Kids Toys....what to keep...what to toss?

I want to start by encouraging you, Mom (or Dad).

You are the parent.  Your peace, mental health and stress should be a propriety in this area of questioning.  If you are at your wits end in the toy department...I give you permission now to do something about it...even if it means your child might be upset for 20 minutes. But it doesn't necessarily start in purging your toys.  I might start with a buying habit or a habit of not being able to say "no thank you".

You could have one of two problems...or both!  You see a sale or hit up the Target Dollar spot or reward your children with toys after every successful (or sometimes not so success) grocery trip.  Y'all.....I get it!  Survival!  But these quick buys add up and eventually steal your joy.  That might sound dramatic...but it is true.  If your toy problem begins in the buying department....here are a few tips.

• Stop buying...haha Just kidding.
• Maybe go on a spending freeze from such items.  Avoid Target for a span of time.  
• If you reward your children with things, maybe give them your time instead.  Take them on a special date to the park or out to dinner at their favorite eating spot.  Reward them with something that does not come home with you.
• Be really intentional during birthdays and holidays.  Buy items they need and will love in moderation.  Or instead of buying things....go do something really fun!  I will do a future post on birthday parties and why we don't really have them any more in the future.
• Don't just buy something to buy something.  Guilt is no good!
• Just because it is on sale...doesn't mean it is worth the space in your home.

And here is just a glimpse of hope for you toddler aged moms....the stuff starts to dwindle as they get older.  Toys start the become less necessary as your kids get older.  You don't need your children to be distracted to take a shower as they get older.  As kids grow...they become interested in other things and not really in toys any more. This too shall pass.

If you fall into the camp of...."Well all these toys were given to me...." than here are some tips...

• When someone comes to you and says I have some items that your child would just LOVE...say "We have more than enough at this time....thank you for thinking of us but no thank you."
• Or if you have a Grandparent that gives your child something every time they visit....(Grandparents....STOP please for the sake of the Mom!) maybe have an honest conversation with said grandparent about how the things are stressing you out and give some more practical tips for showing their love.  Or simply ask them to bring things that the kid actually needs instead of items from the Dollar Store that they grabbed on the way to your house.
• Chick-fil-a toys should NEVER leave your car!  Period.  They stay in the car and the kids play with them in the car.  When I do a clean out weekly...bye bye Chick-fil-a toy....We will see you again next week any way for another Chick-fil-a toy because we love your convenience and yummy food...no hard feelings.

Now on to digging yourself out of the toys that are currently in your home.  A couple quick questions to ask initially.

• Does it work?  Is it broken?  Do they actually play with it or only use it to make a total mess?  Do I hate it (even if they love it and you hate it...YOU WIN...you are the parent) Is it part of a larger toy that you no longer have....like a play kitchen and ALL the play food and play utensils?
• Go thru the toys and throw away anything that is actually broken and anything that is literally trash.  You would be surprised at clean up time all the things that get thrown into those bins....goldfish wrappers, banana peels, diapers....I have seen it all.
• Group together like items.  How many cars do you need to be a successful 3 year old?  Yes...He loves Balls....do you need 50?  I know....your daughter LOVES Minnie Mouse....does she need everything that Target sold last year that had pink and white polka dots on it!?!  The answer is no...they don't.  If your child loves something....keep those things and purge excess.  
• Once you have grouped like items and made decisions on what to keep and what not to keep, organize your toys and find a place for them.  Each group having a separate place makes life easier for you and for your kids!  When they have a clean environment to play in....they play longer!  I swear.  No one wants to be in a mess.  Also, when they can find their toys....everyone leaves happy!  When everything has a place, clean up is also much easier.
• Purge Weekly.  I know...this sounds horrible, but by week 3 of doing this consistently...cleaning and purging toys is a piece of cake!  Less is SO MUCH MORE!  Pay attention to your kids and what they are playing with.  Pay attention to what they did not even touch that week.  Pay attention if new toys came into the house...something comes, something should go.

And let's all just be honest about toys...I think a lot of us have toys to be distractions for our kids.  Toys help us to sit and read a book or scroll through our social media.  Toys help us be able to make dinner or take a shower.  Toys help us to fold laundry and clean toilets without little hands helping.  But maybe....if we had less all together....we would have more time to spend with our kids.  We would have more time to play and go to the park.  We would have more time to absorb every little thing that changes in them daily.  We could give them our time instead of distracting them with all the toys.  We could give them US instead of more things.  Try it....you might like it!