Independent Play + Toy Organization

(If you thought this was going to be a how-to on organizing toys, wrong you are. Sorry. I'm asking you about that.)

(Along with that, I'm continually confused by the spacing issues in this post. Sorry.)

Something I am eternally grateful for is that Wells know how to play. He's been doing independent play for maybe 15 months at this point. I noticed that it began when we went to a playgroup and he'd go straight for the toys and just start exploring and examining. Then, we'd go to a friend's house and, he'd bypass the other toddlers and go right for the room with all of the toys and get started. Even at my parents' house, he knows where the box of toys is and it's all I can do to get his shoes off before he runs for it when we walk in the door. 

At home, this is fantastic. He amuses himself most of the day, rarely asking me to play with him or wanting me to get involved (there's even some "go away mommy!" thrown in there). He's extremely independent. He usually just comes to me when he's ready to switch activities or ask for something he doesn't have ready-access to, like kinetic sand. 

I bought Scout a dog bed and Wells decided it was his. 

Currently, we're working on picking up toys before we move onto another activity. 

For what it's worth, he's like this outside too. He'll wander around forever, just looking at things.

Tucking Lambie in for a nap.

My big struggle at the moment is what-do-i-do-with-all-of-these-toys. I have no idea. I'm so tired of picking things up and putting them away. Do I get rid of things? It does hurt a little to pack up toys he's aged out of, but I cannot possibly keep everything when we move again this summer and it seems like we've accumulated an awful lot since we got to Kansas. I let that happen, simply because our house has the space for it. It's not even that I buy it all for him; it's that he has this capacity to play and we have very generous grandparents and a very generous babysitter and they've spoiled him. It does provide the opportunity for me to organize and the chance for me to teach him how to clean up and organize too. 

Along with this, I'm not a mom who likes to play. Yes, we do exist. And yes, I feel continually awful for it. I think it stems from the fact that I, as a kid, played independently because I preferred it. Wells might get that from me.

I came across an IG story by a very popular blogger who said she didn't like to play and that was "okay" and she didn't feel bad about it anymore and part of it is because her third child was an accident and she didn't really want her (I'm barely paraphrasing this, guys) and she felt a lot of guilt over not wanting to be pregnant when so many of her friends were struggling to get pregnant, so she really doesn't like playing with her (all while her child..who was old enough to understand, imo...was listening to her make this IG story). 

I wouldn't put myself into THAT category, at least. 

My big question is: 

How do you organize your toys? 

I finally figured out organizing his books, by the way. Since I didn't want to buy a shelf, I got these wire baskets at Target and they are sturdy and perfect for sitting on the floor, at his level. I like that they are easily accessible and not on a shelf, library-style. I keep a few downstairs as "coffee table books", but all of his other non-holiday books are in his room. Holiday books are packed up with the respective decorations. 

What's in my bag? {September 2019}

I always like to see what's in other peoples' totes.

Not just purses, but why is it necessary to carry a tote bag if you're not going to use that bag for necessities?

Longchamps and Neverfulls particularly interest me (though I will *never* have a *never*full unless I walk into a lot of disposable income with no better purpose). I always like to see what people deem important; many use Longchamps for travel, for work, for day-to-day, etc. I never could quite get behind using an expensive bag to tote around germy school papers/supplies, and I don't often travel...so day-to-day it is. I bought this organizer last winter. It has a zipper pocket in the middle and most organizers don't. The "medium" size fits a Large Le Pilage Tote.

While I would really enjoy the idea of using one of my favorite crossbody bags right now, it's just not practical. Wells goes everywhere I go, so it's nice to just stuff any necessities in one bag and not worry about whether I have a diaper bag with me at all times. I usually still keep the diaper bag in the car and just reload it once a week or so if we've been out and about a lot. It also gets reloaded after every playgroup (toys get washed, snacks get replenished, etc).

But, day to day, it's nice that I can just grab one bag and go out the door. I needed to clean this bag out after a few weeks anyway, so I figured I'd take a couple of pictures.

From the top, clockwise:

Wells' snacks, dog bag(?), stuck-in-traffic snacks, lots of change that I put in the change jar, cheap sunglasses, water bottle, toddler jacket and extra pair of socks (?), wallet (Fossil, < $50), pouch with chapstick, hand sanitizer, etc; receipts to be thrown away, multiple shopping lists to be thrown away, trash...to be thrown away.

In the middle is the anniversary band Scott got me for our 10 year anniversary this year (I think I forgot to share it here)...it was in the side pocket because jewelry bothers me if there's anything messy happening and I took it off for some reason or another. Whoops. 

Rose gold, right hand ring. 

And I refilled the snack container. I haven't gotten a fancy one (the non-spilling kind) because baby dishes/supplies can quickly take over your kitchen, and he does pretty well with just this. Also, he drinks really well out of my water bottle so I generally only take this one with us, and not his own cup, when we go on short trips out of the house. I haven't made use of the cupholder on his carseat yet. 

Other posts filed under "Purse" can be found here. There's a lot of them. 

How did you transition in your "purse life" after a baby? It's slightly more complicated for me than it used to be!