Am I a mean mum or do you do this?

[linzoid]

Just had a massive clear out of the cupboards and the kids bedrooms. I have put loads of toys and stuff in bags for charity and some just away in a cupboard under the stairs. I don't like having sooo many toys all over the house and christmas is coming but i reckon when the boys come home from school they will moan like mad, their rooms are still full and it's only really stuff they rarely play with. I'm not sure kids really need tons of toys, do you keep your kids toys to their rooms or do you have kitchen cupboards full up with them too like us? Think the charity shop is getting a good deal actually as theres some good stuff in there.

I'm much meaner than you, Linzoid; I intercept a lot of the kids' birthday/Xmas gifts and give them away to charity.

Would it possible for you to show your boys the bags, and then let them "trade" for other things not currently in the bags; that way they get to choose (to some extent) which toys they truly want to keep. Could you throw a lot more stuff into your give-away bags, and tell your boys that half the stuff in each bag has to go, but they get to choose which half? Your boys will still moan, but again, they'll feel like they got a deal if only half of the designated give-away items actually go.

Linzoid, I operate a very facist policy in our house of one in one out (this is for DH and I with clothes after we ended up with at least 80 T shirts!)

Once dd is old enough I plan to do the same. Am going to say when she gets new toys or pressies that it is not fair for one little girl to have so many things, so we must trade one old thing for each new and then give it to another little girl who will appreciate it (in fact the local playgroups!)

Until she is old enough to understand I will just have a cull every so often and bin stuff she doesn't like or never plays with