Oh omak ... what a precious story! Thank you for sharing it. I can just see that little guy's face when his "toys" were thrown away. Sarah likes to play with the canning rings like that too. You should write a grandma's book about him. He sounds so sweet.
I have given her tons of toys and she takes them home. But, when my dad died last year, I took his small cast iron construction toys that he had. She plays with those too. Oh and my doll (almost as big as her) from my youth. She knows where they all are, and one by one, she has them out. She has a huge vocabulary for a three year old. And it is stunning to hear her discribe her adventures. I am very sure I was not that smart at that age. One pf the christmas presents that we gave her last christmas was a horse. Here is a pic of her.