Don't Forget the Little People!

I've been meaning to write about some very special people in our family--Little People! To be more specific ... Fisher-Price Little People--and the old-school ones, at that!

Little People were Pierce family favorites when we were growing up. I can't tell you how many hours we spent "playing people," as we called it back in the day. We had so much fun picking out our families and setting up our houses and then playing, playing, playing! My favorite house was the Sesame Street house, of course--but you can't forget the yellow-and-blue family home (complete with a working doorbell and fun garage door) or the A-frame! Oh, I could go on and on about all of the Little People and accessories and such--like the hospital with the elevator ... the airport and the plane ... the school bus with the driver whose head turned from side to side ... the boat with the deck chairs that made the fun noise when you pulled it along ... the camper with the little beds up in the top ... or the barn that "mooooooed" when you opened the doors! (See, I told you I could go on and on, but I'll stop there for the sake of time.)

Uncle Johnny playing Little People with Rebekah in 2003.
Baby Abigail watches from her car seat.

When she was a toddler, Rebekah used to love to knock
the Little People off of the table after I'd line them up for her.

Anyway, we loved our Little People! Before my sister Cindy moved overseas, she acquired quite a collection of Little People for her children. I used to go with her to a certain thrift store in Knoxville, looking for those familiar round bodies and any houses or accessories. (Once, we came across the square-people McDonald's, complete with the box and everything--but that's another story. After all, it's not Fisher-Price, and it's not Little People.) I started a small Little People collection of my own, and my sister Robin started a nice assortment for her kids, too! I remember one time she found some great stuff at an antique store--I want to say it was in Pennsylvania. Johnny and Anne soon caught the fever--and when Cindy moved overseas, she left some of her Little People in the care of her family.

Another old photo (from 2003): Here's Baby Riley--less than 10 days old and already playing with a Little People fireman.

Here's Anna-Claire with some Little People last summer.

For many years now, I have had an old shoe box where I keep my Little People people, cars and a few accessories. (My collection is not very big, but it's still loads of fun!) The shoe box used to live under our bed, but now it stays in Kate's room with her other toys. It comes out when the family visits--and the kids (Abigail, especially) will remind me if they are here and I haven't gotten it out yet. It's funny how the nieces and nephews have enjoyed those Little People over the years. They are such great toys--they never go out of fashion! I also have an A-frame house, which has become one of Kate's favorite things to play with! She **loves** to ring the little bell on the side of the house! It's hilarious!

Kate can't get enough of that bell on the side of the A-frame house!

It really is fun to see our kids playing with the same kinds of toys that brought us so much joy growing up. They also like the newer, fatter Fisher-Price Little People. They're cute and all, but they are just not the same. I suppose they aren't choking hazards, so that's one thing they have going for them. And after I watch one of the videos, the Aaron Neville theme song is playing in my head for hours at least! Discovering Maggie ...

Kylie and Eric enjoying the Little People during a visit in August 2007.

Eric loves cars, so lining up the Little People in their automobiles and playing "traffic jam" (or something like that) is right up his alley!

My favorite Little People person is the little brown-haired girl with the blue body. I suppose she is my favorite because she reminded me of me when I was little. She lives in my car and goes along with me on my travels--both near and far. If I ever give you a ride, maybe you'll meet her one day.

Some of these old Little People go for several bucks on eBay. And there are a few great resources on the Internet for identification and history and such. A quick Google search will bring you good results--including some great info from This Old Toy. There used to be a really funny Web site with some hilarious (and somewhat dark) Little People dioramas, but I couldn't find it this morning.

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed this little bit of nostalgia. Please ... don't forget the Little People!