Now is the perfect time to get a jump on the post Christmas organization plan. Now is when you want to take a little time each week to organize and declutter the children’s toy areas. In our family, we started an October tradition several years ago. All the toys are sorted, organized, purged, and donated. This is the perfect time to conquer the toy room. You’ll head in to gift season organized and ready to put away all the children’s new Christmas treasures. To get you started on your way to organized bliss, I have my family’s 10 steps to conquering clutter in the toy room.
- Ditch the stuffed animals-While cute and adorable stuffed animals take up a ton of space and really aren’t used on a regular basis. Keep the meaningful gifts and their favorites, but donate the rest. Store what you have under the bed or crib to save space. If you child likes to see them every day, use stuffed animal nets or other hanging storage.
- Have an art line-Kids like to see their art displayed for the entire family. Hang an art line for a quick and easy display. You can use fishing line with cloths pins for an easy access display. Rotate pictures to the back for an easy change.
- Digital art show-When you are purging art and crafts photograph all of the children’s work. Let them keep their best pieces and along with your favorites, store those in the memory box. Purge the rest. Invest in a cheap digital picture frame, load their art photos and you have an easy digital art show for all of their family and friends.
- Purge-If you child has not played with a toy in 2-3 months, take the toy out of the toy area. Store it separately for 6-8 weeks; if your child does not ask for it in that time frame purge the unused toy.
- Play Zones-Create play areas in the space. We have a building space, book nook, arts & craft desk, and kitchen area. It allows for a child to easily identify and locate their toys during playtime and for easy clean up.
- Containerize-Invest in good containers. You’ll need something sturdy and easy for your children to manage. We prefer, for most things, open storage containers that allow the children easy access during playtime and easy access during clean up.
- Invest in shelving-You will need decent shelving for toy storage. Invest in good shelving units that are 2-3 shelves high. Keep toys and their containers at the child’s level so they can assist in putting things away.
- Label with photos-Label your containers with photos. It makes clean up for little children a breeze.
- Donate excess-Once you have organized and purged, sort through your toys for excess. The goal is to have room for the new toys that acquired during the Christmas season, so keep that in mind as you are judging the toy supply. If you are worried about taking the favorite toys, keep a container of back up toys in a different location. Rotate through toys several times through out the year. Donate your excess to a local children’s organization or hospital and if allowed involve your children in that process. While it should not be traumatizing, it is important from an early age for children to learn appreciation for what they have.
- Keep the kids Involved-At every step, the children should be involved in this process. This is their space and their toys so it is important they take ownership of the new, organized space. Make it a fun process for one and all.
I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hot Wheels® blogging program, for a gift card worth $40. For more information on how you can participate, click here
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