December always feels like a whirlwind with work parties, school events, gift exchanges, and of course, the holidays. It is the most wonderful time of the year but can be a very stressful and overwhelming season also.
If your family is like most, there will be an influx of all kinds of *stuff* towards the end of the month: toys, clothes, gadgets, all kinds of different gifts, and maybe a little bit of junk, too.
(hopefully not this many presents) Image credit: Instagram/thebossmumtv
Usually, January is the time to declutter and deep clean, while you are still riding the high from your New Years’ Resolutions. Why not get a head start to make room for all of those new gifts before things get out of hand?
If your kids’ toys are taking over the house, take notice of what actually gets played with and what collects dust. Are your children mini hoarders? It is a common problem in children, but there are ways to work around it.
Image credit: Verywell Family
Depending on your children’s ages, leveraging Santa to teach a valuable lesson about giving back to the less fortunate can be very beneficial if they are too young to understand why they would want to get rid of their precious toys.
www.eatdrinkandsavemoney.com had the great idea of using your Elf on the Shelf to bring a poem on its first visit of the season, asking for 3 toys to take back to Santa.
Let the dang elf take the blame… genius!
Image credit: www.eatdrinkandsavemoney.com
You can find “Santa Give Back Sacks” online. These large sacks are intended to be filled with old toys and left under the tree for Santa to take back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. This method is perfect because your kids will be so overwhelmed by all of their new toys on Christmas morning, the Give Back Sack will not even cross their minds. There is even a book under the same name to help your kids get in the give-back holiday spirit!
Image Credit: RoyallDesignsbyJP on etsy.com
You should never discard or donate your child’s things without involving them. Not only can this be traumatic for their little minds, it also blurs the lines of mutual respect and trust that should be fostered from the beginning. Imagine how upsetting it would be to come home from work and find some of your things gone forever, and you didn’t even have a choice in the matter. If you child has a really hard time deciding what to keep and donate, maybe get a jumpstart on sorting while they are away. Always include them in the final decision and talk through how special it is to share their toys with kids who do not have as many.
We hope these tips help you declutter your home for the holidays, and we wish you a happy, safe, healthy and magical holiday season with loved ones.
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