Kids’ sticky hugs, gummy smiles, and belly laughs are the best parts of your family’s home. Their oversized and generally clunky colored gear, however, is not so endearing. Whether you are settling in your new home, or you are staging your house to sell, avoid letting the space become overrun with brightly colored plastic. These tips will help blend your children’s belongings into your home’s aesthetic, without compromising your personal style.
My kids outgrow toys almost as quickly as they blow through light-up gym shoes and blow out the knees of athletic pants. In the back corners of our closets of shame are stacks of unopened holiday presents, complicated Lego sets, and board books I’m holding on to for the third child I will never have.
While I’m doing a far better job deactivating the birthday gift-splosion, we still have too many corners and bins and storage space filled with itty-bitty baby onesies, once-loved-now-forgotten dolls, strollers no one will sit in and too many toys. It’s time to release the guilt and over-gifting and pass on our bounty to neighbors who are truly in need.
I polled moms on the places in the city and suburbs where they love to donate their children’s toys, clothes, and gear. Here are eight organizations that get their highest marks. Continue reading