7 Steps for Organizing your Kid's Toys
I often help clients to organize (and declutter) toys in their homes. Dealing with toys is a delicate matter for both parents and children. Today's blog post focuses on my 7 steps for organizing your kid's toys.You may have noticed I put "and declutter" in brackets above. There are often too many toys in the home and deciding which ones should go and which should stay can be a minefield. These are the scenarios I often see when decluttering and organizing:
- Parents have spent a lot of money buying the toys and are not happy to see their money thrown into a donate box.
- Kid's often move onto another fad and have left the Little Pet Shop, super-heroes or those scary dolls out by the curb.
- Parents have nostalgia for some of the toys and don't want them to leave the house.
- The kids have not moved on with a toy and want to keep it.
So how do we move forward from this stalemate?This is what I recommend: Consider these questions: Do you have preferences for what toys your kid's play with?Do you want to incorporate educational toys?What is too much toys in your home?Any toys you specifically never want in your home?Once you have considered these questions, then move onto these next steps: Set Guidelines for Presents: If your kid is into one type of toy such as Peppa Pig, provide a list of what they want to add to their collection.If they have too many toys, ask the giver to give cash or buy tickets for fun activities (like Bounce or even going to the new theme parks).Ask for gift receipts, so that if you have the toy already or it is unwanted you can return it back to the shop.If it is difficult to say no gifts, ask the giver to give books instead (much more useful and easier to store). Separate the Toys and RotateIf there are too many toys to play with, the kid will most probably play with the same toya over and over again, as they feel overwhelmed playing with all of them.Put each type of toy in different boxes and label them for ease of access. Keep the boxes in the storage room or garage and rotate them every month so that all the toys are played with. 
Use the mantra 1 IN, 1 OUTIf your kid is having a birthday soon or celebrating Eid/Christmas, use the mantra with your kid's. Let them start deciding what will go out and remind them that very soon there will be new toys arriving. It is a good way to start building the habit of decluttering and also ensures you have space in your home for the new toys arriving. Get the Kid's involved in Clean UpBuild the habit now to start putting the toys away when it's time to sleep. By involving them in the clean up, they appreciate what it means to have a clean home and also can assist you with deciding where is the best place for the toys to be stored. You can incorporate rules about cleaning up, such as if a toy is not put away, it is taken away for a few days. Share Toys Amongst FriendsOnce you and your kid have finished using a certain toy, talk to your friends or post on one of the FB Mum Group about doing a toy exchange or donate. I know one mother who donated her older kid's toys to a friend's younger child and that was then returned back to the mother when she had another child. Donate or Sell the Toys
There are many charities that collect toys on a regular basis for children in war torn areas. They will be happy to take your unwanted toys. Also donate them to workers and your staff. They often send them back to their home countries to give to their children.There are various ways to sell the toys from flea markets to Facebook groups. You can use the money you have made from the sale to buy more toys from the same places. How do you deal with the toys in your home. Let me know your great organization method in the comments section. If you need help to get organized with the toys, get in touch by leaving a comment or by filling in the contact form.If you loved this blog, I'd love it if you could share it and tag @decluttrme. Thanks! 
PS: Special thanks to the ladies of Real Mums of Dubai for their invaluable tips which were included in this week's blog.