Toys - how many is too many?

mrshall1027 · October 2014

I have two stepdaughters, 5 and 8, that are with us every other week. Currently they share a room and it's everloaded with toys. H thinks it's fine, but I feel like they have WAY too much! I know times are different and we are more well off than my parents were when I was a kid, but I don't remember having an overwhelming amount of toys like they do, even if I were to half it.

The biggest problem with this is that they are always taking out all of the toys from the storage bins/shelves and they end up having the biggest mess in their room. It seems like they just pull them out to either get to another toy or to play with it for 2 seconds before moving onto the next toy.

So, I guess I just wanted to see how many toys your kiddos have. I mean, they are good girls and we want to give them everything they want, but it's just getting to be too much. And with Christmas coming up, which always brings at least 30 new toys between us and family, their room is going to be exploding at the seams!

brij2006 · October 2014

Sounds like it's time to have them go through their toys and get rid of the old ones that they never use any more.

You could also try and make a rule that for every new toy brought into the house from Christmas/Birthdays/other gifts, another toy has to leave the house.

lindsayandjamie · October 2014

I agree with brij. With Christmas coming, it might be a good time to chose x number of toys to donate to a less fortunate child and have the girls do their own purge. Teaching them the joy of giving as well as receiving at Xmas is a valuable lesson.
With DS, we have one toy box and when it's full it means something needs to leave before anything new can come in. He plays with the same 6 trucks 90% of the time so when I notice something isn't getting any play time, it goes into storage. He is only 2 so isn't quite ready to fully participate in a purge, Plus with little brother coming I don't want to get rid of anything until both boys have gone through it.
It comes down to having a limit to the toys (space wise) and once the limit is reached, it's time to purge. As far as the mess, they need to be cleaning up their toys at a time that makes sense for you. For us, that means before the bedtime routine, he picks up and puts away everything.

sgautschi · October 2014

I agree with Brij. When Adalyn got new toys for her birthday, I took a few old ones and set them aside for Thomas. When his first birthday comes around, I'll donate the toys that I replace.

mrshall1027 · October 2014

We definitely go through and donate the ones they no longer play with, and they help when we do it. I just feel like they still have too many toys and I guess I was trying to get feedback on how many toys you have for each child. They used to have a whole playroom when we lived in our old house, but it's not possible with our current living situation. Right now, there are three bookshelves that hold 12x12 storage bins and there's probably 12 bins. Each one is full of smaller toys, barbie dolls, dress up clothes, accessories, etc. They also have about 30-40 various stuffed animals and dolls. I feel like it's just too much!

They do clean up their room every couple of days. I wouldn't be able to handle it if it was always a disaster!

lindsayandjamie · October 2014

I think it is pretty impossible to put an absolute number on toys...We may have 20 toys but they are all huge trucks, and you have 200 toys because they are barbies, assessories, and little things. Thats why I think space is the best determinant. It definetly a judgement call between you and your husband as to when enough is enough.

sgautschi · October 2014

Adalyn has a lot. I'd say that as long as you can get them organized in a way that makes you happy and they play with all of them, then it's not too much.

Toys - how many is too many?

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