Good clean fun

Clean is the new cool. Shows such as TLC’s “Clean Sweep” and “Mission: Organization” dot the lineup on TV listings. Stores such as Organized Living and the Container Store offer ingenious alternatives to those handy plastic buckets from the 99-cents store. But if you have kids, the fight against clutter is beyond obsession; it’s a dismal reality.

Fortunately, Parent magazine and the Play+Store toy line have joined forces to create an alternative to hide-it-under-the-bed storage. The Busy Bonanza bench is a functional and great-looking multipurpose bench that can do double duty as a toy chest and an activity center. Two lids lift for extra storage space, and easy-access bins make more space for kids to keep toys organized. Illustrated spinners on the side teach the ABCs, a colorful abacus makes counting fun, and spinning gears slide along a squiggly track.

Now, if you could just teach them to pick up their wet towels.

Busy Bonanza bench, 31 1/2 inches wide, 16 inches deep and 21 inches tall, is priced at $129.95 and is available at Target.

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-- Lisa Boone