Organizing toys.

Easier said than done when you have two children who are at such different stages. My oldest is 6 and is naturally into toys that have accessories meaning lots of little parts (think Barbie shoes and similar items). My youngest is not quite 18 months and is more prone to EATING those little parts than playing with them. Then we have the two kids I'm watching now. One is nearly the same age as my youngest and the other is a boy who is not quite four. All four kids are VERY good at destroying an apartment and leaving toys strewn from one end to the other. NONE of them are good at picking up (though the toddlers are actually a little more willing to help than the bigger kids).

So I'm trying to establish what we have so I can find a place to put the toys. We currently have four large totes that toys have been going into (I have a massive tote system going on here; it's rather disturbing). We also have smaller totes all over the place. Today I have tackled the larger totes and I at least now have it to where I know what we have for the most part. There's just now a tote with a bunch of miscellaneous crap in it that I will at some point have to deal with but it's a start. Now, knowing that I'm hoping I can put some of the toys that are out away and get this place organized enough so that when the other two kids show up on Tuesday, I won't have toys all over the place by the end of the night (or at the very least, when I do, I will know where to put them). I'm hoping to make the appearance of little toys reduced and done at times when little toddlers eating them aren't as much of a concern (like during nap time). I'm also hoping to have fewer toys available to the older child I watch (as he's even worse about putting things away than my older daughter is). I'll get this all figured out eventually but I have to say, the whole toy thing was MUCH easier when I only had ONE child! And definitely easier when she wasn't into the Barbie/My Little Pony/plastic princess/Strawberry Shortcake and friends stage.