Sentimental Toys

I am not the overly sentimental type. But Mario is. He has toys and a blanket from childhood. He saved the last two pacifiers the twins ever used. He would still have the toy lawn mower that Eric used when we lived in Cocoa Beach if I hadn't sold it at a yard sale without his knowledge. Oops. Mario has such fond memories of Eric walking up and down the sidewalk with his lawn mower as Mario mowed our lawn.

Now that we know we will be moving at the end of the school year, I am starting to have the kids clean out their toys. The boys are almost 8 and have outgrown a lot of their toys, puzzles, and books. So yesterday they got a huge garbage bag and started throwing toys in it to be sold at the next yard sale. I found myself getting a little sad (sentimental) at some of the toys they were throwing in the bag. Many are from Eric that had been handed down to each child. There were a few things I just couldn't part with. One was this Millennium Falcon (I had to google to find the name of it-I know nothing about Star Wars.)

Eric got this for Christmas when he was six. Mario and I had decided to get him some walkie talkies that year. We thought he would have so much fun using them with his friends in the neighborhood. But Christmas morning, he could care less about the walkie talkies, he was so excited about this Star Wars toy. Mario and I had found it for 75% off at the NEX. We almost didn't buy it, but decided to at the last minute since it was only $10. Wow, was I glad we did. He loved it along with every other boy that came to my house for the next several years.

I had to save it from the garbage bag. I also had to save a Chevron car, Brio train tracks, a moose puzzle, and a car track. We had bought that car track for Eric when he broke his leg at 18 months. We needed something to entertain him on the floor for hours. He loved it. I put all the toys aside and decided to ask Mario to box them up so we can save them for our grandchildren.

I started thinking about what else should go in this "sentimental" box. I think Erin's little blue elephant stuffed animal that she got as a baby and her American Girl Dolls will go in. She has them all boxed up in her closet now. Makes me sad to think she has outgrown them. For Nathan it will be all his Legos and of course his beloved Pooh bears. Unfortunately I got rid of the original because it was so nasty from him taking it EVERYWHERE when he was a toddler. For Zachary, all his stuffed animal dogs will need to go in the box. He is very attached to them. I think his camera will have to go in the box also.