From Tin Can phones to Barbie dolls and VHS, how millennials and Gen Z are bringing their childhood to their Gen Alpha kids

• Parents are finding ways to incorporate nostalgia and analog items into their homes.
• They're buying physical media, getting bulky kitchen TVs, introducing landline-style phones, and more.
• The retro items help millennial and Gen Z parents connect with their kids and teach independence.

You don't have to aimlessly scroll through Netflix or Disney Plus at Deketria Gooden-Jackson's Alabama home to find something to watch.

Her family can instead peruse the shelves in their playroom filled with more than 200 VHS tapes to play on their kitchen TV. The family has Disney movies, holiday films, and more in their growing physical media collection.

"It makes the home feel a little bit more cozy," said Gooden-Jackson, a 42-year-old mom of four. "We can easily turn off the big TV, turn this on, and it feels so much more calm."

Gooden-Jackson is one of five moms who told Business Insider how she's bringing a bit of nostalgia into her home. Some of their kids are talking with friends and family on the popular Tin Can phone that's reminiscent of an old-school landline, picking out DVDs or VHS tapes from physical media collections, having meals while a TV plays in the background of the kitchen, trading cards with friends, and creating storylines with Barbie dolls.

Millennials and Gen Z parents are bringing parts of their childhood and retro-style items to their Gen Alpha kids for reasons beyond nostalgia. They feel it can be a way to connect with their kids, open their imaginations, and teach them independence. Picking out a movie on VHS gives their kids more control than mindlessly scrolling streaming apps. Tin Can phones — which only accept approved contacts and have quiet hours where calls don't come in or out — can be a way to delay giving their kids a cellphone.

"Millennials in general are just kind of yearning for that slower time in the '90s," said Meg McAlarney, a 40-year-old mom of three in Illinois, whose mother-in-law bought one of McAlarney's daughters a pink Tin Can phone for Christmas.

Britt Balazy's grandmother gave her and her husband an old TV sitting in her garage, which they put in their kitchen. An uncle gave Gooden-Jackson a retro Hello Kitty TV with a DVD player that she put in the family's playroom.

Finding old items doesn't need to put a dent in parents' wallets. Two parents said they spent a few dollars on VHS tapes at local stores, while one parent spent $250 to get a Barbie castle from an online seller.

Passing down childhood dolls from the 2000s

Ester Torres, a 27-year-old mom in California, passed down to her daughter her figurines from the world of Tinker Bell and mini Lalaloopsy dolls.

"It was just really nice to introduce her something that once brought me joy," Torres said.

Torres said playing with her daughter sparked the idea of bringing more nostalgic items into the home. It felt like she was watching a younger version of herself getting to experience creative play with her child.

"I want her to have a slow, intentional childhood," Torres said. "And I think toys back in the 2000s were made to last and were very beautiful and very well crafted and open-ended for kids to have imagination."

Torres bought some Barbie items online, including a "Barbie in the Nutcracker" book for about $6 and a stack of DVDs for $50. She bought some dolls, a carriage, and a castle from the 2000s "Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper" movie line, as well as items associated with other Barbie movies.

Torres bought the carriage for about $100, which she said was reasonable because it came with several horses and seemed durable. She hopes her daughter will pass this and other toys down to her children one day.

Back to rewinding VHS tapes on the kitchen TV

Balazy's family has only had a kitchen TV setup for a few months, but Balazy loves it so far. They also have a larger TV with a separate VHS player in their game room.

Balazy said her family does have streaming services, but feels like they've been using them less now that they have the VHS tapes. She and her husband got physical media from thrift stores, a nearby store, and a friend who was getting rid of tapes from his childhood.

She likes teaching her daughter about the process of rewinding a tape and getting the movie started because it teaches sequencing and patience.

Balazy, who is in her 30s, thinks parents bringing toys and gadgets from the past to their kids is one way for them to connect with their children and also have more control over what they view or do.

"There's just something special about media and analog style things in your home, such as the VHS player or the phone, having hobbies that are more analog," Balazy said.

Meanwhile, Gooden-Jackson was inspired by a social media video to find her own TV for her kitchen; it reminded her of summer at her aunt's home. She said she spent most of an August day looking for a TV while her kids were at school, and ended up finding one at an antique store. Since the seller didn't have a way to test it to make sure it worked, he gave it to her for free as a "Merry Christmas in August" gift.

"At first it didn't play, but I guess that's because it hadn't been used in so long," she said. "But after I picked my kids up and came back home from picking them up, it worked."

She said her eldest son is "the collector of all things vintage," so they put one of his tapes in to see whether it would work.

She said she looks for tapes that are in the "best condition" and has built Disney and holiday collections. She finds tapes sold online can get expensive, so she's built up her collection through thrift stores, the antique store, flea markets, and estate sales instead.

For Janie George, a 31-year-old mom of three in Utah, incorporating analog items into her home, such as VHS tapes, trading cards, and photos taken on film, has helped her family slow down and connect. She's also trying to bring back the feeling of picking out something to watch from Blockbuster and picking up food to watch with it. She said they've gone a couple of times to a local thrift store to pick up a movie and also get a pizza. She loved getting to experience the movies and shows her parents enjoyed, and now she gets to do the same with her kids.

Delaying the need for a smartphone with landline-style phones

A friend of McAlarney, the 40-year-old mom of three in Illinois, suggested the Tin Can phone as a good gift for the holiday season. McAlarney told her mother-in-law, who then gifted a pink "Tin Can Flashback."

McAlarney and other parents signed a pledge that their children would wait until at least the end of eighth grade to get a smartphone. "I've been really fortunate to live in a community that all the parents are kind of on the same page," McAlarney said. "She is with a big group of friends that all receive these landlines. So that's special because we're not feeling the pressure as parents to have to get these smartphones."

McAlarney said she has flashbacks to her own home landline when she sees and hears the Tin Can phone. The phone's shape, buttons, and cord are similar to what older generations may have had in their homes when they were growing up.

"I loved having a landline growing up, so for her to be able to experience that has been really special," McAlarney said.

McAlarney said she later got her son a Tin Can phone to keep in his room. She said the kids have the same phone number, so it's not individual phone lines.

The Tin Can phone has been so popular that Business Insider's Katie Notopoulos reported that the service crashed on Christmas due to popular demand.

George, the 31-year-old mom of three in Utah, said she's also thrilled about the Tin Can phone.

She bought a Rolodex on eBay, so her kids can have the numbers for approved contacts in one place. Since she works full time, she likes that the new addition to the home will allow her kids to coordinate playdates when she's busy and can help them learn to speak politely on the phone.