'Twas the day after Christmas
and all through the house,
Not a toy was unbroken,
not even Mickey Mouse.

Sound like your house? Toys get some rough treatment and, unfortunately, many of them don't stand up to it very well. That means someone (guess who) is going to have to fix the toy or toss it. Fixing it is really the better option, so let's take a look at how to fix all those things we collectively call "toys."

How Does It Work?

A toy, of course, is an object for a child (or some adults) to play with. A visit to any toy store demonstrates the enormous variety of toys available for children. However, many of those toys have common elements and many can be repaired following a few simple principles. They roll, move, make noises, or include numerous parts.

What Can Go Wrong?

Plastic toys and plastic parts of toys break. Battery-powered toys lose their power. The most common problem with rolling toys is losing their wheels, axle, or handle. All kinds of inflated balls deflate over time and occasionally leak.