Toys and society

If you have kids, you know their toys and craft supplies can drive you insane. They seem to multiply over night! You find them in the bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, even the car.

Wouldn't it feel great to feel a sense of operate over those toys/crafts once and for all?

Kid Barbie Dolls

It's inherent to bring order out of chaos. I'll help you get started with my 5 strategies for toy sanity.

1. Cut the toy/craft inventory.

Not just once but some times a year. Let's be honest, your kids probably don't play with all their toys. They may even feel just as overwhelmed as you are.

The best time to purge is before birthdays, Christmas and other gift giving holidays. It's impossible to stay organized and live within your home's limits if you add without subtracting.

Toss broken toys, dried up craft supplies, toys with too many missing parts, and donate or store items they have outgrown or no longer play with. Your kids will survive and it's good to teach them that it's okay to let go of things and to set limits.

As a last resort, put half of the toys in storage, but only if you have the room, and swap them out every few months.

Decide on a toy/craft purging date and mark it on your calendar.

2. Sort the remaining toys/crafts.

This means grouping the similar items together and containing them in clear containers. Containers with lids work best because they are stackable. Large items or games may not want a container.

Now your kids will know where to find their activity figures, Barbies, markers, colored pencils, dress up clothing, dolls, trucks, etc.

Measure your spaces to rule container sizes before you head out to the store.

3. Label the containers.

Simplify clean up time with labeled containers. Use a written label for older kids and photos as labels for preschoolers. Don't hesitate to label shelves if it's helpful.

Do you have Containers that need labeling?

4. Store games, puzzles and craft supplies on high shelves.

Besides small parts being a protection issue, I found it maddening when a multitude of games and puzzles were dumped on the floor all at once, partly because I'm a operate freak and partly because no one wanted to clean it up.

We have one child, but even so, this became a common event during play dates. I kept craft items out of reach until my daughter was old sufficient to trust with markers and scissors. I don't have any stories about her cutting her own hair or drawing on walls but I'm okay with that.

Find a space to store these items in your home.

5. Quarterly clean up.

Maintaining club is just as foremost as the club itself. You will have to be very complex in this process until your kids are grade school age.

Remind yourself that if the toys/crafts are cleaned up at least once a day, the task won't be as dreadful. Now that you have homes (containers and shelves) for their things it should want less effort.

Be very specific about what "clean up" means. Just like us, kids will feel thoroughly overwhelmed unless you break up the task into smaller, specific tasks. For example, have them clean up the game they are playing, then all the books, and then the activity figures.

Require a quick pick up before they take out someone else game/puzzle, before they go outside, before a play date ends, before leaving for an activity, or at least at the end of the day.

Start Quarterly pick-ups today!

Are you seeing forward to having less chaos and mess in your home? Set an hour aside every week and begin with the first step, liquidating.

Toys and society