Summer Fun with a Treasure Hunt

Round up some pirates booty and get the kiddos outdoors for some summer fun with a sandbox treasure hunt. Argh!

My kids both went to a pirate themed birthday party recently so I happened to have a pile of gold plastic coins, or "golden blooms" as we call them, and beaded "pirates treasure" necklaces. So when my husband picked up some new bags of sand for the sandbox, we decided to do a treasure hunt.

We tossed in the golden blooms and pirate treasures as we dumped in the bags of sand. Then the kids dug away filling their buckets with the treasures they uncovered. It was a great way to keep them outside and busy, especially if your like me and forget to count your golden blooms and necklaces. Oops! Just keep digging, I'm sure there's more. ;)

In fact, my five year old had so much fun, I have had to re-bury his bucket of treasures three times now. Then I just sit back, watch, maybe enjoy a glass of Yellow Tail and enjoy the sunshine and quiet while he digs till his little hearts content. Now that's what I call success!

10 tips for de-cluttering and organizing your kids toys

As your searching aimlessly through the playroom for that missing game piece or the yellow hotwheel that your son is insisting he needs now or his world is going to come crashing down, you step on a pile of little green army men. Certain that one of them has pierced through the bottom of your foot and your pretty sure you'll never be able to walk again, or at least for the next five minutes while you cringe in pain, you think to yourself that's it! Something has to be done about this mess. Well let me tell you, Ive been there. My kids playroom was so unorganized that the kids didn't even play in it, which meant more toys scattered throughout the rest of the house. So together we took on, Mission: Playroom Clean-up.

Now that summer is over and your kids are bound to be spending more time in the house, it is the perfect time to de-clutter and organize those toys. Here are ten tips to get you started:

1. Out with the old to make way for the new.
We try and keep to the rule that for every new toy we get, an old toy has to go. This will not  only limit the number of toys your kids have, but it also teaches them the value of their toys. They will think twice about asking for a new toy when they understand that they have to choose an old one to get rid of in its place.

2. Get your kids involved.
Let your kids help, it is technically their space. They will take pride in the finished project knowing they had a say in it. Besides your kids love spending time with you and feeling needed.

3. Take advantage of the Holiday Season and Birthdays.
These is in my opinion are the best and easiest times of the year for clearing out old toys both for you and your kids. Make room for all the new gifts kids will receive during these times by allowing them to help determine what toys they no longer play with and have them accompany you to donate them. My kids are more then willing to get rid of old toys during these times knowing that we are making room for newer ones. Explain why and where you will be donating their old unused toys and take advantage of this great opportunity to teach your kids to appreciate what they have.

4. Storage is key.
Forget the big toy box and invest in a great shelving system. I love to use cubbies. My favorite is the expedit bookcase from Ikea. We use ours on it's side so that it doubles as a TV console as well. Its really a great and affordable bookcase that leads to my next tip:

5. Baskets, Bins and Buckets.
By using cubbies such as those in the Expedit bookcase you are able to use baskets, bins, and even buckets to store smaller toys. By storing toys in smaller compartments like these rather then in one big toy chest, it prevents your kids from emptying every toy they own out onto the floor at one time.

6. Divide, Conquer, and Label.
Divide toys into separate categories for each storage compartment you are using. For instance, we keep superheros and action figures in one basket and cars, planes and trains in another. This makes it so much easier when searching for a specific toy and eliminates having to empty every basket. Labeling each container will help your kids determine what goes where. Pictures can be used as a way of labeling if your child is too young to read.

7. Put those stuffed animals to use.
I hate stuffed animals! I'm just putting it out there. If your not careful, these things will take over your home. I have one small basket designated for stuffed animals and the rest go up in a stuffed animal hammock, but I recently discovered the coolest storage idea for all those stuffed animals. Behold the Animal Bag. This clever take on the traditional bean bag is pure genius!

8. Up, up, and away.
Some things just need to be put up, high up, and out of reach. I keep games, puzzles, and anything with multiple pieces up in the closet. These are the things that require permission to be played with. Of course permission to use these means all other toys must be put away where they belong first.

9. Display your kids art.
Eliminate piles of your kids art work by displaying their portraits in frames. Easily rotate their artwork using the Lil Davinci Art Gallery. Way cool!

10. Decorate with Fun!
Let the kids choose a theme for the room or even a color scheme. We have a Toy Story shelf where the kids place all their Toy Story figurines so that they double as decor for the room. A fun rug with roads for their cars or a hopscotch design are also fun ways of decorating while encouraging play.

Last but not least, be sure to set some ground rules and set up a routine for picking up toys in order to keep your new space organized and ready for play.

I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hot Wheels® blogging program, for a gift card worth $40. For more information on how you can participate, click here

Get outdoors and Fall into Fun!

Fall is the perfect time of year to get outside and play with your kids. As the long summer days come to an end, the leaves Begin to change and milder temperatures set in, why not get the family outdoors for some last minute fun in the sun. I love this time of year!
Whether its at the park, the beach, or even our own backyard, I love to be outside! My kids drive me crazy when we're cooped up in the house all day. I try and take them to the playground at least once a week. This gives me a chance to do nothing but sit and relax. Bring a few snacks, a toy car (we don't go anywhere without toy cars in hand) and some sand toys and my kids could stay at the park all day. The best part is when we get home and they crash! There is always something about being outdoors and the fresh air that just knocks my kids out.

Now, I know that with school, soccer, errands and just keeping up with household chores, that spending the afternoon at the park isn't always feasible, but a few hours in your own backyard can be just as fun. Let your kids help out with some yard work. My kids love raking leaves and watering my flowers. If your fortunate enough like we are, the weather will be warm enough that after watering the flowers your kids can turn the hose on themselves or fill up the kiddie pool for some old fashioned fun.

Don't worry, if the cooler temperatures of fall prevent you from getting wet with your kids you can still pull out the kiddie pool. Just fill it up with balls, soft sided blocks or even sand. Who doesn't like a sandcastle? Team up and make a friendly sandcastle competition. Winner's choose what game to play next. Kick the soccer ball? Keep away with the Frisbee? Sidewalk chalk? We make hopscotch boards with ours and my 4 year old and I use the chalk for  practicing his letters.

By far our families favorite thing to do outdoors is picnics. Whether its lunch at the beach or dinner at the park, my kids love to eat outside! The greatest part is hearing my 4 year old say, "You wanna know why I like picnics so much?... Because, I get to be with my whole family!" Now if that's not reason enough to turn off the TV, put away the video games and leave your cell phones at home for a day, then I don't know what is.

Still need a little motivation to get your family outside for some fun? Take the Clorox2 Play 2Day pledge to play outside! September 24, 2011 marks the 8th annual Worldwide Day of Play which is the centerpiece of Nickelodeon's The Big Help, a program that supports health and wellness amongst kids and family. As a sponsor of Nickelodeon's Worldwide Day of Play, Clorox is encouraging families to to do just that, turn off the TV and get out and play! So visit http://clorox2play2day.com and take the challenge. Oh, and go ahead and get dirty! Clorox will get the tough stains out. ;)

Disclosure: “I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Clorox2® blogging program, for a gift card worth $40. For more information on how you can participate, click here.” (make sure you link to http://clorox2.socialmoms.com/about)