Christmas Day with young children usually means a LOT more toys to add to the collection. In our case, we didn’t buy our children toys throughout the year, but saved up to buy more age appropriate, skill centred toys at Christmas or birthdays. But how do you fit it all in? How do you not have post-Christmas chaos and messiness? It’s easy and sanity preserving – use the long days of school holidays before Christmas to do a preparatory clean up. This is how I did it every year:
Step 1:
My children’ toys were kept in boxes on shelves in their bedroom. I would set a full day aside and decide which room to work on the day before and warn the child/children whose room it was. I made sure I had a large cardboard box, and rubbish bags.
Step 2:
I asked the child/children to take EVERYTHING out of the room and put it in the passageway or a nearby room. I left them to do this on their own and carried on with other chores. They would call me when done.
Step 3:
Each child got a damp cloth with a pleasant smelling essential oil like lavender, and we wiped every surface, shelf and skirting board etc. and vacuumed the floor. Then I sat on the floor and got the children to bring the toys/books in – on at a time. We would evaluate whether we were : keeping (place neatly in correct place), tossing if broken or wrecked (straight into rubbish bag) or rehoming (straight into cardboard box). Be very discerning – things that don’t keep your children engaged, and are hardly played with need to go. It is so much easier to keep things tidy when there is less. And remember – you are creating empty spaces for the Christmas gifts to fit into!
Continue until all items have been dealt with. With boxes containing specific things like lego, farm animals, train-set etc. – we would leave the lids off and add in any stray pieces, and lastly, tip the boxes out and ensure that everything in the boxes belonged.
Step 4:
Make sure that there are wonderful spaces in the toy cupboard/on the shelves to fit the new toys (which obviously only you know about or anticipate)
Step 5:
Now for the clothing that is in a heap! Decide where the piles are going to be for each item. I always found it useful to have a box for underwear, and a box for socks. This may not be the time you choose to sort through the clothes. Your focus may just be on the toys…but it isn’t a bad idea to throw out clothes that are unwearable or stained, and rehome clothes while you have a box and rubbish bags handy.
Use this time to show your child how to fold each item and carefully place it in the correct place.
Step 6:
Admire your work with your child/children. Pick some flowers and put them in a vase. Encourage them to take pride in their hard work and the outcome. You have worked together cheerfully and taught them valuable skills and habits.
Now choose a day to work on the next child’s room….
You will be so pleased you applied this practice when it comes to Boxing Day and there is a neat space for everything. What a great way to go into the New Year.
(I actually repeated this exercise every school holiday with each of my children, and now as adults, they periodically do a big clean up and toss out and their cupboards are always neat and organised.)
These little practices go a far way!
