It seems as though during this time of year (well these last two months, actually) I have more on my plate than I know what to do with. my thoughts are scattered, yet completely organized in my head (it is just when I start trying to interact with anyone over 8 years old that it gets a bit sputtery). I am changing a lot of things in our house. That may sound like no big deal, but we are making some major shifts in how we use the spaces so that they are more accommodating to what we actually do (not what I think we should do or what I think we are supposed to be doing as a family, as children, etc.)
The major epiphany that we actually really dont play with many many of the toys in the house was just that- a major epiphany. We dont have that many to start with, but those that we do have, we usually dont use them. I love the posting that Kyrie wrote a while back about "untoys". It speaks so clearly to me.
As my daughter continues to grow and explore and create, I am finding that her loves are mainly reading books (by herself and to her brother), art of all kinds (knitting, drawing, painting, beeswax/clay work, etc.), playing outside (with little to no "formal" toys) and playing with silks in the world of make believe with her brother.
As my son continues to grow, as does his curiosity and his will, his activities mirror my daughters a bit, however he has this insatiable love of all things musical. Dont get me wrong, E sings herself to sleep and sings throughout most of her daily activities, but he really NEEDS to play music. Drum, tamborine and lately his favorite thing- his ukulele. He can make up a song (and does) for just about anything. Aside from music and books, my boy does not really play with trains, cars, blocks, the play kitchen (set up inside) or really many other of the toys that we have taking up certain otherwise usable spaces.
{had to show you my $1 chair, the ukulele and the giant basket of blueberries that seemed to fit just fine into this shot. they didnt last very long, by the way...}
So, with that, I have embarked on a purging of many of the things in our house which are untouched. I may move a few items outside (play kitchen- for some "real" cooking) and I have decided to make some changes to the rooms which are used the most to incorporate these loves. I will keep you posted on how that turns out, but I also realized that there are so many "things" (treasures, little things, etc.) that slowly creep in on all of us and the next thing we know, they take over spaces. As E and I went through her room this weekend, we talked about how "stuff" can really rule your life and it is good to get a handle on what we really use and what we dont. I know that I can be extreme in my de-cluttering and made sure that she was comfortable with the process. She told me that if we never got rid of anything, "if we kept on adding and adding, we would need to buy a bigger house to keep all of our stuff. if we had a bigger house, we would need more money to pay for that house, etc. etc." You get the idea. What a smart girl.
So we basically donated, repurposed or will be selling almost 80% of the non-clothing items in her room. Wow! She loved it (for the most part!) and now loves how it feels to have a room with just a few very special things, the small collection books she loves the most, a space for all of the library books we rotate every other week and a kids sized table and chairs which will be going in there (which have been sitting in another room untouched for months) along with a shelf for her art items when she wants to draw and create by herself. I also plan to get her an ipod speaker of her own for her birthday coming up so that she can retreat with some music or stories (retreats are much needed with the summer coming up from sometimes wild little brothers!)
Moving on to the little e's room is next. He doesnt have much in there to start with, but I am still a little stumped on what to put in his room. He really doesnt use it other than a place to get dressed, a place to read a few books and a place to sleep. One major change that will happen, though, will be moving in a little bed in place of his crib. Dont get me wrong, he uses his crib for a few hours of the night (3-4 at most) and is in our bed for the rest of the time. But having a bed rather than a crib will give him a little more independence and just change things up a bit in there. His room will be a work in progress, but for now, those small changes will be welcome.
{just in case you wanted to drool over these again... they were local -from the farmer's market- and they were amazing!}
In addition, I am taking basically all of the un-played with toys (almost everything) from our main playspace and moving all of the creative materials into that main room. I have some scattered about, but will make it more user-friendly to encourage creativity in that space as well. That room is also a work in progress, (isnt it all, though!) but I will hope to lighten things up a bit more so that we will have room for anything that comes our way. I also want to involve the children in cooking a bit more, so this will be more of a center for that as well, as it is the room which is attached to the kitchen.
Anyway, you get the idea. In these times of upheaval and reinvention, focus on creating is put on the side for just a wee bit. I have soo many things that are just about finished and have been stitching and cutting, etc. on so many projects, but they will have to wait until the house is at peace. Give me a week or two and we should be done with the whole house. I find that there is so much more room when things are not so full. Room for creativity, for thought, for breath, and for living life.
Up next, the garage sale! :)
