The Few Toys My Kids Aren't Sick Of 2
The Few Toys My Kids Still Aren't Sick Of
The worst toys are the ones that are exciting for ten minutes on Christmas morning and then become permanent tripping hazards.
They waste precious house space.
A beautiful toy gets played with until it breaks or gets handed down. It engages everyone, from the toddler to the grandparents.
Here are the four winners in our house that have lasted years.
Outdoor Play: Foxtail
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I hate outdoor toys that take forever to set up. Volleyball nets, badminton sets—by the time you get them up, the kids have lost interest.
The Foxtail is just a ball with a long fabric tail, but it’s brilliant. It’s easier to throw and catch than a regular ball because you can grab the tail. It gets my youngest and his grandparents all playing. We take it to the park, the beach, or just the backyard. Immediate fun, zero setup.
Indoor Play: Magnatiles
These are the gold standard. We’ve had our set for years, and they are still pulled out almost every single day.
They are intuitive enough for a three-year-old to stack but structurally sound enough for a ten-year-old to build a sprawling castle. Cleanup is actually satisfying because they click together. If I could only keep one indoor toy, this would be it.
Drawing: Spirograph
This is the ultimate quiet-time savior. Unlike regular markers where the caps get lost and the paper ends up everywhere, Spirograph feels like a focused "project."
There is something mesmerizing about the gears. It bridges the gap between art and math in a way that keeps my kids at the table for forty-five minutes straight. It produces complex, beautiful designs that they are genuinely proud of, not just scribbles.
Engineering: Snap Circuits
Most "STEM" toys are just flashy plastic with a battery. Snap Circuits actually teach how electricity works.
My kids love that the pieces snap onto the board like Lego, but they are building real working doorbells, alarms, and radios. It doesn’t feel like homework; it feels like magic. The instructions are clear enough that they don’t need me hovering over them, which is a massive win.
What makes these stick?
1. Low Friction
None of these require a 10-page manual to start playing. You open the box (or bag) and you are having fun within 30 seconds.
2. Open-Ended
They don't have just "one way" to play. You can build anything with tiles, draw anything with gears, or invent any throwing game with the Foxtail.
3. Durable
They survive being stepped on, dropped, and thrown. They are built to be used, not just looked at.