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Comment by sandworm101 | Hacker News Reader

>>> ... the kid will usually play with it less, because they find their options are limited.

If we judged toys purely on how long kids played with them, Christmas would be just a pile of ipads. I don't have kids, but do watch in amazement as young parents buy toys less for the child and more to reinforce their theories of scientific parenting. The kid's brain will develop with or without the "correct" toys. Maybe confinement to such "play areas" is the issue. I don't confine my puppy to pay in a particular zone of approval. Why a child? My play area as a kid was 'the house' or wherever else I found myself.

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I gave a two-year-old a wooden bike which came in a box. Through some non-specific English usage he understand the box WAS his gift. It was hell getting the box away from him long enough to unbox the present. Kids are remarkably adaptable and will play with just about anything.

It isn't just that they play with anything. A box is special. When I first gave my puppy a carboard box (6 years ago) she didn't know what to do with it. Then I tore it a little and something clicked. The box, unlike everything else in the human world, was expendable. There is nothing that she could do to the box that would upset anyone. Rip it. Sleep in it. Carry it around. Or forget about it and do something else. Another one will appear eventually. That's freedom. Every other thing either belongs to mom/dad or came from them and so must be used properly. Kids enjoy boxes for exactly the same reasons and in much the same ways as puppies.

When a large Amazon box arrives at our house it's like a mini-Christmas for the kids as they act out the dolls having a camper van or new pirate boat or whatever.

It's sad but after a few days we have to tell them the box is being retired and stored away or recycled (only to be replaced in a few weeks when another large box arrives).

Why can't they keep the box until it is broken?

Seems like a cliche, but it's just a universal truth. Kids love playing with boxes. We've definitely had boxes that have got a lot more mileage than some toys in our house.

TIL having cats might be better parenting practice than I assumed.

Actually having cats is about the best parenting practice you can get. They come to you when they want love, lay in the middle of your paper, harass you when they want feeding, fuck off when they've had enough of you and if you over stimulate them, they scratch and bite you... which they may also use as a form of affection.

Kids are remarkably similar. Give them the love and attention they need. But otherwise, stand back and let them get on with it. It's the time when you stand back and let them get on with it that their imagination is exercised. Showing them how to imagine things doesn't help them as much as you might think. Stop them from killing or horribly injuring themselves.

>> Actually having cats is about the best parenting practice you can get.

Cannot disagree more. I hate seeing people who buy cats or puppies as some sort of parenting bootcamp, only to abandon them when things go south. Don't do this. If you are unsure if your boyfriend would make a good dad, wait until you are sure. Don't get a puppy as a test of your relationship because it is the puppy that will suffer when you break up.

You're projecting.

Not everyone buys pets to test their boyfriend or relationship. Some people actually commit to their pets until the pet lives into old age and dies of natural causes.

You are right, a pet is not just for Christmas.

Just my 2c to agree with sibling posts. For some reason, moving boxes are big on the local Gumtree Freebies, and after my son found out about this, every couple of weeks I get asked to get some boxes for him to play with (which typically gets retired a weekend or two later).

Sure, they take up more space than Lego or Mecards or Beybaldes, but absolutely can't beat them for entertainment value.

Boxes are, for sure, one of the number one play things in our house. Especially if you cut a door, or a few holes in, then they can become caves, houses, rockets, boats, etc!

That is absolutely hilarious. Going off the OP above, I have a puppy and she loves boxes too, more so than anything that a box can contain ;)

Boxes, random pieces of paper and cardboard frames left after punching out board game chits are all very used toys for my daughter.

Why did you take the box away then?

>Why did you take the box away then?

To be fair his mother eventually had to take him away from the box to keep him on his feeding and nap schedule. He cried all the way up the stairs because he wanted to keep playing with the box. But his dad opened the box when the child couldn't see it and eventually all was well when he discovered the bike inside. It wasn't intentional cruelty as much as the crushing disappointment visited on any child that has to do what his parents want.

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