What do you do with the Xmas haul.. when your children won’t let go of anything they already own and your little house is packed to the brim. Everyone in our families gives our children a stupid amount of gifts - I am now the bad person who is trying to make it fit, cull, donate and let’s face it some of it just needs the tip.
Like we legit have no room - no amount of organisation or ikea tubs and cubes will make this home big enough to house the plastic junk that comes home with us at Xmas.
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12 Replies
I re-gift a lot.
I rotate toys, and if it doesn’t get played with…it disappears…
I’m going to have to just do it when they are not watching.
Then have them maintain it.
Thank you
Children won't let anything go because there's no benefit to them in losing stuff. I'm a minimalist, so it's an unacceptable hell for me!
I use cube style shelves and once full something has to go before something new goes in.
I make the kids clean out toys before Christmas. It's not a choice. It's 'tough - we don't have the space'. Yes - there's whinging, but I explain how easy it is to find their new, special toys and how wonderful the space is to with play them when it's neater and cleaner. Eventually, they learnt to clean out and understand getting rid of stuff is a good thing.
I also (*gasp*) remove toys when they are not home - especially the little, random toys. It's quite easy to do larger clean outs around Christmas and birthdays as they are focused on new things and don't notice the old ones gone. I move a few toys at a time into a cupboard and if not asked about in a month, out they go (quietly - shhhhh). They rarely notice.
I ask family to limit gifts and, if asked, offer up solutions like money toward their goal purchase, gift cards, books, experiences (like movie tickets) or branded clothes & point out we don't have the space so most toys don't hang around long. Horribly, when they were younger, I've been known to put toys straight into the 'donate' cupboard out of sight at Christmas. They don't notice as there's so much.
I don't add to the plastic clutter myself, unless it's special and I know they desperately want it and will use it. Especially Santa sacks, which are books and branded clothes, bath bombs, things to personalise their room etc. NOT little useless toys! They do get generous gifts, just not plastic mountains of rubbish.
I'm fairly extreme though. I can't stand clutter or mess AT ALL and refuse to live surrounded by it.
I am ok with some clutter but we are drowning.
My in laws have been asked 8 years not to gift so much at it’s like they take pleasure in doing the complete opposite- waist height gift bags full of junk for Xmas - completely out do Santa. However it’s junk for junks sake.
I also donate a lot.
But given the kids are currently home I’m testing my hair out.
The consequences are I play dates til it’s tidied even that isn’t enough!
Ps thank you for your kind reply
No problem. Just take pleasure in throwing it out then!
Storage. Instead of getting them to throw things away ask them to sort it. We have
- LOVE and play with all the time , easy access in their bedroom.
- Want but don’t want out (bedroom storage and can rotate).
- SPECIAL and want to keep. In storage, midyear ask again and they can choose keep, play with or usually decide they don’t want it anymore.
I have craft storage so everything goes in there. I have games storage separately too.
Everything else that doesn’t fit in their bedroom storage put it in a huge storage tub outside so they creative play out there, treat it roughly I don’t care because as soon as it’s done lll chuck it.
Also if it’s that much stuff then take some bags before you get home and unpack and they won’t even notice. I used to do this on the way home from kids parties, then pull it out through the year when they’re bored.
Where is the magical storage place though. The garage.
Yeah I have a few boxes in storage for keepsakes. I don’t put those things straight in there, definitely wait a year to narrow it down. Or if you know it’s not special to them just straight in the boot to the opshop.
Pack away toys that you think they won't miss. If they go a month without missing anything or asking where it is donate them. Just continually do it every month to keep them down.
Urgh, I have relatives who do the same and it was hell when we downsized our place. I just gave it back to them and said "The kids will have so much fun playing with these at your house!"
A friend of mine sits down with her kids & explains to them that they have a toy clean out each year and they get to pick the toys they’d like to go to another little boy/girl. If they don’t want to get rid of any, she does a clean out without them- after they’ve gone to bed, at daycare etc. popular toys she leaves and the ones not played with recently go in the donate bin or rubbish bin if their shit. She said it works well as her little one likes choosing what they’d like to give away to another little boy/girl like them.