At any given time, in any home where small humans reside, there are toys. Lots and lots of toys. And in my house, they mostly have to do with princesses and ponies, dollies, books, costumes and more. Also at any given time, will there be leftovers. The remains of moments of play, sometimes fleeting, sometimes intricate, but when the focus is gone, so are said humans. And what remains is that carnage.

If you don’t know how it feels to step on a LEGO piece, I encourage you to try it, or just image the pain that surges through your body upon impact. It hurts.

A lot!

It hurts just the same if you step on a Little Pony, a Bubble Guppie or a dolls’ hairbrush. They are all hard and colourful bits of plastic and feel the same underfoot; painful.

We tell our kids to clean up all the time, and while I will say that the Little Bird is very good, impressive in fact, about cleaning up, the Little Mouse is….well, not so much. In fact, she’s been known to run in the other direction once it’s time to tidy up. Threats of losing the toys or time outs doesn’t have any impression on her.

She could care less, in fact.

Sometimes the Little Bird will clean it up. Sometimes a small miracle happens and the Little Mouse does a little housekeeping, but more often than not, we clean it. It’s in those moments when the floor is littered with toys, when they are under the couch and on the furniture and are spilling into the hallway when I think, they have too many toys.

So, I dodge the carnage and try my best not to step on the landmines.

Wishing all parents safety in living rooms everywhere!