Too many toys!

My children have too many toys. WAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY too many. And, I've sold/ thrown away/ packed away a bunch of stuff. They just get more faster than I can get rid of the old stuff. Part of the problem is that my in-laws have to give presents to the non-birthday child. WTF? Since I know that they have already bought the boychild a present for his sisters' birthday, I will wait until after then, but then I am going to ask them (read: tell them) not to do it anymore. I don't care that Great Aunt Moppy did it for Bill and Dede. My kids have more toys than they can play with in a week thanks to birthday's that look like Xmas and Xmases that look like a fucking toy store.

And, when they have too many toys, they can't/won't help put them away after they drag them all out because they are tired from all the playing. So, tonight, I have a dress up box full of pretty dresses in time out in my closet because they wouldn't help pick them up.

The den is scattered with puzzles and animals and a pirate ship, too, that I will get to put up because apparently I am the only one bothered by a messy house. And we're going to be away from home for 10 days, starting July 3rd, and I would really like to just keep things tidy until then and not have to clean like mad next week so we don't come home to a messy house. Le sigh.