I have been a Mom for 14 and ½ years. I have lived as a gypsy, by choice, moving with my husband many times. We have travelled from the West to the East, North and then the South of the United States. With all the moving, I would like to label myself as a minimalist, but it wasn’t until we have lived in Bogota, Colombia that I am really attempting to change our family habits. It wasn’t the size of our quarters; we live in the largest home ever. I’m just tired of spending hours picking up and putting away our children’s toys (or fighting with them about doing it); now that we’re on our 4th child I know that if I don’t do something a little different, my life will continue to be like this for at least the next 10 years.
In 1997, our first child was born. She was the first grandchild for both sides of the family so it was natural that every holiday possible, a new gift or treat was given to her. To make matters worse, we lived out of town so every time we came into town, at least one new present was awarded to her. I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings so I kept the toys and stuffed animals. By her first birthday, our daughter barely had room anymore for her bed and changing table on account of baskets and baskets of toys. When she was 4 years old, we decided to move her toys to the basement to make one big play room. Yet where was my daughter happiest? At the park, riding her bike, walking around the lake, or playing on the playground. In the house, it was with the (educational) computer games, painting a picture, or cooking and singing with me. She also loved having friends over and it was about imaginary play, not playing with toys to make imaginary stories. She did play for hours with her toy animals for a few years, but all the other toys sat collecting dust.
I assumed that all kids had their favourite toys, but quickly found out that this was not the case. When my son came along, I was quickly taught that toys were only good for throwing all over the floor. When I do see my son play with toys, I stop and stare as it’s so unusual to see. My son would rather play gymnastics, ride his bike, play futbol, jump on the trampoline, paint, play on the computer, and swim than play with his toys; they sit in his room taking up space. Sure, there were a few favourite toys that he played with when he was younger, but in the last 12 months I can think of only a dozen times where he’s played with his toys, old or new. Fortunately, some of the toys are now being used by his little sister. Again, I see the same pattern. It’s more about the moment which may include scattering the toys all over the bedroom and family room. Tonight I tried picking up the toys that she had dumped all over our living room and my youngest let me know in a heartbeat that it was not acceptable to put them back in the bin. She’s not even 2 years old and already she knows that toys belong all over the floor, not in a basket, even if she’s moved onto another activity.
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