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| This mess afforded me several hours of peace and quiet. |
Why do I continue to buy toys for my kids? Seriously though.
A box from Amazon arrived on the porch the other day. It actually contained a couple of birthday gifts for my eldest. It was a nice sized box. I envisioned myself using it to carry food to a family with a new baby, or to pack full of gifts to take to my family's house on Christmas. So I tossed it down the stairs and into the basement to save for later.
Then my 4-year-old discovered it and kidnapped it into her room.
From there, she pulled the sides down and made it into a boat. She got out colored pencils and drew all over it. She filled it up with all the junk she keeps hoarded in her room. She spent hours playing with the box. She even invited me to play in her boat with her.
I had to recycle the box. She'd smashed it all up and it took up 1/3 of the floor space in her room. I had cleaning to do. So I tossed it out.
Today, another couple of packages arrived. One of them had a great quantity of brown packing paper. Again, my child took off with it. She ran through the halls with it. The cats enjoyed the crinkling sound it made when they sat on it. I was going to save it because I might return something that came in the box, but Tim recycled it when he got home from work.
We went to my parents' house for dinner and my girls, along with my niece, spent most of their time running around and playing with flashlights. They had a blast.
Which brings me back to my point. Why, why, why, do I keep buying toys?
Honestly, I don't even buy that many. My kid is getting one toy, some books, a chair and a game for her birthday. But somehow, they accumulate. Are they reproducing of their own accord now? They litter the house. Tiny pieces are spread all over. I do my best to get rid of toys and games that are broken or neglected. I've seen my friends' houses. I think we have less than most. Yet, I am overwhelmed.
My little one is the worst about it. She doesn't so much play as she spreads all her belongings all over the floor. Rather than playing with her dolls and dollhouse, she took each piece of furniture apart to, and I quote, "See what else I could make from it!" For. Real?!?
I request that you not buy my children anything for their birthday or Christmas. They'd be just as happy with a box, or a pencil. A flashlight, a book, or a long piece of paper. A hug.
I'm boycotting toys. Who's with me?
This post is part of the 30 Day Challenge.
I hear you, when it comes to them playing with boxes or whatever else randomly comes in the house - for hours, yet I can't bring myself to abandon toys. They like them, play with them and sometimes do neglect them for chosing some electronic something over it. I guess, I am just not there yet :) Let us know how Christmas goes for you!
ReplyDeleteI will let you know! Don't get me wrong, I'm sure toys will still be coming in...and I definitely prefer to see them playing rather than sitting in front of screens...but if they could just do it a little more neatly, I'd be cool with that!
DeleteI hear you!! We are ridiculously strict about what kind of toys we even allow into our home - and if others bring them in - how long we allow them to stay. I find it helps keep the numbers down when we purchase really high quality items because fewer items cost more money. But even that combined with toy rotating and I feel like we just have so much stuff! Add to that homeschooling "toys and materials" since I love play based learning and it kind of scares me that our daughter isn't even two yet and there's another baby on the way.....I guess I'm finding it's going to take a lot of work to remain as minimal as I want to be. Kids always seem to bring "stuff" with them....and their stuff seems to procreate faster than rabbits!!
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to be minimal with kids! I too prefer fewer, open-ended high quality toys to lots of little junk! And I know I am part of the equation because I really do enjoy purchasing educational stuff for my kids...toys included :)
DeleteI wish I could get my family on board with this!!! I don't think I ever buy Ivy toys any more, and I never look forward to the toy inundation that comes with Christmas and birthdays. For her last birthday, in the invitation I politely said that gifts were not expected and that we have everything we need. Hint, hint! It didn't work. :/
ReplyDeleteI think you have to be blunt and say "No gifts please!" haha! Although I have definitely brought gifts when they weren't requested...oops! Family is the hardest!
DeleteI try to boycott toys...but my hubby has different ideas...
ReplyDeleteThat's tricky! My husband is even more anti-toys than I am. If it weren't for me, we would surely have nothing more than boxes and dust bunnies for them to play with.
DeleteI think think you have changed my mind on what I buy at Christmas! Thank you for saving my money lol!
ReplyDeleteYou are quite welcome! :)
DeleteI could say the same about the toys I buy for my 3 dogs. I know, dogs aren't the same as having kids, I'm reminded of that constantly (often by people who think I should have kids by now).
ReplyDeleteI think when living things are dependent upon us, we enjoy it. It's sometimes easier to buy stuff for a kid or a pet than for ourselves. Easier to justify sometimes :)
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