Growing up in Los Alamos, we didn't have a toy shop. There was one when I was very young, but it had closed by the time I was old enough to remember it.

We did have an incredible hardware store, however. Pocket hammers, mini-maglites (in any color you like), little brass screwdrivers that could come apart into 10-15 different (tiny) tools, garden sprinklers, and more, were the bread and butter of birthday parties and any other gifting event.

Sure, your parents could drive you to Española for Wal Mart, or to Santa Fe for a Toys Я Us or Target, so we weren't completely missing out on things like super soakers or lego. But nothing could really beat Metzgers Hardware.

Daycare and similar also typically had a workbench somewhere with a hammer, some nails, boards, and other bits and bobs for kids to play with. Sure, sometimes you'd bop your finger, but you learned not to do that