Set aside a day during the holidays to transform your playroom into Santa's workshop. Unlike the original at the North Pole, yours won't be turning out new toys but recycling old ones--all those outgrown, no-longer-beloved playthings. Have each of your kids select a few old toys to rejuvenate and give to a needy child. They won't be doing any major surgery; truly broken toys should be given a solemn farewell and tossed in the trash. But for the rest, have on hand a damp dust rag (for spiffing up grimy plastic), a bottle of white glue (for attaching googly eyes to a puppet or severed arms to an injured nutcracker) and a hairbrush and ribbons (for dressing up old dolls). Using zip-top bags, your kids can collect small items like doll clothes and action figures and even assemble special themed packages, such as an outer space set made up of miniature aliens, toy rocket ships and glow-in-the-dark stars or a rain forest pack of plastic jungle animals.
When all the toys are groomed and ready to go, arrange to donate them to kids in need. Contact local shelters, church groups and civic organizations to find out how. Your kids will take pride in a good deed well done and you'll marvel at all that extra storage space, at least for a few weeks.