There’s always a moment in time after Christmas but before spring time birthdays hit at my house where I get the urge to throw every toy within arm’s reach into the trash. Did I just step on another Lego brick? Straight into the trash. That noisy toy acting up again? Trash.
In the past I have taken a couple of different approaches. One is to actually get rid of a bunch of toys. I packaged them all up when my kids were at school and shipped them off to be donated. The problem with that approach is that without fail my rash judgement on which toys to get rid of leaves me wishing I hadn’t thrown that one toy away that I thought we were done playing with my now I really wish we had back.
The second approach is equally unhelpful but in the exact opposite direction. I take all of our toys, crafts, puzzles, and games and find any corner or closet of our house with available space and I shove them in so deep that we either can’t find them again, or everything pours out in an avalanche every time we open the door.
So, this year I decided to try something a little different to spring clean the playroom.
Sort
I sorted the toys in a couple of different phases. Some things were easy. For example, we have a ton of dinosaurs so obviously dinosaurs go in one bin. Trucks, airplanes, farm animals all went in separate bins.
Some things weren’t as straightforward. We have a few Fisher Price Little People playsets, so I put the farm and the construction site together in a bin. I put puzzles and other wooden games together in a bin. Go crazy! It’s really up to you, depending on what the toy situation looks like at your house.
Storage
I hit up the Storage Tubs & Totes section of Target and purchased a few of every size and shape of clear plastic bin I could find. I suggest one or two of each size and shape because sometimes you don’t know until you’re really getting into it what you’re going to need. You can always go back for more, but it’s annoying to have a bunch of the wrong sizes and shapes lying around.
Once I got all of the big things taken care of, I used these reusable food storage bags for smaller things; think game pieces, marbles, etc.
Organize
Once you have all of your toys sorted and stored, you obviously have to put them somewhere. I love these cube bookshelves because they come in a lot of different shapes and sizes, and they pair perfectly with these collapsible fabric storage cubes. They’re perfect for stacking the storage bags, or storing odds and ends that didn’t make it into one of your sorted piles.
Take advantage of under beds for storing the clear plastic bins that fit. I have been loving this option since I started storing toys this way because my kids can get out the toy/s that they want to play with and then put it back in the bin under their bed when they’re done with it. Everything has a place, and it’s easier for little kids to follow the direction, “Put that back in the dinosaur bin,” rather than “go put that away somewhere.”
For larger bins that don’t fit under beds, the garage {or basement, if you’re a non-Texas dweller} works great. They stack on top of each other nicely. However, if your garage looks like mine and there’s already a lack of space available, there’s a lot of different garage storage shelves that make great options.
The great thing about putting things out of sight, out of mind is that you can pull old toys out and they feel brand new again! And if there are toys that have been stored away for a while and no one seems to be missing them, you can send them off to be donated without the fear of missing them again later on.
Share you favorite ways to spring clean the play room below! I love getting new ideas for keeping my play room clean and organized.
Disclaimer: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates and other Affiliate Programs designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com, Target.com, Nordstrom, ABC Mouse, and other affiliate sites.
