How old was your child when he/she stopped playing with...

[moonlight]

a toy kitchen?

 

My ds is almost 2 1/2 and we have one that works fine, but I really really really want to get him this one:

 

http://www.camdenrose.com/product/a_simple_hearth/31/?catID=99

 

I know I want it more than my ds does. He doesn't even know it exists! It is just so beautiful and I could eventually pass it down to my grandchildren..

 

That being said, I'm in major decluttering mode and am getting rid of A LOT of toys. I don't want to add something that will sit around after a month for another 20 years for grandkids! :-)

 

Be gentle. I really want the kitchen. Oh, and I have an issue with the weight of the kitchen. I have to bring it back in my luggage internationally.

 

Did your kids play with castles???

 

Thanks!

[bettyandbob]

I think around age 5. It's been a while -- my kids are teens. 

 

I had a very nice  one similar to your picture without the high back. It would have been nice to keep it. I think originally I was going to keep it. But really, all this stuff gets to be too much stuff. Even nice looking well made stuff is just stuff. So, I gave it to a neighbor with younger children. I'm glad it was nicely made and looked  than a plastic one during the years we had it. I'm also glad I did not keep it. 

 

If I had already had a serviceable toy kitchen I would not have "upgraded". My kids would not have enjoyed something that suited my tastes better. 

 

We do have a few toys we are keeping. They are nice toys that can be boxed into a small space for storage. 

[SKL]

My kids got theirs at age 2 and played with it regularly at least until age 5.  Around age 6 I got rid of it (it took a lot of space) because they were old enough do most things in the real kitchen.  One of them was kind of bummed to see it go, but it really had lost most of its play value at that point.

[Rachel]

My 1 year old plays with ours a lot, the 4 year old on occasion. The 6 year old never does, but he does play with one at the library that is taller.

[craftyerin]

I am getting rid of ours during my current decluttering spree. My youngest kids are 5.5, but really, the kitchen has never been a popular plaything here. They like to play with the food and pots and pans for picnic or tea party or with play doh, but they have never "cooked" in the kitchen. Go figure. 

[ddcrook]

My dds still play with theirs at ages 9 and 7.

[Julie Smith]

Myself and my boys, never.

 

My dh had a toy kitchen he loved and played with it for years and years. If I remember the stories about he he played with it till about eight or nine.

[Julie Smith]

Myself and my boys, never.

 

My dh had a toy kitchen he loved and played with it for years and years. If I remember the stories about he he played with it till about eight or nine.

[QueenCat]

Around 5.

[Goldilocks]

I think it often depends on the birth order of the children. My older kids played with preschool-type toys for much longer than the younger ones, because there were younger ones around that were also interested. 

 

This weekend I am getting rid of a lot of toys that my older ds would have played with much past 6 years old, but my 6 yo is interested in "big kid" stuff because it is around.

[NASDAQ]

My 7 yo plays with it, but the heavy users are the five and three-year-old.

[Jennifer in MI]

Huh.  My dd - just turned 8 - plays with her kitchen all the time!  She set up restaurants (complete with prices) and tea parties for her dolls.  

[Pippen]

None of mine played with it past age 4. They all wanted to work in the real kitchen with me.

 

If I were in your situation, especially facing shipping weight issues, I might stick with the one I had for now and indulge in a Cadillac model down the road for my grandchildren.

[itsheresomewhere]

DD still plays with hers.  She makes up menus and has tea parties for the dolls, us and the dogs.  

 

If I were you, I wouldn't spend extra money on it. You might not even be able to pass it on to your grandkids.  It could get broken during the shipping back, crack when disassembling/reassembling or destroyed by fire or bugs.  What about when you are a grandparent, buy the kitchen then. 

[Eagle]

Ds6 plays with his every day still.

[Desert Strawberry]

Kitchen-6, with the high point at age 3-4.

 

Castles-still going strong at 7 and 11,though more complex build-it-yourself type castles hold more interest. 

[LibraryLover]

2 is a perfect age for it!. You will get lots of mileage. I think you could do better on price. Check www.novanatural.com

 

http://www.novanatural.com/playing/wooden-play-kitchens

 

[Kathryn]

My 4yo still plays with it a lot. My 8yo not so much though it hasn't been long since he did.

[jennynd]

Never played.. :(

 

Kitchen and doll house all ended up as her lego shelve

[Heather in Neverland]

I didn't even get my dd a kitchen until she was 3. She is now 4.5 and plays with it all the time.

[Jackie]

My almost-4yo plays with hers regularly. We got the ikea one, which isn't quite as gorgeous but a lot more cost effective. We bought it just after she turned one and it has been quite a good investment for us, along with a selection of Melissa and Doug foods, especially the cutting foods sets.

[kitten18]

I am getting rid of ours during my current decluttering spree. My youngest kids are 5.5, but really, the kitchen has never been a popular plaything here. They like to play with the food and pots and pans for picnic or tea party or with play doh, but they have never "cooked" in the kitchen. Go figure.

Yep, same here. We have a very nice, preschool quality, wood kitchen. The kids never really played with it.

 

On the other hand, they still play frequently with their Thomas trains. They were by far our best toy investment.

[...................]

girls: about age 6

 

boys:  about age 2.5  seriously...they only play with the toy kitchen until they discover how to throw a ball, work buttons, fly planes, play with superheroes, etc.  

[abba12]

My sister and I would have been about 7 and 8 when we stopped playing with ours

My brother stopped around 6 and youngest sister was never really interested.

[ssavings]

My 6 and 7 year olds still play with theirs... **

[mom2jjka]

My girls are 9 and 11 and still play 'restaurant' all the time.

[Tap]

DD15 played with hers until kindergarten or so. 

DD7 had two different ones (one when she was smaller, one larger) and never played with either.

[Kimberly in IN]

My youngest dd is 8, turning 9 in about 6 wks. We just did a major declutter (as in last 3 weeks) & gave away the kitchen as she either cooks in the kitchen for real or uses the American Girl sized one (from Target or somewhere) for the dolls. Her toy kitchen got a lot of use past the age 2 1/2. My oldest ds played with the kitchen until 5ish. Middle 2 kids played w/ kitchen until 7/6ish. So, all of mine were different but all enjoyed the kitchen past the age of 2.

[Mergath]

Around three, because that's when I started letting her help with real kitchen stuff, so the pretend kitchen didn't seem like as much fun.  She was never all that into it to start with, though.

[SKL]

I forgot to answer the second question.  Castles!  I got my kids the Melissa & Doug wooden castle around age 5, mainly to absorb the overflow of princess dolls & stuff from the dollhouse.  It was a hit.  My kids are now 7 and they play with it all the time.  That said, my kids weren't really into the dollhouse type toy until they were around 3.

[LucyStoner]

My son is 5 and while he helps in the real kitchen all the time he still plays with his toy kitchen.  His toy kitchen is actually in our kitchen.  He frequently "duplicates" whatever is being made in the kitchen on his own toy kitchen. 

 

Still, I would be unlikely to upgrade on something like this.  You have 1-4ish more years with it tops.  And then storing it for two decades or more? 

[happypamama]

DD played with the kitchen until 6, maybe? Not sure. DS1 never played with it much. DS2 played with it a little, I think, but he's been playing with it more recently (he's 5) because DS3 (2yrs. 8 mos.) has decided that the kitchen is super cool. DS3 plays with the kitchen frequently; every time I go to make dinner, DS3 runs off and bangs around on the play kitchen and brings me pots of watermelon, egg, and bread to sample.

 

I don't think I'd upgrade at this point, though.

[elegantlion]

Ds had a kitchen and used it until about 7 or 8. He also watched Emeril and Alton Brown all.the.time. We moved when he was 8, so we sold it at that time. We had a blast with it, in fact he's in the real kitchen now cooking. 

[foxbridgeacademy]

My son was around 6 when he stopped playing with toy kitchens by himself.  If his cousin wants to play "kitchen" DS would, at 12, still be willing to play.  I don't think they ever outgrow something well made and that reminds them of their childhood.

[JonesinIndiana]

My girls are 11 and almost 9 and they stopped playing with it about a year ago. :( It's still in their bedroom (taking up valuable real estate) but when I "gently" broach the subject of selling, they tell me soon. ;)

[Χά�ων]

I sold DS's when he was 6. He was too tall for it and didn't play with it because he had to be on his knees. Had he been average size or the toy kitchen been taller I am sure he would have played with it longer. He still talks about it at 10.

[Cera]

My 9 and 7 year olds were playing with theirs this weekend when a friend brought her 4 year old over.  

 

I think it is worth the investment if you know your child will enjoy playing with that type of toy (some just don't like kitchens).  My youngest played with hers almost daily through 1st grade and now plays with it once or twice a week (and her friends always play with it when they come over.

[vonfirmath]

We do have a few toys we are keeping. They are nice toys that can be boxed into a small space for storage. 

 

I like this reminder,

 

"Nice toys that can be boxed into a small space for storage"

 

This is probably why my Legos made it to adulthood but my Little People playsets did not. (Only sentiment explains the dollhouses my dad made for us though)

 

[ILiveInFlipFlops]

My kids got theirs at age 2 and played with it regularly at least until age 5.  Around age 6 I got rid of it (it took a lot of space) because they were old enough do most things in the real kitchen.  One of them was kind of bummed to see it go, but it really had lost most of its play value at that point.

 

This was our experience as well. By the time I got rid of it, it was mostly being used as random storage by my cubby-, bag-, and tiny container-addict and very rarely as a kitchen. In your shoes, especially given the transportation issues, I wouldn't invest in a new one...even a beautiful new one!

[NoseInABook]

My play kitchen is only used by the 1 and 2 year old. The 4, 5, and 6 year olds aren't interested anymore.

[Vida Winter]

Dd used hers until about age 7.

[Indian summer]

My dd's played with the kitchen until about 8. My ds played with it until about 5. The girls definitely used it a lot more than ds though, even when he did. He never really loved it the way dd's did.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

My 5yo plays with it still, but my 7yo not really,  unless it's to push it away from the wall, add other bits of furniture to it, and call it a space ship or an airplane or... 

 

That is a very pretty kitchen, but I know about hauling luggage internationally and I personally do not like that kitchen enough more than the ikea kitchen to make it worth the trouble. 

 

Also, part of my decluttering efforts did involve buying new toys!  Part of decluttering is about making your home beautiful, and a number of plastic or junky toys were swapped for beautiful wood ones.  I don't regret that at all!  So do keep that in mind. 

[Wabi Sabi]

My 6 year old still plays with her kitchen daily.