Toy Organization System

We also have a two story house and I have 4 boys. Once upon a time I tried to keep everything labeled in tubs, but it was too time consuming and too frustrating because they would inevitabley put stuff in the wrong tubs and I would wind up sorting them out. Now I still keep everything in tubs, but I don't label them and they are only generally sorted. It just doesn't make sense to keep legos with cars, but if they mix them up I really don't care. About once a year I go through and donate toys and kind of sort them out again,but in general the system works. I bought the storage system from IKEA that I believe they call Trofast or something like that. It is wooden shelves with tubs that pull all the way out and then slide back in on racks. They are sturdy enough to play on top of(like a table) and I like the fact that you can buy different size tubs that all work in the same shelf, so if your needs change you can just buy a few new tubs, not a whole new system. Also, since our playroom and the kids rooms are upstairs, i do keep a big basket at the bottom of the stairs and every night, we do a quick sweep of the house for shoes, clothing, toys, books etc, and carry it to the top. Everyone is responsible for getting their own stuff out of the basket and putting it away. (Obviously this is a tip you can use later if you want!)It really keeps the downstairs clutter to a minimum.

When my kids were younger, I initially tried to keep toys organized. It didn't last long. There were only a few toys/games I kept up on shelves that needed to remain organized...like puzzles, etc. I used toy boxes and large baskets that I kept random toys in. Upstairs, I kept a toy box in my older daughter's room and another in the play room. Downstairs, I kept a basket at the base of the stairs (for anything that should go upstairs eventually...every time I went up, I grabbed them) and a nice sized basket in the front room. We had toys everywhere, but it was easy to straighten the house quickly with all the basket areas I had around the house. This is the system that worked best for me.

I do the basket thing. I bought some baskets that are shaped to sit on the stairs.Everyone has thier own one. We toss things in to them throughout the day and everyone takes thiers upstairs and empties it before bed. I usually just take them back down in the morning. It works well for us.

I also have a 2 story home. We have a toy box and 3 large tubs downstairs and mostly ziploc bags in drawers upstairs and small tubs in the closet. I do have them grouped in categories. And it's great, because when my son wants to find a specific toy, he knows where to get it. I use different sizes of ziploc bags. For example, my son has a lot of potato head items...that is in a 2 gallon ziploc bag. But, he only has a few superheroes and they are small, so they go in a small bag. Also, the toys that are downstairs are different from the ones upstairs. When he takes the toys that belong in the other floor....we put them by the stairs, and take them up/down the next time somebody goes up/down. Remember, no one way of organizing is the best. You have to find out what works for you. Try getting a whole bunch of different size boxes (like from the grocery store - the free ones) and try different ways until you find what works for you. Once you figure it out, you can buy the more expensive stuff.

Good Luck!