The Toys of My Youth Re "More Dads Buy the Toys, So Barbie, and Stores, Get Makeovers" (front page, Dec. 4): I am the luckiest daughter in the world. Fifty-plus years ago, when I was a child, my forward-thinking father bought me water rockets, chemistry sets and electric trains. In addition to having an excuse to play with them himself, he wanted me to see that fun and learning were not mutually exclusive, and not boys" exclusive territory. My mother and maternal grandmother bought me dolls, and I had a truly gender-balanced collection of playthings, rare for that era. Glad to see that what my parents knew more than half a century ago is finally becoming mainstream.