The toys are attacking!

We’re moving in a little while. It’s a good thing, actually. Currently there are seven of us sharing a 1200 square foot home. So, we all get a little more than 170 square feet a person. It can get squishy, to say the least. As we’ve been packing I’ve been noticing what’s been eating my space. And it’s not the clothes, shoes, computers, or furniture pieces. It’s the toys.

The toys are taking over. It starts outs simply enough. Our first child needed some toys to play with. Enter a handful of toys for each of the three month groupings infants go through; 0 to 3 months, 3 to 6 months, 6 to 9 months, and 9 to 12 months. Then we added a few toys for the year old child. And it just progresses. A handful of toys for each birthday, a handful of toys for each Christmas, and a handful of toys throughout the year – multiply that by five children and suddenly the house is drowning in toys. We have toys in every room of the house, and on the back porch, and in the garage.

The toys in my current house take up more space than anything else. We have tried multiple storage ideas. Toy sorters, toy boxes, plastic toy bins, and storing things in the garages – we’ve tried them all. Yes, we also go through every year and delete a third of the toys. There are so many toys, my children don’t know what to play with – so they tell me they’re “bored”.

I’ve noticed, though, as we’ve been packing, that my children are rediscovering the toys they once loved. Suddenly, we have hours of happy amusement with the newly discovered toys – for about a week. Noticing this tendency in my children to stop noticing what they have, I’ve come up with a new idea.

I’m revamping the rotation idea for toys. Instead of one in one out, I’m going to have one box a month. When we get to our new place, I’m getting 12 very large plastic bins. All of the toys, videos, board games, and children books will be divided into the bins. Whatever doesn’t fit will be sold and/or donated. Then on the first day of each month, that month’s bin will come out of the garage. We’ll have packed up the other items the day before. I’ll also let the children keep their two favorite toys out all the time.

I hope this will keep the Mount of Toy-ness from taking over our new place.

Does anyone else have toy organization ideas? I’d love to hear about them. Obviously, I need help.