How To Properly Move Children’s Toys

Relocating with children can be a real challenge for parents. A lot of attention is paid to the psychological impact that moving may have on kids and rightly so. Stress, fear of the unknown, loss of friends, disconnection from familiar surroundings – these are only a fraction of the factors that may have a negative effect on a child’s psyche. And there’s not a shadow of a doubt that any issue related to your children’s emotional well-being should be treated with top priority and utmost care.

And yet, there is another, usually neglected, aspect of the relocation with young children that is of significant importance as well – their toys. You, as a parent, know that toys play an immense role in their world and are the faithful companions that bring hours and hours of fun, enjoyment and laughter.

Here are what measures should be taken during the processes of sorting, packing and unpacking in order to best protect your children’s fragile toys during the period of relocation.

Sorting

Every toy should be given a second chance to delight and entertain.

If your children are old enough, it’s best that you sit down and decide together which toys are worth taking to your new home and which ones are not. If, however, they are too young to participate in this process, then you will have to decide for them.

The first step is to separate all of the toys that are broken or too old to be used again from the rest, for example, by placing them in one big box. However, don’t be quick to throw them away yet – why not have a second good look at each one and determine if it can be fixed, either by you or somebody else, and reused as a source of entertainment? Sometimes it takes just a tiny bit of effort to give a second chance to specific toy to delight once more. And by doing so, you will also prove that you’re a responsible consumer who cares not only about the environment, but about your own budget as well. And don’t forget to use proper disposal methods for the purpose of recycling any broken-beyond-repair toys.

Once in a while your children may have not appreciated enough, for some reason or another, certain playthings. It is even possible that some toys have never been played with. In either case, there is no reason why they shouldn’t bring a smile on the face of some other kid. Therefore, the best thing you can do with them is give them away to friends or neighbors, or donate them to neighborhood preschools, schools or various charitable organizations.

Packing

Having successfully sorted out the toys that are worth moving to your new home, now it’s time that you properly packed them. First of all, you should look for the original packaging of the toys since they have been designed to best store them during transportation. The more original packages you are able to find, the better. Then, provide additional good boxes of various sizes, as well as plenty of packing supplies, such as wrapping paper, bubble wrap, tape, etc. And finally, pay attention to the following packing tips which, for your convenience, have been classified in accordance with the types of toys:

Plush stuffed animals

For best results, wrap stuffed animals individually with wrapping paper or clean cloth pieces and place them in waterproof plastic bags. Avoid stuffing them together in boxes without any good protection against dust and water – these are the toys that your children carry all around the house, frequently hug and occasionally kiss, and therefore they need to be impeccably clean at all times.

Construction sets, jigsaw puzzles and model kits

Caution: A single missing part could ruin an entire construction set.

It’s essential that you use their original packaging since it’s been specifically designed for safe storage. If you have found the packages in poor shape or if you haven’t found them at all, then you can use any boxes of similar size with good lids. If possible, disassemble any set, puzzle or kit, carefully put the pieces in a re-sealable zipper storage bag, like Ziploc, and then place the bag in the appropriate box. Take your time here and be extra cautious, for an entire construction set, a jigsaw puzzle or a model kit will be ruined even if one tiny piece ends up missing. And finally, make sure you seal the box with tape well enough and repeat the steps for any other set.

Miniature motor vehicles

Plastic and metal toy models (cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, etc.) need to be packed separately so that damage to the more fragile plastic ones is avoided. Furthermore, make sure each metal motor vehicle is wrapped individually, preferable in bubble wrap, to avoid possible surface scratches. Additional care should be provided when dealing with radio controlled models and their remote controls because they are particularly vulnerable and may be easily broken.

Dolls and action figures

Once again, individual wrapping is the way to go here. Most of the dolls and action figures are made of plastic, and therefore can be easily destroyed. Use plenty of bubble wrap and wrapping paper to avoid any damage during the moving process.

Russian nested dolls are a joy to look at and guarantee hours and hours of fun. The first Matryoshka doll set was carved in 1890.

Creative, educational or sound toys

The trick here is to make sure that not a single piece of any game is lost and no battery-operated sound toy is subjected to moisture of any kind. Also, these toys tend to be bigger in size than the ones mentioned so far, and so their wrapping should be done in accordance with their dimensions.

High-tech gadgets

If you children are old enough, they may already be in possession of some expensive electronic equipment, like computers, game consoles, tablets, smartphones, etc. You will have to handle such high-tech gadgets extremely carefully and it’ll be much safer if they never leave your side while relocating to your new home. However, you may decide to use the services of a reputable moving company for some of the more bulkier electronic gadgets (a desktop computer, for example), in which case you’ll find this guide very useful.

Books

While hunting for suitable boxes for your kids’ books, have in mind that they usually come in bigger sizes than most other books. It’s common knowledge that books are heavy and therefore it’s relatively easy to go over the weight limit of around 50 lbs. per box when packing them. Moreover, in order to avoid damage to the spines, you should pack books flat as opposed to having them stand on their ends.

Most loved toys

It’s a great idea to single out a few of your children’s most favorite toys and reserve them for your relocation survival kit. They will come in extremely handy in case your kids need to be entertained either by you or a hired babysitter during the last or first day(s) at you old or new home respectively.

Unpacking

Once you arrive at your new house, it’s time to unpack. And the more time and efforts you have dedicated to packing, the quicker and easier the unpacking process will be. Should you notice that the integrity of any toy boxes have been compromised during the transportation, then you will have to clean the corresponding playthings before you let your children play with them again.

Most stuffed animals can be put directly in the washing machine but make sure you read their labels before doing so. Other plush animals, especially the ones that produce sounds, may not be washer safe and will have to be surface washed by hand. Disinfecting wipes are ideal for easily disinfecting the surfaces of most toys. In reality, there are many cleaning chemicals for different uses on the market today. A word of caution: before you decide to use a specific chemical to disinfect toys, you should always read the label and follow the instructions strictly. Of course, using the professional services of a dry cleaner is also an option if all homemade cleaning solutions fail.

Toys are fundamental tools for developing children’s fantasy and creativity.

The best piece of advice that you will probably ever get is to start the relocation preparations as early as possible (ideally right after the decision to change homes has been made). And never underestimate the time it takes to sort, pack, move and unpack your children’s toys. Be ready with different types of storage bags, sturdy boxes and packing supplies well before you start the packing process. Don’t forget to mark the boxes FRAGILE and HANDLE WITH CARE once you have packed them to the best of your abilities.

Oh, and one more thing: if you’ve come across too many broken toys during the sorting process, maybe it’s high time you taught your old-enough-to-understand children how important it is to take care of their belongings. And since youngsters do look up to their parents, you should lead by example – remember to demonstrate care toward your own personal possessions.