Timeless Toys

My folks are in the process of clearing out all manner of things they've collected over the years. During the navigation of one cupboard, mom found all the Fisher Price toys that my sister and I had as kids and boxed them up and sent them my way. They've  been sitting in my utility room for a few months waiting for me to get around to cleaning off 20+ years of storage dirt.

Saturday, Tim was in a cleaning mood. Part of this is due to our decision to turn the workshop into a playroom for the kiddo (which is, in turn, prompted by the fact that every available room upstairs seems to be overrun by toys, even though I would say the kiddo has fewer toys than the average kiddo.) Regardless, spurred on by the cleaning frenzy of Tim, I got out my cleaning supplies and went to work on the toys.

Let me just say that it astounds me how much gunk can accumulate on something that's stored in a box in a closet in a basement. I honestly wasn't expecting to have that level of cleaning to do -- where did all that gunk come from!?

Anyway, once clean and dry, we toted them upstairs and set them out in the living room for the kiddo to find after his nap.

I had never before seen the personification of "wide eyed wonder". It was adorable. He skipped (literally) from the castle to the airport to the Sesame Street clubhouse to the farm and back again. The people went for rides in the carriage and the camper truck (I'm hoping to find the back of the camper, right now it's just the truck) and they all took a spin on the baggage carousel (I remember making them do that myself) before going down the trap door into the dungeon.

This morning after breakfast he looked at me and asked for his "houses" to come out again. So we tugged them out from their home under the piano and he's been in there entertaining himself for the better part of an hour. Periodically I get asked to come play a part as the Little People hop here and there to his narration.

The best part is watching him discover all the things that I remember loving and seeing which of those become his favorites, too.