Make Room for Santa: Pre-Season Toy Declutter

Holidays ahead!  About this time of year, it's a good idea to contemplate the toy situation in your child's room.  Adding Santa's bounty to overstuffed kids' rooms is a recipe for January clutter disaster. Clear the decks and cut kid clutter with a pre-holiday toy clear-out.

It's a fact of modern life. Children's playthings have exploded in number, size, and complexity, while children's storage options have remained static. Just try storing a Happy Meal collection in the average toy box! Even the best-organized kid's rooms can easily drown in today's toy avalanche.

And nowhere is the clutter more apparent than at Christmas. Time for a sneaky/secret/flat-out toy reduction.

Toy Library

For very young children, it's relatively simple. Corral and store several "big" items like Fisher-Price play sets, and cull the rest. Come a winter's rainy day, you'll be able to pull out the stored toys, their magic refreshed by a stay in the attic. Replace them with other toys. You'll cut clutter in the kids' rooms, and give yourself a welcome "new toy!" break from time to time.

Donation Strategy

Older children require more care and thought. Depending on your household's customs, you can ask for toys for a charity toy drive (being sure they're safe, complete and in good condition) or point out that Santa can't leave new toys if there's no room to put them away. 

Get the children involved in the solution, and you're ahead of the game.  Whatever you do, think ahead. You'll need to clear the decks in the children's play areas before Santa--or Grandma--arrives.