Scrapbook Childhood Toys

Do you hate being a pack rat? Or, are you toting around boxes of your kids’ childhood toys unable to let them go? Maybe it is time. My Mom just sent me an email asking me if I wanted any of my old toys or books that she found in the attic. The problem is that I am 34 years old, and have 3 other siblings, and my Mom lives across the country. How could I possibly know if I am sentimental about any of those things without looking through them again? Or, how would I even know if they are mine?

It gave me an idea.

Part of our childhood memories are made up of a favorite toy or blankie. For example, my son loves to walk around with blankets when he is sleepy, and he rubs them up against his face. It is a memory that I don’t ever want to forget when he gets older. So, one day, I took a picture of him doing just that. That picture is priceless to me, and will one day take a page in his scrapbook album. If we run across that blanket in the future, maybe I don’t have to keep it. Unless he wants to, of course. But, maybe, a scrapbook page about a childhood toy, or object is enough to carry on the legacy of that childhood memory without having to store the actual object.

If your childhood is long gone, yet you are still hanging on to a teddy bear you knew you loved as a child, try scrapbooking a page about it now. Take a picture of the teddy bear, and journal all you can remember about why that bear was so special to you. Then, if you can, consider letting the bear go, or give it to a younger family member. My daughter has one of my old teddy bears, and an old rocking chair of mine, too. She is only 5, but she loves to think I was once a baby and those were my things.

If your children are young now, then think about scrapbooking a layout of their favorite toy. Do a little interview with them about why they love that toy so much. When they are a teenager, and you are ready to get rid of that toy, then maybe pulling out the scrapbook page you have created for them, and showing it to them will help them part ways with that special object. Have you seen Toy Story 3? Besides, it is also a great way to preserve some of their own personal history to show to their children one day.