new to waldorf.. HELP

[jadcm2007]

hi, i have a 19 month old daughter, & i just started learning about waldorf toys & education. all the waldorf inspired toys i have seen are very expensive, & we are on a very limited budget ($11 an hour to support a family of 3!) anyways, my mom & dad bought LO a holztiger wooden animal set for christmas, & they are very well made & beautiful. Lo being only 19 months, she is very rough on toys so i am worried about buying her more waldorf toys since they seem more fragile than the cheap plastic toys. her new wood animal set is already dented & chipped & a few broken :( ANY SUGGESTIONS????? i really want to replace all her plastic electronic toys with some wood/wool ones, but i cant afford for her to break them all so fast.

ps. i would LOVE to learn to make the toys, but i have NO sewing experience & online tutorials seem to hard for me.

[babygirlsmama]

Not to worry....the Waldorf approach is more about simplicity, being home-centered, letting your child blossom from within, and finding the simple beauty in everyday life.  Especially at your child's age, the "toys" are not very important.

On the topic of toys, sometimes I think it is more about what you don't have than what you have....if that makes sense.  Meaning, you could just throw away all the plastic junk toys and trade them all for a single doll.  That will make room for your child's imagination to flourish.  Meanwhile, your child will make her own toys with your kitchen pots and pans, things they find in nature, rearranging the house furniture, etc.  I definitely recommend the book, "You are your Child's First Teacher," which is a great introduction to the concepts.

Actually we do have a lot of the Waldorf style toys, but seriously, my daughter's spends most of her time playing with seashells we found on the beach, playsilks we bought online for $5 and dyed at home ourselves, any empty box she can find, and my mixing bowls from the kitchen.  Seriously. 

Good luck!

Babygirlsmama

[jadcm2007]

thank you!

im not worried about her having a lot of toys, i'd actually rather her not have a lot since we are limited on space in our tiny apartment. like you were saying its better to just have a couple quality toys than a bunch of plastic ones. & i like the idea that since she will have fewer toys, she will play with the few that she does have more often instead of playing with many toys just once or twice.

another "problem" im having is other family members buying her TONSSS of toys f0r christmas, birthday, easter, ect. & i dont know what ot do with them all! i have donated a lot of them, sold a few, but i feel bad doing that since they were from our family :/
i was doing some research today, & found a lady in my area who does waldorf doll/toy making classes but im waiting for a call back to see how much she charges. do waldorf dolls hold up well, of to they fall apart pretty fast? & thank you for the book suggestion! i will check that one out! :)
 

Originally Posted by babygirlsmama 

Not to worry....the Waldorf approach is more about simplicity, being home-centered, letting your child blossom from within, and finding the simple beauty in everyday life.  Especially at your child's age, the "toys" are not very important.

On the topic of toys, sometimes I think it is more about what you don't have than what you have....if that makes sense.  Meaning, you could just throw away all the plastic junk toys and trade them all for a single doll.  That will make room for your child's imagination to flourish.  Meanwhile, your child will make her own toys with your kitchen pots and pans, things they find in nature, rearranging the house furniture, etc.  I definitely recommend the book, "You are your Child's First Teacher," which is a great introduction to the concepts.

Actually we do have a lot of the Waldorf style toys, but seriously, my daughter's spends most of her time playing with seashells we found on the beach, playsilks we bought online for $5 and dyed at home ourselves, any empty box she can find, and my mixing bowls from the kitchen.  Seriously. 

Good luck!

Babygirlsmama

[Melaniee]

Wow. I've rarely had any wooden toys break. We have some Holtzinger and Ostheimer and really the only two which have ever broken are one of the antenna off of a snail and the tip of a cat's tail. My Dd is far from gentle with her toys. I'm sorry you got a fragile lot of it. In general I think Waldorf toys tend to be much sturdier than typical plastic toys and are easier to repair and stay repaired.  Sometimes you may have to sand a corner, or stitch a doll, but at least it's an option. The doll will be as sturdy as you make it.  I have never had any dolls have problems, but you can always fix it and I think that is beautiful.

As for family, I started a wish list (I use wishlist.com b/c it has an easy interface to add things and people can 'reserve' wishes but buy from wherever).  I put things on it I'd want the kids to have. Some family friends don't ask (and I don't shove it down people's throats), but those who do I just email the link.  I also might say "we have a lot of xyz...and just not much room. We had to give away a lot of things" and give other suggestions (memberships perhaps?).   I know what you mean about feeling badly. We have family who not only doesn't give what I want, they don't give what I can even tolerate being in my home, period. It's our home, it has to go. When Dc were littler I would sneak things away but now they are aware so we have to talk about it sometimes.

[AK_MtnAnSith]

I LOVE this topic!!!

A family wish list idea is GREAT!  And since I personally feel so strongly about the quality toy thing, I don't feel bad about being "obnoxious" in asking people for specific things!

I have long said the BEST toys are: SILKIES...you can order some from Dharma Trading and dye them with turmeric, kool-aid, etc. SO fun for kids to help with!    ROCKS: a small basket of clean rocks of differing textures.  SHELLS: same deal-you can find a basket of shells cheap at Michael's.  STICKS(with supervision) You can also go out and find 2 or 3 branches of varying widths- around the size of a wrist?-slice them up at varying heights, sand them down a bit and you have lovely building blocks!  CARDBOARD TUBES AND BOXES!!!!  I bet your kiddo was more interested in THEM than the toys at Christmas!  My 7 yr old spent a DAY playing in 2 big boxes after xmas!  And, of course, a sweet BABY DOLL to love!  Add or make some little gnomes http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-make-a-waldorf-gnomehom-108806  to join the animals , rocks, sticks and shells and you are ALL SET!!!! 

A great book to splurge on is Toy making with Children by Freya Jaffke!!!  This is such a wonderful time!  Enjoy!

[Gunter]

we've found wooden baby doll cradles, wooden cars and trucks plus baskets to hold it all (which also become a part of their play) at the thrift store.  we've found small plates, bowls and cups for their play kitchen.

we re-use the small square cardboard boxes that our veggies and fruits come in for their play veggies/fruits.  the crate that oranges came in stores the bowls, etc. 

we dyed their large cloth diaper 'flats' and they use these for all kinds of things from shawls, to wrap up gifts, to skirts and tablecloths, blankets, etc. 

they have a basket of shells and rocks in a variety of sizes. 

hope you find some inspiration here! 

[elefante]

Also, if you are on a tight budget, you can look for simple wooden toys in general. They don't need to be Ostheimer. Ikea has some affordable simple wooden toys, and although it's not the same thing, they are good basics. Also, you might be able to get lucky and find some deals at your local consignment shop and craigslist. GL mama!