toys - age appropriate, etc

I'm somewhat lost when it comes to this. I think there are things that need to go, but I'm not positive. Like the leap frog table. They are interested in it for such a short period of time now and it takes up space that has gotten crowded by adding things and not getting rid of other things. For instance we have mega blocks that are just coming of interest now though we've had them for months.

I don't think the age recommendations on things are nec right on for what my kids are doing or interested in.

Any good tips?

 

If an item is being played with less than usual, I'll usually rotate it out for two weeks and then bring it back. If my girls get excited to see it and start playing with it again, it stays. If not, I donate it. I got rid of their Leap Frog table at about 18 months, but could have retired it sooner I think. We had a great space for it upstairs so I was in no hurry.

Rotating toys has really worked for us. I have a closet full of toys and books that I swap out every two weeks. Some toys stay out all the time (blocks, dolls, strollers) but everything else rotates. If a toy seems like it's a little young for them, and they don't miss it when I take it away, I just never bring it back.

I completely agree with you that the ages on toys are not realistic. My girls are 22 months and still can't do the shape sorter that says 18 months +, but they're awesome at playdoh and wooden trains, both of which say 3+.

 

We have trouble with this too and DH and I disagree on some of it. Mostly toys around here get retired when they get dangerous. The activity tables were way more fun to push (even if the other one ended up under it) or stand on. The singing stage was more fun to flip over (which hit them in the mouth) than to play with. As for the small stuff, we still have some of their very first rattles and toys in one of the bins and they still get them out and chew on them. Hope you find a happy medium - we are over run with toys!

 

I got rid of the singing table we had when it became an object to climb on and get other things they weren't supposed to be into. I haven't gotten rid of much just yet, but I guess if they don't play with a certain thing for an extended period of time then it's time to go! Especially with the bigger items that take up more room.

 

Up to this point the way I've done it is when a new toys comes in that means an old toy needs to go. That's the only way I can keep from being over-run with toys. We still have Xmas presents that are in the boxes in my closet b/c they just don't need toys right now.

The way I pick the toy that goes is just based on what they play with and what they don't.

 

I kept a lot of "baby toys" for a pretty long time (we still have some!), but I rotated them. If they hadn't played with something very much for a few weeks, it went to the closet or the garage. If I brought it out again a couple of months later and they still didn't play with it, I gave it away. But there were some baby toys that they continued to enjoy until they were 2 or even 3.

Now that they have so much MORE stuff, I've adopted the "new thing in, old thing out" rule -- mostly. At least for big things. For instance, when they got a mini-kitchen and a dollhouse, I chose an approximately equal volume of things to get rid of.

 

QUOTE(idril @ Mar 16 2009, 10:59 AM) [snapback]1230431[/snapback]
If an item is being played with less than usual, I'll usually rotate it out for two weeks and then bring it back. If my girls get excited to see it and start playing with it again, it stays. If not, I donate it.

I do the same exact thing.

 

I was having trouble with this also and we had so many toys I finally decided that if it was a "babyish' toy" and I haven't seen it in a month or longer that it needs to go. There are also toys that they love but use as portable step stools so I keep them handy and only bring those out on boring days when we are cooped up and I can watch them like a hawlk!

 

We've divided up toys between our house and my parents house, so we aren't overrun with too many toys. Big toys like the exersaucer and jumparoo we are donating to my friend who is expecting another baby in the summer time.