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Easy Dress Up Station

July 16, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Are dress up clothes taking over your house? I have enough issues with regular laundry to then pile on top a bunch of princess costumes, my house was becoming a wreck quickly. I wanted to create an area in our play room that would be fun to play and use but that would also create some organization for all of the stuff! This easy dress up station was just the right fit for our little princess.

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By creating some order to our princess mess, I found that my daughter is actually playing with this stuff! Before she either couldn’t find her stuff because it was wherever she dropped it or I had shoved it in the bottom of the closet in an attempt to clean up. Now that she can easily see her pretty dresses and jewels, she usually becomes Belle or Sophia once or twice a week!

And if LOL Surprise Dolls are also becoming tiny little residents in your home, check out this LOL Organizer.

What you Need for the Easy Dress Up Station:

Adjustable Garment Rack

Princess Wall Art

Wood Wall Clear Knob Organizer – I got mine at Hobby Lobby and can’t find the exact same thing. These are really pretty and these are reasonably priced and would be cute.

Lots of Princess dresses, play jewelry and little girl high heels.

Setting Up the Easy Dress Up Station

The adjustable garment rack took less than 15 minutes to put together and that was the first thing that I did. Once that was ready, my daughter helped me hang up all of her princess dresses. The dress up area isn’t just limited to princess costumes. She can dress up as a chef, vet, or a girly super hero.

I stored extra dress up clothes and play shoes at the bottom of the rack. (Don’t mind that missing Elsa from the blue shoe! Hey, they still work!)

Next, I had my daughter stand in front of where the mirror would go. I did this because I wanted it to be a “kid friendly” mirror. (not hung so high that she wouldn’t even be able to see her face)! We hung the mirror so that she could see her full princess ball gown in all it’s glory.

The princess wall art was hung level with the top of the mirror. The hooks went right under the art so that she could easily reach her purses and jewels.

I set our vanity next to the easy dress up station so that she can move right on to hair and make up once she gets dressed. I love that this area provides a fun play area for kids to use their imagination. Plus it helps to get the princess dress mess off my floor.

If your pretend play costumes are causing chaos, I hope you try this super easy dress up station solution for your playroom! Once your playroom is in order, check out this bathtub toy organizer hack so that you can see the bottom of your tub again!

Red, White And Blue Toddler Trail Mix

July 4, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Looking for a healthy treat for your toddler on this 4th of July? I love trail mix snacks because they are super easy to put together and very versatile. It is a great way to use up things in your pantry. Am I the only one that finds exact 7 pieces of cereal in a box? Like seriously, eat it or throw it away! Anyway, this red, white and blue toddler trail mix is a cute way to celebrate patriotic holidays with your little one!

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Red, White and Blue Toddler Trail Mix

For this red, white and blue toddler trail mix , I used some of our favorite snacks that are always in our pantry. My 4 year old even joined in to help me put it all together. It is a great activity for a younger child to help with because you don’t even need to measure.

Ingredients

Since it is July 4th, a patriotic theme was on my mind. I wanted to select red, white and blue things for this mix that would be appealing to young kids.

The Red

Dried Strawberries

Dried Cranberries

The White

Greek Yogurt Covered Craisins

Cheerios (Frosted Cheerios would be even more fun!)

The Blue

Dried Blueberries

Star Shaped Blueberry Puffs (I didn’t have these but they would be a great addition since they are in a fun Star Shape)

Of course use your judgement and don’t feed your babies something that they are not ready for at the stage that they are in. I picked out things that my 8 month old could eat and allowed my 4 year old to eat as she pleased.

Red, White & Blue Toddler Trail Mix Assembly

Trail mix is the best to make because you literally just dump everything together. I used about 1 cup of cereal and about a 1/2 a cup of the other items. To be honest, I didn’t measure. I just grabbed handfuls of things but if you want to measure, that is the ratio that I would use.

My little helper assisting in the process. Check out the cute little photo bomb. He was wanting to help but was satisfied by a few Cheerios instead.

Here she is snacking on her red, white and blue toddler trail mix.

If you are looking for other healthy ideas for your kids, check out this No Sugar Added Georgia Peach Oatmeal. It has a great texture for kids that hate mushy oats and is naturally sweet.

What is your favorite, healthy 4th of July snack?

American Flag Graham Cracker Treat for Kids

July 4, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Happy 4th of July! Today I am bringing you a last minute patriotic snack that you can make for your kids (or have them help with). The American flag graham cracker treat is ultra simple and you probably have everything that you need on hand to make this fun and mostly healthy treat.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

One of my new goals this year is to do things. For whatever reason, I have a bad habit of making beautiful Pinterest boards, loads of lists and tons of projects in my mind but then I don’t do them. So this year, I am doing. Even if it isn’t perfect. It might not be Pinterest “worthy,” heck, it might even be a complete fail. But I am making it happen. You know what? My kids are loving it and so am I. It feels good to start and finish something. Even if it is a just a graham cracker that looks like a flag.

American Flag Graham Cracker Treat

You only need a couple of ingredients to make this easy American flag graham cracker snack. I used organic graham crackers, cream cheese, strawberries, blueberries and strawberry jelly.

American Flag Graham Cracker Assembly:

Ya’ll, this is so easy. Just take a graham cracker and spread slightly softened cream cheese across the entire cracker.

Next, place your blueberries in the top left corner. Spread a couple of lines of strawberry jelly across the flag to create some stripes. See how mine are not perfect? Not Pinterest worthy. Not award winning. Just do.

My kids didn’t care that it wasn’t meticulously drawn out. It was fun and holiday themed. It was a tasty treat that was out of the norm and that is what they like.

Add the sliced strawberries onto the strawberry jelly to complete the American flag graham cracker treat.

You can really adapt this idea to whatever you have on hand!

Use toast instead of a graham cracker.

Vanilla icing in place of the cream cheese.

Dried cranberries instead of strawberries. Or Red M&M’s if you are a fun mom! The icing and M&M combo sounds like something I may need to eat! Sorry Kids.

I hope you love this Red, White & Blue American flag graham cracker snack. What is your favorite American food to eat or make on this holiday?

LOL Doll Storage Solution

June 30, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Who would have thought that a tiny little doll with microscopic shoes and accessories would take the little girl world by storm? My 4 year old is completely obsessed with LOL dolls. She walks around with the collector’s guide telling anyone that will listen about all the dolls that she wants. As her collection grows, so does the mess. I wanted an easy LOL doll storage solution that would organize all those small pieces but still be easy for her to access.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

LOL Doll Storage Solution

My first thought was to use a hanging toiletry bag with clear pockets. I still think it would be a good idea, especially to hold a lot of the dolls. I may end up trying it if our collection continues to grow. My daughter has requested “all the LOL dolls” for her birthday. I’m not facilitating that request but if I know her grandfather, I may have more LOL dolls than I want very soon!

We usually set the dolls up on her play table or the kitchen table for play time. When trying to come up with an LOL doll storage solution, I decided that we needed something that would work well on top of a table. Something with lots of compartments is important because of all the tiny pieces.

I spend what feels like hours per week looking for a lost LOL doll shoe that is smaller than my pinkie fingernail. Desperation was setting in for an LOL doll storage solution that would keep all of the stuff in one place.

LOL Dolls Tackle Box Style

I bought 2 different boxes to see what worked best for our stash of dolls. Here is how it went!

Larger Tackle Box Organizer

The larger box worked better with the regular size LOL dolls. I liked that the interior plastic inserts can be removed so you can make some larger compartments for the dolls and you can keep smaller ones available for shoes, clothes and accessories.

Smaller Tackle Box Organizer

The Smaller Tackle box came in a set of 3. These are a lot smaller than the larger ones and work best with the LOL little sisters and accessories.

Hope this helps you reclaim your house from the tiny army of LOL dolls that has overtaken it. If you have a ceramic tile tub that toys have also taken over, check out my post on how to fix that.

How do you organize your kid’s LOL doll stash?

#1 Beach Essentials for Baby (And It Is Not A Baby Pool)

June 25, 2018 by Stacy Craft 7 Comments

Beach Essentials for Baby & 1 Item You Must Take

A beach trip with a baby is not exactly a relaxing mental image. Sand and little hands that go right into the mouth are enough to make any sane mama a little crazy. We just got back from a vacation and there was 1 item that I could not have lived without on the beach! I have also compiled a list of other beach essentials for baby under 1 year old (and some that apply for preschool age too).

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Before you get to the beach, read my Road trip plan for on the road entertainment for kids.

#1 Must Have Beach Item For Baby

You know how you see things and think it is such a simple idea but you just didn’t think of it until it is too late? This is that kind of idea. I will give credit where it is due, my mom actually thought of this. So what is the big secret? We took our Pack N Play to the beach with us. Every day for our 7 day vacation.

My mom mentioned that we might want to consider taking it and I really did not want to at first. It seemed like a pain to drag out to the beach every day. But I am so glad I did. (Ignore the Pink pack n play – this is a frugal blog, I believe in big sister hand me downs).

We had multiple people walk by our tent and tell us that they wished they had brought their Pack N Play. I used it every single time the baby was at the beach.

Pack N Play for Naps

I would pack my portable changing mat and change him from his swim diaper into a dry diaper before nap. I laid a towel down for him but if you had a really young infant, you could bring a crib sheet to tuck in around the mattress.

I would give him a bottle and he would take that and then take his usual nap. Since we were under a tent, the ocean breeze kept him cool and the sound of the waves crashing against the beach was a great natural sound machine.

Pack N Play for Play

After nap, it was time for a little play time! My little one can sit unassisted so I would let him play in the sand a little. But as soon as the sandy fingers started heading for the mouth, we would rinse off in the ocean and head back to the trusty pack n play.

I brought some regular toys (not beach type toys) to play with in the pack n play. He had a great time playing and could put things in his mouth without me worrying about it. He also spent a lot of time standing up and watching people walk by and watching his sister play.

Pack N Play for Snacks

The beach and sand make me cringe. It never fails that when I eat something on the beach I crunch down on a big piece of gritty sand. I can only imagine that my kids are probably eating 25% sand when snacking on the beach! The Pack N Play helped with that for the baby.

I gave him a little bowl with some puffs or sometimes we would just set them on a towel for him. I always had a transitional sippy cup full of ice water for him to make sure that he was hydrated. One day I even took some fresh cut up strawberries in our cooler & put them in the Silicone Fruit Feeder for him (I like these better than the mesh version because they are easier to clean).

Other Top Beach Essentials for Baby

Baby Splash Pad/Pool

Ok, I said my #1 beach essential for baby was NOT a baby pool. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t something awesome to have with us.

With my first baby, I bought a baby pool that was too big. It took 19 years to blow up, it was cumbersome to pack and it took 47 trips to the ocean and back to fill it up with water. This year, I found the ultimate baby pool for the beach!

This baby splash pool is so great for many reasons! It is inexpensive, has a built in back support seat if your baby is still a little wobbly, and a toy ring activity. It also takes no time to blow up (you won’t even need a pump) and with 1 or 2 sand buckets of water, you will be set. Seriously, it is so worth it.

We will use this at home in the back yard too so it was a double win!

10×10 Tent Canopy

You may not think about a tent making a beach essentials for baby list but having lots of shade at the beach is mandatory if you have a new baby! As a family, we all spent more time under the tent than out in the sun so it is a worthy beach item for us.

It also helps prevent your cooler from getting hot & any food or drinks that you brought from warming up.

Sand Bag Anchors

We were the family fishing our tent out of the ocean after a big gust of wind a few years ago. It wasn’t fun, it wasn’t pretty and we had to buy a new tent after the powerful ocean mangled ours to bits. This year we got smart and purchased these sand bags. They were super easy to set up and our tent was safe and sound.

Beach Wagon

We talked about how amazing our wagon was every single day. We used it when we arrived to the condo to unload our car because all the carts provided by the facility were being used. Hauling beach chairs, coolers, toys, and that oh so precious pack n play was much easier with our wagon!

I even saw a couple of people hauling their toddlers around in the wagons!

Other Primary Essentials

Of course you don’t want to forget your beach essentials. Baby Sunscreen (this is the only one that doesn’t break my kids out), beach towels, sand toys, tons of water & snacks.

I hope this list helps you when packing for your baby’s first trip to the beach. The additional beach essentials for baby helped us on our beach vacation. Hopefully they will make your trip easier too! What can you not live without on the beach?!