I knew it was going to be difficult to take back my so called man cave, it's never been mine to begin with. Pretty much from the moment we decided to finish off the space there has been kids toys everywhere. I have tried without much success making an adult only area, but who am I kidding, it's become basically a kids cave over the past few years.
Part of the problem is me.
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It's been my responsibilty to clean out some of the old toys, mainly the baby ones that they no longer play with. Normally you would think that this would be an easy thing to do, but I've gotten really attached to these toys and amazingly, I CAN"T LET THEM GO. There are memories in these toys that I just can't seem to shake. I can vividly picture times where me and the boys would be playing with certain things, and it gets me sad.
If there is an underlying theme to this blog it's that I am having a hard time seeing my kids grow up. You probably would have thought it's about mine and my boys obsession with legos, that is partly the case, but not a week goes by that I don't look at them and see what big kids they have become.
A trip into my basement is a trip back in time.
I look to my right and there is one of those Fisher Price talking seats. I can imagine little Carter sitting in it and flipping through the little attached book and hearing it say "The kitty says meow." Or there is a little Elmo table that Tyler used to pull himself up to when he first started to stand up. I can still hear Cookie Monster saying, "C is for cookies, that's good enough for me. Yum yum yum." You see where I am going with this, everywhere that I turn I am reminded that EVERYONE is getting a little bit older. I know that they won't play with these toys anymore and my wife and I are probably NOT going to have any more kids, so here they sit, batteries dying hoping that one day maybe they get played with once again.
Only I know that they won't.
There are boxes of toys that the kids used to play with. It seems now that the only thing that they are interested in are video games. The TV that I bought with hopes of watching endless sporting events has turned into the boys own little arcade. I don't mind that so much, at least they enjoy it. I just need them to realize how much they enjoyed playing with all of their old toys.
The best thing for us to do is get rid of these things, donate them to people that will use them. They are not doing any good on the floor of my basement, only making it harder and harder for me to let go of them. One day all of these toys will be gone but my basement will still be full.
Full of memories.
I can absolutely understand where you are coming from, lucky for me as my children have grown up they have decided that taking toys apart is more fun than playing with them, so having the task of throwing stuff out or getting rid of things is very easy at least for us.
ReplyDeleteBut i definitely agree that if they are just taking up space and not being used although they hold lovely memories for you, you should donate them if they are in good condition, there is far to many children out there that never get as much as some children do and would love them, and i'm sure you would feel amazing inside knowing that you were able to give some other little boy or girl some happiness that you also had with your children.
But i get what you mean mate, seeing your children grow up is never easy and i think it comes down to the fact that as they grow you realise you have grown and as they age you realise you have aged, and who in there right mind like getting older :)
Great post mate.
All THOSE toys will be gone, but that room will never be empty of toys. They'll just change. While you may have wanted a man-cave, that room sounds like it's officially a playroom. Once it gets that label it will probably never change.
ReplyDeleteAnd you know what? A playroom with your kids is a pretty good option for a man-cave.
It's all too easy to look back and see how fast the time is going by. Just yesterday it seems like we were having our first girl, now it's number four we're waiting on. Time just flys by and it is easy to try to hold onto that little something that reminds us of them growing. That's what pictures are for and they take up a lot less room.
ReplyDeleteI understand where you are coming from and it is very difficult. Ben, you hit the nail on the head, "seeing your children grow up is never easy and i think it comes down to the fact that as they grow you realise you have grown and as they age you realise you have aged, and who in there right mind like getting older :)" I wish my kids still played with toys because now all they do is watch TV or play on the computer. I know this is not good for them. My kids have never really been good at playing independently. I struggle with feeling guilt on my part, that it is my fault. I, too, need to clean out our playroom closet. It is a mess and the only time the poor toys are played with are when we have guests. It all kind of makes me sad...but wonderful thought provoking post. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHoly sheety man. And I thought we had lots of stuff.. You can have a mancave and a play room all in one. I used to have a mancave but gave it up and now the kids have 2 playrooms downstairs. Now I want my shit back
ReplyDeleteI don't know, it looks fine to me?
ReplyDeleteThis is a great time to do something with the toys... think of so many people on really tight budgets who would love to have great toys for their kids. That would be awesome! (even if its a bit hard on you.)
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine says he take his kids to donate their old toys right around the holidays. I might just do that, before the influx of new toys comes in.
ReplyDeleteYou should see my attic! You CAN NOT get in it easily because of all the baby toys. I haven't gotten there yet to part with some of them. Have a garagesale! Moms are ALWAYS looking for inexpensive toys for their kids! And grandmas! And make alittle money too!
ReplyDeleteAnd you will never get your basement back. The kids will always find a way to take it over! Give it up! It's useless. Wait til they're about 25, then you may have a chance! LOL!