Impulse Clear Out

I really should have taken photos! I started clearing off the 9 year old's bookcase of picture books this afternoon - so many of his favourites/ my favourites. Mot have been re- arranged onto the master big bookcase in the lounge and I cannot bare to throw very many out at all! I have my favourite picture book authors which we have collected for years like Margaret Mahy, Joy Cowley, Gavin Bishop, Betty and Alan Gilderdale, Grandma McGarvey, Pamela Allen, John Burningham - we have many titles of all of these authors and ones more of the first board books etc up in the attic!

This then led onto a damn good vacuum clean of his entire room - yikes! I think with my new glasses I am able to see the dust a bit more. The walls need to be attacked seriously with a damp cloth!
This then led to me opening the wardrobe door - h,mm what 9 year old colours in colouring books? None I know! The scary thing is finding all these brand new ones that were never used... And scrapbook after scrapbook and tiny tiny notebooks and notepads and puzzle books - a food clear. Then we started looking in the toy bins! Wow! A good chuck out!
Then moving around of things and I finally ended up with 4 decent sized plastic bins empty!!! That is one decent clear out / tidy up I think!

The dress ups all went up into the attic - I have so many fond memories of so many of these outfits - esp with this child who had the most bizarre sense of dress when at kindergarten!
He is left with a TON of Lego, lots and lots of playmobil, mobilo, board games , science kits and very little junk!

Hooray - a great impulse clear out - totally in- intended but always great before Christmas!

Do you do this before Christmas? What are good staple toys in your house? ( I hate junk and have always bought quality over quantity!