My son is now officially three. After the cake was eaten and the wrapping paper cleaned up, I looked around the house and realized this kid has acquired quite a toy collection. If there's one thing I feel very strongly about as a parent, it's avoiding a house filled with toys, so it looks like we have some work to do.

Sure, part of the fun of being a kid is ripping open your presents on your birthday - I don't want to take that away from him - but I don't want to add to all the junk that's cluttering our planet when he ends up outgrowing all these toys. This year we tried buying less and finding presents that would hold his interest for years to come.

We did buy one toy from our favorite toy maker that also happens to be environmentally and socially conscious. Plan Toys makes safe, sustainable wooden toys from recycled and recyclable materials and non-toxic dyes. There are plenty of other eco-conscious toy makers that can help you focus on quality instead of quantity.    

Even though my husband and I have tried keeping toys to a bare minimum, gifts from relatives and friends can add up. So one activity for next week will be for us to go through Kellan's toys together and have him help me pick out ones to give away. I'm not sure exactly how well that's going to go over, but he often responds better to things than I give him credit for. Maybe if I tell him a truck is coming to pick it up, he'll be excited about giving things away.

Do you have any Earth-friendly toy advice to share?