Icons of Trent's Youth?

Every generation has icons of its youth. My generation had those little people with the spherical heads and the cylindrical bodies. They sat on the little bus and bumped up and down as the wheels turned. And then there was the Fisher Price barnyard set with whatever animal sound that was supposed to be when you opened the bard door. A cow? Wounded rhinoceros? I think maybe for Trent's generation it might be this rug with a streets and buildings. Does every kid have one of these? Trent and I also just returned from Babies 'R Us with a Superyard XT. Well, two of them actually. This allows me to create a baby coral within which I can create a relatively safe environment for Trent to explore without my having to provide continuous supervision. For instance, I can create this blog entry while only have to glance over at him every minte or so. He seem very happy. Inside the fence lying on top of his rug.

The Toys Of My Youth

Of all the toys I played with as a child, perhaps my favorite was the giant tinkertoys. The only picture I can find on the net that shows the scale is from someone's picnic. I had endless hours of fun with these toys. I built robots, spaceships, and helicopters. The beauty of the toys is that they are child scale. I have no idea why they stopped making them. Since I'm going to be a father soon, I would like my children to have that same opportunity. E-Bay has an auction going right now that's selling a complete set in the original box. The last time such a set was sold it went for $350. There are some modern alternatives. Toybeez are a similar toy. They are child size and look like they have versatile connectors. There is also a Belgian company making Omagles. They appear to be able to build actual vehicles. The set has wheels and pictures of people sitting on the constructions. Finally, there was an article on making your own construction set from PVC pipe and fitting available from Home Depot. That last option really appeals to my do it myself nature.