Managing the Toys

I have used the popup type hamper to keep my little one's toys under control since she was about 1 1/2 yrs old. it bends easily so she could get them out. and when empty she likes to play with it too. most of them have handles of some type so can be drug around the house as well to make it easier to clean up the toys or move them to another room if necessary.

after 4 children i have found this to be the ONLY thing that works for me. I do not let all the toys out at once. I keep the amount to the few they are playing with right now. Every 6-8 weeks, i change them up and switch out the toys they are not playing with for others ( that are kept away in a box) They then play withh the toys as if they are new and last but not least..... I THROW THINGS OUT ONCE A MONTH. My rule is if you really like it and you really want it, you will not leave it laying around where it can get stepped on. You would be amazed at, after a few times of just going in with trash bags and throwing toys out, how the kids take care of their things. And since i don;t let everything out at once, the toys are managable for them.

I didn't have too much trouble with toys, but have a few friends that did. We played a game with them. When I wanted most of them picked up, I would put one in the toy box and have her put as many as she wanted in there. Usually she wanted to put more in than me. I loved it. My friends didn't have it that easy. So, they would put ones in a tote that were never or rarely played with. Then when the child got tired of them, they would bring out some of the ones in the tote and she would put others away in there. She kept the tote out of reach and in another closet so it wasn't seen. Most of them had success with that. The child thought they had some new toys at times.

I'll take your kid if you don't want to be stepping on toys. I'd love another.
All joking aside the child needs to be taught to put things back when they get them out.Regardless of age this is very easily taught.

I have a couple little storage bins with plastic drawers. I also keep some things in baskets, and the rest go on shelves.

Well, that is the question of the hour isn't it! Who doesn't deal with this one! We finally just created a room in our basement dedicated to all things toy related. If the kids want something for playing upstairs it has to fit on one small shelving unit that is their size. Everything else goes to the playroom. We rotate out the toys that are allowed upstairs so they don't get bored. We are also in the process of building a large shelving unit in the basement to even further organize. Each toy (unit) will fit into a tote and the entire tote will go into a designated spot in the shelving. I am labeling all the totes so that all the "little people" that go with that particular toy will stay in the tote with it. Over the summer I am going to upgrade our rules so that if they have one tote out they have to put all the items back in it before they can get out something else. If they don't then I will take that item away to go in the "saturday" box. If toys lay around they get taken away until the next saturday.
Hopefully, you will find a system that works for you! We were so lucky to have a spot in the basement to stick everything. :)

I try to go through my kids toys a couple times a year. With my oldest, he's 9, he goes through them with me. I have him help to make the decisions and we donate to charity. Thanks to this practice for so many years, he's amazingly generous and understanding. He was told that toys, especially at Christmas, go to children that may otherwise not get anything because their parents have fallen on hard times or for whatever reason. He has also raised money for St. Jude Childrens Hospital. He's never been there but understands that these kids are fighting disease and he's helping to fund their care and look for cures. The lessons that he has learned from charity are amazing. Hope I can manage to instill some of this into my youngest son (20 mo) as he grows older. For the toys that are left, my youngest has a tote that we keep toys in and then I left his changing table in his room and it has become a toy shelf for the bigger things. I moved his dresser into his closet and it added more room. My oldest has a bed with drawers under it and that helps with his smaller things a lot. You've gotten some really good ideas from the other mamas too. Hope this helps some. Good luck, Shannon
Ps. When you do step on those pesky little things, count to 10!! haha

I have a toy box that fits most of his small toys. In the living room I keep his action figures in the bottom drawer of the entertainment center. His books are kept neatly on a long 2-shelf bookshelf so it is at his height so he can put all his books away before bed. Another idea I have is putting storage boxes on the bookshelf and filling it with small toys. That way he can help clean up if everything is organized.

I don't know if any of us can ever "really" stop all the toys from being around, BUT I do find going through his toys about once a month and donating the ones he doesn't use that much helps with the clutter. Also, the bigger ones that he has multiples of I rotate. I only keep one downstairs and the others out of reach. He is already used to it and doesn't miss the toys when they are gone anyway. I figure, if they all cannot fit in his toy box then he has too many.

You may not like my answer but the only thing we have found that truly works is growing up! Our 13 year old doesn't have toys anymore:(. We do have a 6,5, and 4 year old and I struggle sometimes with the toys too. Once a week I tell them if I have to come in there and pick them up you won't see them for a long time. I will go in with a trash bag and clean up thir rooms myself and anything on the floor goes in the trash bag and into the garage for one month.My problem is trying to keep them picked up DAILY. I wish I had a magical answer but I do know that one day there will be no more toys like with our oldest so I try to keep that in mind when I get frustrated.

J., we have two things, the first one is a clothes holder that is vertical. It is soft and we put the toys that he really plays with on the bottom and the ones that we help him with on the top. The second one is a net. He nailed three of them. One in the top of the corner, one in middle, and one on bottom. Again, same situation with what toys go where. And I will tell you this, the nets have been very helpful with a sense of "punishment" We have been taking the toy he "throws" and put it in the TOP net until he earns it back. These two things have been GREAT!

How about some shelves across one side of the child's room?
Make it a thing everynight at bedtime to pick up the toys
so he/she will know where they are the next day.

I was in the same boat. They just seem to be everywere!! We even have a playroom. I had a toy box but my 2yr old could not get what was on the bottom. So I ended up getting the little organizer that has different storage bens from Toys R Us. It was around $40 but worth it. It has been great. It looks organized and he can play and then put things away. We still are working on putting things away though. Anyway I love it.
Good Luck
T.

I would just go to Walmart and get one of those big round plastic containers (the one with the rope handles) It hold a good amount of toys and it is low enough to the ground for a toddler to be able to reach in. I have a 21 month old and it works well for her! Good luck. Toys are a never ending job.

A) How old is the toddler?
B) They have to learn to pick up and put away.
We had a toy chest (wooden) with a seat on top we kept some of it in.
We moved and I put in those colorful drawer things that they could put toys away in.
C) Talk to them about picking up and if they don't pick them up when they are done and you step on them, you pick them up and throw them away if they are the cheapies, or if they are like legos you put them in a box on a shelf and they don't get them back for a week or two.
Believe me, it works and they learn.
P. R

Hi J.! I was having the same issue. I bought a clear plastic tub/tote with a lid from Target. I put all the toys that my son plays with in it and leave it in the living room. In the mornings, I take the lid off and he gets out what he wants. In the evenings I put it all away (he's 11 months so not into putting things away yet) - everything's out of the way. Good luck!

You can store them in anything - the trick is at night after bath before bed you have your child go around and clean up. Sing the barney clean up song - and help your child clean up. Do this every single night. My son is 7 and he automatically puts his books, toys and such away every night before bed. His room is only a mess during the day while he's playing.

Hello J.;

I have 4 toddlers adn I basically have started over again also. I have 2 bio children ages 25 and 22, and just have adopted a 2 year old and getting ready to adopt an 18month old and another 2 year old. I have bought 2 small bookshelves and 6 canvas totes to put on them. They hold a lot of toys and it keeps alot of the little things off of the floor. When they get dumped, it is a pain, but I try to keep a jump on them. It does seem to work. I keep the bigger things in a big tub. I really like this. It also saves room so they have more room to play. D.

When mine were little, I used plastic crates to keep toys in. I had one in the living room where she played and then her bigger toy box in her bedroom. This way, it was light enough for her to carry around and put her toys away when it was time to clean up. It takes a little work, but if you teach them early on to pick up and help them learn, they will eventually get used to it. The crates just seemed less intimidating to them than a huge box.

My M. had a way of dealing with toys left all over the place. If it worked 60 yrs. ago (I'm a grandma myself) it might work now. Every item left where it didnt belong was hidden away. At the end of the week, month, or whenever we missed it and needed it, we had to do a chore or pay for it out of our allowance. This also worked for coats, or clothes not put where they belong. Of course I was too lazy to do it with my kids, but the grandkids do very well with it.

HELLLLLLllloooooo,
Are you a first time parent? I don't mean to sound judgemental, but having to clean up and stepping on toys is part of being a parent. If you don't have it now, you'll never know what to experience and what your gonna miss!
I freak out now with toys laying around in a childs room, just not my toddlers, I EXPECT the mess, they're exploring, they are having fun and they are being KIDS! That's part of a learning ability. I used to constantly pick up after my 2year old daughter was playing with her toys and I learned that she's just gonna come back and mess it up, which she does again. I wait until she is napping or goes to bed to clean her mess up, because it's just gonna run you out and down if your constantly cleaning the toy mess up. I have 2 older daughters as well and I've never freaked out about them playing...or making a mess and they are happy and wonderful. My 2 year old hardly plays with her toys anymore, due to the fact that I clean up her mess all the time. The only way she will mess with her toys is if dad or I or her sisters play with them. She does pick up after herself and we have totes and shelves (Book shelves) for her stuff. You know the traveling organizer for kids, we use that too. Have fun with them and show them how to pick up after themselves. Its just teaching them and it'll be good for the both of you. Good Luck & Be Patient.

Ikea has some good systems, from what I hear...

I too have a shelf with bins in them to store toys. We got it at Target. It holds 9 bins and it comes in all types of colors. With 3 kids, our toys were overtaking the house! So we made a rule, that each child got 3 bins. If it didnt fit in the bin it had to be donated. We excluded things like games and large items. But little trinkets and stuffed animals and just plain junk they play with had to be limited to 3 bins each. They each have their own color and at the end of the day anything not in the bins, gets donated. Works like a charm!

I love the cute storage organizers with bins that they sell, but didn't want to spend the money.

What I have done in the past is buy a cheap wire 3 rack shoe organizer, then fill it with the plastic shoeboxes. They are cheap, come with a lid, and are see-through. I decorated the end of the box with the toy description. This worked great for toys with lots of small pieces... we had boxes for Little People characters, Barbie doll clothes, matchbox cars, Polly Pockets, plastic animals, etc. That way, it's easy to get one type of toy out to play with at once. It also helps kids know where things go when cleaning.

On the shoe rack I had, the top shelf was smaller than the other two (not long enough for a shoebox). On this one, I displayed larger plastic toys and stuffed animals.

I think the first key to organizing is downsizing. When I did this I started by eliminating all the happy meal toys or party favors. I bagged them up and game them to my son's teacher and the church nursery for the treasure box. Then I weeded through the stuffed animals (my personal hell) and kept only the ones with sentimental value, or if they were lovies. The rest I went through and threw away anything that was broken or missing pieces. What was left was seperated into two piles. If they had outgrown it or hadn't played with it in six months then the toy was put in a give away pile that went to goodwill. What was left I put in toy bins that were kept off the floor.

A good idea for the toy shelves with the bins is to take pictures of what is in each bin and attatch it to the bin with clear contact paper. Then when they put away they know where things go. It teaches them to put things in their proper place as well as sorting which is a premath skill.

If you don't want to spend the money on the shelf and bin, there is a cheaper way. Go to Walmart and get the wire shelves that can be afixed to the wall and hang them at your child's height. You can make two or three rows of shelves. Then for the containers you can use 4 lb. coffee cans, wipee boxes, or large store brand "gladware" containers and cover them with contact paper before you put the pictures on. I actually like these better because they come with lids.

Your lucky to have it stay in the child's room! However, I found that when my son was a toddler, a bookshelf was good. He could put stuff on the shelf - including books! A couple cute baskets to put the smaller stuff in.

I have one of those organizers, lol informative huh, but it's like this shelf with these little bins, they have them most everywhere and that is where all the little random toys go, we also have lots of shelves, where the toys that they can play with unattended are on the bottom and within reach and things with pieces like puzzles and games and stuff i would prefer they had some supervision playing with are kept on the upper shelves we lined and entire wall in the toy room with very cheap 3 shelve book cases and bought small plastic totes as well to keep things organized. also pet nets for stuffed animlas are great and they don't have to go up so high your child can't reach them. Target has some great organizing materials in their kids bedding section so you can look there for ideas as well. and depending on your decor and taste large pegboards with hooks are wonderful for all sorts of toys, we hung one up for my boys when they had their tool bench as toddlers and than for the girls for thier kitchen and dress up stuff cause they ahd to have one too. large bulletin boards are great to, to allow your little one to display artwork and special items.