No matter what holiday you celebrate this holiday season, there is one thing that they all have in common: the need to organize and clean your house for company. Once the festivities are all over though, and your kids (and maybe you!) have a bunch of shiny new toys to play with, we have a new problem altogether. Where do all the new toys and belongings go? We can help you with that! Let’s look at some different ways to help keep your kids’ new toys organized!
One of the first things you should do when you are finally getting around to cleaning and organizing the house after the holidays is to go through the things you already have before trying to find homes for all of the new things. With your child, go through their current set of “old” toys and see if there is anything that they want to donate or otherwise get rid of in order to make room for the new things. This can double as a fun act of charity to teach your children about the value of helping others.
Once you have gone through and found all of the items you want to get out of the house, then make sure they are boxed up and out of the way because it’s time to start organizing the things we want to keep!
Toys come in all shapes and sizes. You’ve got everything from puzzles to action figures to dolls and beyond. When putting everything away, it can be overwhelming trying to decide where everything goes. Make piles of toys that belong to separate categories like “building toys” and “soft toys” and “educational toys” etc. Once you have a few good starting piles, it becomes easier to categorize the remaining items.
Clear plastic bins are a real lifesaver when it comes to organizing toys and belongings for children. They don’t have to be able to read in order to know what is in each bin and you can still put “grown up” style labels on them to help you as well. You can also go the extra mile and take a picture of the types of toys that go in each box and put that on the outside as well so kids of all ages can tell just by looking what should be in each box. Try to keep these boxes at “kid height” so that they can get them out and access the toys themselves when it is playtime.
Ever notice that your child hasn’t played with a certain puzzle or doll in a long while? It may have become “stale” to them and it is time to put the current crop of toys away (for now!) and to get out the back stock. This helps keep your child more engaged and excited about their toys and helps prevent toy stagnation. Rotate about every 1 to 3 months, depending on your child.
However you decide to celebrate your holiday season, make sure that you are able to feel good about keeping your house clean and in good order. Give us a call for a quote! Have fun and stay safe out there!