Waves of childhood nostalgia seem to wash over me, plunging me into a deep dive of a simpler time. I could be scrolling on TikTok when the soft cooing of a Mourning Dove fills my ears, and all of a sudden, my screen flashes with an array of poor-quality images of sprinklers and water balloons; plastic Disney Princess “heels” and frilly dress-up clothes. As I grow to the end of my teenage years and am encouraged to start looking ahead and planning my future, I cannot help but yearn for a reliving of my childhood, however brief. I know, I am not alone in this “wish upon a star.” Therefore, for the sake of all the little kids that still linger within us, let’s take a look at what made the 2000s so nostalgic.
The Play Kitchen
The play kitchen is what resonates with almost all people. I am almost positive that if you ask anyone if they had some version of a play kitchen, they would immediately say yes. I absolutely loved mine. I had a total of two in my younger years: one with a smaller kitchen, but it came with a side table AND a phone, and the other was a giant plastic wall with a fridge, sink, stove, microwave, tons of cabinet space, and functioning lights. I would spend hours in that kitchen, slaving away to provide for my plethora of stuffed animals. I can certainly say that I was a business owner in the making. My dinner was very cleverly called Jimmy’s Egg and was always filled with customers. My favorite stuffed animals and my mom, if she was so obliged to cater to my whines, were my most avid customers around our living room coffee table. Did I charge $48.00 for a cup of orange juice? Yes, yes, I did. That’s what it takes to run an up-and-coming restaurant in a capitalistic society.
The Easy-Bake Oven
What would the 2000s be without the Easy-Bake Oven? If I’m being truly honest, there was nothing easy about this process, nor was it actually baking, but it gave my eight-year-old self a thrill. The red velvet cupcakes, mini pies, and pretzel twists were by far my favorite. It didn’t matter to me that my cupcakes looked like a pellet of dough with a glob of frosting, or if my pretzels looked more like spaghetti noodles than intricately twirled knots. I was a world-class chef in a child-sized apron.
Yummy Nummies Mini Kitchen Magic
Looking back now, the Yummy Nummies craze was one that I could have stepped back from. Unfortunately, my eight-year-old self thought otherwise. I absolutely needed this sushi gelatin mixture pack, and nothing was going to stop me. I can recall my mom warning me multiple times that it would be horrible and she was not going to pay for something so silly, but this didn’t stop my puppy dog eyes from working their magic. I walked out of that store with my candy sushi surprise and got to mixing as soon as I arrived home. In the long run, my young mind should have listened to her wise words because I could hardly chew and swallow the sugar gelatin combo. I was in fact forced to choke it down and never again begged for another Yummy Nummies pack after.
The Fake Glasses
While I do not remember how the fake glasses came to be, I do remember they were everywhere. One of the biggest fashion statements of my youth was pairing your bedazzled Justice T-shirt with a pair of fake plastic glasses. I did, in fact, fall victim to this trend and sported a pair of black and pink fake glasses with every outfit from ages 7-8. I remember thinking they made me feel older and more mature, despite my clip-on earring and Justice attire. I only outgrew this epidemic when I discovered I couldn’t see the board at school and needed real glasses. I should have just treasured my younger years with perfect vision and glasses-free.
Unfortunately, most of my toys and childhood obsessions are no longer with me. We gave my kitchens away to a neighbor, and Jimmy’s Egg closed with it. My Easy-Bake Oven was donated to our church garage sale, and fake glasses were traded in for prescription contact lenses. However, the memories live on; sometimes buried in my head but recalled to life with a TikTok video. I encourage you to do the same. Once you have finished reading this article, look back at the old pictures with a smile that matches the childlike wonder that once was. Your childhood may be over, your toys are long gone, but your memories are yours to cherish forever.
