How to combat toy clutter

Children come along, their toys follow, and a once-organized home soon becomes a disheveled embarrassment.

Laura Stack, a mother of three who advises buttoned-down business types on how to improve productivity, realized the scope of the problem when the corporate talk often detoured to Barbies, Roboraptors and Matchbox cars.

She decided that in addition to teaching people about taming the paper tiger at work, she would teach them how to handle the toy tsunami at home.

The toys-everywhere issue, experts say, is because of three things: parents overindulge; parents have not instituted an organizational system; and parents haven't maintained the system.

Here's how to reclaim a toy-littered home:

ORGANIZE

Toys need to be put away every day, says Rachel Willes, 37, a Gilbert, Ariz., mother of four.

"There's no way you can have kids and keep the house in perfect working order," says Willes. "Once, I tried to make my home toy-clutter free and found myself following my kids around with a box and trash bag. Not fun."

SORT AND PURGE

Sort the toys, placing Barbie with her accessories or Mr. Potato Head with his body parts. Group large toys with large toys. Then get ruthless.

If you're unsure about a toy, stow it to see whether your child asks about it. If not, give it away. Purge twice a year - before Christmas and before a child's birthday.

ESTABLISH A KID ZONE

This earns cheers and jeers. Some moms like having a corner of the family room or kitchen dedicated to child's play, allowing parents to spend time together. Cleanup can be faster because children don't have to cart their toys to another room.

Rachel Willes isn't sold.

"We keep the toys upstairs in the bedrooms, except a basket of toys for the baby. It's too much work for a busy kid to transfer the toys downstairs just to play with them for a few minutes."

MAINTAIN THE SYSTEM

The house may look neater, but things will return to the way they were unless toy-clutter maintenance is established. Here are ways to implement a routine:

Toy in, toy out. When a new toy comes in, another toy goes out. It can either go to charity or to younger siblings.

Make old toys new again. If toys still are crowding you despite your best efforts, take some out of circulation. Box them up for three or four months. When they re-emerge, the toys will be interesting again.

Set cleanup rules. An organizational system must come with cleanup rules. At 2, children are old enough to help parents put away their toys. Try to make it a habit.

Source:news.enquirer.com