Purging old toys?

Question

How do you get your kids to sort through their old toys to make room for the new loot from Santa and the Grandparents?

I do some purging in the fall to get rid of stuff they don't play with anymore. I can usually sneak out a few things that they don't play with but I know they might try to insist on keeping for no good reason at all. But usually I like for them to eliminate some stuff again around the first of the year when I see how much they get for Christmas. How do you convince them that they need to pick some things to part with?

For example, if they have a bunch of baby dolls.....how do you get them to pick some to sell or donate? My kids seem to be turning into pack rats!

Just curious what is working for others.

Yeah It's Me M -
Actually, NO, I didn't buy them all their toys. They have 3 sets of grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and a great grandma who also buy them toys. Hubby and I don't go overboard for birthdays/holidays. We give about 3-5 gifts to each of them for bday/xmas and some of those are usually books.

Yes, I am the parent. BUT these are also my children's possessions. I want to strike a balance between respecting their belongings (in hopes of teaching them to respect the belongings of others) but also set some guidelines/rules for them about how much stuff they can keep.

Answer 1

Just before Christmas each year, my 2 girls (now 6 & 4) go through & willingly pick out toys to give to the 'poor children'. They understand that they are very lucky to have as much as they do, and are quite generous, really!

When deciding what to give, they run through a checklist:
Is this really special to me for some reason?
Was it given to me as a special present? ie Easter, Christening..
Do Mum & Dad want to keep this for some reason (maybe because it belonged to them as children & holds a special meaning) ?
If it passes through the checklist, it goes on the pile of things to give. It makes them happy to know that another little girl or boy would cherish their not-so-well-loved toys! And remind them that for some children, this is the only present they might receive (as opposed to your children's (and mine) usual pressie haul.

Make sure that they are the ones to hand it over at a St Vincent de Paul or Smith family centre (or the equivalent for your country). The thanks they receive from someone else when they hand the toys over will gratify them, and they will likely feel very good inside when they do it. My children look forward to this time of year, it has become a wonderful family Christmas tradition!

Hope this helps!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Answer 2

Here's how my family has handled it for 4 generations now:

Santa, as you know, only brings toys to good boys & girls.

Good boys and girls aren't greedy. So every year as Christmas approaches, good boys & girls go through their toys, and choose the ones they're going to give to boys & girls who don't have any.

So far so good, right? We've now weeded out (voluntarily) most of the toys that are no longer in favor. BUT...

If you want that really special thing from Santa -- your heart's desire -- you have to give away something you really love. And Santa KNOWS if you're being honest...


(I remember one year, we were wrapping presents, and there were these 2 special bows... I was asked which one should go on the charity toy.... It was so tempting to lie, but I told the truth -- they should get the better bow, and I told the truth about which it was... even though I really, really wanted it. Imagine my surprise when I found that bow under the tree on a present for me!)

When my mom & I were growing up, we'd go with our parents to donate the toys to Toys 4 Tots or the like. While those organizations now for the most part only take new toys (still in the wrapper), there are plenty of places that will be happy for used toys: The local homeless or domestic violence shelters are good places to start.


Oh.... and if we displayed too much greed on Christmas morning (throwing a tantrum when we were out of presents, for example), we'd watch as all our presents were packed up and donated to boys & girls who could appriciate them.



Also, within 48 hours of any gifting day (X-mas, B-day, etc), all the toys but 1 or 2 disappeared. Some would appear again in a few week, when the initial favorites lost their "newness" and novelty. Some -- those we showed no interest in, even when we opened them -- might not ever show up again.


Hope some of this helps!

Answer 3

save the toy yet positioned it out of sight for some months and whilst the time come rewrap it. they are going to think of it quite is a clean one basically get some greater products to pass with it to make it appear as if new. It paintings for my 4 year previous a minimum of

Answer 4

Here's an idea: Quit buying them so much crap. You have a bunch of baby dolls--well, who needs more than one? You can't play with more than one at a time, so why do you need more than one? That goes for other toys as well.

Besides, you're the mom--throw out their toys if you want. You're the one who paid for them and you have the right to throw out toys you don't feel they need anymore.

You say they are turning into pack rats, but that's not their fault. A child isn't going to take a look at a toy and think "I don't really need this anymore"..the only thing they are thinking is "I don't want to play with that right now".