The holiday season tends to bring many more toys into your home with children and grandchildren. As you absorb new toys, take this opportunity to clear out some of the old ones.
You can explain to your children that together you need to make some room and choose some toys to donate. It works best when your children help you decide which toys they are ready to move along.
Questions to ask them:
• Which toys have you outgrown?
• Which toys haven’t you played with for a few months?
• What toys are missing essential pieces?
• Are there any toys that you do not like anymore?
Set up a box or bag marked “donation” and a separate trash bag.
• Discard broken toys or those missing essential pieces.
• Discard small lower quality toys like goody bag trinkets or fast food toy prizes. It’s best to discard these pieces a few days after your child no longer plays with them. These tiny toys accumulate into clutter quickly!
• Ask your children to pick out toys to donate. Explain that their outgrown toy could be a treasure for another child.
• You may need to suggest a specific number to donate, such as 10 or 12 toys.
• It will help you and your child to select a specific place to share your donations, such as Goodwill or Opportunity House.
• As soon as you have filled your donate bag, put it in your car trunk and drop if off the next day. Done!
But what about fond memories?
• Designate just one storage bin to hold childhood toys with extraordinary sentimental value.
• For others, take photographs of them before you donate them to preserve the memories, not the stuff.
Rachel M. Gambone is the owner of ReOrganize with Rachel, LLC. In addition to general home organizing, she specializes in helping you organize your office, papers and digital information. Her signature approach is positive organizing where she builds on your strengths, helps you find your treasures, and teaches you life-long organizing skills. See more organizing tips and a link to her free podcast at www.reorganizewithrachel.com.
The holiday season tends to bring many more toys into your home with children and grandchildren. As you absorb new toys, take this opportunity to clear out some of the old ones.
You can explain to your children that together you need to make some room and choose some toys to donate. It works best when your children help you decide which toys they are ready to move along.
Questions to ask them:
• Which toys have you outgrown?
• Which toys haven’t you played with for a few months?
• What toys are missing essential pieces?
• Are there any toys that you do not like anymore?
Set up a box or bag marked “donation” and a separate trash bag.
• Discard broken toys or those missing essential pieces.
• Discard small lower quality toys like goody bag trinkets or fast food toy prizes. It’s best to discard these pieces a few days after your child no longer plays with them. These tiny toys accumulate into clutter quickly!
• Ask your children to pick out toys to donate. Explain that their outgrown toy could be a treasure for another child.
• You may need to suggest a specific number to donate, such as 10 or 12 toys.
• It will help you and your child to select a specific place to share your donations, such as Goodwill or Opportunity House.
• As soon as you have filled your donate bag, put it in your car trunk and drop if off the next day. Done!
But what about fond memories?
• Designate just one storage bin to hold childhood toys with extraordinary sentimental value.
• For others, take photographs of them before you donate them to preserve the memories, not the stuff.
Rachel M. Gambone is the owner of ReOrganize with Rachel, LLC. In addition to general home organizing, she specializes in helping you organize your office, papers and digital information. Her signature approach is positive organizing where she builds on your strengths, helps you find your treasures, and teaches you life-long organizing skills. See more organizing tips and a link to her free podcast at www.reorganizewithrachel.com.
