The Eureka Moment...

The idea for Toying Around came to me after a few life-changing events - 1. We moved from a large house in Texas to a small townhouse in Redmond (a suburb outside of Seattle), 2. My "baby" had become a mobile toddler with the attention span of a flea and 3. I was brewing my 2nd child which meant all the baby stuff was going to be pulled back of the garage. So, here we were cooking, dining and spending family time in a glorified playpin. Toy clutter was encrouching every shared space that our family had. From florescent plastics to items that light up and make repetitive noises that can drive a person crazy to at least 20 balls of various sizes, we were drowning in toys. The worst part was that Maximus (my toddler) would play with the toy for a few minutes and then move on to the next one. I wasn't certain what kind of enrichment, if any, he was getting from all these toys. It was at that moment that I realized there had to be a better way...


I wanted a few things for myself and my child: 1. I wanted my child to play with a purpose... to spend more time focusing on one toy and exploring the many different ways to play with one object at a time. 2. I wanted to have an educated approach to play and have a better understanding of how the toys I was purchasing my child would help him achieve milestones. 3. I wanted to DECLUTTER MY HOUSE :). 4. Finally, I wanted to be more earth-friendly and I knew that purchasing new toys on a regular basis was not eco-friendly.


My quest for a service that fulfilled these requirements lead me to Baby Plays, a toy rental service. A woman, Lori Pope, out of Houston was shipping toy rentals to 44 states around the US. From all the news coverage she received, it seemed to be a very popular idea. For me, the idea was limited by the lack of educational information and research on which were the best toys for development.


The Toying Around concept was created to give parents the option of renting developmental toys that include educational materials for the parents. We will recommend toys for your child based on age, milestones and/or themes your child may be interested in. Then we will include materials on how to help your child play with the toys to achieve certain milestones. The toys are delivered (and picked up) from your front doorstep every month making it very convenient for busy parents.

Our hope is to take the guesswork out of toys and give you more time to play in a meaninful manner with your kids.... stay tuned for more!