Photos of very few toys... - Page 2

[Adamsmama]

Subbing.

I know we still have a bunch of toys but I've worked hard to diminish the amount recently.

We have a large toy room and I was sick of it being a mess at all times. A few months ago the kids and I went up there and went through most of the toys. The room has 2 closets in it for storage. One closet we call "the games closet". It has tons of puzzles. I've organized it now so that it has about 4 or 5 jigsaw (kids age -- 30-50 pieces) puzzles and about 2-3 wooden puzzles. It has some bored games, too on the top shelf. I also keep a big pack of mega blocks in there. One of the bins also has some dress up clothes in it. The other closet is the "animals closet" -- it has a hammock hanging from the shelf that has all their stuffed animals. Eventually I will get rid of more but I kept just enough that they would all fit in this hammock. There are bins underneath that keep odds and ends type toys -- toys without a home. Also a bin with Mr. Potato head. Another bin with little people and animals. A big crate holds train tracks.

In the room itself we keep a baby doll stroller, another push toy, a rocking horse, A little people's farm, a small play kitchen with push shopping cart, and a bookshelf full of books. There is also a cd player.

We are free to open the doors of one of the closets (they both have locks on them) and play with the contents and then know where they go when we are done. We are also free to use this room to dance (my oldest loves dancing) so we can put on some music and have a big open space that isn't crowded by toys.

[at_the_hip]

Wow, so inspiring, ladies...

So if you had to list "must have" toys for children aged 1-10, what would they be?

Are there any sites that specifically talk about different waldorf-inspired toys or minimalist toy collections for creative children? This could really help me pare down because the kiddos have so many things they just don't play with much.

[hillymum]

I've been doing a major declutter when it comes to my 3 boys toys. I have removed all but one containes worth of baby toys (saved for visiting babies) and most of the plastic toys none of the boys ever really played with. My children are aged 9 (10 in July) 8 (9 IN August) and 4 (5 in July). We have pared toys down to matchbox cars, a large garage, blocks, legos, playsilks, costumes and dressing up clothes, 2 teddy bears, a few figures like actionman or monsters, canium connecting noodles (no longer sold. Can make castles, boats, space rockets etc), and jigsaw puzzles galore. We also have a cupboard for board games and craft supplies. Oh we also have way too much brio train tracks and trains.


We do have a wii but it is out of commision right now.

I have found my youngest gets on so much better with children who are used to playing imaginative games and my older two are far more adaptale with making up their own games than so many of their friends.

[Just My Opinion]

How fun, I want to take pictures of my daughter's minimal (compared to mainstream society that is) toys.

I'll be back

[MrsJez]

Originally Posted by at_the_hip

Wow, so inspiring, ladies...

So if you had to list "must have" toys for children aged 1-10, what would they be?

Are there any sites that specifically talk about different waldorf-inspired toys or minimalist toy collections for creative children? This could really help me pare down because the kiddos have so many things they just don't play with much.

: I'd like to know too!

[IncaMama]

we have more than this, but this is what i'd think of as our essentials:

DS (6yo)
1. set du jour (a long time ago it was thomas, then it was geotrax, and now it's bakugan). generally, he is into one thing at a time and those things last a long time. So we can typically pare down to just 1 or 2 "sets" of things at one time.
2. science-y stuff (magnifying glass, binoculars, compass, flashlight, magnets) - these are all kept together in one storage bin.
3. marble run (we still have this on the shelf though it doesn't get much use...i'm thinking of rotating this out)
4. Nintendo DS (this was a bday gift last week)

DD (3yo)
1. dolls - she has quite a few of these and really does use them a lot. this includes stuffed animals
2. dollhouse (we have one that my uncle hand made for me 30 yrs ago)
3. dollhouse furniture (we have one wooden living room set and one wooden table w/chairs)
4. dollhouse dolls (these are different from her big dolls)
5. play food/dishes - we also have a wooden kitchen right now, but to be honest she never ever ever uses it. i've also made cardbaord kitchens in the past that were never used. so i'd say that at least for my kids, a kitchen is not necessary.
6. Leapster (she loves letterpillar)


both
1. arts and crafts - we have this in one 2-layer storage bin. utensils/accessories on top, papers/books on bottom.
2. trampoline - best purchase we ever made. it's one of those small ones, about 2 feet in diameter. indoor. priceless!!
3. some sort of fort thing - we've done tents in the past but they don't get nearly as much use as the huge box we have right now with doors cut out. they use that a LOT.
4. board games and puzzles

[Delicateflower]

Originally Posted by at_the_hip

So if you had to list "must have" toys for children aged 1-10, what would they be?

Mine are both under 5, so I can only speak for the younger side.

-Books
-A set of building toys of some kind (wooden blocks, megablocks, duplo, lego)
-Ball/s
-Animals or people (Schleich animals or dollhouse dolls or little people or playmobil)
-Vehicle/s
-Something to ride on (from a baby's ride on toy to a trike to a bike)
-Something to bounce or jump on (mattress or Rody or a bouncer like I had in the 70's)
-Musical instruments
-Puzzles (shape sorter to wooden puzzles to jigsaws)
-Real life housework things (real kitchen tools, play kitchen)
-A building (dollhouse, soldier fort)
-Art supplies
-Costume stuff (playsilks to spangly shoes)
For bigger kids: games and cards
For babies: stacking toy


Of course, we have two jumping on toys, two pushers, wooden blocks AND duplo AND Megablocks, and ten balls.

This is just my opinion, but in my experience, being a Waldorf purist is a bit pointless. Having an expression on the face of the dolls doesn't stop my daughter giving them seventeen different emotions by lunchtime. And she's quite happy to use single duplo blocks as the billy goats gruff when she's playing that or cooking them into a nice pie. She just told me this morning that we should make some pretend food out of cardboard. I said why don't we make it out of felt and she said no, if we use cardboard she can cut it and fold it and paint it and stick it. And our 'playsilks' are all sorts of trashy junk from the cut price halloween fabric bin at JoAnns.

[Aletheia]

We're still working on this, so I would love to see more photos!

[notwonamesalike]

Here is our play area. I wouldn't say we're down to 1920's or 30's amounts but we try to keep it as simple and uncluttered as we can.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3391976...7612255218221/

[nathansmum]

I feel that we're fairly minimal on toys in this house I think. We really only have open ended creative type toys that get used for many things.

DS - 6yo - Just yesterday I sorted out his old toys and rearranged them onto the shelves in his wardrobe in separate containers

Magnetix
Science type stuff in an ice cream container - magnifying glass, compass, tape measure, stop watch, rope, marbles etc
Magnetic science kit
Basket of cars
Sports type gear - balls, skipping rope, kite, table tennis bats
Box of dressups and role play stuff (wooden sword, shield etc)
He also has a large basket of chunky wooden blocks and wooden train track - he STILL uses these and has done since he was about 1).

DD - 4yo

An old suitcase full of random small toys, dressups, playsilks
A large basket of dolls clothes and bedding and a couple of dolls
A laundry hamper full of soft toys
A small wooden box of plastic chunky animals
A basket of small bits and pieces - play money, my little pony etc
She has a dressing table with all sorts of figurines, music box, tiny drawer set where she keeps her precious things (stones, hair clips/bands etc)

In the lounge we have dd's dollhouse, a basket of lego, board games and puzzles and a table that the kids use for crafts and drawing.

[Jodie]

Here's my kids' room.

We have a lot less than most other kids we know, but it feels like a lot sometimes and would love to knock it down a little more.

On this side are their beds. Stuffed animals under the vanity and a cradle with 2 baby dolls.
http://s367.photobucket.com/albums/o...t=100_3614.jpg

On the other side of the room is like 95% of their toys and stuff.
There are a few other things in other rooms of the house. Like an art easel in the dining room, a sit and spin and little table in the living room.
http://s367.photobucket.com/albums/o...t=100_3612.jpg

[MamaFern]

Originally Posted by KaraBoo

I'd like to see photos of older children with less toys. I think as your children get older and have more input as to what toys they want and own, the pictures will look differently.

I'm struggling with how to simplify my life without hinging on my daughter's rights. Anyone have older kids with less stuff?

im in this place too. my son is 6 and pretty well insisted on keeping everything..like even the boxes..everything ever given, found, ect. to the point of insanity. he is finally letting me purge his stuff. im pretty set on him only having his lego, playmobil, bionicles..stuff that he can actually enjoy more than once..and that encourages some kind of imaginitive play. he has boxes of crappy toys that never get used, and honetsly because most are plastic and probably made in china they are a health concern. in our communal toys we only have a few plastic toys and im set on having it always be that way. im glad that he has finally come to terms with the fact that stuff isnt what makes a person happy. my daughter on the other hand could care less. she is 3 and really is only attached to a few dolls and playmobil.

art is still the favorite in my home.

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

I'd like to see photos of older children with less toys.

Yeah, this.

My children didn't have many toys at all when it was me controlling what they had and what they played with. Babyhood, toddlerhood...even preschool.

Now they are older and there are three of them and each one has "their" toys...they would be very hurt if I got rid of them. And they keep EVERYTHING...it doesn' thave to be a toy. My middle daughter has started collecting empty yogurt containers.

I've come to peace with this.

I like minimal stuff...but my children like the feeling of ownership.

I've decided that the "toy" phase of childhood is very brief. In a few short years you will be able to look around your house and see very few toys...children grow up and like Puff the Magic Dragon the toys will be gone.

So please recognize that this is a phase and your house will be back to normal long before you want it to be.

[Jenn_M]

Loving all the pictures and ideas!

I think I'll (with the help of my 5 yo) do another round of toy organizing/purging once we're settled into our new house.

[Oliver's Mama]

Originally Posted by Crunchy*VT*Mom

I've decided that the "toy" phase of childhood is very brief. In a few short years you will be able to look around your house and see very few toys...children grow up and like Puff the Magic Dragon the toys will be gone.

So please recognize that this is a phase and your house will be back to normal long before you want it to be.

Just my two cents, but I think for some mamas, it's not about the toys intruding on our space and the appearance of our homes, but it's a bit deeper.. For me at least, having a small, simple collection of toys is my way of teaching my child to be content with what is given to him and let his imagination do the work, to respect his belongings and only keep what he has the room and energy to store and care for, and that everything that passes his way does not end with him... there comes a time when objects need to be passed on and shared to others, recycled, etc.

While the toy phase may pass, as teenagers it's about clothes, and as young adults, it's all the latest techy gadgets, and then they're adults and they need everything from crate and barrel and find themselves in a home of clutter from everything they've collected over 30 years. So I think toys are just the easiest vessel to start teaching, early on, an important characteristic that will in turn effect the kind of adult they grow to be.

I think this really struck me several months ago, when I had to opportunity to watch a group of Tibetan monks spend an entire week creating a mendala, which is an intricate art work created out of tiny grains of sand, carefully placed one by one. After an entire week of labor, the piece sits completed for maybe an hour and is then destroyed, to symbolize the impermanence of life. The sand is then distributed into a flowing body of water, returning it to nature. Some may think.. KEEP IT! FRAME IT! but what a lesson about how we do not need to keep everything -no matter how special or laborious it was to create- to have a great experience and lifelong memory. ds has a picture of it hanging up to remind me of this every day, though he reminds me too when he creates puzzles and "sculptures" and destroys them within seconds of completion... he doesn't care about the object.. it's the experience.

[Jodie]

Yes.

[Ruthie's momma]

Originally Posted by Oliver's Mama

Just my two cents, but I think for some mamas, it's not about the toys intruding on our space and the appearance of our homes, but it's a bit deeper.. For me at least, having a small, simple collection of toys is my way of teaching my child to be content with what is given to him and let his imagination do the work, to respect his belongings and only keep what he has the room and energy to store and care for, and that everything that passes his way does not end with him... there comes a time when objects need to be passed on and shared to others, recycled, etc.

While the toy phase may pass, as teenagers it's about clothes, and as young adults, it's all the latest techy gadgets, and then they're adults and they need everything from crate and barrel and find themselves in a home of clutter from everything they've collected over 30 years. So I think toys are just the easiest vessel to start teaching, early on, an important characteristic that will in turn effect the kind of adult they grow to be.

I think this really struck me several months ago, when I had to opportunity to watch a group of Tibetan monks spend an entire week creating a mendala, which is an intricate art work created out of tiny grains of sand, carefully placed one by one. After an entire week of labor, the piece sits completed for maybe an hour and is then destroyed, to symbolize the impermanence of life. The sand is then distributed into a flowing body of water, returning it to nature. Some may think.. KEEP IT! FRAME IT! but what a lesson about how we do not need to keep everything -no matter how special or laborious it was to create- to have a great experience and lifelong memory. ds has a picture of it hanging up to remind me of this every day, though he reminds me too when he creates puzzles and "sculptures" and destroys them within seconds of completion... he doesn't care about the object.. it's the experience.

I totally agree! Very well articulated! Yes! Yes! Yes!

[SoCaliMommy]

subbing i plan on de cluttering toys tomorrow will get before and after pictures.

my 5yr old and 2yr old have alot of toys that they hardly play with.

[evermore82]

Originally Posted by Oliver's Mama

Just my two cents, but I think for some mamas, it's not about the toys intruding on our space and the appearance of our homes, but it's a bit deeper.. For me at least, having a small, simple collection of toys is my way of teaching my child to be content with what is given to him and let his imagination do the work, to respect his belongings and only keep what he has the room and energy to store and care for, and that everything that passes his way does not end with him... there comes a time when objects need to be passed on and shared to others, recycled, etc.

While the toy phase may pass, as teenagers it's about clothes, and as young adults, it's all the latest techy gadgets, and then they're adults and they need everything from crate and barrel and find themselves in a home of clutter from everything they've collected over 30 years. So I think toys are just the easiest vessel to start teaching, early on, an important characteristic that will in turn effect the kind of adult they grow to be.

I think this really struck me several months ago, when I had to opportunity to watch a group of Tibetan monks spend an entire week creating a mendala, which is an intricate art work created out of tiny grains of sand, carefully placed one by one. After an entire week of labor, the piece sits completed for maybe an hour and is then destroyed, to symbolize the impermanence of life. The sand is then distributed into a flowing body of water, returning it to nature. Some may think.. KEEP IT! FRAME IT! but what a lesson about how we do not need to keep everything -no matter how special or laborious it was to create- to have a great experience and lifelong memory. ds has a picture of it hanging up to remind me of this every day, though he reminds me too when he creates puzzles and "sculptures" and destroys them within seconds of completion... he doesn't care about the object.. it's the experience.

Well said! And it is a lesson for everyone.

[SoCaliMommy]

I got ride of a bunch of trash and 1 kitchen trash bag to give to goodwill of toys that are played with.


before
after

before
dogs toys now in the wicker basket instead of in the clear sliding drawer.
after