McDonald's Happy Meal Toys

McDonald's Happy Meal (Smurfs) wdsiemer ii

McDonald's Happy Meal Toys

I have been to McDonald's a very limited number of times in the past decade, mainly for others' enjoyment. Their food does not appeal to me. There is something about the pale and processed look of the hamburgers that leads me to believe they are not made from cows at all. I must be immune/tolerant to the drug they mix in their food. Billions served, so my opinion must not be universal.

But those Happy Meals! I remember the excitement I'd receive in collecting my Happy Meal toys when I was a kid. My favorite series had to have been the McDonald products (like fries/cheeseburgers) that would transform into robot figures. I remember wanting to go to McDonald's just to complete the series. They currently sit packaged in a storage box in my basement. They'll probably never have any worth beyond the flashbacks of childhood nostalgia.

On my most recent visit, we took my niece and nephew. Their Happy Meal toys were Smurfs (I think I still have vintage glass Smurfs cups from McDonald's). I was jealous, and contemplated buying myself a Happy Meal to relive the golden days. However, that would have meant eating more McDonald's food, so I decided it was best to put my Happy Meal toy days behind me.

McDonald's Happy Meal (Transformable Robots)

Mr. Potato Head Vectors

Mr. Potato Head Vectors

Not really sure why I created these Mr. Potato Head Illustrator vectors. I guess I was inspired after illustrating a vector ping pong ball the other day. It is what it is.

Download Zipped EPS File (Mr. Potato Head Vector by wdsiemer ii)

Mr. Potato Head Vector

Mr. Potato Head Gradient Mesh Vector

Mr. French Fry Head Vector

All-TIME 100 Greatest Toys

All-TIME 100 Greatest Toys
TIME reporter Allie Townsend picks the 100 most influential toys from 1923 to the present

[READ ARTICLE]
(from Time.com)

Nostalgia

I have a weakness for nostalgic toys and replicas. I love all the toys and gadgets that bring me back to childhood. (Yes, I too am vintage!)  I probably have an underlying mental issue, but that's fine.

This Christmas I spent most of my time with the kids in the playroom. Life there is better. I have no worries in the world, except having to wait my turn to play with the Play Doh Fun Factory.  I love escaping into this world. Who wouldn't want go to Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, visit Oz,
pick smurfberries right outside of Smurf Village, or even celebrate an un-birthday with a cup of tea?

I still buy candy for my Pez dispensers, annoy animals with chimps banging cymbals, and hook up my Atari 2600 to play Galaga, Asteroids and Joust with a Sega controller (yes it works!) These devices keep me young at mind and heart. I may not be able to ride my Huffy bike as fast as I once could, but I can still make a wicked image in an Etch-A-Sketch and Lite Bright.

When I was young, I was a cameraman behind my View-Master; a Transformers mechanic; an Easy Bake Oven chef; a Science Kit professor; and a circus sideshow with Sea Monkeys, Light Up Spinning Tops, Bugglegum machines, and Barrels of Monkeys.

So, tonight I decided I am going to perform some magic--MAGIC ROCKS that is! It even comes with a shark figurine.

MAGIC ROCKS

What are some of your favorite toy memories?