OMG, I am exhausted!
We've been decluttering all weekend - Daisy's room has been emptied of all but the clothes she wears and the few toys she plays with.
If there's one thing I've learned the hard way in my 7 years of parenting, it's that kids don't need lots of toys. My two tend to prefer playing with "non-toy" items...cardboard boxes, elastic bands, paper clips, etc. They use their imaginations a lot more with these things and seem to get so much more out of doing so.
Unfortunately, it's taken me 7 years and a LOT of wasted money to realise this! Of course, every birthday and christmas they are completely overwhelmed by toys, both from us and from relatives. Why do we feel the need to give so many things to our kids? They seem to get so much that it loses all meaning and becomes just a contest of who had the bigest pile of gifts. As each parcel is opened, the contents are barely looked at in the excitement of looking for the next one. Lots of money is wasted, and lots of toys lie forgotten in cupboards until the next big clear out. Totally unneccessary.
Charlie is 7, and mainly likes playing video games. The only toys he still likes are magnetix and lego, so apart from his DS and games, those are the only toys he has in his room! It looks so much tidier now that I've dropped the guilt about how bare it would look with no "stuff"!
Daisy is only 3, and plays with a lot more. She likes her dollies and ponies, and her play kitchen and supermarket. Oh, and her dressing up stuff! I've tried to make sure that those are the only toys she has though, her little room was absolutely full before and now she has a lot more space to play with the stuff she enjoys using.
Of course, they both like reading and crafts, so we have books and boxes of craft stuff, plus a couple of family board games. I think they have all they need now and more. Now I just need to persuade the grandparents not to go overboard on the toys next christmas....
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