What is too much?

People always say things like "we have too many toys" or something along those lines... how much is too much? how do we judge this? Also, for people who have grandparents that spoil the kids and get you everything on your list... how do you determine the length of the list... when does it become asking for too much?

Re: What is too much?

To me too much is when you have lots of toys all over that they hardly play with anymore. When it gets too much to even store.

Thank goodness for having a basement bc I keep the majority of their toys down there. At 3 and 5 I find they mostly play games, Ipads, race cars, legos, books, and pretend cooking stuff. I like it put away when they're not playing with it. If they start taking over the house then that is too much. We all have to live here.


ETA - I always ask for art supply stuff bc that is always big in the house. I have a closet full of art stuff and it always gets used then when it runs out it's tossed. Got a big organizer box for art they make. Most little things get tossed.

Message edited 8/12/2014 11:00:15 AM.

Re: What is too much?

If you walk into my basement and say "wow that's a lot of toys" - I have too much.


No such thing as too many books.

What is too much?

My house looks like a day care center. It is ridiculous. I beg people to not buy my kids more toys. And DD1 is a total brat and wants everything - that is how I know it is too much!

Re: What is too much?

Too much for us is when the kids don't even know what to play with because there is too much to choose from. Or when an item can't even hold their attention for more than a half hour.

It is also too much when it starts taking over your home. When there are bins/baskets of toys everywhere or they are over flowing. When it looks like Toys R Us threw up all over your living room. When they have multiples of things - like push bikes or scooters etc...

As far as lists we don't make them anymore. I had put one together last year for DS and added things that I was THINKING about buying for him for Christmas.

It was random items he may have mentioned throughout the year that I put on the list. I was going to go through with DH and pick some items that met within our budget we wanted to spend.

MIL found it and bought 7 items off the list. I was so furious because we don't like to buy him everything just because he says he wants it. We don't believe in having hundreds of gifts under the tree or more than a few small items for birthdays. So I had to delete it because she kept purchasing even after I explained why I created the list.

Also, my new rule with any toys that MIL buys is that it MUST stay at your home. I will toss it in the garbage if you leave it. If you don't want to listen to our request to put the money you spent on said toy in a savings account for him, than I don't want it in my home. Its one more thing I have to find space for.

Again, just because they say they want it does not mean it has to be bought. They have no idea what they are asking for half the time. I would rather DS appreciate the things we do get him and enjoy playing with them, than buy him everything he wants and pay half a second of attention to it before he is asking for something else.

Re: What is too much?

Re: What is too much?

Message edited 8/12/2014 11:20:58 AM.

Re: What is too much?

when you run out of space to put the toys then its too much. for my DS 2nd birthday i am asking people to not buy him toys.

What is too much?

It's too much when it's everywhere. DS has a playroom, which happens to be the 2nd largest bedroom in the house. It is packed. It had gotten to the point you can barely walk in the room. One third of our den is packed with his toys as well. He also has toys in the dining room and living room. It's all us. He has no grandparents and no aunts or uncles really. So it really is all us. I also have to go through his toys because I have never cleaned out and he is almost 3. Trust me. We have enough.

Re: What is too much?

It's too much when you are actually embarrassed when you have friends over and their kids say you have a lot of toys. If a child thinks it's too many, then it IS too many.

And that would be my house. Especially in the kids playroom (i.e. the basement).

What is too much?

I don't let it get to the point of being too much. I clean out her toys (she helps me) around Christmas and in July for her birthday to make room for new toys. We donate all the toys she doesn't play with anymore. But I'm a little OCD with everything being organized and clean.

What is too much?

When I trip over one toy with one foot, then try to catch my balance and trip over another toy.

What is too much?

When they hardly have room to play with them! DD has tons and we don't have space for a playroom so they've taken over our living room. We have a decent sized corner dedicated to her toys but it annoys me when they start to creep out of that space even when they're cleaned up bc there's too much. I rotate things out and put some in her closet. She knows what's there and will ask me to get something out when she wants.

As far as lists, I tend to give each set of grandparents a suggestion of one bigger item and that's it. They usually get more than one thing but I like to let them pick stuff out themselves since they enjoy it and I know even if I asked them for 5 things they'd still want to pick out more on their own. I think one suggestion is plenty as long as they are receptive to that suggestion.

I love getting art supplies too since they don't take up much space and we go through them. We go through lots of finger paints and finger pain paper, stickers, crayons, the marker pads in the dollar bins at target (one marker that only shows in the pad), foam sheets, stamps, paint with water books, coloring books. Books are also great to ask for since I don't think you can have too many of those and they do get expensive.

Re: What is too much?