simplymommy.

a home with less in it

Less stuff. More childhood.

Keep-counts, inflow rules, and quiet-house thinking for parents who suspect the toys have won — from a former retail buyer who knows exactly how they did.

Start here

8 to 10 toys.

Toys in reach, for a toddler. The essay has the count for every age.

How Many Toys Does a Child Actually Need?

How many toys a child actually needs, in working keep-counts by age: what research suggests, the short-shelf test, and kind ways to hold the number.

Toy Minimalism ·

How Many Toys Does a Child Actually Need?

Newest

The six latest, by date.

Everything, counted

All 61 essays, lowest number first. 48 state a number. 13 do not, and are listed last.

Filed by subject

  • 25 essays.

    Minimalist Family

    Starting points for minimalism with kids: why less works, what the research says, and how to begin without a family mutiny.

  • 8 essays.

    Toy Minimalism

    How many toys a kid actually needs, the short shelf that covers everything, and the rules that keep the count from creeping back.

  • What to Do With Outgrown Kids' Clothes

    5 essays.

    Kids’ Capsule Wardrobe

    Kids’ capsule wardrobes: how many clothes they really need, seasonal checklists, and hand-me-down rules that keep drawers closing.

  • 13 essays.

    Buy Less, Buy Right

    Fewer, better things: one excellent pick per category, buy-it-once family gear, and kind ways to slow the stuff coming in.

  • 10 essays.

    Simple Seasons

    Holidays and milestones with less: the four gift rule, clutter-light Christmas, and gift boundaries that keep the peace.