5 Steps for Moms to Keep From Drowning in Toys!

Feeling like you are drowning in toys? This post will help you move towards less toys and more peace in your home.

Imagine walking into your home, and it doesn’t look like a toy store exploded! Your kids happily enjoyed playing and spent 5 minutes cleaning up after only being asked one time.

You have a designated room for the bulk of the toys. And there are only 1 to 2 baskets tucked away in the living room.

Even if all the toys get totally dumped out, it only takes 10 minutes of tidying up. Everything is back to normal afterwards in no time flat.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like an absolute dream to me! I know it seems impossible right now if you are in the thick of it. You can get there! I did, and it is an amazing feeling.

Where do all of the toys come from?

I remember when our basement was COVERED in TOYS! It was so overwhelming.

3 sets of grandparents, godparents, and some generous aunts and uncles will do that to you. Add to that family members who are happy to give you hand-me-downs. And clear the clutter out of THEIR houses too.

They are all well-meaning of course. But they aren’t the ones dealing with the tornado everyday! I will give you some good tips to help get rid of the toys and ditch the guilt too.

How to Prevent Drowning in Toys in Your Home

These steps will be life-savers. So much time and stress dealing with toys can be avoided! Simplify your home and calm your mind.

Honestly, this benefits your kids too. Many young kids don’t know how to communicate it yet, but they get overwhelmed by all the toys too.

Step 1: Declutter/Downsize

• A big part of making toys easier to deal with is to simply have less.
  • You would be amazed at how few toys kids can have fun with. Have you ever seen kids have a blast with a cardboard box and a couple of kitchen spoons? Seriously, kids are so creative. They don’t need many toys at all.
• This can be a very overwhelming task depending on the amount of toys you have to start with. DON’T feel like you need to tackle everything all at once.
• It is nice to block out one afternoon, gather EVERY TOY, and get it all done. If that works for you great. If not, don’t “wait until you have more time”. Just do something now!
• Find a box or bag. 5 minutes a few days a week can add up! Walk through your home and find toys to part with. These items can at the very least be put in the storage room for a couple weeks. If no one asks for anything back or notices, it can safely be donated or given away.

Step 2: Add Donating to Your Routine

Now that you have spent some time downsizing, let’s consider maintenance. How will you manage this easily? You want to avoid finding yourself in this same position next year.

• Designate a Donate Bin
  • Keep a box or bin in a storage room of things that are potential donate items. If you are not sure, just put it in. You aren’t getting rid of anything right now. Get it out of sight and see how you feel.
    • If I see small toys or things lying around the house that I know my kids don’t absolutely love. I grab it as I’m walking by and throw it in the storage room bin.
    • If nothing ends up not getting asked about for a month or more, we just donate or give it away.
    • I haven’t come across any items that my kids wanted back after donating. Most things you just don’t miss unless it really is a special sentimental gift from a family member.
    • The decrease in mental energy, stress, and time saved from less mess and clutter is well worth taking a chance on missing a couple of items
    • You will get better over time and let go of things easier. It is so much easier to keep up with doing it in 15 minute chunks. Better than saving it for one day at the end of every year. Then you feel like you have to spend a couple of hours going through all the toys and trying to decide. Doing a little here and there as you go as much easier and more manageable.

Step 3: 1 In 1 Out/Regift

• Use the 1 In 1 Out Rule or even better 1 In 2 Out!
  • Before Christmas and birthdays, we take 1 or 2 weekends to find 10-15 items to donate. If your child struggles with parting with toys, spreading it out over a few weeks can help.
  • It also is a great lesson to practice. Blessing someone else with our toys and not being too attached to “stuff”.
  • Don’t stress if your child is struggling with handling this, it will get better over time. You can even just add it to your weekly Saturday or Sunday routine. Each child needs to find 3 things they can give away. It can even start as small as a few pieces of paper. Something is better than nothing.
• Regift when possible
  • In our family, our kids get a ton of gifts for their birthdays and Christmas. When they’re younger, they usually forget what they’ve just gotten. I have put many gifts aside to use for regifting.
  • If it is a sentimental gift, you can use your judgment there. There are plenty I feel that can be regifted with no hard feelings.

Step 4: Keep Storage Simple and Easy for Kids

• You don’t need to spend all kinds of money on the perfect storage solution. Use what you already have.
• A few fabric cubes, baskets, or small storage totes can be a great start.
• Even shoe boxes or Amazon boxes will do.
  • Find a way to keep the labels similar. It makes a big difference in keeping the look neat and consistent.
    • Post-it notes taped on boxes with a certain color for each child/item type is a great simple start.
• Check out this post for more toy organization ideas.
• Rotate cubes with different types of toys
  • This helps keep the toys that you already have seem new and exciting!
  • Kids appreciate what they have more instead of all the toys blending together. This results in “I have nothing to play with.”
  • Use your judgment for how many different cubes you want out.
• Only allow in the toy room what the children can clean up themselves. Keep everything else on the highest shelves or in a separate room.
• Have a good expectation of your children being picking up after themselves.
  • Even as young as 2, they can learn good habits of cleaning up after themselves.
  • Check out this post on raising helpful and kind kids.

Step 5: Add Routine Tidy Ups to Your Day

• Require kids to clean up before playing a different game. And especially before going on screens or going on playdates.
• Be patient and positive. Pick 1 or 2 fun songs, or just sing a couple of nursery rhymes. Let them know you are only cleaning for 2 songs, then you will be done!
• It can take a lot of reminding at first. Choose your mindset ahead– they are kids and learning. They will need lots of reminders! It isn’t as frustrating knowing that they’re just gonna need some practice on this.

Conclusion

Toys should add to your children’s lives. They should not take away time and peace in your home. Some toys are good but more does not equal better.

Use these steps to keep the toys in your home under control. With these tips, your kids, even as young as 1 and 2, can help with cleaning up. They can be responsible for their things. You can all work together as a family to have peace and joy in your home!