Summer crazes past and present

The other day, my children mentioned that a number of their classmates were in possession of a new and exciting item. Apparently Pop It fidget toys are the latest school craze. My children know that I'm too soft, and so when they found me some on sale for only a couple of pounds I caved in and bought them one each. 

I must admit they are actually quite fun and satisfying to play with. They are made of soft silicon plastic and you push the blobs in and out from side to side. It's a bit like colourful bubble wrap, but it can be used over and over again, and it makes a satisfying popping sound which has become the new soundtrack to our school run.

I've always been a sucker for summer crazes, and it always does seem to be around summer time that these things appear. I have fond memories from when I was at primary school and it was all about the yoyos, each branded with different soft drinks. I remember my Mum taking me to the corner shop to buy one, and I loved playing with them on the school field. I also remember the special red and yellow plastic skipping rope that I had to have, and the soft squishy balls with faces that we all collected.

So I know what it's like when everyone else has something and you want to be a part of things, and I think that it's a definitive part of the primary school experience. Over the last few years the children and I have enjoyed spinning fidget spinners, crafting with loom bands and taking to the streets to play Pokemon Go. There were also those Sainsbury's Lego cards that we collected for a couple of years running, leading to strangers from Facebook coming to the door to swap for those last elusive cards.

It's all inexpensive fun, and hopefully they'll remember their own indulgent Mum when they've grown up!  

What summer crazes do you remember from when you were little? Did you have a yoyo too?