This post was most recently updated on September 23rd, 2019
Seems no matter how hard I try, I just can’t seem to get a handle on the toy madness in our house!
Toys, toys, and more toys. Everything from exersaucers to tiny polly pockets and everything in between. In every room. Everywhere.
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| Our den, converted into an American Girl salon. |
We do have a designated playroom, so why is it that they aren’t content to stay in there? I blame toys with wheels. It’s too easy an escape, lol.
And have I shown you my latest kitchen decor? It’s oh so chic…
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| The darn thing is as tall as my 6-year old! |
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| Blame Santa. |
Then there’s the baby stuff. Oh the baby stuff. And did I mention we have two of EVERYTHING? Two exersaucers, two ride-ons, two bouncers…two, two, two!
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When our twin baby boys were old enough to start playing with toys, I had to figure out a solution that would work for my 6-year old daughter. You see, she was used to ruling her fortress (aka the playroom) without anybody challenging her territory. But now, she had four other little (boy) hands grabbing her Barbies, destroying her tea parties, and ripping up her masterpieces. Not to mention that most of her things are small enough to be severe choking hazards. I’m pretty sure that Barbie’s stilettos and Polly Pocket’s surf board might hurt on the way down 😉 .
Sometimes she learned to have fun with it, but more often than not, she didn’t.
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| When they weren’t mobile, they made good mannequins! |
Yes, there’s been many a toy crisis in Kingdom Toy Madness…
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| An uninvited guest at the tea party. |
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| Ah, I’ve got it all to myself! |
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| What do you mean I can’t play in here? |
So last summer we purchased a storage unit for the playroom from Ikea (from the Expedit series). This allowed me to put the baby toys in the lower cubes, and put my daughter’s teensy wheensy things in containers (see aqua tubs) in the higher rows. Bingo! I thought that I had struck gold.
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| These IKEA bins are great. They can see what they want before they dump it! |
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| Her crafties were rounded up in this built-in. And this dress up station housed The Queen’s many costumes. |
But, no, not really. It was only a matter of time, before that system broke down too. As soon as they played together at the same time, things got all mixed up. Clean up time meant let’s dump our stuff in the nearest bin!
So now I am back at square one. I’ve tried baskets. I’ve tried cubbies. I’ve tried labels. I’ve tried everything! It’s a battle that can’t be won.
Perhaps I just need to give in. Should I hoist my white flag? After all, toys aren’t so bad. Perhaps, I just need to embrace them.
Note to self: Toys mean kids. Toys mean fun. Toys mean fun, happy kids. Toys mean a fun, happy home. Of course!
I just need a little reminder now and then. 😉
PS. So how do you manage the toy chaos in your home? I’d love to know!
Have a fun-filled weekend!
Hi Amy! Thanks for visiting and commenting! I LOVE your idea, and I think it might work for me. It's worth a try!
This is my first time reading your blog, but I love it! As a mother of two I have the same struggles with toys (I have a 4yr old and a 2yr old). So far printing pictures and taping them on buckets from the dollar store has worked for my son (4yrs old), but honestly even then it's hard to get them to "CLEAN UP" after their done playing.
One of the best things that has worked for me is I play a song (we have this upbeat jazz song that's fun) and I tell them that's the "clean up song" every night before or after dinner. The song is always the same and the goal is to have everything picked up by the time the song ends (the song is almost 6min). They think it's so fun that I don't even have to ask. I just simply push play and usually end up laughing with them by the end. Then whatever is left by then I don't really care and feel like it's better than nothing. Don't know if that helps, but it at least will make everyone smile hopefully!
Good luck! Will be interested to hear other people's ideas!
Amy