The following is a guest post by my 8-year old son, Salem Becker.
Buying an 8-year old a toy can be tough. It can be a difficult choice for them because there is a lot of new stuff in the toy stores everyday. A kid’s mind changes a lot. We like something one month but something different another month. If you don’t give away toys you don’t need or want, you’ll end up with too many toys.
And having too many toys can be a little bit of a problem. Because…
- It takes too long to pick them up.
- You forget where some of them are.
- You might not have enough room to keep them all.
- If you have too many toys, you might not have space to play with them.
If you need help finding good toys, here are some things you might like…
- Don’t buy really cheap toys. Because they just might break right away like the things that I get with tickets at Pizza Putt. Those toys usually break right away.
- Don’t always buy small toys. Because it’s really easy to lose some.
- Only buy things you really want. Just because your friends have it doesn’t mean you really want it.
- Only buy things you are interested in. For example, if you are going to get a couple of cars, you should get the cars that interest you. If you don’t like tractors, then you shouldn’t get a tractor-car.
- Buy toys that you can play with other people. If you don’t like playing by yourself, get toys that you can play with other people. If you are an only child, you can always play with your parents.
- You should probably buy some video game that you would like. Because if you are by yourself, you can play it by yourself. And if you are having a play date with other people at your house, you can play it with them. But only play it for a certain time – not too much.
Having too many toys is a problem, isn’t it? I hope you find this helpful.
I hope as well that you found his view of the world to be both enjoyable and helpful. And I’m sure he would warmly welcome any comments you might have…
Sergio says
What a great post. Thanks, Salem, for sharing your thoughts and views with us and thanks to your dad for having you as a guest. I just became a dad about four months ago and this is very helpful as I want to make sure my daughter has the right kinds and amount of toys, but most of all, the right attitude toward them. Cheers!
Salem Becker says
Congratulations. I hope your daughter has the right attitude toward toys too. – Salem
Dr. Laura @ WhoIsLaura.com says
Salem, thanks for a great post! I’m going to have my 8 year old read it too, because you definitely had some great words of wisdom! Hope you enjoyed the snow day too (we are here in Vermont just a few minutes from you)!
Dr. Laura
Salem Becker says
I had a fun snow day. I went sledding and played Nintendo Wii at my neighbor’s house. – Salem
Jurino says
What a well-put post! :)
Great to see you’re on the same page as your daddy. The tips you’ve posted were awesome. I especially like the one that says ‘buy toys that can be played with other people’!
Greetings from the Netherlands :)
Tyler says
What an interesting perspective! I hope to hear more thoughts from Salem. =)
Salem Becker says
Maybe. – Salem
Faith | Minimalist at Home says
Cool post, Salem! Thanks for writing it. I’m going to have my two boys read it today and maybe even have their own writing project. We talk a lot about toys and games, but you had some really great tips to share.
Salem Becker says
Thanks. – Salem
Kristia@Family Balance Sheet says
Great post, Salem.
I have a 5 year old with a couple of birthday parties to go to in the next couple of months. These tips will come in handy as we are buying the birthday gifts. Thanks!
Salem Becker says
I hope your 5 year old has fun at the birthday parties. – Salem
Jackie says
Thank you, Salem! You did a wonderful job. I am going to have my children read this post so they can have a better understanding on why too many toys are not always a good thing.
Clare says
Hi Salem, really enjoyed reading your first blog post! I especially like your thoughts about buying toys that can be played with other people – I will keep this in mind next time I am toy shopping :)
I would be interested in hearing how you find living as a minimalist – do you find that you donate your toys when you are no longer interested in them? Or do you keep them just in case you might want to play with them again one day? I just finished clearing out my parents home here in London, and the attic was FULL of mine and my brothers old toys that we kept ‘just in case’, but obviously we never used them again! They are now happily sitting at the charity shop waiting for someone to give them a new home!
Looking forward to reading more of your posts!
Clare
Salem Becker says
I usually give them to my sister. – Salem
Jennifer says
Salem is a smart kid.It is so awesome to hear someone so young who is already on such a great path. I know when I was his age I was already cleaning my sister’s room and telling her she needed to put things into piles that would be kept, donated or thrown away. It is really wonderful that you are instilling your beliefs in your child I think it would be much easier to transition to adulthood if children could take more responsibility for their things at a younger age. :)
Salem Becker says
Thanks. The teachers at school think I am a good writer too. – Salem
yliharma says
Hi Salem!
Congratulations for your first post, it’s really interesting, specially point 2: I had never thought about that, but it’s a very good reason not to buy lots of small toys :)
I would like to ask you something: have you ever bought toys to share with your friends (this probably may apply manly to videogames)?
For example: you and your friend both want toys A and B, so you buy toy A and your friend buy toy B. You play with toy A then lend it to your friend to play with. Is it something that you would do? I remember having been a very possessive and jealous child, so I don’t know if it could have worked for me…
Keep writing and being minimalist :)
Paola
Salem Becker says
No, I have never done that. But I do share and trade stuff with my friends. – Salem