Less Really IS More!
Written by Helga
Saturday, 30 July 2011 09:46
Let’s see a show of hands. How many of you have kids that have a shitload of toys? Pieces & parts of toys? Toys from fast food places? From birthday party goodie bags? Halves of toys that have no match, rendering it useless?
My kids would pull stuff out of their toy boxes, cubbies and bins in search of a particular toy. They would then step on these pieces and parts in the dark of night on their way to the bathroom and howl – ever stepped on some of those Legos? Yowch!
A couple of years ago during a rainy stretch in June after school let out, I had had enough. I went on a tear and got the kids swept up in my let’s get rid of this nonsense fervor. They got to hold on to the toys they loved and played with the most, and we donated or properly disposed of the rest.
It felt so good. I wish I had taken before and after pictures, it was a sight to behold. Not only did getting rid of the excess free up space in their toy boxes – we were able to get rid of a couple of toy boxes altogether. The kids loved having a feeling of openness in their rooms, and there was less to pick up on clean up days. The true surprise was that the kids played with the remaining toys even more, with a renewed interest. They never, not even once, complained about the stuff they gave away. They never said they missed a thing. The few items that they were hesitant on giving up we set aside in the basement and if they wanted it back after a few weeks, great. But even those items were never retrieved, and were eventually donated. One of my favorite moves as a parent. (I have some not-so-fave moves, don’t get me started on the eating thing.) Any parent overwhelmed by STUFF can relate to what I am saying. After that I put a ban on random crap toys. It’s enforced most of the time, though I can’t control what they get as gifts from friends or family.
Let’s take this one step further.
Last summer I took the kids to Germany for three weeks to spend time with my father & stepmother and their family. My stepmom got some crayons & coloring books for my girl, and borrowed a box of Legos from a neighbor boy. My kids brought a handful of Playmobil figures with them. (Legos & Playmobil, best combo of toys ever!)
As a parent, aren’t you sitting there thinking ‘That’s it? For three weeks, just those toys?’ Well, I did have one of those older Leap Frog hand held gamers, but the kids grew tired of the 3 games I brought PDQ.
The result? Awesome. They went all out creating stories, building cities out of Legos and a world for their Playmobil characters. They played together, got in fights over key pieces or story lines, compromised and worked it out. I’m thinking now that we need to get rid of even more, if they can entertain themselves with so little.
Fast forward to this summer, we are away for a few weeks on vacation in a small rental home. I let them bring a small roll-on suitcase of
Hours of fun
One of the best kid toys, ever. Trust me on this!
their choice of toys, and of course, it was Legos, Playmobil, and another one of the best toys ever for kids of all ages, the Magna-Tiles. These geometrically shaped magnetic pieces are too big to be swallowed, sturdy, colorful, and inspire creativity in children. I couldn’t sing this toy’s praises enough, this is a toy that doesn’t require batteries, doesn’t make any noise, and will enthrall kids endlessly.
And yet again, I was impressed by how much fun they squeezed out of this combination.
Space for everyone!
I would them up from camp at noon some days, and they would plead: “Please, not the beach again! We want to go home and play with our Playmobil!” I swear I am not making this up. Bedtime would come and they would beg for a ‘sleepover’ – to share one bed so they could discuss their Playmobil storylines, the houses they had yet to design, their character’s rooms to decorate. I would end up hollering at them more than once for still giggling at 11pm, long after lights out.
Yet again I am reminded that our kids don’t always need more.
My kids say this is me, doing what I love to do, lounge in the sun with some snacks & a good read. They know me well!
For the record, my kids do not get along perfectly all the time, they do disagree & argue, and they do not always want to be around each other.
( I did not receive any of these toys in exchange for a review, these toys were birthday presents or bought with their own money.)
4 Comments
Leave a Reply
So funny, Tristin, Tyler Daddy and I went through tons of toys this weekend and purged A LOT! We tried to give away most of it, but some were old broken down figures that could not be salvaged. What could I do with those types of toys? I hate to throw things out, especially plastic. I completely agree with you, I am spending more time purchasing art supplies and books than I am purchasing toys these days, the kids barely play with toys when I do buy them, but I love their artwork and I love that they like to read some books over and over! Great post, BTW!
green smooches!
Tiff, I had the same inner battle: what do I do with all this stuff? And my most honest answer was – whatever I couldn’t recycle, or didn’t feel was worthwhile to donate, I threw into the garbage. As much as I hated to do it, that was my last option. As a result of having to toss so many items into a landfill, this made me doubly resolve to try and balance that out by preventing those kinds of toys form coming in the door in the first place. And I have done a decent job of that over the past 2 years. It’s a constant battle of reminding kids as well as family members that more stuff does not always equal better. Then I remind my kids that more stuff means more to clean up. And when they ask for more stuff I say ‘How much money do you have on you because I am not buying you more unnecessary stuff.”. This 3 tiered approach is working fairly well for me these days!
Thanks for stopping by!!
omg, helga, you couldnt have posted this any more of a perfect time. i just got so fed up w the kids toys allllllll over the place that ive banned them from entering my living room. i moved their toy box into DDs bedroom. ive been donating and donating and tossing stuff thats broken in the recycle bin and i just sold a kids chair and desk they havent used. more stuff to follow i hope. my DH just cleaned out our hot sunroom, which is a toy dump room in the summer. they play back their the rest of the cooler times a lot. everyone has been asking what to give DD for her bday this week. i said zoo passes! my mom sent clothes and a bathing suit…she can always use a bathing suit in AZ! i told her bff moms to bring the girls to the childrens museum like shes been talking about. there was a fail with my sister ( who has 2 boys) she sent her dress up clothes. i already found these all over the house in pieces. as promised, ive already put those items on the floor in the trash. yes, new presents!
Once a month or so I hand my kids (4 and 2) a grocery bag and ask them to go through their toys. We donate them to the local thrift store so that “kids without toys will have some.”
I find that with fewer toys (and we could still stand to lose a few) they engage more with what they do have. Nothing drives me battier than seeing them dump a box out onto the floor and then not play with any of its contents. What they say is true, too, about kids loving the box it came in more than the toy.