do you avoid plastic toys?

luvmybaby28 · November 2011

if you do, why? are they still very toxic? I like plastic toys because I would rather my lo fall on plastic than wood when playing, but I feel like I might be missing something here.

KellBell88 · November 2011

We don't. He has mostly plastic toys actually. He has some cardboard type blocks and some wood blocks, but every other toy is some sort of plastic. I guess I've never really thought about it.....

nosoup4u · November 2011

Sometimes. I try not to buy plastic if a wooden version is possible. I do think the wooden stuff we have holds up better, and I do worry about toxicity in plastic.

bstrangely · November 2011

Ambsies:
It really depends on the toy for me and the size. DD has a few smaller plastic toys (a FB barn/farm, a couple shape sorters) but I just really dislike the look of plastic toys- a lot of it just looks like crap to me.
The big items that we're getting her for Christmas (a dollhouse and a play kitchen) are both wood.
She went to a Montessori playgroup for a few months and I loved all of the wood toys that they had there.

this. i do like well made toys that are made sustainably. i don't avoid plastic, but i don't really seek it out either.

blondek8 · November 2011

No. I don't discriminate between plastic and wood toys.

Annie984 · November 2011

Pretty much what Fred said.

Also, I avoid plastics in my everyday life, so it seemed natural to avoid them for LO. I don't like to use plastic in the kitchen (glass left over storage, no plastic "kid" bowls, etc.) because I don't want my food sitting in it, so I figure I don't want my LO chewing on it with his toys either. How long did plastics contain BPA before it was determined to be a carcinogen? I might be paranoid, but it's not that hard to avoid, so I just do.

I'm not militant about it. I know some people return any plastic toys they get as gifts and all that jazz, but I don't go that far. My parents know we prefer wooden toys, so they happily buy them for holidays, but the ILs give plastic toys, and we keep them. I don't, however, replace batteries. I can't stand the music, moving, and buzzing, so he plays with them like that until the batteries run out, and then they're just another quiet toy.

Kimee13 · November 2011

No - I let me kid be a kid and don't live life scared of the "what ifs". Heck, his favorite toys are the ones that light up, make noise and move - the more obnoxious the better. Yes they're annoying to me, but I would never not give him those options simply because I didn't like them. With that said, he has plenty of non-screaming toys and a few wooden ones that he can let his imagination go wild with.

As for plastic not holding up as well, I disagree - FP, Playskool, Leapfrog, Vtech are all pretty safe bets - my father kept most of our FP & Playskool toys and they look brand new(almost creepily so and they're 30+ years old), however, I don't let DS play with them.

BelhurstBride · November 2011

I try to avoid plastics as a whole. It's not that I won't use plastics or buy DD plastic toys, but if there's a reasonable alternative I'm more likely to pick the alternative. (Pyrex for freezing meals, wooden toys, ect.)

KJmashup · November 2011

No, I don't avoid them. I just buy whatever I think DS will enjoy playing with.

wife1014 · November 2011

I don't avoid plastic but we certainly have a lot of toys which are wood. Partly because I am a huge fan of Melissa and Doug and Plan. But we have a great deal of plastic as well. I even like some of the Leap Frog toys which have the lights and sounds too. Now that Olivia is older all the toys she wants is commercialized crap so we will be adding to the plastic collection.

I also use plastic in my kitchen, for us and the kids...gasp! And yes, it's BPA free.

JoannaJes · November 2011

Lately, I've found myself trying to avoid plastic toys. Not so much because of the toxicity, but more because it seems like we have a ton of plastic toys with multiple pieces that end up being strewn all over the house.

Also, I'm tired of getting plastic toys that don't get played with...they make sound and noise but are abandoned quite quickly because there are not multiple ways you can play with them.

However, I got DD a really cute plastic tea set for her upcoming birthday. It's from Green Toys. I saw a wooden tea set from Plan Toys, but who the heck drinks out of wood cups? : ) I liked the little pink teacups much better.

And as a side note, DDs favorite toy is currently a plastic Lightning McQueen that you can shake and it drives away. DS was bored with it, but she is fascinated by it.

insertclevername · November 2011

I don't avoid plastic toys. The vast majority of his toys are plastic (Playskool, Vtech, Fisher Price), but he has some wood toys as well. I think when he gets older he might enjoy the wood toys more, but currently he prefers the plastic toys with the lights and noises.

KJmashup · November 2011

I do, however, wish I had avoided the LeapFrog Learn and Groove Color Play Drum because its songs make me want to headbutt something.

tmac1022 · November 2011

Kimee13:
No - I let me kid be a kid and don't live life scared of the "what ifs". Heck, his favorite toys are the ones that light up, make noise and move - the more obnoxious the better. Yes they're annoying to me, but I would never not give him those options simply because I didn't like them. With that said, he has plenty of non-screaming toys and a few wooden ones that he can let his imagination go wild with.

As for plastic not holding up as well, I disagree - FP, Playskool, Leapfrog, Vtech are all pretty safe bets - my father kept most of our FP & Playskool toys and they look brand new(almost creepily so and they're 30+ years old), however, I don't let DS play with them.

I agree, Grace's favorite toys are the loud, noisy ones. I just buy what I think she'll enjoy and have fun playing with. Lately it's her cousin's race cars and she makes the "vrooom vroom" noises.

I try to buy the plastic cars for her instead of the metal ones painted and made in China, for some reason I think those have more toxic chemicals in them then the plastic ones. (I haven't done the research but in my mind it makes sense)

soldiersgirl78 · November 2011

I buy whatever I think DS will enjoy and couldn't care less what it's made out of.

KelzinBoston · November 2011

We buy a lot of wood when I want toys to last (good block sets, toy food etc), but we also have a lot of plastic. I generally try to avoid loud, obnoxious toys because they drive my batty.

RobinSparkles214 · November 2011

I avoid loud, light-up, annoying toys if I can. Grandparents seem to gravitate towards them. I usually try to buy wooden toys, or recycled plastic toys if I can. I just have some odd love of wooden toys. I wouldn't side-eye anyone who had a house full of plastic toys though.

We have a pretty good mixture going on at our house.

ANJ410 · November 2011

Kimee13:

No - I let me kid be a kid and don't live life scared of the "what ifs". Heck, his favorite toys are the ones that light up, make noise and move - the more obnoxious the better. Yes they're annoying to me, but I would never not give him those options simply because I didn't like them. With that said, he has plenty of non-screaming toys and a few wooden ones that he can let his imagination go wild with.

As for plastic not holding up as well, I disagree - FP, Playskool, Leapfrog, Vtech are all pretty safe bets - my father kept most of our FP & Playskool toys and they look brand new(almost creepily so and they're 30+ years old), however, I don't let DS play with them.

All of this. Almost all of the wood and cardboard/plywood toys we've had have through the years have not stayed in good condition very long and they are harder to clean.

delg23 · November 2011

no, I just buy what I think he will get the most enjoyment out of. I'm very selective and he doesn't have a ton of toys.

etude de la vie · November 2011

We have wood puzzles and kitchen/kitchen stuff. It holds up better but it's heavier and will do more damage when thrown by a toddler. I have just as much plastic as wood.

bstrangely · November 2011

Kimee13:
As for plastic not holding up as well, I disagree - FP, Playskool, Leapfrog, Vtech are all pretty safe bets - my father kept most of our FP & Playskool toys and they look brand new(almost creepily so and they're 30+ years old), however, I don't let DS play with them.

why not?

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