I took (most of) the kids' toys away...

During Madelyn's first year of life, I remember feeling guilty because the girl had hardly any toys to play with. I was always afraid she was bored or not stimulated enough due to a lack of "things" to play with, yet she was a very happy, healthy baby and turned out absolutely amazing. Ever since Madelyn's first birthday back in 2011 though, we have been inundated with toys. With the birth of her little brother came more toys and so on. Since we have a two-story home, the toys have stayed upstairs majority of the time but scattered throughout.  At one point we turned our dining room into a play room, and it looked amazing for the first five minutes, until they filtered through the rest of the house. I even found random toys in my closet! I can't tell you how many times I moved the toys around the house and reorganized them. So back up the stairs the toys went.  For a short while, I allowed one basket for a few toys to be kept downstairs so that the kids could have some stuff to play with if company came over.  During the week the toys were, once again, all over the place, so they joined the rest in the toy graveyard upstairs. 

Now let me say this....we hardly ever go upstairs. The only time we go up there is at bedtime, for baths and for the kids to sleep.  We are downstairs or in the backyard all the time. The kids play hide and seek, they chase each other in an attempt to play Tag, they pretend to take food orders from us, they color, they help me in the kitchen if it's meal time or if we're making a sweet treat, and the list goes on.  They delight in each other's company and in others' company as well - I much prefer that!!  Not only are they bonding with other people but they are being creative, learning, and JUST PLAIN BEING KIDS!

They don't even miss any of the toys upstairs.  They don't ask for them, they don't look for them, nothing. When we do rarely make a trek upstairs, the kids are SO overwhelmed by all the toys, they don't know what to do first or what to play with. When we are upstairs, they still continue to make up their own activities and find various uses for a few of their favorite toys - imaginative play at its finest!

I finally had it with all the toys, so one evening I purged...

Ryan's room - like a breath of fresh air!

Madelyn's room - no more tripping on plastic food & pony brushes!

Game room - COMPLETE TOY CHAOS!

So after getting all of their toys in one room, I went through each item and made a decision to toss it, give it away/sell it, or keep it (and put it away.)  Don't get me wrong...I didn't rid them of ALL of their toys! They are kids and kids like to play with toys...but I do believe there can be an overabundance of them. I kept the puzzles, books, play-doh, and the like. I also kept toys that will inspire the use of their creativity like their tents, kitchen, and dollhouse. Their favorites like dress up, ponies, cars, etc are put up out of sight, and I let them bring out a toy at a time. Surprisingly it has really worked out, and when they do go upstairs, they are learning to play with things and to put them away after they are done. 

Game room (after) - We have actually managed to keep this up!!

I really feel like this is a great step in the right direction for all of us.  Not only will the kids be able to continue growing in their relationships with people, but they will appreciate the toys that they love even more! Michael and I have more control of the toy situation, and we won't be overwhelmed by the mess it has left us in the past!