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AIBU?

To love “plastic tat” toys

55 replies

minniemummy0 · 20/01/2018 15:16

Someone recently gave us a load of 6+ toys for baby. Think Fisher-Price piggy bank, cook jar shape sorter etc. I spent a happy afternoon cleaning them and putting new batteries in etc. I can’t wait for baby to use them, they look like they’ll keep her occupied for ages! I admit, the songs may annoy me after a while.

On the other hand I have also got some wooden toys. They look so boring... don’t worry, baby will have a good variety and I do see the need to help with imagination, motor control etc etc

I just don’t get the snobbiness about “plastic tat”. I read/hear it all the time. Personally I can’t wait for baby to use them!

OP posts:
Spartaca · 20/01/2018 15:22

I think it is mainly because light up, noisy type toys don't teach a child to use their imagination...the toy guides the play. And obviously from an ecological point of view plastic isn't good, but if they are second hand that lessens that issue a tad.

To each their own however.

DempseysTightyWhities · 20/01/2018 15:26
newmumwithquestions · 20/01/2018 15:27

Because the plastic tat toys make horrible noises that go right through me. The DC love them though of course!

minniemummy0 · 20/01/2018 15:29

But they aren’t plastic bottles, bags etc... they’re not floating in the ocean are they?

OP posts:
DeleteOrDecay · 20/01/2018 15:29

We have always had a mixture of both. Some plastic toys really are tat though. As your dc gets older you probably notice it more (think the gifts from magazines, party bags etc most of that stuff usually ends up in the bin, broken or found languishing at the bottom of the toy box.

londonrach · 20/01/2018 15:30

Abit of each is great. I love the fisher price cookie jar...''do you want a cookie""". Might have bought that for me!!!!

RunningOutOfCharge · 20/01/2018 15:31

Maybe not destined to float in the ocean...,

Just to sit in landfill I suppose.....for as long as it takes to bio degrade

Camomila · 20/01/2018 15:31

Plus the plastic ones are LOUD for the parent and you have to keep remembering to change the batteries...maybe I’m just particularly lazy.

DS has probably 50/50 plastic and wooden toys, he likes them all equally. If I get the choice (eg Train set, toy kitchen) I buy wooden over plastic as I like the way it looks better especially as all the big stuff is in our sitting room (and it’s more environmentally friendly of course)

MiaowTheCat · 20/01/2018 15:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

DempseysTightyWhities · 20/01/2018 15:39

Ocean, landfill, it will eventually end up in one of them.

stargirl1701 · 20/01/2018 15:39

The planet is drowning in plastic tat. There will be more plastic in the ocean than fish in a few decades. Did you miss Blue Planet?

That's our reason for not buying any new plastic.

moita · 20/01/2018 15:43

they look like they’ll keep her occupied for ages!

How old's the baby? Because I wouldn't bet on this. My one year old prefers playing with the hoover/bin/daddy's shoes before toys. It's been like that for a while...

DempseysTightyWhities · 20/01/2018 15:45

We have moved to bar soap and just got a load of paper bags to use when we are shopping for fruit and veg so we're for using the shops plastic bags. Along with other changes.

The plastic has to stop. Everyone needs to do their bit.

DempseysTightyWhities · 20/01/2018 15:46

^that was to stargirl1701

DempseysTightyWhities · 20/01/2018 15:47

*we're NOT using the shops plastic bags

BigBaboonBum · 20/01/2018 15:51

They break easily and end up adding to the waste problem the world already has

ItsNiceItsDifferentItsUnusual · 20/01/2018 15:52

I've surprised myself by being a big fan of plastic toys. I wasn't pre-dc. My ds's nursery + preschool has just gone plastic toy free and I think it's a shame, tbh. There's room for both.

Landfill is a very real consideration though, I agree.

Spikeyball · 20/01/2018 15:53

We buy ds decent quality plastic toys - vtech, fisherprice etc. The very cheap versions are not as robust and break quickly. He has severe sn so still plays with some bought 10 years ago. Most wooden toys offer nothing for him.

MiaowTheCat · 20/01/2018 15:56

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

TammySwansonTwo · 20/01/2018 16:03

My twins have a mix of the two. They absolutely love their Fisher Price cookie jar and laptop, it keeps them so entertained. They're 16 months now and only just starting to enjoy their wooden toys as much.

Do not buy the Leap Frog elephant rings thing or that awful FP CD player as you will want to smash it very quickly

Cornettoninja · 20/01/2018 16:04

Give it eighteen months or so when this crap has invaded every corner of your home.Grin

I like getting dd second hand stuff, partly due to price (new some of this stuff is beyond extortionate for what it is) and partly due to lessening the waste element somewhat. Anything that survives dd will get passed on/sent to the charity shop too.

I think there's room for both tbh.

LaurieMarlow · 20/01/2018 16:04

Plastic is a good medium for many types of toy. And they don't have to be electronic. For example, I'm a big fan of the 'B' toy brand and they do lovely things with plastic.

Well made, durable toys made of any material can then be passed on and passed on. Quality is the key.

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Spikeyball · 20/01/2018 16:09

Make sure you actually turn off the ones that shut themselves down as some have an annoying habit of starting up again by themselves several hours later.
Alfie Bear is indestructible.

BelfastSmile · 20/01/2018 16:12

I agree that quality is the key. Something like Lego is plastic, but will last for decades and be played with loads. Likewise, the cookie jar, ball towers etc all go for years. I get things passed down and then pass them on.

I'm trying to reduce the amount of plastic I use; DH started panicking that I'd throw out all the toys. We've agreed just to buy as little new plastic as possible - and to buy decent quality stuff that will last.

The songs do your head in after a while, though.

IHaveACuntingPlan · 20/01/2018 16:15

MiaowTheCat or the ones that become demonically possessed. Ds had a Thomas the Tank Engine torch with buttons on it that made noises. One button made a ghost noise. Dd, who was a baby at the time, sucked it and made it damp inside and fried its circuits so it'd randomly make those noises at any given time. One night, after I'd been watching Insidious, it suddenly started up with a woooowoooooo ghost noise that scared the life out of me! I threw it away (to the electronics recycling container at the tip).

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