We live in a one bedroom with limited space so when I saw everything we got for Bear in addition to everything grandparents, aunts and uncles got Bear I just about started crying. I sat down, planned the space and came up with a few ideas on saving space…
Out with the old – first of all I need to get rid of everything Bear no longer plays with or the things we can part with. Stacking donuts are fun, but now we play with stacking blocks. Same with stuffed animals, we can donate the Lamaze octopus to make room for the new teddy bears. Please don’t donate dirty, ripped or broken toys – these are better off recycled or tossed. Anything in good condition should be moved to a new home
Bins, Buckets & Labels – At the dollar store you can find either really big Tupperware or large plastic baskets that fit on a shelf you might already have. You can also spend a few extra bucks and get them from Target or Wal-Mart.
Consider what types or categories of toys you have. For example we have a wooden train set (bin 1), a ton of mega blocks (bin 2), stuffed things (bin 3), trucks (bin 4) and miscellaneous toys (bin 5).
I find that Bear gets really overwhelmed and over-stimulated when he wants to play with mega blocks and all the train parts fall out too. He’s not sure what goes with what or which to play with first. This also makes for a bigger mess in the living room. I have made up and will share when I have them ready some cute labels with pictures of what is inside each box that I am going to cut out and tape on the outside of each bin.
Cleanup Skills – I also figured this will make great cleanup skills. Bear is good about picking up his toys with me when it’s time for bed but this will make it 100x easier than cramming as much as we can on a shelf only to have stuff fall off.
What are you doing to make good cleanup habits and organization?
Love,
PlusPeace
I had this exact thought the other day when we got home from my parents with a carload of toys. Still trying to figure out what to do with everything.
ReplyDeleteI'm all about donating but I am worried they'll just toss it or it will rot some where.
I worry about the same things. I try to donate them to either people I know with kids smaller than Bear or i thought about donating to a local womens organization that helps women who are expecting or who have young children. I know alot of times church nurseries look for toys in good condition as well
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