A really great investment in toys for us has been Lego blocks. We still have the large, Duplo kind we bought for our first child. After seven years and three children later, they are still in use. Our plan is to pack them off to friends who have children younger than us.
In the past year, we've bought a few sets of the regular Legos and others have given us the kits for Star Wars and Indiana Jones. We dutifully constructed all of the kits. These models lasted an approximate 36 hours before becoming victim to my children's imaginations. My eldest built a rover that roams the red planet, Mars. My son has built so many different cars, ambulances, airplanes, and rockets that I have lost track. My middle girl prefers to make houses.
I have another reason to ask this. I deal with a daily hurricane Ida, also known as my newest dog (Whose name really is Ida). She's learned how to open the dog food container. She seeks out lost socks so she can eat them. She routinely wakens us at 5:15am. OMG, the barks. And, let's not forget that she gets into trash cans. The picture below is how she greeted us a few days ago, with the top stuck on her neck. 
