Monday, September 14, 2009

Evidence of Invasion!

Boy, it just gets harder and harder, day after day, to try to establish and to KEEP some order here.

Six people in one three bedroom house with a fourth makeshift bedroom and space becomes really limited, ya know. Not enough closet space. Not near enough room for chests and such in which to stash other items of clothing or lines and things.

And with two small children -ages (almost) 6 and 3 -well there are days when I do believe we are being overrun by toys. Do these things maybe multiply overnight? Sometimes, it definitely does seems that way.

About the only thing we don't have an abundance of is preschool furniture.

That's not to say that we don't have any furnishings along those lines - we do have a fuschia-colored plush Barney chair. Blends in so nicely it does, with the rest of the living room furnishings in its position of honor (much of the time) perched atop the back of the loveseat and in front then of one of the windows in the bow window. I have no clue as to which one of the two little ones came up with the idea that this particular spot would be the ideal place to set that chair. Somehow, I don't see this as a decorating fad that will take hold -just in case that child is thinking of interior decoration as a career choice, ya know.

There is also a table with two small chairs here someplace too. I think it has made its way now to the basement though and occupies a choice spot in their Dad's "private" space down there. That area that we affectionately have dubbed as "Bill's Bat Cave."

The radiator along the front wall of the living room has become the garage now for several smallish toy school buses, an airplane, a blue Volkswagon bug, a small tractor, fire engines -there are two of these that get parked there -and a couple other little car/truck type toys.

The toy chest is filled to overflowing -so much so that trying to put the lid on it is an impossibility.

Yard sale time is pretty much over and done with. There is a birthday coming up on the 18th of next month for a little girl and then looming in the distance after that, of course, is Christmas.

Really, the last thing these kids do need is more toys but you and I both know that there will be more coming in to suck up the space that is left here.

And whatever is left after that -I'm figuring there probably will be a few new clothing items added to the already burgeoning wardrobes these kids have now at their disposal.

I think back to when I was a kid and my toys got stored in a cardboard box. My clothes -all neatly placed in dressers and chests or hung -after careful ironing too by my Grandmother -in the small closet in the medium-sized bedroom I shared with my Mom. That closet also held some of her clothes and special items, like winter coats, in the summer time. Things like that.

At the rate this stuff is accumulating here, we may have to put in a mobile home or something just to have a place to sleep and then, come back into the house to ride herd on the kids as they drag out one toy after the other and lose interest in it as soon as it hits the floor.

Certainly does show how times -and purchasing -has changed over the years, doesn't it?

13 comments:

Kat said...

That is how I've been feeling around here lately. It will be nice to get to our new house soon. I need some space!

Hang in there!

Jocelyn said...

I am SOOO in this moment with you, Jeni! We have a startling amount of kid crap in our house. I've been pulling out preschool aged stuff these last months and getting ready for a big garage sale this next weekend. It's overwhelming, really.

Good luck finding a place to hang your hat.

Maggie May said...

We've got a fairly big house (as houses go today) but we seem to have a toy invasion too.
Most of their stuff has come from second hand job lots (lego & construction, dolls & barbies ) It is all over the place and I think a house is NEVER big enough to store all the stuff that kids have today.
Like you say, I could get all my stuff in a card board box when I was a kid!
Are they any better for having all this stuff?
I don't think so, somehow & they don't seem at all satisfied with anything.

CiCi said...

Children today are learning they can receive more and more and it is their due. They have so much they aren't interested in much of it anyway. The whole thing is nuts to me.

Debbie said...

Some times I just have to go through this house and purge! It is either the belongings or me - and the belongings don't cook so I get to stay:)

Sandee said...

I can relate. One of our grandchildren is grown and the other just turned 12 so the toy thing is long over. We do have a dog and for some reason we have felt compelled to buy her tons of toys. She of course has them all over the house. She never puts them back where they belong either. Never. So I can relate. When I was young our dogs never had toys at all. Never. Hummmmmm.

Have a terrific day. :)

Mary said...

Jeni,

I know what you mean. There are only the two of us, but the boys do have some things here that I need to go through from their younger days. Still, we have very little space as we rent out the upper apartment and our storage space is limited.

Wishing you a great rest of the week.
Blessings,
Mary

lattégirl said...

Someone said "purge!" Good word. Sort through the toys and remove anything that hasn't been looked at or played with in a year. Toss out anything that is broken or useless due to missing parts. I used to do it with my son's things.

fermicat said...

Our cat toys seem to multiply - I can see kid toys doing the same.

I've been meaning to do a big clean out. Too much stuff!

Travis Cody said...

I sure do know that feeling of being a bit crowded. We've got way too much furniture and stuff in our little place.

... Paige said...

Oh my, but I understand all too well and we just suffle stuff from one place to another.
theses days I am trying really hard not to buy something just because I like or thinks I want it. I have been stopping and asking my self will I use it? Can I make do with something I already have.

terri said...

Oh, how I know what you mean! Thankfully, my kids are now too old for "toys" but the video games, clothing, sports equipment, books, toiletries, etc, etc still threaten to take over. It's impossible to maintain any sense of order. But... if it were any other way, life would be dull. (That's what I tell myself to keep from going crazy over the lack of cleanliness.)

Anonymous said...

I am so with you on this! It is a never ending battle in my house and I've got a house full of boys, which means a house full of boy stuff! - I still haven't forgiven my daughter for moving out and on with her lovely uncluttered life and leaving me with all the male children.. - I made a new rule in my home recently when it comes to laundry.. SOCKS!!!! Turn them right side out or I am not touching them and they will not get washed! Boy socks are the worst funky laundry ever! And baseball caps! I have not one, not two but three shelving units equipped with little knobs/hooks specifically for baseball hats.. Why then, I ask myself, do I find these hats everywhere but on those hooks?!
Never ending, never ending, never ending picking up, organizing, finding space.. When you figure out a solution please let me know!