Ethan appreciates order in his play. He often arranges all his toy vehicles side by side in a straight line; other times, they follow the rounded perimeter of the rug in front of his dresser. This doesn’t apply to everything, however; TinkerToys and Legos, for instance, like to scatter to the four winds.
As I was helping Ethan get ready for bed, I observed the needed tidy that separated clean bedroom reality from desire. I proposed to Beth that in the future we plan some room cleanup time before bedtime. As always seems to be the case, Ethan was listening. I guess he liked the idea. He picked up his TinkerToys and miscellaneous clutter, leaving his room neat and tidy.
He arranged his vehicles on the floor a bit, but didn’t put them in toy bins. In his mind there was a place for each, and each was in its place.