Leftovers

This was on Jill's 1st birthday before the car was fully assembled. She was pretty happy!

The memories are not for sale. 

But we are passing along a kitchen, a work bench and a car to new owners. No, I'm not giving up cooking or driving. These particular items are vintage toys.

It's a reality check when your kids' toys are now considered "vintage." We have been slowly whittling away excess "stuff" from our house since we began the process during Covid. In this round of decluttering, we have hauled several vintage toys to Topeka where Jill can list them on Facebook Marketplace. Any money raised will go into the girls' accounts.

I must admit there are some "pangs" from this sentimental mom. And these Little Tikes toys can still take up real estate in my mind - just not in my basement. (I somewhat jokingly say that we need to get rid of some of these things while Randy is still physically able to haul them upstairs. But there's also some truth to that.)

Jill

Loading up her dolly for a ride.

The Cozy Coupe was our first Little Tikes toy. This gift to Jill from my parents was "driven" hundreds of miles by Jill and later Brent.

Cousin Blake in his car

My parents also gave cars to Jill's cousins, so my parents' great-grands put even more mileage on the cars as the next generation drove them around.

Kinley in the Little Tikes coupe

 

According to an internet search, the 1990s marked the peak of the Little Tikes coupe. The class '90s model - like the one Jill got for her 1st birthday - was often referred to as a Flintstone car because it was propelled by the driver's legs. By 1991, it was the top-selling "car" in the U.S. In 1997, 313,000 units were sold in the U.S., with another 100,000 in the UK. Our coupe stayed in the house, so it's still in decent shape even though both Jill and Brent - as well as Kinley and Brooke - put the miles on it. 

The design remained largely unchanged until 2003.

 

 

When Brent was 1, we added another "vehicle" to the fleet. It was a little two-wheeled Playskool "bike," also propelled by kid power. Jill had a slightly larger pink version, but it evidently didn't survive. We didn't find it among the toys in the basement. 

 

 

Jill also put lots of miles on a baby walker. Even Goodwill wouldn't take it. (I think walkers like this were banned because of safety concerns, but Jill certainly put lots of miles on hers.) 

 

 

We also hauled the Little Tikes workshop and kitchen to Topeka to be resold to new owners. Though I'm not sure what year we gave them to the kids, they did make for a memorable Christmas. Somehow, Jill's name got attached to the workshop and Brent's was on the kitchen. And while we are all about equal opportunity experiences, it wasn't exactly how Mom and Dad had planned. However, it's made for a funny memory that's been retold time and again. In fact, Jill said she might not remember it had the miss-marked toys not happened.  

 

Unfortunately, I have not yet discovered the plastic tub that houses the photos of the play kitchen and tool bench. 

The Little Tikes play kitchens from the 1990s had mounted corded phone and coffee pots. They had burners that clicked. There was a small sink area with a molded faucet. Not all the components survived, but we hope some child will still enjoy playing with it. We had plenty of pretend meals served from that kitchen at our house. 

The 1990s Little Tikes workshops were made of thick molded plastic and featured bright primary colors. The components included a hammer, saw, pegboard for hanging tools, and a storage area. Some of those "extras" actually survived, including the phone. 

 

The toys aren't the only paring down I'm doing. I've also been whittling down my kitchen supplies. However, I must admit that I am finding it difficult to part with my Grandma Neelly's square-shaped cake pans. Grandma Neelly sometimes used those for birthday cakes. I always wanted a homemade angel food cake, but others opted for other flavors. As I was looking through photos, I did find cakes she'd made featuring the square shape. In the photo below, he had the bonus gift of a few of his great-grands serenading him with the "Happy Birthday" song.

 

  

I took the pans out of the cabinets for awhile. But, I must admit, they went back in. It's silly, since I haven't ever used the pans since bringing them home from Grandma Neelly's house. (And I've made plenty of cakes since that time.) 

 

  

 

I know that even if I get rid of the pans, I'll still have the memories. We'll see ... They do take up less room than the toys.