Sterilization 101

[5 Little Monkeys]

I agree with you, germs in moderation are good to help build up our immunity. However, I clean and sterilize my toys on a fairly regular basis just because I don't want illnesses to spread too much. I also have a group right now that mouth everything!! The toys are disgusting by the end of the day but there is no way I'm washing them all daily. If I see something that has been mouthed a lot, they are to put it in the sink and I'll wash those before the day is over.

I have cut back on my cleaning (partly due to reading this site and seeing I was doing it too much and partly because I'm lazy LOL) I now clean the toys every 1-2 weeks and disinfect them about 1-2 times a month. If a bad cold or flu is going around though, I do it more often. I wipe down the big stuff (play kitchen, doll cribs, library shelf, shopping carts, shelving cubes etc) almost weekly though just because our house is so dusty so I figure if I'm going to dust them, I may as well wipe them down. I also wipe down the light switches and doorknobs weekly. Playpens get wiped down on Fridays and the bedding is done on Friday afternoons.

My books that are accessible to the kids are all board books so they get a wipe down about once a month. Toys that I can't submerge just get wiped down. I sometimes use a damp cloth with a bit of dish soap if they are dirty.

When I need to wash a bunch of toys at once, I throw them in the tub on a Friday and let them air dry all weekend. This usually works fairly well.