Real Life Solutions

One of the biggest battles in any home is getting the kids to clean their rooms.  If you build in success, by providing them the tools, it’ll make it easier on everyone. 

When selecting the storage for your child’s room, be sure that it’s something that the child can use.  There are tons of options, from plastic storage bins, the fold up cardboard under-bed boxes and drawers and build-it-yourself furniture, and don’t forget garage sales.  Take your child with you when getting new storage, to make sure it will be user friendly.

Younger children have trouble opening heavy dresser drawers, so consider using cardboard box storage, or open stacking baskets.   Use the dressers for out of season clothes until they are older.  Put stickers on the drawers to show what goes in each one, so they can start learning to put away their own clothes. You can find a wide variety of stickers in scrap booking supplies.

Clear plastic bins are great for toys.  The lids are usually easy to work and the children can see what’s in the box.  It’s also fun to label the storage with bright pictures of what goes in each box.  Stuffed animals can multiply like rabbits, but storing them on a Velcro covered pole is fun and helps decorate the room.  A large decorative laundry basket can make good storage for the stuffed animals as well.

By sorting the toys into groups, and storing some in either the basement or garage, you can limit the amount of toys in their rooms at one time.  Rotate which toys they have once a month or so, helping limit boredom with the toys.  This is also a good time to sort out the things the kids no longer play with or have gotten too old for, and either pass things on or have a garage sale.

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Valentine’s Day is just around the corner.  Candy, flowers and cards can be so expensive these days. Wouldn’t you rather make homemade valentines? If so, here is how making homemade valentines saves money.

If you have a computer, this is your first link to making homemade valentines cards. Using Photoshop or other card-making software is not only fun, but easy to use. You can make scores of valentine cards within no time.

Perhaps you’d like to make a valentine wreath for your door.  That’s easy enough!
Find some red fabric of different textures and make heart shapes. Then stuff them with newspaper to give them fullness. You can make several hearts and sew them together to form a larger heart which you can then add to a round piece of wire.

How about a valentine basket?  Fill the basket with homemade heart shaped cookies. Be sure to use red icing; or even red food coloring would suffice.  Add some Hershey chocolate kisses in red foil and set it out on your table for your family to enjoy.  Using your baking skills to prepare a homemade valentine cake. You can even shape it into a heart. Surprise your family after dinner!

Make a valentine heart for your loved one by taking some red construction paper; glue; and write your heartfelt sentiment on it, then sprinkle colored sparkles on the glue and hang it so that your spouse can see it as soon as they walk in the door.  You can even cut out tiny hearts with red construction paper and stream it across a wall in your home. Write notes of love on each one!

It doesn’t take much to make homemade valentines.  Just imagination and a few items can really make a splash without having to spend a fortune. It’s the thought that counts!

Kids like to create things.  Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to let them get creative.  Here are some ideas to get them started.

If there are girls in your child’s class, jewelry is a good craft.  Stores sell kits to create bracelets, necklaces and rings.  Your kids can visit a craft store and choose their own necklace material and the beads to go on them.  In keeping with the theme of the day, they can choose heart-shaped beads in various colors and a necklace material that is suitable for school age little girls.  Create one necklace yourself so that they can see how it is done.  Matching bracelets can be made using the same beads.

Kids can give their teachers a bouquet of roses.  These aren’t just any roses!  These special roses are made of tissue paper and pipe cleaners.  Show kids how to fold the tissue paper and wrap it around the pipe cleaners.  The flowers can be presented in a vase or with a ribbon tied around them.

Candy is still the most popular thing to use for crafts.  Instead of beads, use candy to create bracelets for boys in the class.  Candy pieces can be strung over a piece of string.  It’ll look nice at first and the boys can nibble on the candy throughout the day, kind of like a snack on the go.

Valentine’s Day crafts can be created for family members.  If grandma is into flowers, kids can give them a flower pot with seeds and a little bag of potting soil.  Using paints, kids can decorate the pots in Valentine’s Day fashion. 

Instead of buying packs of Valentine’s Day cards, let the kids use a card program and make their own for other members of the family.  They can add whatever they want to the card.  Some cards come blank for the kids to write what they want or with cute sayings already inside.

Kids can make Valentine’s Day decorations for the house to put everyone in the mood to express their love.  Using a piece of string, construction paper, scissors and glue, they can create a banner to be hung in the kitchen or anywhere in the house.  Each paper heart can contain one letter in the words “Valentine’s Day”. 

Make arrows for the boys so that they can pretend to be Cupid.  Instead of metal, use wooden skewers as the arrow.  Styrofoam pieces in the shape of hearts can be painted red and stuck on the end of the skewer.  Pieces of ribbon can be glued to the other end to act as feathers on the arrow.  To create a quiver for the arrows, use an empty cereal box.

Your child can make a Valentine’s Day box for each child to hold their precious cards.  The boxes can be purchased at a dollar store.  If the boxes are not already decorated for the occasion, kids can use markers or paint to add hearts to the box.  Write each child’s name on the outside of the box.  A piece or candy can be added to the box so that the kids don’t open it and find it empty.

Valentine’s Day is fun for kids.  They get to have a good time making crafts for others and enjoying gifts given to them.