Toys

This past Saturday I was in a dejunking mood. I was ready to get rid of a ton of stuff! I love when I'm in that mood because it doesn't happen all too often.
My main goal was to go through all our toys. It was time to throw away the broken ones and donate the ones that never get used.
I realized my girls are pretty easy on toys so most of the toys were still good. Now came the hard part, which ones do my girls not play with or need anymore? I find it hard to get rid of a toy that I know they play with every once in awhile because I (or someone else) once paid good money for it. So our toys continue to multiple.
My goal each year at this time is to donate some toys to make room for the new toys that will arrive. Last year didn't work so well. I tried to talk to Brooklyn about how some kids had no toys and we had too many so we should share. She had a hard time parting with the baby toys I was giving away. I learned it's best to donate things without her knowledge because it's much easier on everyone that way. However, she usually discovers something is missing and then I basically have to lie and tell her I have no idea where it went. It's horrible I know.
I managed to throw a grocery sized bag of garbage and fast food type toys away without her noticing. I stuffed a few things in a bag for DI and put it in my room. Then I stepped away from the bag to work on Christmas decorating and painting a bed. When I came in to get the DI bags to take them to the DI, the bag was gone. Marty had no idea where the bag was either. I found it shoved in Brooklyn's toy box. She had covered her toy box lid up with stuffed animals so I wouldn't find it. It was obvious where it was. I told her that bag was for the DI and for kids who can't afford toys. I explained we all were giving away things we were no longer using.
Brooklyn immediately started crying about how it was her stuff and no one could take them away. She threw a royal fit! She was willing to not get one of her new Christmas toys if she could just keep the stuff she had. Honestly, I only had two things in the bag that she wanted (both were stuffed animals that never get played with because we have too many).
After trying to talk logic into her and after far too much crying on her part, I caved and let her keep one of the two things. She was happy....for a second.
During the car ride to the DI we had to hear more and more crying and bargaining so she could keep the one thing she still wanted. She hugged the stuffed dog and said her goodbyes the entire way there. When we got there, she wouldn't hand it over, but kept saying she wasn't ready yet. Marty had to eventually take it from her hands because the DI volunteers were waiting. Total. Drama.
She sniffled all the way home and kept saying "saying goodbye is hard sometimes". We agreed that it was. She tugged on my heartstrings a bit. It would have been simple to let her keep it and maybe I should have, but it's gone now. I'm sure she will forever be haunted by this one and it will be one of the few experiences she remembers from her childhood when she's older. Lovely.
She's been fine since. She hasn't talked about it. Nor has she played with the item I did let her keep. Sometimes you just can't win as a parent.
So I'm curious, how do you stop all the toys from multiplying in your house?