Share your toys...

I mean sharing baby toys (equipment, toys, books, etc.) that is. Today we had a play date with a Dear Friend and her Dear Daughter. While we were there we borrowed her baby food processor and planned the return of a previously borrowed exersaucer and a swing. Then, ironically, when we pulled into our driveway later this afternoon, a neighbor, who is the Grandma of a 2 year old, handed down a baby activity walker to share with our Baby Boy.

Why buy anything these days for baby or toddlers when they use the supplies for such a short time? Once you have a network of friends with similar age kids and a good supply of stuff- start sharing your toys. There are so many benefits to this, it saves money, allows you to try out products you might otherwise not have purchased, and keeps used baby things out of our land fills.

This is not a new idea by any means but today really reinforced it. So keep your toys in good condition (we all know we can't help some wear) and pass them along to another family.

Happy Sharing!

Kids Toy Closet

After two years of having toys running around our living room, I decided to clean out a coat closet and turn it into a toy closet for our daughter. Now we don't have a large house with a lot of closets, but I was tired of having our space always having toys so I made the sacrafice. It was hard work to clean the closet out but was a very good excuse to clean out the clutter. And now, uur daughter knows she can go in there any time and also knows that is where things get put away. This project was totally worth it!

Toys, Toys and more Toys!

Today I am reading "It's All Too Much" by Peter Walsh. It's a pretty interesting view on the over abundance of "stuff" we all have collected in our homes and lives. My favorite tip so far is dealing with toys. He suggests having two toy boxes/bins. Only two (I know, I know only two containers for toys???). When they are full that means no more. I gather the idea to be that you have to constantly evaluate and sort through what is in the bins. Also he is big on removing something when you get something new which I think is a great way to keep clutter and excess to a minimum. We are going to give the two toy bins a try.