Toys I Loathe and How We Store Them

Ok, maybe loathe is a strong word. My boys find great pleasure in playing with their “army guys” so I don’t really mind them. It’s when I step on them or end up with a hand in between my toes I start to loathe them a bit.

My boys are 4 years apart and the youngest has learned that if he wants to be cool with his “bubby” he ‘s going to have to learn how to do the army thing. Really he is a car guy but only when his brother isn’t around.

We keep the army guys in a clear plastic bin, as we do with most of the toys that don’t have their own containers. Here you can see them dumped out, usually my daughter throws in a toy of her own now and then.

So here we are all sorted out. My son decided he didn’t want to keep the big guys only the little guys. So we made a pile to get rid of and started bagging the rest. I thought this would be the best way to keep them separated so they don’t dump them all out to find what they need. So now we have all of the plastic army guys (dollar store type) in one bag of their own.

And here are the OTHER guys. The ones with interchangeable hands (depending on what type of weapon they hold), little tools and helmets. And I was worried about the impending Polly Pocket and Barbie days with all of the little shoes and whatnots that having a little girl brings about. Nope, these guys have some of the smallest things that go with them I have seen by far.

In comparison to my fingernail check out this little grenade and binoculars. Oh and not to mention the hands I keep stepping on. I know I vacuumed one up the other day.

We bagged up all of the little pieces into one small snack size bag and the army guys in a separate bag. The boys have their own sets so they have bags labeled with their names on them.

Here it is all nice and tidy. The army tanks are on the bottom and bags on top. I hope this system will work for them since they only use certain guys depending on what they are playing. Now they can easily find the pieces they need.

I am constantly tweaking systems for the kids. There is no right or wrong way and every child is different. What works for one may not work for the other. Watch how they play and see what works and doesn’t work for them. Involve the kids in the process, they can come up with some amazing ideas when given the opportunity.

While I write this my youngest son just came in and said, “Mom where are my army guys we orgnizded” He brought out his little bag and started playing with them and then handed me the bag to close. hmmm not good with those zip lock bags yet. Never fear, I have a zippered pencil pouch we are not using. I will put his guys in there.

Always tweaking.