Since I began staying home full time I have found clutter to be my worst enemy. Pregnancy also has a way with making me get project happy. Of course Christmas came and although this year didn’t include the insane number of gifts it has in the past, it did bring new, exciting toys that need to be put away. So this weeks project included cleaning, sorting, pitching, donating, and selling old toys to make room for the new, cool ones.
This was the organization that started 6 years ago in my apartment, when we had just 2 little boys, and has never really been revised. A couple of bins and those plastic 3 drawer carts were perfect. The kids could easily see what was in the drawer and with pictures on the front ideally they would put the toys back in the correct drawer. Yeah right! As our boys have grown and more have been born I have recognized the need to revamp my approach. Another reason to change… the is a bigger selection of toys. No longer is it just Lego’s and Transformers, but a collection of 2 different size Lego’s, 2 different difficultly levels of Transformers, balls, action figures, baby toys, superhero costumes, ect.
As the years have passed the older boys have used and abused many of their toys as well. Transformers are NOT made like they were 20yrs ago. These piles of plastic break with every bend. Granted, many times legs can be snapped back on but after the kids have asked dozens of times in an hour for you to fix them, they often just quit playing with it. This creates a fun game of match the piece to the transformer. I call it an expensive puzzle that usually doesn’t get solved. In this cleanup alone I have half of an 18gal tote of broken transformers and their pieces waiting for Dad and boys to match. I would love to dd them to the “toys I won’t purchase” list but my husband and boys would be upset.
After seeing a friends “cubby” system and finding something similar on Pinterst, I decided to go with that. My biggest idea came when I decided to build my own. Okay so I have big plans, little budget, little time, and a pregnant belly. After careful thought and crunching numbers it was decided it was less money, time, and hassle to buy the preboxed kind from Menards. I apparently picked the right week to do this project too. Menards had the shelving on sale as well as the fabric bins which meant no searching for the correct sized bin to fit the cubby.
Anyway… so the finished project looks great!
The little boys love it. They have already dumped out a bin or 2 but cleanup is so much easier, I think anyway. I got the pleasure of pitching 2 garbage bags of junk into the garbage and 2 bags for donation. The corner where all the totes were is now a place for the TaeKwonDo bag where hopefully no one will get hurt. Nevermind I have 4 boys, someone will get hurt it is just a matter of when…right?!?!
