I’m guessing your thinking I’m talking about Sneaky B.  Nope.  I am talking about Kiddo’s amount of stuff today. Way too much stuff. Okay let’s be real, way too much little shit. Everywhere. Little toys, barbie shoes, bracelets, games pieces from who knows what game, dress-up clothes, missing socks, half painted somethings… TOO MUCH and I’ve had it.

This is what her rooms looks like every morning when we get up.  She plays in her room every night taking everything out…everything! I know this is a sleeping stall tactic, one that we have not been able to control.  So every morning we, okay I, struggle with her to pick it up and then it looks like this again in no time at all.  I admit, I have given up with Sneaky B around, well almost given up.  We just pick up one thing, maybe dress-up and then I’m over the power struggle.

So when my mom shared this pin with me I thought just another way to organize, no one would really get rid of all there kids toys.  But oh how wrong I was! And after reading the blog post (and almost everything else on this new favorite blog, Living Well, Spending Less) I had a HALLELUJAH moment.  It MUST be done! MUST! And after a quick chat with Hubby, the planning began.

Kiddo’s room when it’s actually clean.  Note this is a few months ago, after we cleaned out, so I thought, before Sneaky B arrived. Geez was I wrong!

We told Kiddo that we were going to do a “toy experiment;” that almost all her toys where going to go into storage for awhile and we would see if she had more fun. “Okay” she said. Seriously I almost fell on the floor, I was expecting the little lawyer arguing for every single little piece of junk; all she was concerned about was blanky. “We will never give away blanky” she asked with a worried look.  “No way!” I told her.  She gave me a big smile and said “I want the dress-up, little people castle, house & barn, my leap frog, and a few stuffed animals.” DONE!

It took a few days with the help of my mom, was somewhat exhausting, but it’s done. It’s been a few days now, and guess what, Kiddo has been playing in her room for hours. And when she is done with dress up, she hangs it up and starts with something else.  This pic was taken this morning, even after her night time playing/sleep stalling tactic moves… can you believe it, she put everything away by herself without being asked!

It’s amazing how having less, so far, has changed our kiddo’s world.  And while I am typing this sitting across from our wall of book cases that is overflowing with books, I can’t help but think it’s time for Hubby and I to have less too.