A dear friend just sent this to me, and I had fun looking at all the different toys and activities that we had back then. Some of these things are still popular for the kids today. We are in a world of go go go, do the next thing, travel to the next place. It's nice and comforting sometimes to reflect on the simpler times, and to remember our parents who made such an effort to make our childhoods happy and wholesome.
The Radio Flyer wagon. I didn't have one of those, and my kids had the Fisher Price wagon, but Francesca got a Radio Flyer when she was a toddler. Pretty fancy, huh?
The lunch pail and thermos. I always wanted a neat looking lunch pail and thermos for school (a red plaid one to be exact). My kids had them every school year with all the popular characters, and the ones used now are softer and easier to carry.
Jacks. I was really good at Jacks. It was always a fun recess pastime at school. I reached a point where I could scoop up 10 jacks on one bounce. We were easily amused.
Marbles. I was also good at marbles. My son had marbles in his collection of toys, so those magic marbles went around for years.
Teddy Bears. We always loved that special teddy bear. My mom had a collection of teddy bears, and when she passed, we were all given one of her bears.
The Yoyo. I was so talented with the Yoyo. I could do many tricks with this delightful toy - like the classic "walk the dog," and even "walk the dog around the park," where the Yoyo spins around your back.
Paper Dolls. I didn't have any paper dolls growing up, but my girls had a few. Their heavy cardstock cutout figures and interchangeable outfits always delighted me. Friends, if I came across paper dolls today, I would get them for the grandgirls....or myself. ; )
Twister. It was the game of the decade. I didn't have one, but I played Twister at friends' houses, and to get all tangled up on the floor with others was a great time.
Record player. Me and my childhood friend would listen to the 45s on the record player every time I came over her house. It was a fun time to hear the latest songs sung by the popular groups. The Jackson 5 was our favorite.
Coloring Books and Crayola Crayons. I have always loved coloring books since I can remember. Those Crayola crayons combined with coloring books and construction paper gave me hours of pleasure, making things with felt pens, glitter, and glue. My kids had a lot of coloring books, and my grandgirls love to use their imagination and color too. I think it runs in the family. Mia draws the most beautiful bright pictures, and I love the moments we spend coloring together.
Books. Friends, children's books are the one thing I can't part with yet. I read to my little ones every day, and would cherish this quiet time of storytelling and wonder for as long as they were interested in hearing it. Now, 40 years later, my daughters read to their children with as much enthusiasm.
And Jess has a whole wonderful class with eager students to read to.
Jump Rope. I think we all jumped rope at one time or another, right?
And last, but definitely not least.....Barbies! I used to play Barbie's with a neighbor friend, and we would play for hours accessorizing and putting on dazzling outfits and just having fun. My children had a few Barbie's growing up, and they still have them in their keepsake boxes. Francesca loves Barbies, and every time I see her we play Barbie's together. Now, little Charlotte is 3, and loves the world of Barbie's too. I will forever be a Barbie girl.
Today, they have a new line of toys, and it's interesting to see all the fun things the kids play with daily. My son had the Woody character growing up, and Jess still has Jessie, the Cowgirl from her childhood. These characters from Toy Story are still making their way into the hearts of children today.
While me and my children didn't have a great amount of toys, we had a few beloved ones, but we always had the great outdoors, with sticks, rocks, cardboard boxes, and dirt forts. Nature was our playground.
A time when the ladybug was fascinating, sneaking into the neighbor's yard was bold, and picking red plums off the tree was exciting. It was my uncle's, so it wasn't too daring. ; )
It pleases me that my grandgirls also love the outdoors, and they are captivated by nature too.
So, tell me some of your most special and favorite things you did growing up. I'd love to hear.
24 comments:
Good morning, Sheri and happy Monday! I enjoyed this fun look back at toys. I loved paper dolls! My mom gave her collection to me which started that birthed that interest in me. I still have those vintage paperdolls, including Shirley Temple. I too, loved playing jacks and I still have my marbles! I also had a excellent baseball card collection that I gave to my sons. On the image, I knew everyone of those toys at one time or another. I had some Barbies but never was as passionate about them as other girls were. I liked playing ball - bouncing, catching - tetherball in the backyard! So many fun games we played.
Such a heartfelt post - combining the toys of yesterday with what is out there today with your grands, showing that somethings never change!
I hope you have a beautiful week.
I loved riding my bike and later my horse. Of course Barbies and playing house! I loved being outside. I still do. Have a happy week Sheri!
Hello Sheri. Wonderful memories—I’d love to join you on this trip down memory lane.
I used to love those paper dolls with their beautiful outfits. I really ought to check if they might still be available in old stationery shops.
Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.
Great photos!. the only one that eluded me was the Twister. Paper dolls! I loved them. They might still be available on vintage toy sites. One of Mom's magazines had a page of paper dolls with clothes that were of light card stock and could be cut out.
I loved this trip down Memory Lane.
I too absolutely loved paper dolls and still have some of my favorites in a box in my closet. I was also so deeply into dolls .. baby dolls, Sparkle Plenty, Toni Dolls ... see I'm dating myself. Barbies weren't even created when I was young.
Riding my bike everywhere and walking on the homemade stilts my Dad made for me, jumping rope for hours it was the pastime of the day for recess.
I grew up loving the outdoors and camping. My dad even made a tent for me to play in our backyard .
Coloring was a huge passion of mine. I was always filling one coloring book after another. Our local grocery store Lucky's... had a coloring contest . It was a book filled with the products that could be found in the store. I worked so hard to have every page perfect for that product. I won ! It was a mini doll size sewing machine with a crank to make it run. I was never into sewing and never used that prize..I don't even know what happened to it. But I did win and am proud of that.
Great questions and I could go on and on ...
hugs
Sue
What fun and adorable post... I too loved papel dolls and barbies!
Hello Dear Friend,
A lovely post, full of memories, my favorite kind. I enjoyed your photos.
I loved playing Barbies with my sister. I was naughty, I did cut my sisters favorite Barbies hair. We were playing beauty shop, and I decided to do a real haircut on her Barbie.
Happy Monday Sheri... This is a beautiful post and one that had me walking down memory lane. The paper dolls, the set of jacks and so many more things were the things I loved as a kid. I never really played with barbies, but Trista and Shanda had several of them. I remember coloring in the coloring books. The Blue and green crayons were my favorite and I always picked them first. Everyone wanted these colors for the sky and the grass, but I always managed to get them before the others. thank you for this lovely post and for giving a a few moments of reminiscing about the wonderful days of being a kid.
Oh Sheri, that was an adoreable post. It really did evoke many memories. While I never had Barbies, I had lots of other dolls (and still do! ha hhaa) You know Tiny Tears was my dolly who spent many years of my childhood with me. Thanks to my daughter, who found an "antique" Tiny Tears online, I have an exact replica of her once agian. I had many sets of paper dolls, too. I always loved to play Monopoly and Checkers. Still do. Yes, we played with marbles and jacks, for sure. I like that living Barbie in the box that you showed. She's adorable! hee hee I also LOVED dollhouses and that childhood love is with me now, also. Gee. I guess I have a lot of childhood loves that will probably be with me til I kick the bucket. Thanks for the lovely post, Sheri. Hugs. Susan
How special to see all those memories through your photos. I wasn’t a doll person and no Barbies but loved my teddy bear. In fact I still have him. My mother used to play games with us, snakes and ladders was a favorite, changed to shutes and ladders later. Bunty and Judy annuals were also favorites at Christmas. Couldn’t wait to read them. Thank you for another fun and enjoyable post Sheri.
I think you completely covered it! I LOVED jacks! And wait...what about pickup sticks? I have some now, and they are called by the older name of Jackstraws. I loved Barbies and had the Barbie car. But it took me having surgery to get the Dream House! My favorite thing to play with was paper dolls! I had so many, they came in a folder and you could store them in the pockets. I even had Lucy and Desi paper dolls!
Loved roller skating and riding my bike. For awhile I had a big barrel and we would climb inside and have someone roll us around. Plus loved climbing trees. I was a bit of an outdoor girl.
Haha, I love this post! I love all those toys too - Just brings the memories back to me. I didn't have all of them, but a lot. I remember them all too.
I don't remember having a wagon. I used to play paper dolls so much it would drive my friends nuts. Don't remember taking lunch to school - guess I ate it there. I bet you were great with the yoyo. Who is hugging that bear in the photo?
I also agree - I am not outside a lot now - but I do remember playing outside a lot when I was younger. Seems another lifetime ago though. I enjoyed this. Sandie
What a fun post, Sheri. Oh, I loved paper dolls!!! I loved a lot of the things you shared.
Oh! I had a Flyer! How fun to think of all these toys! I was born in 1951...and had a lot of those toys...fun times!
Thanks for these memories sweetheart!
hugs
Donna
Wonderful pictures of now and them. I grew up with Barbies and My Little Ponies and Hot Wheels.
Muchos llevan muchos años guardados, cuando ya has dado el paso de niña a mujer.
Saludos.
I had paper dolls and Barbies. Never had a lunchbox, though. What fun memories here!
Sheri this was the best post. Looking at all those old toys brought back so many fun memories...lunch boxes too and the old thermos reminds me of school days. I played paper dolls...and of course did some coloring...one sweet memory was that my grandma subscribed to McCall magazines and she always cut out the Betsy McCall paper dolls each month. I am so glad you took time to share these great mementos from our childhood. Have a lovely weekend. Hugs
I love this post! So much fun. I had a green and gray plaid lunchbox and then a red plaid one growing up. We had a cloakroom at the back of our school room (which had 2 grades to a room). I also love art projects and construction paper and then loved coloring and coloring books. I did have some paper dolls but I my girls did, too. I was a little 'old' to play Barbie when I finally got one and learned to sew very detailed patterns for Barbie dolls and sold them to my neighbors' kids. I sold dresses etc for 25 cents each...and that was hours of work. lol.
Thanks for all the memories. Have a wonderful weekend- xo Diana
Oh, this was such fun to read! 🎈 I could almost see the jacks bouncing and the crayons scattered across the table. Your mention of nature as the best playground made me smile -- sticks and cardboard boxes really did keep us entertained for hours. Thank you for sparking those happy memories. 🌹
Dear Sheri!
It was very, very interesting for me to read what you wrote. After all, we live on different continents. In addition, in 1989, democratic changes took place in Bulgaria. Before that, Western music was banned, certain ways of dressing... But I was very pleased to see how many common games we had, even though so far away and in different worlds. Riding a bike, cardboard dolls, marbles, dominoes, bungee jumping, checkers, ... Later, my children - a boy and a girl - had different toys besides mine. He played with Lego and construction sets, and she with Barbie. There were also 3D books, which they loved very much. They had a carpet in the room with roads and buildings outlined - they played for hours with Vicki's strollers.
What a fun post to look back on the old toys. I had a few of them like marbles, jacks, the lunch box and thermos but my favorite was always the paper dolls. How I love playing with them..
Sheri, our childhoods sound very similar. I loved the Colorform sets! I can still smell them in my mind! I have special books that mean a lot to me. When I was probably 8-9 years old, I found the world of Miriam Clark Potter and her Mrs. Goose books at the school library. She and her husband did the artwork in them, and it was so primitive and goofy! I loved their art style! I started collecting the books as an adult, and I treasure them. Like you, I played a lot without toys, although I had them. And Barbie was a favorite. I just bought my 4 yo granddaughter a couple of the Disney Princess Barbies. She's a girly girl and loves all dolls! Have a wonderful evening, and thanks for this trip down memory lane! ❤️
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