rainy-day toys

[alison]

I'm having a hard time prying dd away from the Sesame Street and princess-themed stuff. So much of how she plays is "mama, where's my Cinderella XYZ." I swear I spend most of my day searching for her cheap plastic crap. She does like puzzles and books, but not nearly as much as anything that is pink or sparkly.

What are some good toys for this age that aren't princess-themed? She's only interested in art for so long, but loves to play dress-up and role play.

[diggitydot]

Do you sew? My sister had a bunch of silly dress-up outfits made for her youngest and they got a TON of use. Everything from farmer, doctor, veterinarian (along with a couple small stuffed animals and a play medical kit), and random super-heros, to ridiculously frilly dresses complete with hats, capes and boas.

Nothing screamed "princess!!!", but it satisfied my niece's want for girly items and my sister's desire for no. more. princesses.

[Pollyanna]

Let her play with the toys she likes. Not a thing wrong with pink and sparkly. In the end, you could buy her $1000 worth of toys but she will play with what she likes.

[SuzySunshine]

Let her play with the toys she likes. Not a thing wrong with pink and sparkly. In the end, you could buy her $1000 worth of toys but she will play with what she likes.

THIS! My kids have more toys then they know what to do with and they always play with the SAME ones!

But if you want more cheap dress up stuff try the dollar store or wal-mart/target's dollar bins. I can always find cheap tiaras, wands, gloves, etc.

[diggitydot]

Truly, the princess lovefest eventually passes. Both of our girls experienced it to a certain degree, DD2 moreso than DD1. No adverse affects.

[alison]

I'm ok with princess stuff, but I don't like the way it dictates everything we do all day everyday. It would be the same if it were cars or animals or whatever. We went through a Toy Story phase, and that was a bit more tolerable, because there are at least a variety of characters that she wanted to be. Princesses are annoying--all the pink, all the sparkles to vacuum up, all the purses and accessories...

[Ladybug]

Playdough? My kids go crazy with cookie cutters. It's something the can do independently. It was harder with one kid, and it got easier when she had some built in playmates.

These phases come and go. Princesses will inevitably be replaced by the next thing that will drive you crazy. I hate spending the money on toys that just sit around. It seems like such a waste.

But, try playing with something that isn't a toy. Cardboard boxes have endless uses - my kids spent a whole afternoon making two boxes into "spaceships" and then flying to Mars. Paper towel tubes and kitchen utensils are also great. Coming up with new uses for these things is great for creativity - for the child and the mom!

[alison]

We have been making play-doh and embracing the rain by going outside everyday!

I don't know how my parents managed to not let us watch tv ever! . We always made stuff, dressed up, and played outside. We didn't know about princesses until we started school!

[Deebs]

I don't know if you have a big bathtub, but when the winter gets long, I let my kids "swim" in the bathtub. I add a few drops of food coloring to change the water color, let them blow outdoor bubbles in there, and kind of just let them live in there for a while.

[Vishenka69]

Yup, DH would often hang out in our soaking tub with DD. No water and fully clothes but she had a blast. We also went to B&N to play with the trains way too much. I totally got sick of it but she loves interacting with other kids and it gets us out of the house. Play dough doesn't work for us because I'm the only one who bothers closing the lids and we've already been through 5 sets in that many months. The new craze is stickers. I get a bunch of sticker pads at Michael's and let DD go crazy by sticking them on everything, including both of us. Once it's warm enough to play in the rain, we'll go back to our last year's routine - she plays in the rain and I sit on the covered patio.