Organize Your Summer...

Last year I posted in depth about how I organized our summer binder. I created a summer binder again this year because I like the way it kept us on track and let me know exactly what free events were going on around town. In our binder I have a calendar for each month and then various flyers, coupons, handouts, etc. that we collect along our way.

Organize Your Summer...

This is my summer binder. It has a calendar for June, July and August (all which are tabbed). It contains any events, receipts, schedules and coupons that we may need for the summer. There is also a section for ongoing. In there I have book logs and other things that we will be participating in for the entire summer. I love this binder. It is a great resource for all of the fun and free things we will be doing this summer.

Summer Bingo Set Up...

I wanted to share my Summer Bingo set up. I have a calendar for the month and a small box to keep his cards and tickets in. I also have a clear organizer that I'm using to keep tickets and the stickers. The organizer is kept in a cabinet above where our calendar and his cards are displayed.

Craft Closet...

Here is a little peek into my craft closet.  I try to keep all my items for kid crafts pretty well organized.  I usually plan out our activities for the week and hang them on the inside of the door.  This makes it easy for me to grab what we're doing while Cole takes his afternoon nap.  I keep supplies that we use regularly near the front of the shelves, and other specialized items towards the back.

Puzzle Storage Ideas...

Cole loves puzzles. The little boxes that they come in take up lots of space. We store all of our puzzles in plastic sandwich bags. I particularly love these quart sized Hefty OneZip bags. I cut out the picture of the puzzle from the cardboard box and then put that picture and all the pieces into a ziploc bag with a slider closing. The slider makes it easy for Cole to open and close them all by himself.

Supplies needed: puzzle, scissors & slider bags

The finished product!

LeapFrog Tag Reading System Activity Cards...

Cole recieved the LeapFrog® Tag Reading System for his 3rd birthday and I must say, it has been a huge hit. With the Tag Reader he got a set of National Geographic Kids: Activity Cards - Land Animals which are by far his favorite. They tell you the animal name, you can hear what sound they make and they also tell you some random facts about the animals. The activity cards came with a horrible plastic pin in the top to hold them together. This made it so that the cards could be fanned out, but not flipped over. They were very frustrating to use. Using a pair of pliers I removed the plastic pin and replaced it with a binder ring, which is available at any office supply store. Now the cards move more freely and can be flipped over as well. Cole has found the new design much more user friendly. Santa has already purchased the National Geographic Kids: Activity Cards - Birds and Sea Animals for his stocking and I'm sure he'll be equally as pleased with that set of cards.

Kids Craft Display Idea...

This is a shelf from Cole's room where we display his art projects. There is a magnetic strip mounted under the shelf to hang up all his Letter of the Week projects. I rotate these out every week so that his most current products are on display.