sewer vent roof

It has been proven by many that the healthiest, purest water you can get comes only from effective water filtration systems May sound quite unreal, but it’s true. Majority of us think that tap and bottled water are safe as it has to undergo certain certification to meet government standards. Well, you should know this. Let me ask you how many times we have heard of a major water scare forcing home owners to boil their water? Oftentimes, it happens.

Studies show that over 2000 harmful substances are present in common tap water that can potentially cause cancer. These unwanted contaminants can be effectively removed by a high quality water filtration system. Chlorine as we all know is added to water to eliminate harmful bacteria. However, chlorine itself is a harmful toxin. Another research study revealed that chlorine content of household tap water in several communities exceeds the limits. We are all aware how strong the smell of chlorine can be.

We are living in an industrialized world, with tons of chemical types being used everyday. Many of these toxins penetrate deeply reaching and polluting the groundwater. Despite of the water authorities, these pollutants do get into the water we drink. As the United States EPA chief, Carol Browner said, “The way we guarantee safe drinking water is broken and needs to be fixed.” Unfortunately, bottled water doesn’t get any better than tap water. Lack of regulation is the biggest issue. 60%-70% of all bottled water is exempt for the FDA’s standard – produced and bottled in the same state and condition.

Over 60, 000, 000 of plastic bottles are produced, transported and disposed in the United States everyday. Yes, that’s every day! It is considered to be one of the most polluting industries in the whole world. This, water filtration usage means taking care of the environment. Instead of using bottled water, you can fill your own glass or bottle with clean, safe water from your very own water filters. A lot of available high quality filtration systems deliver chemical-free, great tasting water for less than 10 cents a gallon. Whereas bottled water normally ranges from $1 to $4 per gallon.

One great feature of an effective water filtration system is its multi-stage filtration process which greatly improves that overall taste and quality. These systems adhere to several strict guidelines in water purification like documenting the purity of the water they produce. The reverse osmosis systems tend to wash away everything including essential minerals. Thus, this filtration method can potentially lead to health deterioration.

Considering that water makes up a majority of your body weight and your blood comprises over 80 per cent it, it is necessary to make an informed choice about the water what you drink. The question is whether to drink refrigerated clean filtered water or bottled. Whirlpool refrigerator water filters offer a good option to drinking purer water rather than buying it in a bottle for a variety of reasons.

When considering the two options, bottled or a refrigerator water filter, concerns of costs and health need to be evaluated. It is always much cheaper to use a water filter than bottled h2o. Regardless of whether the bottled brand is a premium brand or not, in all cases there are costs related to packaging, marketing and distribution. These costs are of course passed onto consumers.

Refrigerator water filters use scientifically designed filters to get rid of toxins and harmful chemicals from the h2o before you drink it. There are no standardizations to control the quality of bottled h2o whereas with a refrigerator water filter you will know exactly what is being taken out of it.

Switching to using filtered h2o at home is also much more environmentally friendly than drinking bottled water. There are no plastic bottles to dispose of when finished.

Whirlpool refrigerator water filter system provides filtration for the whole house and kitchen and is very easy to install. The products have been designed such that they can fit any size of home or office. It is thoroughly purified to ensure that all the water for cooking, drinking and bath water is disinfected and pollutants are removed.

Using state of the art technology, Whirlpool filters remove particle sediments from the water such as lead and rust also removing bacteria and germs. Thus, the refrigerator water filter provides cleaner and safer h2o than either bottled h2o or tap water.

Struggling to find the perfect gift? Well, here’s another good gift idea for kids of all ages this year.

Sometimes it can be difficult for people to find new good gift ideas every year. Well this year, there is a new toy that is capturing the imagination of kids across the country. My Pillow Pets are quickly becoming one of the best gift ideas for kids this year!

Everyone knows that kids love stuffed animals…and many adults still love them even when they get older. Well the new My Pillow Pets toys are large plush stuffed animals that can be easily transformed into a comfy pillow.

Every Pet features an opening on the bottom that’s closed with Velcro. Open it up and it transforms into a comfy pillow, or close it back up again and it goes back to its adorable pet shape. People of all ages absolutely adore them.

They’re available in several different styles and varieties and people love to collect all of them to get the full set. There’s a My Pillow Pets unicorn, dolphin, whale, lion, bee, dog, dinosaur and frog. Any of these lovable critters make a good gift idea for anyone on your shopping list.

Because they are so popular, there are actually dishonest people making fake pillow pets and trying to pass them off as the real thing. If you can check the item before you buy it, be sure to examine the toy and look for a label stitched into the rear leg. The authentic labels should be red text on a white background, and it will either say “Pillow Pets” or “My Pillow Pets”.

Although these knock-offs might be less expensive, they’re very poor quality and really not worth the savings. So check the tag to know that you’re getting the real thing.

Another good thing about them is they are machine washable to take care of those unavoidable spills. Whichever My Pillow Pets you buy for the people on your list, they’re sure to enjoy this good gift idea.

It’s a miracle I lived through the 60′s and 70′s.

As if Richard Nixon, Vietnam, mutually assured destruction, and really really bad fashion weren’t risky enough, I faced the daily threat of mass-marketed toys that could maim, wound, and disfigure. Mattel? Kenner? Hasbro? Whamo? Endless fun with just a hint of mutilation thrown in for good measure. The children’s playthings of my youth would never make the cut nowadays – but how dear they were to my heart way back when.

Toy’s of my childhood – how do I love thee?

Let me count the ways.

The Poisonous:

In the 20 years spanning 1960-1979, nothing said FUN like toxic chemicals and vapors. The Bubble Jet, a fancy water gun you shoved bubble-producing cyanide tablets into, was great recreation. Whether squirting the solution into a friend’s eyes or mouth, or your own, chemicals meant good clean fun. When you bored of the toxic bubble fun, you could relax with a couple of puffs from your Fake Cigarettes and blow (or inhale) some artificial chemical smoke. If smoking wasn’t your thing, it was time for some Superelastic Bubble Plastic. If the fumes from the blob of plastic goo you’d place carefully on the short straw didn’t fry some essential brain cells, the psychedelic colors of the finished bubbles were sure to blow your mind. And there was always the classic standby, the Chemistry Set, always full of poison potential. ‘Hey Mommmmm! We’re mixing up an experiment! (ie…mixing every damn powder and solution in the set together)’. ‘That’s great Johnny. Just don’t be late for supper. Johnny? Johnny? What’s that horrible smell?’

I find the smell of burning flesh intoxicating: Once you’d worked up a healthy buzz from sniffing and snorting some of the good stuff above, it was time to get down to real business. If you weren’t holding a steel rod at 373 Kelvin, you weren’t having fun. I guess ‘Red Hot Iron Poker’ wasn’t very marketable. Instead they called this fun-filled item a Wood Burning Kit. Designed for the youthful artiste to trace lovely designs in the smooth face of a virgin wood canvas, we found it much more fascinating and gratifying to see which of our sister’s toys was combustible. The fun lasted until we ran out of things to ignite, or burned the hell out of one of our fingers. The Wood Burning Kit had the added benefit of giving off some more occasionally toxic fumes, a plus if the headrush from earlier fun had worn off.

One of the most memorable toys of my youth had the potential to deliver fun and 3rd degree burns simultaneously. Creepy Crawlers let you make your own multi-colored rubber bugs and reptiles by squeezing some liquid goo into a metal mold you then placed in an electrically heated bath of incredibly hot water. The mixture of high-voltage electricity, water, toxic goo, and blazing heat was intoxicating. I can’t remember what the hell we did with the rubber bugs, but making them sure was fun. If you were really adventurous, you got the Incredible Edibles version which combined the above risks with ingestion of the finished (supposedly ‘edible’) product, creating a high-risk toy twofer. What a bargain!

For the girls, there was always the classic Easy Bake Oven, which delivered the potential need for skin grafts using only the power of a light bulb. But the little brownies were really good, which did help take your mind off the burns.

Finally, for the truly ambitious kids, there were Estes Rocket Kits. You spent weeks carefully assembling the model rockets, inserting the real solid fuel engine, and then painstakingly preparing your rocketship for blastoff. 3 weeks of work was over in seconds as your rocket blast off into the great beyond, usually never to be seen again. After a few launches, we naturally progressed to the next logical step – laying the rockets on their side and launching them down the street. We were among the most popular kids in the neighborhood. Finally, we’d tire even of bothering with the rockets at all, and would tape the engines to handy household items (like empty glass Coke bottles), and fire them off that way. Good clean American fun!

You’ll put your eye out!:

We damn near did, on multiple occasions. Back then, the federal government was too busy alternating betweem idealism and corruption and fighting wars in obscure corners of the world to worry about what little kids were playing with. One of my elementary school playmates, Bonnie Higham, had one of her eyes put out with a dart thrown by her brother. As I recall, even for an elementary school girl, Bonnie was pretty hot, although it could be a little disconcerting to see her lovely little blue glass eye drift off in an unintended direction while the other one stared piercingly right through you. If the loss of an eye wasn’t gamble enough for you, you could risk full-on skull impalement with the big brother of the dart, Jarts, more commonly known as ‘lawn darts’. These bad boys were big enough to do serious harm, and were so tempting the adults usually absconded with them. Add in a little alcohol and adult klutziness, and you had a recipe for madcap fun or tragedy, depending on your luck.

And of course, we had that old suburban standby, the Daisy BB Gun. When we tired of shooting at squirrels, crows, and the windows of neighbors we didn’t like, it was only a matter of time before we turned them on ourselves. Lets face it. We had it coming.

There were other less forboding weapons at our disposal. The Fli Back Paddle was a personal favorite. It made a great weapon with a nice stand-off distance, giving you a headstart should whomever you were pummelling in the back of the head decide to counterattack. It also offered the risk of it’s hard ball slapping into your own face if you weren’t careful, or the rubber band breaking, sending the projectile off God know’s where, destined to break a family heirloom of some kind. If you wanted to take the hostility up a notch, you could call the Red Eye Ball into action. A modern day mace, its hard stubby prongs were nearly lethal when thrown at maximum velocity. Finally, a favorite weapon in many a childhood arsenal was the Johnny Reb Cannon, which hurled hard plastic cannonballs at those damn yankees with almost frightening fury. I wish I’d lived in a land of cotton.

I’ll call your eye out, and raise you a blunt head trauma: It’s amazing any of us escaped our childhoods without traumatic brain injury. Even the most basic of toys in my day had the potential to maim. One of my favorites was the boomerang. Ironically, even then people knew that the boomerang was a traditional Australian hunting weapon, but you could still find one in your stocking at Christmas. It could take years to master the perfect boomerang throw, seeing it make its swift, sweeping, beautiful arc and begin to race back to you and its point of origin. It took only seconds to realize you had no idea what to do about it as it careened towards your head at 90 mph. Run for your life!

All of us remember the joyful glee of a slumber party pillow fight. So it was no wonder marketers of that era sought to capitalize on those misty memories with Sockem Boppers. The nostalgic rememberances of pillow fights past quickly faded as you were thrashed about the head and shoulders with a couple of thunderous right crosses from Brian Elkins, the big mean kid down the street. ‘Knock Em Senseless Boppers’ might have been a more descriptive moniker.

Sometimes, you didn’t need anyone else at all to experience major head trauma. In the pre-rollerblade era, a common instrument of death known as the Strap-on Skate could be spotted on almost any sidewalk in America. After the hour it required to apply the strap-on skates to your Buster Browns or Keds, using your special ‘skate key’ to tighten them, you were in for the ride of your life. Everything usually went just fine, until you happened to hit a rock or stick on the sidewalk, at which point all bets were off. The skates had an interesting tendency to simply come off at any given moment. The only saving grace was that the maximum speed obtainable with skates on was about what you could muster at a quick walk normally. Fortunately, all kids of that era were urged to always wear their special protective headgear when skating. We called them ‘baseball caps’.

Vehicles of Death!:

If you’re going to ride to your death, why not do it with a really bitchin’ set of wheels? That’s my life philosophy anyway. Having the misfortune to have turned 10 years old on 24 April, 1972 P.B.W. (Pre-Big Wheel), I was robbed of the opportunity of sporting a truly stylish and functional ride. Alas, our vehicles were lame, and generally dangerous as hell. The most hazardous of them all was the ominous-looking Skat Skoota. A set of 4 wheels, with 2 plastic red footprint pedals, Houdini himself couldn’t have successfully escaped its clutches. Besides, even if you did manage to traverse down the street on the thing without breaking your neck, you looked decidedly uncool doing so. Bummer.

Another classic mode of transport those days was the Hasbro Inch Worm. The vehicle itself was perfectly harmless. But if you were spotted riding the ridiculous thing, your safety could not be guaranteed. It could take until High School for your rep to recover. The only plus was the catchy inchworm jingle.

In fact, our choice of rides back in the day were so woefully inadequate, we were forced to create our own. In its lowest form, this might mean stilts made out of a couple of baked bean cans and some laundry cord. But my most memorable vehicular experience involved 2 childhood buddies, twins, David and Eddie Reynolds. Using plywood, and nails (lots of them), on top of a Radio Flyer wagon chassis, we erected a monument to transportation unrivalled to this day. We shaped it’s side’s like a lemon, even painting it bright yellow as the final glorious finishing touch. Carefully we hauled it up to the top of Larkspur Drive, which happened to be the steepest point in our neighborhood. Eddie, being none too swift upstairs (if truth be told) drew the lucky straw as our primary pilot. Into the lemon car he went. The fateful countdown began, and with a gentle push, he headed down the incline, gathering speed as he went. As our creation plummeted downward into the abyss, we suddenly realized our heady plan had but one fatal flaw. You couldn’t steer a Radio Flyer wagon. When the lemon car hit it’s max speed of 25 mph, it decided a 90 degree turn was in order. The plywood, nails, and Eddie Reynolds decided, however, to continue down Larkspur Drive. It was not a pretty finale. The lesson? We didn’t need toys to be dangerous. It came naturally.

I both rejoice and recoil at the typical childhood activities we embraced back then. When my brother turned 10, he got an archery set and target for Christmas. We routinely fired real arrows at high velocity past each other’s ears. Exhilarating, amazing, and ummmm….kind of stupid in retrospect. I’d never let my kids do likewise, but still wonder if they aren’t missing some essential life training from the safety of their X-Box and Play Stations. I’ve shared with you the hazards of my youth. Next time, I’ll regale you with tales of some of my favorite toys. Maybe if I’m really really lucky, you’ll share your memories too.

Whether it’s riding, spinning, pushing or pulling, all kids adore a wheeled toy.

One of the most iconic images of childhood in the USA is the Radio Flyer Wagon and even if the name isn’t immediately familiar I bet you know the one I mean. Bright red with a black handle and the Radio Flyer logo in white along the side, it comes in wood or metal (and more recently, plastic) and usually has a cute kid pulling his or her favourite toys along behind him as they all go on an adventure in the garden.

They’ve been a staple of American family life since the #18 Classic Red Wagon was first produced over 70 years ago. They first came into regular use on Fire Island in New York. No motorised transport was allowed on this holiday isle so in order to get belongings from the ferry to the accommodations people used the Radio Flyer Wagon.

Proving itself strong and stable it soon got pressed into use for grocery shopping and moving heavy objects around, not to mention kids who would jump in for the ride at every opportunity! They now come in many sizes, all the way down to a miniature wagon which is perfect for miniature people.

As well as wheely things to pull along and ride in, kids love the freedom and movement of ride on toys. I know they’re great for exercising their legs and stability muscles but find a lot of these sorely lacking if I’m honest. There really is only so much primary coloured plastic an adult can look at without feeling one’s eyes are being assaulted by a box of crayons. Also, most have fixed wheels so can only travel back and forth, but not around, resulting in a lot of time being spent retrieving irritated young tikes who have managed to find themselves wedged into a corner. Not entirely getting the ‘promoting independent movement’ part there, are they?

Someone out there clearly felt my pain because they came up with gorgeous looking ride on toys that have caster wheels. Each of these sweet little wheelie bugs can move in any direction, including in circles, meaning your tiddlers legs get great all-round exercise as they have fun gaining independence of movement, balance skills and frustration-free problem solving when they inevitably scoot themselves into a corner.

Everyone loves the little red wagon and the Radio Flyer version of the classic toy is the standard against which all others are judged. These wagons have been a part of millions of American childhoods for generations and they continue to find their way under Christmas trees by the thousands every December. While one can enjoy one of these wagons straight out of the box, accessories like the Radio Flyer wagon canopy can make them even more fun and flexible. They are a great upgrade for a great toy.

Children of all ages love wagons, but they are particularly popular with the little ones. Small children enjoy being moved along in a wagon. A simple walk to the park can become a laugh-filled adventure for a toddler in a little red wagon. That is why a Radio Flyer wagon canopy is such a great idea.

With a Radio Flyer wagon canopy, you can take your little one out in his or her red wagon without worrying about the impact of sun on his or her skin. Sunscreen is a must, but additional protection is so important on summer days and a wagon canopy is a great way of providing that extra layer of sun safety. Can you think of a better way to provide a little cool shade for a child playing in a wagon on a hot day?

The wagon canopy continues to be a fun accessory inside, as well. We may never understand why small children love climbing into something with a covered roof, but it does not take a childhood development guru to observe that predilection. Your little one will enjoy his or her little red wagon more than every before after you have attached a smart canopy to the toy.

Little red wagons continue to be a popular toy for two other reasons unrelated to the preferences of children. Parents appreciate their affordability and admire their durability. That tradition continues with the Radio Flyer wagon canopy. It is not a particularly expensive addition to the wagon and it is the kind of sturdy accessory that is likely to last just as long as the wagon will.

There is nothing quite like a toy wagon. Children love them. Parents love them. They forge a connection with the past while offering countless hours of entertainment. If they are not the perfect toy, they are certainly close to it. The Radio Flyer wagon canopy provides an opportunity to upgrade a classic toy, increasing its utility and adding a new dimension of fun. If your child has a wagon or will be receiving one soon, consider outfitting it with a Radio Flyer wagon canopy.

When searching for a stimulating and creative pedal car, you really can’t go wrong with the fire truck model. The glossy, candy apple red paint, working siren, and pedal powered maneuverability can easily whisk a child off onto hundreds of pretend rescue operations.

The fire truck pedal toy first rose to popularity in the 1950′s, when ride-on toys became a popular and more affordable kid’s toy. This unique, retro-imitation car comes with all of the bells and whistles necessary to set your child’s imagination into drive. Although the fire truck version has retained a place among children’s toys since the 1950′s, there is no denying the fact that these simple yet fantastic cars are experiencing a resurgence in popularity with the current generation.

One of the major differences with today’s fire truck pedal car is that you won’t only see boys playing with it. Girls also love to seek adventure by braving through imaginary missions and playing the hero. Not only can these toys break the gender barrier, in fact, they also break the age barrier too, as many collectors and fans of pedal cars seek to expand their collection or simply reminisce about the good old days. Fire truck pedal toys are simply loved by children and adults alike.

You may be able to see the fun and entertaining aspects of this toy, but have you given thought to the developmental advantages that a pedal truck can provide? Take for instance the way this vehicle is powered-that is, your child’s feet. As your child pedals, the major muscles in their legs, arms, and the lower abdomen are working to both move the car and to steer it in the right direction. This encourages coordination and strengthens these muscle groups. While it won’t seem this way to your child, you can relax knowing that your kid is willingly getting out into the fresh air and stretching his or her legs.

This fire truck is designed to look just like the volunteer fire trucks from the 40′s. It has the sturdy reliability of a steel construction, red powder coat paint that is free of lead, and a striking finish, with realistic graphics that accurately mimic the actual 1940′s style fire trucks upon which this pedal car was based. The steering wheel, bell, hub caps, and ladder racks are all chrome which means that your little one can pedal around in true style. Also, the rubber ball bearing wheels and fully functional bell can meet the demands of your energetic child without sacrificing quality or safety.

The realistic yet safe and sturdy design of these fire truck pedal cars makes it a perfect addition to any small child’s toy collection. The activity and creativity that pedal cars inspire means that parents can also feel good about encouraging play time. Perhaps one of the best features about a pedal car, however, is that while your toddler will certainly enjoy it during their own childhood, it can also be preserved and passed on to later generations.

From the first funny shaped rock or stick that was used to keep a child busy or entertained, toys have come a long way. Today, they are a billion dollar industry, with new toys – faster, brighter, smarter – come out all the time. It is difficult for some parents to keep up with all the latest trends and fads. (Silly Bandz, anyone?) To help with this, we are going to look at some of the ways to research popular toys from the past so you can do a better job finding the top ten toys of Christmas in 2010.

For example, what is going to be the must-have toy this year? While many people are going to attempt to answer this question in the months ahead, there is another way to look at the top Christmas toys question. For example, what about popular Christmas toys from 1947? Or the top toys for Christmas 1977? By going back in time and looking through history, we can come up with some guidelines for helping us pick the most popular Christmas toys of all time.

How to Find the Top Ten Christmas Toys of All Time

The Internet - While the world wide web is a wonderful way to look up information on the history of toys and which ones were popular in the past, you are going to see a lot of the same information tossed about as people try to sell you products. That said, there are many good places to research the most popular Christmas toys online – for the current year as well as years of Christmas Past.
Print Media – You may have to go to a physical library (remember those?) to get this information, but microfilm is a wonderful thing for looking up old articles in magazines. This can enable you to see what the print magazines and newspapers were saying about the most popular toys whatever year you want to know about.

The Top 10 Christmas Toys of All Time

Without any further waiting, here is our pick of the top 10 Christmas toys of all time.

LEGO Blocks – No matter the set, these have been a Christmas favorite for many years now. Currently, the LEGO Universe is one of the “must-have” items.
Hula Hoop – Even today, this is a popular toy. It’s a little more expensive than the original toys, but kids still love it.
Barbie - Going on 50+, Barbie still looks great and is one of the top Christmas toys of all time.
Red Wagon – With Red Flyer being the most popular, the classic red wagon is still a great gift for kids of all ages.
Video Games – It started with Pong, moved to the Atari 2600, then was dominated by Nintendo for many years. Today, video games are more popular than ever before. Today, the X-Box is on the top of a lot of people’s list.
Lionel Trains – Every child probably has a memory or two of getting their first Lionel train set. Today, the trains are still desired by children everywhere, making this a top Christmas toy.
Board Games – From Candyland to Memory, board games are some of the most popular Christmas toys. Risk is probably one of the more popular games for older children.
Little People – From Fisher Price, these large “Little People” have been around for many decades. They’re still a favorite of small children, making them a top Christmas toy.
GI Joe – While this soldier has had his ups and downs over the years, he’s still in our top list of Christmas toys. With a recent movie, these toys are more popular than ever.
The Empty Box - Oh yes, the lowly box. How many young children have had hours and hours of imaginative fun with empty boxes after Christmas morning? Quite a few, I would imagine. Because of that, the empty cardboard box is our pick for the top Christmas toy of all time.

Disagree with our list? Leave a comment below!

One of the most exciting gifts a child can receive as a present is the Radio Flyer 32. The radio flyer wagons have been around for a long time. In fact, I had one when I was little. These wagons make playing outside so much fun because kids can haul things from place to place with them and give each other rides in them as well. There are several different models of wagons available and each have their own features that makes them unique. Below are the specifics of this particular wagon.

Size: The Radio Flyer 32 wagon is full-sized which means that your children can do more with it than with smaller wagons. They won’t have any problems giving their friends a ride or hauling their toys all over the yard or down the street on family walks.

Durability: A lot of wagons are made out of hard plastic, but this one is made out of high-quality seamless steel. This is important because this wagon will stay around for years after your kids are finished with it. Another great feature is that the steel is scratch resistant so not only will the wagon last longer, but it will continue to look good!

Safety: The manufacturers of the Radio Flyer 32 have done everything possible to keep your little one safe while he or she plays with this toy. The wagon has high wooden sides to keep them safely inside as they ride in the wagon and little fingers will stay safe as no-pinch ball joints have been used for this wagon. In addition to that, there is a controlled turning radius to prevent sharp turns from being made. This means that the wagon is less likely to tip over. Earlier models didn’t have this feature and little ones were constantly falling out.

Comfort: If you had a little red wagon when you were growing up, you may remember the hard wheels that came with it. Those wheels contributed to bumpy rides that weren’t a lot of fun. However, this model does not have these wheels. Instead, it comes with high-quality air tires to ensure the smoothest ride possible.

If you’re looking for a great gift for your little one that will get a lot of use, the Radio Flyer 32 red wagon is the perfect solution! It will stay around and be used for years after the child has gotten older. Therefore, this is one purchase that is both useful and fun – and definitely worth the money!

Although merchants and advertisers would have us believe that kid’s tech toys are king this Christmas, many parents, grandparents, and gift givers long for the simplicity of a low-tech Christmas featuring the classics that we remember from our own childhood – wagons, toy trains and transportation, simple building blocks, and high quality children’s furniture that facilitates pretend play. Many adults want to give gifts that are made of high quality materials that will last, be loved for generations to come, and be passed down to the recipient’s own kids.

Most classic, retro and heirloom quality children’s gifts are made of wood or metal because both are high quality materials that lasts. Although more expensive than the plastic toys of today, metal and wooden toys are worth the investment because they hold their value and they don’t break, fall apart or lose parts. Here are five classic toys that might fit the bill for folks seeking out nostalgic toys this Christmas:

1. Radio Flyer Classic Wagon: This is the classic red wagon that most of us remember from our childhood. It’s flared edge is what stands it apart from competitors and makes it recognizable. (The design is trademarked). This item has been in production for over 30 years and is in the Parents Magazine Hall Of Fame. It retails for about $65. Considering it will be used for years, this price tag isn’t a bad one.

2. Classic Wooden Train Set: Every child needs a classic wooden train set. Children love making trains go over the bridge and around the town while pretend-playing situations for the passengers. Most sets come with bridges, houses and people/figures to encourage pretend play. Prices vary depending on the number of pieces and accessories.

3. Classic Wooden Kitchen: You see these little kitchens in almost every preschool and nursery today, but unfortunately most are made of plastic that absorbs spills and debris and stains horribly. Look for a large, wooden kitchen with a removable sink (so it can be cleaned) Cabinet doors that open and provide storage for kitchen supplies or can function as a pretend oven is a huge plus. Wooden kitchens run about $150.

4. Classic Wooden Building Blocks: Wooden building blocks should be required in every playroom. Not only do they encourage mobility and fine motor skills, they are also wonderful for pretend play and role playing and the combinations and possibilities are endless. Blocks challenge children to make the visions in their mind a physical reality. This is important for both problem solving, troubleshooting and imagination. Basic wooden block sets start at about $30 and are priced based upon the number of blocks and how elaborate the set is. Some incorporate transportation or specialty buildings like castles or forts.

5. Classic Radio Flyer Bicycle: No matter how high tech our children become, they still love feeling the wind in their hair and the excitement of getting from here to there on a bicycle. This classic red, bike is the one you remember from your childhood and has the recognizable silver, steel bell as well as the stability training wheels. Retails for about $50.

Christmas and gift-giving occasions provide the perfect opportunity to share your childhood with the children you love. With just a little searching, you can find many suitable retro, classic toys to share with kids who live amongst ipods and gameboys.