The Toy Struggle Every Parent Understands

Over the past month or so, we’ve been making some room shifts, which ultimately turned into a little game room/toy clean-up.

I’ve always wondered… when did houses start adding game rooms?

Growing up, I don’t remember many friends having a designated game room. The toys we had fit inside a bedroom closet, a hall closet, or a small area of the living room. The bigger toys usually lived outside. (At least that’s my memory of it, my own mom might disagree.)

So why does it seem more common now to have game rooms, media rooms, and all the extras?

The simple answer—the one that soothes my overstimulated brain and my desire for order—is containment. A designated play area should keep everything in one place. Awesome. Great.

…but that doesn’t necessarily work.

Instead, we just have more places to keep more stuff. More toys to satisfy the desires of small people who, if we’re being honest, are usually most content with an empty box and their imagination.

Our game room occasionally gets used for actual play, but most of the time it’s become a toy dumping ground. And somehow, those toys still manage to trickle into every other area of the house.

And with boys? That “trickle” often looks like toys being thrown at each other, played with in a game of keep-away, or dropped from the upstairs banister just to see how fast they fall or what unsuspecting person they can hit down below.

I love that my children have been blessed with hand-me-downs and gifts. There is nothing wrong with kids having toys—they are often a lifesaver.

But do we really need enough to fill an entire room?

I think, to some degree, every parent can relate—kids just have a lot of stuff. When they’re younger, the toys are bigger. As they grow, the toys get smaller… or turn into electronics.

As we worked through our recent clean-out, I was reminded of a few things we’ve done that help manage the toy overwhelm:

1. Outdoor Encourager
Whenever birthdays and Christmas come around, we try to push toward more active gifts—scooters, bikes, basketball, baseball gear. Things that can be played with outside.
(Now… does this solve the overflowing garage problem? Absolutely not.)

2. Hide a Toy
During clean-outs, we’ll sometimes hide toys the boys don’t seem to use anymore. If enough time goes by and no one asks for them, it’s a pretty safe bet they can be given away.
(This also works great for rotating toys—keeping things “new” without adding more.)

3. Christmas Clean-Out
This one has become a favorite. In the past, I would do a quick purge before Christmas to make room for new toys. This year, we got the boys involved.

Each of them had to pick two toys to give away… then go back and choose one more.

By the end, we had a full bag ready to donate—and they were actually part of the process.

If you’re like me and the toy volume feels a little out of control (because really… they can only play with one or two things at a time, right?), I encourage you to try one of these ideas—or get creative and find what works for your family.

We all need go-to activities for those days when being outside just isn’t an option. But those activities don’t have to take over your entire house.

And as for managing the steady stream of toys from aunts, uncles, and grandparents…

Good luck.

May the odds be ever in your favor. 😊