I am single with 4 wonderful kids
On them I am not taking bids
I have an 10 yr old, 5 yr old and 8 yr old twins
each of them special no one of them wins
I want the best for them all
and that's how I started rolling this ball
The toys every where made noise and light
but I think the kids not the toys should be bright
After I went I were searching to find
toys that were natural and good for their mind
I decided I'ld just make some instead
Now you see where all of that led
I am a part of a group of natural toy sellers on etsy http://www.naturalkidsstore.com/ a blog wanted to interview some of the members here are the questions. I thought you might find my rhyming responses interesting
Question1: The Toys in the Natural Kids Store seem to be throwbacks to a simpler more natural time of the human existence. Do you agree? Do you try to instill “old school” values and a way of life in your kids and family life and if so why?
Yes in times gone by, these toys were the norm
You could say in a way we try not to conform
You could say in a way we try not to conform
When I went searching to find
toys that were natural and good for the mind
The toys every where made noise and light
but I think the kids not the toys should be bright
I like that these toys say "life is what you make it"
not "whatever you find in the box, you must take it"
I enjoy the assurance that these toys won't conflict
with the values my family and I want to depict
when buying the latest of a cartoon craze
a parent is tied to the values they praise
if that character lies or sasses its dad
then I promote that to my little lad
The toys in our store don't come from a script
you can rest easy no values are shipped
Our toys come to you, a perfect blank slate
the lessons to learn are yours to create
Question 2: Why types of natural materials are used in your craft and why is that so important?
I know natural things are generally good
that is why everything I make is wood
It's natural and nontoxic you see
Like I think more things should be
No chemicals paints or dyes
just wood without any disguise
I also enjoy the comforting fact
that my toys left anywhere long enough stacked
will eventually return into the ground
leaving nothing unhealthy that could be found
many new toys are destined to fill
a garbage dump somewhere disguised as a hill
even when thousands of years have past
those broken toys will continue to last
Question 3. How do these toys compare in terms of fun and creative use to mainstream toys?
New toys it seems have one use intended
Very few are made to be open ended
I want my kids to actively play
so I avoid toys they would just watch most the day
When you give kids a toy that's hand made
it changes slightly how it gets played.
The toy is a toy but also a reminder
their mind is the actual toy and fun finder
the toy teaches kids that the things they may need
aren't always bought on a treadmill of greed
instead one must give their thinker a chance
to find the solution for their circumstance
Question 4. What is it that you want to accomplish with your store?
The goals for this store are many yet one
ultimately we want kids to have fun
but also we want to be kind to the trees
not filling up landfills way up past our knees
Each of us too hopes to earn extra money
a store that didn't now that would be funny
But profits are not our only concern
for happy bright kids we also yearn
