How to Find Out If Your Toys Are Alive

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Ever wondered if your toys enjoy a secret life when you're not around? Finding out the truth is child's play.

Step 1: Listen close
Slip a listening device in your toy chest and eavesdrop on what's going on inside. Be sure the device isn't aware of your plan; it might tip off your toys.

Step 2: Look around you
Take pictures of your toys before you go to bed and after you wake up to see if they've changed positions overnight. Check for other signs of life, like lipstick from dolls on your action figures' cheeks or a pile of carrot tops and apple cores underneath your rocking horse.

Tip
Watch for your clothes mysteriously finding their way into your drawers, a sign that your toys are helping you out -- or that your mom's been in your room.

Step 3: Observe the hiders
Monitor toys that frequently go missing. If your playthings always seem to end up beneath the bed, it doesn't mean they're trying to hide from you -- they might just be looking for their lost toys.

Step 4: Use your hands
Put your hand to the hood of toy cars and trucks to see if the engines are hot. Check your action figures' pulses, which should be racing if they're scared of what you'll discover.

Step 5: Give it time
Be patient; it takes a long time for humans to understand how toys communicate. Just know that if you're good to them, they'll be good to you.

Did You Know?
In 2008, a Massachusetts elementary school's toy drive collected 5,657 stuffed animals for charity.