Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to only have one small toybox in the living room?

82 replies

MamaG · 12/09/2007 23:13

I have a small wooden chest of toys in my living room. If the lid doesn't close due to too many toys, they get hoiked upstairs.

The DC have a room each and the bulk of their toys there. Their books are on low shelves of my bookcases, no problem there.

Am I mean to only let them have a small box downstairs? Iregularly rotate the toys [pleads]

OP posts:
handlemecarefully · 12/09/2007 23:14

Errr - no. Can't see a problem

Carmenere · 12/09/2007 23:14

Why would that be unreasonable?? Sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

Original poster
MamaG · 12/09/2007 23:15

because all my friend with children, without exception, have LOADS of toys downstairs and think I'm horrid

OP posts:
fingerwoman · 12/09/2007 23:15

that sounds excellent to me. I try and do that but can never be arsed to take the excess upstairs.

handlemecarefully · 12/09/2007 23:15

Sounds like they are poorly organised

LadyVictoriaOfCake · 12/09/2007 23:15

i dont even have a toy box in my living room.

sparklygothkat · 12/09/2007 23:16

we have one wooden chest normally, but the kids have managed to sneak another crate of toys down, must sort it out actually

Original poster
MamaG · 12/09/2007 23:16

respect LVOC [holds out fist]

OP posts:
LadyVictoriaOfCake · 12/09/2007 23:17

err i do live in a ungalow and the kids bedroom is right across from the living room.

i havent tidied up properly yet so i do have cars on the floor and a couple of sost toys on my sofa.

Carmenere · 12/09/2007 23:19

Get different friends

Original poster
MamaG · 12/09/2007 23:19

lol carm - yes, if nay of you are reading this

pis off

both of you

OP posts:
Flibbertyjibbet · 12/09/2007 23:22

Our ds's share one tiny bedroom so no chance of any toys in there. So.. we have one plastic box in the lounge (and we only have a lounge and kitchen so its not like we have a box in the lounge then another room stuffed with toys) that contains toys that are rotated just about weekly with the toys in boxes that are on top of my wardrobe and under my bed. they have 3 large boxes under the stairs that they can get when they want, which contain - Lego - Train Set - Toy cars. We have a lot of books on the book case. Big box of painting and art stuff under the kitchen dresser, jigsaws and puzzles in a kitchen cupboard. ride ons, tractor and little tykes car live in the yard. I just call it organisation - it has to be with 4 of us in this house until we get round to moving. Kids they love the fact that they get 'new' toys every few days.
So, no yanbu.
I just wish my sil was more like you. Her house is an assault course of large toys to negotiate.

TotalChaos · 13/09/2007 11:43

YANBU. Perfectly reasonable. It's not as if they lack the toys, it's the arrangement of them within the house that's different.

Caroline1852 · 13/09/2007 11:56

Why do they make toys in primary coloured plastic? Why not taupe and seagrass or Farrow and Ball colours and 350 year old mahogany? I have this morning spent an hour cleaning my main sitting room and it looked lovely, an oasis of calm and restrained good taste..... until DD (21 months) dragged in her Little Tikes see-saw and other brightly coloured tat.

ruddynorah · 13/09/2007 11:58

YANBU i do the same. all dd's bright tat is upstairs too. only nice wooden things and books downstairs, and of course her wnaky basket. we are in the midst of selling our house so it really needs to stay that way. new house she'll have a playroom so it'll be tat a-go-go i imagine.

meemar · 13/09/2007 12:00

We got rid of all the toys in our living room when the boys went into the same bedroom. We made the old baby room a 'playroom'.

It is blissful! And it sounds like you live in a really big house when they say 'Mummy I'm going to the playroom'

Hulababy · 13/09/2007 12:06

I don't have any toys in the living room. DD's toys are in her bedroom, some under the stairs (mainly outside stuff that can't be left in Little Tykes house outside) and some in the spare room/play room. Her books are either in her bedroom or on bookcase in play room.

When I moved to this house, when DD was 3 I was determined not to have toys in the living room. If they come down to be played with for some reason then they go back upstairs before DD's bedtime.

I got fed up of having to have toys in living room in the apartment, where I had no choice.

sweetkitty · 13/09/2007 12:09

I only have one small toy box in the dining room and a rocking horse and a few bits of Little People things, they tend to fill the toy box up until I can't get the lid on then I rotate the toys with toys upstairs.

Lorayn · 13/09/2007 12:13

I dont have toys in my living room, we dont even let the kids sit on the sofa because they absolutely wrecked the last one, they have their own bean bags, which along with their toys, stay in their bedroom, they can be bought downstairs but if I see toys lying around not being played with they go straight back to their rooms and in their toy boxes.

MellowMa · 13/09/2007 12:15

Message withdrawn

KommandantColditz · 13/09/2007 12:18

Gosh, I thought I had children, you know, little people? not dogs! YOu seriously don't allow your children to use the living room furniture?

chocchipcookie · 13/09/2007 12:23

YANBU. I read a parenting book recently that suggested one room of the house at least doesn't have any toys. That way children get used to the idea of not leaving all their toys all over the place. And it's a place for parents to relax in.

BobbyGrantycal · 13/09/2007 12:27

your children don't sit on the sofa?!?!?!?!?

Lorayn · 13/09/2007 12:48

No, my children dont sit on the sofa, we spent over a thousand pounds on the last one and they absolutely wrecked it, they have their own bean bags to sit on when they are in the living room, which they are quite happy with, it isn't like I am making them sit on a hard floor.

maisym · 13/09/2007 12:53

I have a basket for toys with the bulk upstairs - they play concentrated on a few things much better.

Swipe left for the next trending thread