Rookie Mistake
Ah, Laura. This is a rookie mistake. You can avoid this lie entirely by choosing toys that don’t make any noise. My mother-in-law always buys the single most annoying battery-operated toys on the market, and those always mysteriously disappear. Pro tip: you can also use packing tape to muffle the speaker if need be!

Oddly enough, while lithium-ion battery sales have dropped by nearly 97% in the last twenty years, your good ole AA and AAA have remained undeniably expensive. It’s strange because demand is slipping, but due to the necessity, we are willing to pay whatever the cost—fun, fun.