Being a kid was great. You had no responsibilities, could openly cry in public, and it wasn’t weird to pee your pants sometimes. While some parts of my childhood weren’t great (going to bed at 8 pm, seriously?), the majority of it was fabulous. Although I was never a huge fan of toys, there were certain ones my friends and I would have given up dessert for a year to have. The following 10 toys weren’t only fun to play with, but they also dealt with my two favorite things in this world: eating and food.
Strawberry Shortcake
Who can forget Strawberry Shortcake’s iconic red hair and huge bonnet? This was the doll to have growing up, and everyone wanted to be her “berry best friend.” The fact that she had her own TV show took this doll to the next level.
Fisher-Price Kitchen
There was no limit to the fake food you could stock your play kitchen with. If the set didn’t have it, you just made it up. You knew the food wasn’t real, and yet the yummy noises your parents made each time you served them a slice of “cake” got you every time. Mom and dad for the win, amirite?
Play-Doh Food
Every kid ate their Play-Doh creations at least once because it looked so dang good. For those of us whose parents wouldn’t shell out to buy the food molds, we had to settle with squishing blobs of Play-Doh together to make pretend burgers and sandwiches—the worst.
Easy-Bake Oven
The Easy-Bake Oven made all other toys look like garbage. Why would you want a lifeless doll when you could whip up bite-sized, gourmet desserts in mere minutes?
The worst part of this toy was the anxiety you felt pulling your cakes out of the oven. Would you be able to hook the spatula around the pan? Would you drop it by mistake? That spatula was clearly made for kids with better hand-eye coordination than me.
Cabbage Patch Dolls
Yet another creepy-looking doll that we were all obsessed with. On the off chance that you’re still in love with these dolls, it’s never too late to join the Collector’s Club (I’ll only judge you a little bit).
Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head
No matter how many times you’d played with them, there was simply nothing better than putting the eyes where the mouth should have been and rearranging the rest of his face. Kids are the best, aren’t they?
McDonald’s Happy Meal Maker
You knew this wasn’t the real Happy Meal experience, and yet you wanted this so badly anyways. If you’re feeling nostalgic, here are some more McDonald’s items we all miss too.
Cupcake Dolls
Can someone please explain to me why so many toys were named after food? First Cabbage Patch Kids, now Cupcake Dolls? Luckily, the Cupcake Dolls were a million times less creepy than the Cabbage Patch Kids, so they at least had that going for them.
Baby Born Dolls
Everyone knows the best part about these dolls was the fact that they pooped after you fed them. Ask any college student now if they’d like to take care of a pooping, crying baby, and I bet they wouldn’t be so keen on the idea anymore.
Hungry Hungry Hippos
There was one kid in every friend group who no one wanted to play Hungry Hungry Hippos with because they were absolutely ruthless when they played—I was that kid. And don’t even pretend like you never tried to inhale your dinner like one of those hippos (sorry again, mom).
Although I’ve traded in my Easy-Bake Oven for a real kitchen and my friends are no longer stuffed dolls, I still have a special place in my heart for these toys.