports are learning tools for life and they shouldn’t carry a gender.

By the way…my daughter and I play but its not dolls….many days you can find us all at the beach…covered in muddy sand driving our big Tonka’s™ .

© 2004-2005 Jennifer Gove
www.simplymoms.com

About The Author
Jennifer is a stay at home mother of eight.Living on the coast of Maine. To visit her parenting site that include more aticles, forums and chat go to www.simplymoms.com/forums. zjgim@hotmail.com

There is a chore in my home that brings out the procrastinator in me. This particular chore is so big and so difficult, that I create new tasks just to avoid starting the dreaded job. What could be so bad: My toddler’s bedroom – a.k.a. fighting the battle of ‘too many toys!’

The problem doesn’t arrive from a lack of organization or space to put things, but from just too many toys in the first place. His room, when tidy, looks like a little toy store gone mad. My husband built custom shelving just for the toys and books, with varying shelf sizes to accommodate different types of toys and sizes of books. However, when I take a close look at the contents, it’s obvious that there’s lots of ‘stuff’, but little thought went into most of it.

How should you select and organize your child’s toys? Choosing quality kids’ toys, selected by their developmental stage and abilities, is the first step. Most toys have a recommended age on the package to let you know the appropriate age group. Take cues from you own child to guide you in whether he is ready for a certain toy.

Make sure that the toys you’re buying actually “do” what they are supposed to. If puzzle pieces aren’t cut correctly, your child will get angry and frustrated when they play with it. I’ve recently made the mistake of buying a puzzle that was supposed to be appropriate for ages 18 months to 3 years, only to find that the pieces were very difficult to place, and my son became upset every time he played with the puzzle.

Some suggestions for Toddler and Preschool Toys

• Puppets
• Activity tables/centers
• Sorting boxes
• Snap together Blocks – Leggos
• Puzzles – up to 5 wooden pieces
• Figures for dollhouse, farm, etc.
• Dress up clothes
• Trucks and wagons to haul things
• Housekeeping and shopping toys
• Sewing cards
• Buttoning, zipping, snapping dolls or boards
• Preschool age games like Memory and Candy land etc.

Most importantly, choose toys that stimulate your child’s mind and that create learning experiences. Provide an adequate amount of toys for your child. Don’t do as I have and overwhelm your child with too much ‘stuff’ causing both of you to become frustrated. As we all know, most little kids have a more fun playing with the box the toy came in while the new toy sits idly on the floor. Now it’s time for me to stop procrastinating and fight the battle of ‘too many toys.’

About the Author
Sherry Frewerd is a WAHM to three and is a licensed child care provider. Visit her website, ‘Family Play and Learn’ for fun and creative activities and resources for your Toddler and Preschool age child. http://familyplayandlearn.com.