So, spurred on by the massive pile of STUFF that was dominating my living room once we got back from vacation, I got a little advice from online and sorted Devyn's toys.
First, I sorted ALL of Devyn's toys and put them into categories based on this blog post: moving toys (gross motor skills), thinking toys (fine motor skills), and pretend toys. Then I used these cloth buckets I already had to make "sets" that include three of each kind of toy. I ended up with four full sets and quite a few left over "thinking" toys, which I'll store for now and rotate into the sets.
Some stuff will stay out all the time, like a box of dress up clothes (in the stripey box), her crayons and paper (on the table) and her new play kitchen (below). We rearranged some furniture this week because I had begun to realize that she didn't really want to go into the other room to play without me, and I spend most of my time in the kitchen or dining room area. So the little table now lives next to the sofa...
...And the new play kitchen lives next to the kitchen peninsula (not an island, as it is attached!).
One set of toys will be out where she can get at it (shown next to the sofa above) and the rest are stored on the bookshelves in the living room. The drum didn't fit, and I think we'll keep the music table a while longer. That and her little push cart that she still plays with will stay out all the time. She'll also have a box with a few toys upstairs.
But I feel so much more organized! I'm hoping she'll like it. I had everything pulled out this morning, and she got really overwhelmed and wanted to go upstairs, away from everything. I finished all of this up while she was napping, so we'll see what she thinks when she gets up.
These are the blogs I found most helpful today:
wondering where you got the little kitchen? I love it!
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