If the title of this article caught your eye, chances are you’ve stubbed your toe on a Lego or tripped over a stray doll one too many times. It is the bane of any parent’s existence. Once the kids are brought into the equation, white capes, glass coffee tables, and calm, clutter-free rooms are swapped out for bold Fisher-Price primary colors and the inevitable tsunami of toys. I wish the kids would enjoy cleaning up toys as much as they do throwing out the contents of their buckets, baskets, and toy bins. But don’t despair, even if your house looks like a Toys R’Us mosh pit, here’s a cheat sheet for your kids to meet you halfway.
1. Don’t overcategorize.
Yes, toys need a home. But there is no need to keep them in alphabetical and color-coded containers. Kids just love to throw things away and that’s how they tend to want to store things: throw everything back into a random bin. They don’t really care if one container is marked “trucks” and another is marked “cars”. You are going to waste your precious energy if you worry about organizing the containers and the bags in the same way. If you’re a fan of labels, instead of inventing a toy classification system on your own, ask your kids how they’d like to see their toys sorted. You’ll be amazed at how differently they see their objects, and better yet, if they help you come up with the system, they’re much more likely to follow it.
2. Tote bags are your friends.
Designate a specific, lightweight bag (preferably with handles) that can be carried around the house and used as storage for unruly toys. That way, when you or your child finds a toy that belongs somewhere else, you can put it in the bag and give it to your child to take to the right place later.
3. If it’s broken, don’t fix it.
Well, don’t fix it unless it’s an important toy that gets used constantly and someone will be really heartbroken if they throw it away. Otherwise, if a toy is missing its parts and you know they’re not under the sofa cushions, just get rid of it. Also, if something breaks, don’t let it collect dust in the toy chest.
4. Rotate and rediscover.
Do you know how the kids will get a lot of shiny new gifts at Christmas and then they will play with the cardboard box? Simple is often better when it comes to toys because little ones can get overwhelmed by too much. If you are lucky enough to have generous family and friends who buy a lot of items for their children, divide the toy chest into two, three, or four assorted piles. Then put the stacks in rotation, trading games several times a year. Doing so will give the kids their Christmas morning surprise more than once a year and save you from having everything done at once.
5. It’s okay to share love.
In an ideal world, you could keep toys relegated to a particular room in the house, like a playroom. But try cooking dinner and entertaining a preschooler and you’ll soon learn that the playroom-only approach isn’t practical. It’s okay to have toys in the kitchen, dining room, living room, and bathroom. Whether you prefer canvas bins (easy to carry), plastic bins (easy to see contents), or a nice old toy chest (hides everything), as long as each room has its own storage space, it’s perfectly fine for share the love throughout the house.
6. Make cleaning fun.
Sure, if you pick up the toys you can do it three times faster than your kids, but where’s the lesson there? Teaching your children to pick up their toys not only teaches respect for their things and for others, but it is something they will do once they go to school. Make it a game by setting a timer and challenging the kids to a cleaning race.
7. Make quick clutter cleanup a nightly routine.
Again with the life lesson, but it’s true. Whether you make it a post-dinner routine or something the kids do before bed every night, establishing routines is a great way to tackle clutter every day. You can feel good knowing you’re setting your kids up with a life skill (and a clean living room floor isn’t bad, either).
