Kids

Kids

Monday 4 February 2013

De-toy-clutter

Another practical, control-the-chaos-in-your-home-with-kids kind of post, which appeared on Mom's Diaries.
 
Surely kids have way too many toys nowadays? How does one keep the clutter under control? The task can seem pretty overwhelming at times. Yet, it all boils down to some commonsensical strategies.
Me, I follow the mantra of Reduce, Rotate, Recycle, Donate.
1. Reduce. Just buy less. We’ve all noticed the 80-20 rule. It’s just 20% of the toys in the toybox that get played with a lot or most of the time. The rest seemed to be played with only when other kids demonstrate an interest in them! My husband and I have almost completely stopped buying toys for our kids except on birthdays and maybe Xmas. There are no impulse purchases. The children get a lot of toys anyway as gifts and I have a hard enough time dealing with those, thank you very much. Plus most of the habitual gift-givers know that my children adore books so that’s what they get a lot of nowadays (so now we have book clutter instead of toy clutter….which does not seem so bad!).
Additionally, with toy libraries mushrooming nowadays, it is easier not to buy new toys and gizmos. I sometimes miss my mom's club in the US. One of the cool things they used to do is to have a toy swap every 6 months. Everyone (we had more than 50 active members) brings their unwanted (in good condition and cleaned/sterlized) toys to a common place. You get to pick other kids' toys for your own kids and vice versa. All the toys left at the end of the exercise would be donated to charity.
2. Rotate. Put away half of the 80% toys in a box somewhere. Pull them out after a few months and put the rest of the toys in storage. Keep rotating toys every few months and they’ll always stay fresh and exciting!
3. Recycle. The kids get to choose which birthday gifts they want to give away and which they’d like to keep. The ones they don’t care for are gifted to kids who would want and enjoy them. We try to gift thoughtfully and not palm off unwanted gifts to other kids.
4. Donate. Extra toys and games are always donated at the end of the year. They normally get passed on to the maid’s kids, a needy NGO, a Xmas drive or to younger neighbours and cousins – wherever the toys would be ensured of a loving welcome.
 
So how do you de-toy-clutter your home?
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14 comments:

  1. Anonymous4 February 2013 at 10:28

    Great ideas! While I follow reduce, recycle and donate, I loved your idea of rotating toys :) I am going to start doing this too now :)

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    1. Aparna4 February 2013 at 11:32

      Thanks..rotating is so simple but it really helps.

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  2. Anonymous4 February 2013 at 15:00

    Some lovely ideas there! This is another useful post I'm sure I will come back to later, when the need arises. :)

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    1. Aparna4 February 2013 at 15:05

      Cool...sometimes I think I shd do the same for my clothes :) Atleast the rotation bit :)

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  3. Aparna4 February 2013 at 15:03

    Love that mom's club idea.. wish we could set up something like that here.. hmmm..
    And yes, my kids have more or less given up asking for stuff nowadays as they know that Amma is going to point out their overflowing cupboards ;).. so nothing new goes in unless a few things go out!

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    1. Aparna4 February 2013 at 15:05

      What about the second to none group? Shd be possible to set up something there?

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    2. Aparna4 February 2013 at 15:31

      Good idea! There's a Bangalore mom's group too, but I think 220 may be a better bet!

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  4. Me! In words4 February 2013 at 16:12

    I totally relate to this post - for my daughter we have periodic toy box cleaning out sessions where she is supposed to split her toys into those she wants, those that cannot be saved, those she would like to give away. From what is saved I put away one part till the next cleaning session where I re-introduce them and they seem to have a novelty factor.

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    1. Aparna4 February 2013 at 16:23

      So lots of moms are doing this...good to know! Its a good thing kids have short memories :)

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  5. Uma5 February 2013 at 21:48

    phew! I just did some re-organizing with R's toys..I do the donate and re-use too...haven't tried the rotation bit..sounds good!

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  6. SohNi8 February 2013 at 15:53

    nice idea Aparna, will share with my sis..:)

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  7. Sirisha9 February 2013 at 14:26

    Good Idea Aparna.. But my toddler has a nagging memory.. the moment I put away a toy , she will go blue for the same. Even the toys that she hasnt touched for an year.. if I dont tell her too.. she will realise something amiss and figure out exactly whats missing!
    :( So all toys out all the time= super messy playroom

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  8. Inka Sheen15 February 2013 at 13:32

    to all the parents...please Pay Attention to Age Recommendations, its very neccosory , i have just seen this happending.... try to Break Your Child’s Toy
    Sort Through Toys And Know What’s There , and for god sake buy Only High Quality Toys

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  9. Unknown21 February 2013 at 16:15

    Very nice post..... Thanks!
    http://www.wowzat.tv

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I would love to hear your thoughts :)

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