It's the season of giving, the season of joy, the season of peace and love for all mankind, the season to give thanks for family, friends, and all the blessings we share. But if you're the parent of a small child, and your child watches commercial TV, it's also the season of frustration, befuddlement, and ear plugs.



The frustration comes when when you realize that Christmas advertisers have been wooing your kid since September. The befuddlement is what you feel about the electronic gizmos and video-doodads the advertisers are pushing on your kid. And the ear plugs are what you need, as said kid orders you-starting in early October-to make sure Santa brings him, on Christmas morning, the latest version of the New, Improved, Most Expensive Widget, or he'll die of a badly broken heart.

You can't blame your child-that Widget looks so beautiful and perfect on that commercial, and the child-actors playing with it look like the happiest children in the world. Who wouldn't want a new Widget? But then the next commercial convinces your son he needs a Whatchamacallit, too. Or he'll die.

You don't want to lose your son at this tender age over a Widget, but you can't see yourself (I mean, Santa) spending two hundred bucks apiece, for glorified toys that he'll outgrow, or tire of, before the New Year. Go ahead and pick one, the Widget or the Whatchamacallit, and take the gamble that he'll survive without both.

Then, why not consider getting him (I mean, asking Santa to bring him) some oldies-but-goodies? There are dozens of toys and gifts that you enjoyed as a kid, which are just as great today as they were, then. And your son will enyoy them for years, rather than days.

Remember Tinker Toys? They're still around, and though they may lack the initial appeal of anything that has to be plugged in and makes noise, they provide a new experience for your child, every time he opens that plastic-and-metal canister. Remember when you believed, you were the first kid ever, to build a car that really rolled, out of Tinker Toys?

Lincoln Logs are still providing kids with construction adventures. They're "new-and-improved", but still basically the same notched-log pieces you remember, with roof-pieces and windows added. Years from now, when the Widget has become an obsolete antique, your son will suddenly pull the Lincoln Logs out of the closet and build something, just for fun.

The most versatile of all the "build-it-yourself" sets-Legos-is another childhood staple which can still keep kids occupied for years.

Even Silly Putty and Play-Doh are still around, in new-and-improved forms. They may drive parents slightly batty, but kids never seem to tire of the myriad ways they can be used.

The best thing about these "golden oldies" is the cost and the value. They're relatively inexpensive, and will entertain your son-and any younger siblings he may have-for years. Assuming he survives Christmas without receiving both the Widget and the Whatchamacallit.