Why we are doing a ‘no toy’ Christmas

No more clutter.

During my endeavor this past year to get rid “stuff,” I found myself wondering how in the world our children ended up with so many toys. Half of them I don’t even remember buying or receiving (#mombrain) and more than half of them, sadly, were never played with.

Because of this, it felt great to give many of these toys to households that might have more use for them. And it now feels so unnecessary to invite clutter back into our now clear, spacious closets.

Christmas is more than clutter.

Aside from the clutter aspect , Christmas in our household represents so much more than toys under the tree. I don’t want our children to be distracted from the real reason we celebrate this holiday by a shiny new toy they don’t need.

I want them to learn about giving without the concept being tied only to possessions in their mind. I want them to understand that giving doesn’t always come in the form of an object.

We are, however, still giving gifts—ones that are meaningful to our family.

I recently read an article about the things your children remember most about their childhood, and toys were not on that list— experiences were. Activities we did together as a family are the memories I cherish most about my childhood.

Sure, when given the option of a toy or a family outing at age eight, I probably would have chosen a toy—but if you ask me now what toy I received Christmas morning when I was eight, I couldn’t tell you. What I can tell you is all about the Christmas play I was in, the nativity scene we put together and the Christmas tree farm we visited.

I want my children to have those same types of memories. ✨

Meaningful, thoughtful gifts are another one of those things that I not only love to receive but I also enjoy putting together as well. Photo gifts, personalized books, keepsake boxes and arts and crafts have all become great options for our family and are generally budget-friendly , too!

When I made this decision about Christmas, I knew I had to go all in—so we decided to extend this practice to our gift-giving plans for extended family members as well. I communicated that we will not accept toys this year (unless they are okay with them being donated) and that gifts at all weren’t necessary—although memorable and experience-based gifts were warmly accepted, as we would be doing the same.

It’s possible our children might be slightly disappointed when they don’t receive the toy(s) they asked for and they will probably feel a shift in the gifts they will receive. But I have a feeling that Christmas will be just as joyous and magical as previous years, with even more memories to cherish.