Before I became a parent, I often wrinkled my nose in distaste at the messy, crowded, toy-infested living spaces of friends with children. “Surely their little brats don’t need SO MANY toys”, I’d think disdainfully. And just think about how spoiled they must be! Wanting for nothing and begging for everything.
And for the first few months after I had Ryder, for the most part, I kept my promise to keep him grateful and humble. We purchased only a few toys; a mixture of educational and silly, large and small, in a variety of textures. Ryder truly began to appreciate the intricate makings of each toy, which can only come from playing with it over and over. I held my head high and felt slightly superior to other parents who lavished products at will – which I deemed as vulgar and even detrimental.
Of course, then I started my little ol’ blog, and toys – just begging to be reviewed – were dropped off on my doorstep. And before I knew it, my house was overtaken with products. Big toys. Small toys. Cars, blocks and playsets. Toys as far as the eye could see!
And my sweet, humble little boy – now joined by his equally sweet, innocent younger brother… turned into spoiled little monsters.
“It’s a TOY for me!” Ryder declares every time the doorbell rings.
He quite likes the FedEx guy.
Come to think of it, he’s got a thing for Purolator, Canada Post and UPS too.
Even all those local delivery services, arriving in unmarked cars (mostly Honda Civics).
Depositing brand new, shiny, must-have items.
(More often than not, they’re actually not toy deliveries, but the damage is kind of done. They’re brats.)
They play and play and play, discarding items after just a few minutes and sometimes never going back to them again. They don’t feel the need to be gentle with toys; secure with the knowledge that there’s an unending supply that will satisfy every whim and fancy. They turn up their noses at products declared favourites only yesterday. In short, they are behaving like privileged children who are lavished with gifts – and I’ve been ignoring my own messy, crowded, toy-infested living space.
And so, I’ve decided to take back my boys. And take away their toys.
This weekend, we’ll be packing up close to 75% of the boys’ loot, sorting them into “Keep”, “Donate”, “Throw Away” and “Hand Down” bins. (Thankfully, Superstore had a sale on large, plastic storage bins a couple of weeks ago. I went crazy and bought six, but now I’ll put them to good use!)
And then, from the “Keep” bin, I plan to re-introduce the toys over the next year… say two per month. I’ll be sending some toys to Grandma’s, so that they have something “new” to play with when they visit. And I’ll be stashing some in Ryder and Reid’s closet, to be brought out when they’re super good or super bored – or when I need a few moments to myself. In short, I want them to experience the Joy of Learning: the pure pleasure that comes from really appreciating everything about a toy, and the discovery, creativity and imagination that comes with it.
Take that brats!
This month, Ryder and Reid will become re-acquainted with the Fisher-Price Sodor Search & Rescue Center pictured below, in addition to a handle of picture books that Reid has discarded for the instant gratification that is YouTube. Ahem – not on my watch! Have fun boys!
Tell me: Do your children have too many toys?
I am part of the Fisher-Price Play Panel and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.
I love the honesty of your post. I was the same, gawking at houses strewn with unused toys. I grew up in a daycare (literally – my mother ran an at-home daycare throughout my entire childhood) and there were never toys around. When Aidan was born, we were living in a small condo and the toys quickly became junk piles everwhere…it drove me crazy! I now gut the boys toy bins/baskets 4 times a year, tossing cheap dollar store & happy meal toys, organizing to make the quality forgotten toys more accessible (Fisher Price, Lego & Playmobil ALWAYS stay!), and donating tons of toys to Interim Place. My two biggest purges come in January and April, after Christmas & March birthdays.
To avoid hissy fits from the boys when I do toss or donate old toys, I tell them the same thing over & over – we have to make room for new toys. If we don’t make room for the new toys, I’ll just give away the new ones and they can keep the old ones. It makes the purge much easier and Aidan helps me with it without a complaint.
The boys will have such an appreciation for the toys that you do keep, and that will keep them busy and happy for longer periods of time. I pulled out the Playdoh bin last weekend after a very long break. Josh played with it for 1.5 hours!! It was the best coffee break ever!
I find it so interesting that the average home today has more toys than a home-based daycare did years ago! I love that you do toy purges – and I may steal your technique of saying “we need to make room for the new ones”.
Thinking of hiding the Play Doh bin – I could use a nice long coffee break!
Good for you! It`s so easy to get overloaded on toys. We used to have two big bins that we would rotate every 6 months and before the switch we`d go through and pick out donations and broken toys. It`s kept the playroom manageable. I`m looking forward to our big move next year so i have an excuse to be brutal with donations.
I can’t imagine how many toys you must rotate, both being a mother of 5 and a blogger. Good for you!!!
I completely agree… between birthday, Christmas, Easter, and “just because” gifts, the house is overrun with toys. And, when my kid says, “But, Mom, I’ve got *nothing* to play with!”, I want to throw my hands up in frustration. There’s a ton of toys to play with, they just take them for granted. I swear, my little one would rather play in the utensil drawer than with his toys! Good for you for taking a stand – your boys will most definitely appreciate their toys more if they have fewer to focus on. Thanks for the inspiration… I just may do it myself!
That’s it! I completely forgot to mention in my post how many darned presents there are as well! And yes, let’s all unite and take away the toys!
One of the best tips I have learned from another blogger, iheartorganizing, recommends to ask for things that add onto existing sets, like Lego, dollhouses, etc. that way the toys become more intricate and less clutter! I also go around at night after birthday parties and Christmas and pack away some toys to be donated the following Christmas. I’d rather the less fortunate enjoy something as well
That is a SPLENDID idea. Totally keeping this in mind, thank you!
My daughter doesn’t have too many toys but the stuffed animals/dolls situation is out of control. My sister packs up some toys and puts them in the basement and switches them up so the kids forget about them and then they’re fun again.
I think giving them limited access to toys definitely helps to develop their imagination.
I actually purge monthly, because I couldn’t stand my house if I didn’t. Oh, and they also don’t get to keep 90% of what they review because that would be INSANE. Instead, they review it for a few weeks and then I put it away for gifts, donate, etc. If they keep asking for it and seemed to really like it, I give it back for birthdays, holidays or Christmas. I have a feeling I’m the mean mom :) Not sure how I’m going to handle the review thing as they get older…
I know! Totally wishing us both luck with that… I can’t imagine having tweens or teens feeling so entitled.
Yep. My daughter has too many toys as well. I don’t even know how it happened. Suddenly, one day, she lost something, and didn’t care that it was gone, even though I was going nuts looking for it. That was it. I had it. I took the rest of the little things away, went through her room and the living room and started boxing things up. My problem is I have a younger daughter, who will likely enjoy many of the same toys as she grows up, too. So I feel I can’t justify getting rid of too much, when it would mean getting new things for my younger (if I were to toss out all the “baby” toys that Karina doesn’t need to play with anymore). But I did box up some stuff and packed it away. She no longer gets anything unless there’s a reason. It’s been hard, but we’re trying. I don’t want her to be spoiled.
“Suddenly, one day, she lost something, and didn’t care that it was gone” – ah, this is definitely a problem in my house as well. Good for you for boxing up the toys!
Toys have been on my mind a lot lately – they can really creep up on you…I admire any parent who can keep the clutter under control…I remember when the twins were babies – and all their toys AND books fit into 1 plastic crate…sigh!
It’s such a balance – giving them enough to enjoy…without TOYPLOSIONS everywhere!
As it is, I have half their toys boxed up as special toys – they can request a special toy each Friday – but have to put something else back….However, I hate that I have to keep going through their toys and organizing and trying to find space for everything….part of it is my own problem – I’m obsessed with keeping sets together – which can be impossible!
I remember reading a blogger (I think it was Small Notebook) who said she wanted her kids’ toys to be friends – not acquaintances – and if you have too many toys – nothing is ever that special to you. So I definitely want to cut back so the twins appreciate what they have!
TOYPLOSIONS – love it! I think I need to make a special toy crate, too. Thanks for the tip! And, really like the “friend” reference too :)
I agree, too many toys in this house. I especially like the comment by Ella, that nothing is special to you when you are given too much. Great wisdom, I am headed to the basement to clean house. Thanks for the pep talk!
You’re welcome! And yes, Ella is wise!! Good luck :)
I admire your backbone! I have such a hard time parting with the kids stuff. I sold FOUR huge recycling bags worth of their clothes at a mom-to-mom sale a few weeks ago, and I got rid of only half a bag of toys! (I did get rid of the Baby Einstein bouncy activity center and Charlotte’s old bumbo, but…still!) Hoarder John keeps going through whatever I’ve pulled out and saying — “Baby Johnny can play with this! We’ve got to keep it!” ARGH!!! I ended up buying a SECOND toy storage unit for our family room two weeks ago, as well as two toy chests — and I STILL don’t have enough space to put all the toys. I have got to get John to read your post — and do a real toy purge. Charlotte does NOT need a literal mountain of stuffed toys (even if she does adore them and drag her “babies” around everywhere with her). Last year I got rid of a full recycling bag of stuffed animals, and yet the house is still overrun. Blah!
Even though we’re definitely done having kids, I have a hard time parting with the boys’ old clothing because I just know the second I do, my brother and sister-in-law will announce they’re pregnant with a boy, and then I’ll feel like crap for giving it away. So, I’m still a bit of a hoarder in that sense.
And purging the toys, while it will cut down the clutter, is really driven by my need to make my boys appreciate what they have. Last night I caught Ryder just throwing Lego Duplo blocks around, instead of actually building with them. They’re lacking creativity and imagination because there are just so many things to get distracted with. I have a feeling that once all the toys are cleared, presented with a box of Lego, Ryder wouldn’t be throwing it around, but actually channeling some ingenuity :)
Good luck with your purge!