Sunday, August 16, 2009

Birthday Boy Advice Needed

My big boy is turning 4 soon. Swirling around in my head are ideas for a Fireman Birthday Party. I'm just happy I talked him out of a repeat of the race car cake we had last year.

I'm looking for advice on what to get him for his birthday present. Ben wants to get him a life-size (not actual size, just big enough for him to ride around in) firetruck. We've only found one that exists outside of Ben's imagination, and that one (I think) is too expensive. I want to get him fireman dress-up clothes, since the police uniform has been such an embarrassing a big hit.

Every time we go into one of those really cool toy stores, like this one - my favorite - in Fort Collins, we lament that we hadn't put more thought into the toys we've accumulated. We wish we had fewer, better toys. But we're cheaper than we are chic, so we don't. We have lots of plastic crap.

I've been thinking of investing in something like Playmobil for this birthday. It's more than we would usually spend on toys, but I've heard they are great, and that he will enjoy it for years. Being that he's obsessed with all things emergency-related, the ladder truck or the rescue set seem like they might be good.

Thoughts? What has your pre-schooler loved? Do you have Playmobil toys? Are they as good as I've been told? Any other ideas? Or should I just suck it up and buy more plastic crap?

6 comments:

Kristin said...

I don't have 4 year olds, but we had Playmobil growing up. My parents still have some of it because it is made really well. All of our boy cousins had it as well...I remember it being a popular toy for many years!

Anonymous said...

I am a second grade teacher and you can't go wrong with Playmobil or Legos - both are much loved and a great sense of joy descends upon the classroom when a new set arrives. Go for it!! It is well worth the extra money.

Kristy McClellan said...

Yeah, thank you for letting us non-googleites comment on your blog. Everytime I want to comment I have to go hunt down my password and by the time I do that I'm on to something else. My sister-in-law Kris loves playmobil and would swear by it, however, she is very good about keeping the pieces together and not mixing things up. No offense, but you and I are probably not the best at keeping each little police badge, hat, car, etc with the set. Just a thought!! I like your idea of getting him fireman clothes.

Kirsten said...

Playmobil is worth the investment. My seven year olds still play with them. My son turned four in May and he definitely gets a lot of use out of his.

Anonymous said...

love all our playmobil stuff! My boys love the imaginex stuff too. Got the fire station for Christmas and it has been quite a hit!
Kathy Jamison

and...thanks for "unning" the google password thing. I think I signed up for like 4 accounts just trying to leave a stinking comment that I never was able to leave...

Susie said...

Thanks for the advice everyone! Kristy - I can't believe you would doubt my organizational skills - I thought you knew me. :)