Toyless in Tierp

This title may sound a little misleading. Of course there are places you can buy toys in Tierp, not too many, but even then they don't have the best baby selection. For a long time in our household we ourselves were practically toyless in Tierp!

Rosa's homemade toys!

I believe consumerism in the US is much bigger than in Sweden for a few different reasons. While the population is severely lower, there tends to be less options, kids are not as spoiled, and also people here are more crafty or there seem to be more crafty people that make things for themselves including toys! Rosa has some homemade toys that she loves from Grandma T and a couple from baby cafe. I can't wait to learn how to make more!

Toys found at Lidl

 There is a store here called Lidl. Anton is so against going there. If you live in the US it's the the equivalent of Save-a-lot, which I won't shop at, so I can't really diagree with his feelings on Lidl. I really do think though that everyone has stores they don't like or won't shop at. Anyway Lidl has some great deals on household items, clothes, and sometimes toys. I found an awesome Fisher Price book that is soft and can be chewed on with practically no destruction or wear. I also found a Disney stack set of rings. The only problem with buying toys at Lidl is, if you find it that day, you have to purchase it that day or it won't exist the next time you go in. They purchase a certain amount and do not order more, so what they have out is what they have.

Rosa's remote & phone

After I moved here, I had sticker shock on baby and children's things. I think I spend $60 (400 kr) on a Pingu  penguin pillow. An investment I do not regret, especially since it keeps your arms from going numb. But I think you catch my drift, if a pillow is $60, how much is a stroller? car seat? etc? Well Amazon UK can save the day! A good stroller that can hold a car seat and baby bed here starts at around $600. They are amazing but I cannot fathom spending that much money. My dad shipped me a Graco carseat and stroller at a fraction of that price. So I order a lot of things from Amazon UK: bottles, wipes, reusable diapers, a baby wetsuit, etc.. Recently I ordered two toys, one that she plays with now and one that she can play with when she is older.

Rosalind is growing like a weed and quickly outgrowing her bouncer and swing. I wanted to get her something she could grow into. Unfortunately my first choice from Amazon UK cost as much in shipping as it did the item, so I had to figure out an alternative. I looked at babyland.se a site I had looked at several times before I even moved here but never ordered anything from it. It's one of those sites you want to order everything from. I found a cool blue car rocker/ walker and ordered it with free shipping! It was more than I would have liked to spend, but in my opinion necessary. Rosa has to feel like she does several different types of things and change it up all day long. She isn't one of those babies who can do one thing for hours, besides sleep, and even then that has it limitations.

Rosa checking out her first new car.

My mother-in-law said she sent Rosa a new toy too. We're excited to see what it is! I feel good about her collection now and I don't think she'll need any thing for quite some time. While it was no fun being toyless in Tierp, I'm glad I've decided not to go overboard on toys. She can only play with so many things at once and she really loves boxes, paper, and measuring cups. Besides she has an awesome book collection with English and Swedish books!