Wooden Toys vs. Plastic Toys

When I am picking out toys for Noah for his birthday or Christmas, I tend to buy him wooden toys. I prefer to buy him wooden toys because they seem to last longer than plastic toys. Wooden toys also have a old fashioned toy feel to them and they remind me of toys I used to play with at my grandparents. Noah loves to play with trains, planes, cars etc. He even has a wooden train set. He really likes wooden toys because they are more realistic than plastic ones. He also has wooden blocks that have come in handy before when I am putting things together and I need a wood block.

I had a wooden food set when I was little. I used to “trick” my grandparents in to thinking they were real foods. They would pretend to eat them. Of course they knew they weren’t real but it was fun to play with them. I also had a wooden cradle. That I got for Christmas from my grandparents. I still have the cradle out in the garage. It was probably my favorite Christmas present I received as a child.

My favorite wooden toy that I would play with at my grandparents was my grandpa’s wooden trucks. He was a diesel mechanic. So, he would have wooden trucks given to him as presents or as thank you gifts from one of his clients. We also played with other wooden toys that my grandparents purchased throughout the years. Some of them were old fashioned and I know that my other cousins played with them as well. I am the youngest grandchild so they went through 9 other grandkids and many years of play. I will continue to give Noah wooden toys to play with, and hopefully someday have more children to pass them down to.

What kinds of toys do you prefer to give your children? What do you think about wooden toys? I look forward to reading your comments.