Oct 25th, 2007
Memories of my childhood
Not long after my daughter was born, my parents started opening up boxes in their basement. Their contents: toys that had belonged to my brother and me.
The first one, a three-foot-tall stuffed dog, arrived with my parents, when they drove out from Illinois to meet their one-week-old granddaughter. At the same time, they also brought my white wooden rocking chair.
Most of my old toys joined our household bit by bit, either on the times when my parents drove here, when they shipped a box of stuff, or when we visited them in Illinois and carried some small things home in our suitcases.
During my visit to Illinois earlier this month, my parents really outdid themselves: as we walked through the door, we saw arrayed across the family room floor a whole collection of Fisher Price Little People toys. Now, these aren’t the Little People of today–all round and cherubic. These have far more simplistic forms and are made of hard plastic, not rubber. (You can read about the history of Little People–and see photos, at the top, of the old-school figures I’m talking about–here.)
My parents saved the schoolhouse, the town, the airport (the airplane has been at my home already for several months), and the way-cool camper. I loved seeing those toys again. I remembered every single piece and how my brother and I used to play with them together. Jan was astonished at the very fine condition all of these thirty-year-old pieces were in. And Sylvia–she just went nuts playing with them.
(The toys stayed at my parents’ house after we left–something for Sylvia to play with whenever she’s there.)
9 Responses to “Memories of my childhood”
Can we go to your parents for playgroup sometime?
Wow! what a wonderful idea (and how good of them to keep the stuff for so many years).
Katie: Absolutely! I’m sure they would love it. Seriously.
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Imperatrix: Sylvia’s really benefited from the foresightedness of her grandparents. My parents saved many of my old toys, and Jan’s mom (a children’s book author) saved a ton of his old books, so she’s inherited quite the material legacy.
You’d be amazed at how much those old-school little people sell for on eBay! My parents saved my fisher price little people toys too, but they were not in such great condition so I looked on eBay thinking I’d buy a few of my old faves. I saw one of the little cowboys with his horse that sold for $25! and an airplane went for something close to $200. Crazy!
So nice to see reminders of childhood. My DH and his sister have been going down memory lane since my nephew was born. They have all their old toys in the attic. I had nephews near my age, so most of my toys were handed down.
My mom is drooling at the day she gets to do the same. She’s saved and moved so many of our childhood toys — she’s driven my father nuts over the years. It does make me smile to think of my potential children playing with Carebears, Strawberry Shortcake, etc.
I think what your parents have done here is pretty special.
The camper sure brings up a memory of my Little People days. I never had the camper, but I did have the school bus, circus train and farm. My kids have the farm, bus and Noah’s Ark, and I have to say that I’m disappointed that the toys today have nylon hair! My son keeps trying to bite the hair off.
What a wonderful treat for both of you!
She will love hearing you tell about when you played with all these toys.
My grandparents bought my brother and me all of the FPLP bits that were out when we were kids–*all* of them. Man, I wish we had kept those…I could have retired by now!