Organize Those Toys Already!

Sunday, January 01, 2012 Aimee Larsen 4 Comments


What have you been waiting for?  I mean really!  There is no excuse for a kids room to ever have toys out.  My boys room is always spot clean and totally walk throughable every single day.  You believe me don't you?  Don't you?

Actually, I have spent almost two days purging toys from my kids room.  I even repainted to just make the walls look clean again.  Yes, I painted the same color.  There is just no excuse for having so many toys.  I finally started piling everything in the middle of the room and began sorting and here is the result.


Jealous?
Don't be, you can do this too.  First, let go of any emotional attachment that YOU have to the toys.  I don't care if Aunt Margo gave it to your child 3 birthdays ago and you just love Aunt Margo.  Then buy some cheap containers that are shoe box size.  I bought 10 and one of them busted during transport so I used that odd ball wipes box on the bottom shelf.  It works.   Here's a close up.


 Simple labels with matching colors makes me feel so much better now.  I started to get all cute with the letters and then two things struck me as being important.  

1. The letters need to be clear and readable for my emerging readers.  Notice how the letter style is mostly lines and circles.  Just like the letters my boys are learning to write. 
2.  Simple = Not Busy:  I have mentioned before that my ADD causes me to become unorganized and unfocused very easy.  So, if I keep it simple, I find it easier to read (even for me) and not as distracting when I'm trying to clean up in a hurry.


Doesn't that look much better than the first picture of their toys on the floor.  Say it with me...yes it does!

What about those bigger toys you say?

Here's one box of their most played with bigger toys and here is the rest of them that we kept.

2 drawers of train sets and the rest are random toys and stuffed animals.  That's it!
This is hidden in an alcove in the closet and can't be seen.  
And then I look out in the hall at the rest of the mess I've got to purge, put away, wash and organize.


oh and just to show you want a Mom with ADD deals with when cleaning...
This is the pile of things that were left on the bed after I put toys away and they simply need a home in another space.   This is overwhelming to me and frustrating.  This is the part that makes me me want to go lay down and ignore it all.  
I put them away.  
Yay me!

Then I made the bed.

4 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, I can totally relate!!  My kids' rooms are always a disaster.  I NEED to do this in their rooms.  My husband doesn't understand why I get so on edge sometimes.  I can only explain to him that my lines aren't lined up, lol!  I self-diagnosed myself with OCD, lol!  At least I can close their bedroom doors, but the toys tend to migrate into the living room, too.  Thank you for sharing :o)

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  2. Honestly, I "feel" like my house is a disaster.  Truly, when people come over they  always say it looks clean but it never feels that way to me.  The littlest mess grows like it's on steroids and I look for ways to avoid it.  I wish I was OCD in a mild way.  Just enough to let the messes bother me so that they are afraid to exist here.

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  3. Oh yes! We are mid-purge right now! It's one of my goals for the year to de-clutter our whole house because it's at the point of ridiculousness! Less is definitely more!

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  4. I am also purging! And sometimes the mess that gets made in the process is almost more daunting than the original task - but the end result? Much better....LOL

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