Just Like New

Every year around Christmas time, we do a small culling of the toys that the girls are involved in to give to charity. We did a much bigger culling this year, and then again recently, Hubby and I cleaned out their room from top to bottom and reorganized things. We got rid of a LOT. And some of their toys, I put in a box and put in the garage.

I decided it'd been long enough since the last rotation, so I brought in some new books and toys. And to my kids, it was just like they'd received a new gift!



I rotated in their Melissa and Doug wooden tool set, and they've happily played with it all day. Currently, A is playing "nurse" to G's "surgeon"--or so it sounds, as the way she says "Hammer!" etc. sounds like she's asking for "scalpel! sponge!" etc. ;) G is visiting all of our furniture, and calls out "hammah!" "skoodwiver!" "wrench!" as she finishes "using" one toy and tosses it aside. Then she declares the item built or fixed. It's very cute.

And best of all, it was free, because we already owned it. They are rediscovering the toy and have that "we just opened this present" kind of joy and wonder about it, but only because it was "out of sight, out of mind" for a couple of months in the garage. If you don't already do this, I highly recommend rotating toys in and out of their play area. In fact, I can even give you a handy little list of why you should try this frugal tactic:

1. It's free! Your kids probably (if they are anything like mine) get bored with their toys after awhile, and want to have fun with something new. My kids don't watch TV, and don't see a lot of commercials, yet they do desire to get and enjoy getting new things (my theory on this is that they are normal kids, and that I overly encourage this by spoiling them with gifts since that is how I show love *sigh*). Unless you plan to say "too bad so sad", break the bank with a steady amount of toys, or at least fill your house with clutter of stuff, be it garage-saled or dollar-storebought, this will be hard to accomplish. The advantage of keeping back a portion of their toys (be it most, half, or only a few) is that when you do bring out that "new" thing to play with, you won't have spent any extra money. It's like a toy library, but in your own home! Toy libraries are awesome, but by utilizing your own personal version, you cut down on travel time and expense ;).

Therefore, by "making old things new again", you are making an incredibly ingenious and frugal choice. Easy on the pocketbook is good! Your kids get the satisfaction of discovering or rediscovering a toy, and you keep that money in your pocket.

2. It cuts down on visible clutter, which serves some very important and worthy causes. It makes your home more inviting. My favorite...there is less to clean up later. Organization and a streamlined place promotes learning and satisfaction.

And believe it or not, by giving your child some choices but not TOO many, you enable them to function more efficiently and happily. Small children especially become overwhelmed with too many choices. You've probably noticed, if you have a large amount of toys (especially in one spot) that a good majority of them will get ignored for long periods of time anyways. If you ask your toddler "would you like to wear your green shirt or your blue one?" they feel empowered and confident, and are generally capable of making the choice or offering a third acceptable alternative. If you say "What shirt do you want to wear?" they will take a much longer time deciding and may even become frustrated.

The same is true of toys. So keeping a smaller amount of toys available serves up a decluttered one-two punch of awesomeness--it limits their choices in a healthy way which facilitates learning and empowerment/contentment and it cuts down on clutter which facilitates learning and contentment. Win-win-win!

3. It bucks commercialism and encourages gratefulness. Instead of buying into the "gotta have mores" and giving in to the "gimme-gimmes", your kids learn to appreciate what they have. Because there is only a portion of toys available, I have found through personal experience that my kids enjoy their toys a lot more and are happy to have them. When I sense they are getting bored of same ol' same ol', I reintroduce some of the stored toys, and they are grateful anew for those toys. And then, when it's time to reintroduce the put-away toys, again, grateful anew. Delayed gratification, simplicity, gratefulness, and a lack of consumerism are good moral lessons and important life skills that are best learned in the childhood years.

4. It's good for the environment. Going hand in hand with consumption/consumerism, instead of constantly acquiring more stuff, you are doing a micro "reduce, reuse, recycle" loop while maintaining the happiness of the family unit.

So there you have it. And lest anyone think I am this amazing paragon of clutter-free zen, I am a recovering pack rat. :) This 'rotating the toys' thing is new for me, but I've been so pleased with the results thus far that I felt like passing along my newly acquired skills and knowledge. Slowly I am taking my home from cluttered and overcrowded to simple and functional...I am on a learning journey myself. This is a message from the trenches, if anything. I found something that works for me, maybe it will work for you too!

Working toward clutter-free...

In this corner of the room sits their dolls and stuffed animals on the doll cradle. Under the bed is an under-bed drawer that holds dress-up stuff	Here is their big stuffed horse and kitchen play area, where the play dishes are stored

The closet, where their board games and linens are stored on a shelf (not pictured). Board games stacked, and the linens in storage bags. Their clothes are here, and all the rest of their toys, contained and organized in those three drawer-storage units. In the corner between the closet and bed the current selection of books are stacked, and the bottom drawer of one of the dressers serves as additional storage for art supplies. On top of one dresser sit some books that we are reading together, and on the other, hair things and such are stored.