How I Decluttered My Toddler's Toys Before the Holidays!
Welcome back, mama! I decided it was time to declutter my 2 1/2 year old's toys, and figured it would be of some good motivation for you! While we’re actually on the more minimal side with toys to begin with, there seems to be so many little “knick nacks” that leave my son's bedroom looking disastrous as seen in the picture above! With the holidays just around the corner, I like to declutter and organize to make space for new items from loving friends and family!
While my son’s toy set up may not be “Pinterest perfect,” it's real, and I hope you can appreciate that! I’ve narrowed my game plan down to three objectives: 1.) Throw out all broken toys, 2.) Store toys my daughter will eventually play with, 3.) Donate the the rest of the toys we will not be keeping! I’d love for you to come along and see!
Disclaimer: If you witness the decluttering of a toy you have gifted our son, please don't be offended! Our son played greatly with your toy, but over time became bored, so we gave it the good ole Marie Condo, “Thank you,” and parted ways. Thank you for understanding! We appreciate you!
The first area I chose to look through was my son's bookshelf which was handed down to me by my lovely sister. As much as we love books, my son's shelf was extremely cluttered, and although we read a ton, I knew there were a few books that he had no interest in! I removed ALL the books from the shelf, and looked through each, asking myself the following: Is it in good, readable condition? Does it have a good message? Is it appropriate? Does he LOVE it? I then made three piles...Books that were damaged to throw out, books that don't fit our taste to donate, and books to keep! I put my 8 month old’s books on the very bottom shelf for easy access. You can find our top 10 favorite books found on our toddler’s bookshelf here!
We chose to remove the books seen on the floor that were ultimately taking up space in our son’s bookshelf!
Our son’s shelf post-decluttering!
Next was stuffed animals... OK, here's where it gets tricky for a lot of people. In some cases I think the attachment to stuffed animals is more emotional for the parent than the child! I laid them all out, and asked myself, "Which stuffed animal does he LOVE?" “Which are sentimental?" “Which are terribly cute, but he's just not into them?" I actually decluttered stuffed animals recently, and these all made the cut. (I have a bin specifically for stuffed animals, so as long as they can fit in the bin, they can stay!) We also kept these awesome Melissa and Doug puzzles which we love!
All of my son’s stuffed animals fit into this bin which is the deepest bin in his toy storage. If the stuffed animals can fit, then they can stay, and we finally have a stable bunch that he sincerely loves!
Our Melissa and Doug puzzle collection! I LOVE! No way we could part with these! ABC/FISH/NUMBER puzzle SHAPE puzzle
Next on my list were vehicles..basically, anything with WHEELS! My son loves his trucks! He has a garbage truck, dump truck, construction truck, police car, and he also has some smaller green cars. The cars I noticed he never played with were actually his hot wheels! Maybe he'll play more with them when he's older, but for now... Bye Felicia.
Here we keep my son’s smaller cars, and pizza toppings!
The “Parking Spaces” for our son’s trucks! I should use duck tape and make actual little parking spaces! Note to self…that outlet needs a cover…I’m on it!
Next, I decluttered any plastic, non BPA-free toys that found their way into our home. They don't last long, can sometimes be hazardous, and we are always striving for safer products. We kept these toys shown below!
We got these mix and match dinosaurs at Lakeshore, along with some musical instruments!
We have a few borrowed MAGNA-TILES from a friend to see how our son likes it prior to buying. There's also some of our own childhood pass me downs, and a Spiderman toy. Woody is currently MIA! Ps. Later found him in my sock drawer!
We currently don't have any electronic toys because we try to go the more open-ended toy route for more longterm stimulation!
Here we have two sets of LEGO DUPLOS. LEGO DUPLOS TRAIN. LEGO DUPLO TRUCK
My son’s beloved dyson vaccuum cleaner! It can actually suck up dust for removal!
All of the puzzles we love to do together: Car puzzle, Zoo puzzle, ABC puzzle
Here we have a Lakshore Drawing board and English/Spanish reading cards!
One of my biggest pieces of advice for any decluttering project is to give EVERY item a place. If it has a place, then your child will learn where it goes when you ask them to clean. If it has a place, your child's room won't turn into an unorganized room with a toy-covered floor. If it has a place, it likely serves a purpose! If you can't find, or make a space, then you may need to do a bit more decluttering!
We store our toys in the Ikea TROFAST. It has three columns of bin storage, and a larger bin in the center. I showcase all of my son’s wooden toys up top for easier access. We kept my wooden hummingbird handcrafted by my childhood neighbor, a wooden car from Cuba, a thrifted shape sorter, a rainbow caterpillar gear toy, a bead maze, and a pizza play set.
All of our wooden toys on display!
Our toy storage! I like having his trucks ready to roll, and that is a drum set behind them!
In the end, I mainly decluttered my son's bookshelf (ripped, non age appropriate books), plastic toys that either broke or were choking hazards, random balls, and a ladybug prize from our doctors office that he doesn't play with. Please do not be discouraged if you have way more to declutter than I did. If anything, be encouraged by the fact that I declutter often, and if my amount of toys for my toddler is impressive to you, there's no reason you can't minimize more often, and do the same! I personally believe that children expect the amount of toys they are given. Having less allows greater focus for intentional play, and greater appreciation for what they do have!
In the end, here is a look at everything we decluttered!
These were plastic, random toys we said “bye bye” to!
I put these toys away for when my daughter and son are both a little older!
These books were in good shape, but my son didn’t particularly like them so they were donated!
These books were ripped and torn, so we released them from duty!
As a parent it can be hard to decide what stays and what goes, but if you follow your child closely over time, you will begin to learn what your child actually plays with, and what is not serving a purpose! It's already been proven that too many toys can be overstimulating for children, making it more difficult to intentionally play. After decluttering all of my son's toys, not only was he able to focus and play for longer periods of time, but it was 10 times easier to clean, which allowed him to participate in the process! The space is noticeably less overwhelming!
Not everyone has to have a “Pinterest-perfect” toy room, and honestly, that doesn't even need to be the end goal. I currently choose “organized” and “functional” over “show-off-able!” (Although I’m amazed by mothers who are talented enough to create such a beautiful space for their children!) You work with what you have, and if it works for your family, then that’s all that matters!
It was incredible to watch my toddler play so much more focused when everything was decluttered and assigned a place!
I just love seeing them play together in this space!
Thanks for coming along for the ride while I decluttered my toddler’s toys! Even though it wasn't the most dramatic “before and after” because we didn't have much to begin with, I think these monthly decluttering schedules can help you maintain a similar volume of toys rather than doing it overwhelmingly once a year. I hope this post motivated you to live in a more organized and decluttered space! How have you found ways to declutter and organize your toddler's toys? Share it with us in the comments below! Have a wonderful decluttered day!
Cool, Calm, and Collectedly Yours,
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