Dilly loves to color whether it be with markers or crayons.  Sugar likes to eat markers and crayons.  And so Dilly can not just have her crayons and markers out all the time.  Plus she has been known to make pretty pictures on my walls which has resulted in many crayons being thrown in the trash.  So I thought to myself – how do I fix this problem?  How do I give Dilly access to crayons and markers, keep Sugar away from them (til she’s older), and keep the pretty pictures on paper where they belong?  And I came up with a brilliant idea.

I told Dilly that we were going to make her a special box that was just hers and so we headed out to the store.  Once at the store we picked out a plastic container, markers, crayons, and construction paper.  And headed back home.  I have lots of stickers from my scrapbooking materials and so I grabbed a few sheets.  Dilly had fun putting letters on her box to spell out “Dilly’s Box” – well her real name, but you get the idea!  And then decorating her box with Dora and Sesame Street stickers.

Once we were done decorating the box I put it up and out of reach.  What???  I got her this box and then didn’t let her have it?  Here’s the deal – she can only have the box when Sugar is napping or if she is home with daddy and I am out and about with Sugar.  This is a Dilly only box – special just for her.  And let me tell you today when Sugar went down for a nap she immediately ran to my bedroom and pointed up to her box.  So what is all in the box?

Markers, crayons, construction paper, coloring books, and Picture Perfect from Educational Insights.  Dilly had a great time playing with everything in her box and when she heard Sugar waking up from her nap she immediately started putting everything away.  She didn’t want Sugar in her special box!  I really enjoyed this one on one time with Dilly too.  As time goes on we will add more items to her special box and I think I will sneak things in too so it will be a surprise when she opens the box!  I think the next item will be kid safe scissors so we can work on a new skill.

Do you have a toddler that would enjoy their own special box?  Even if they don’t have a younger sibling you could still do a version of the special box.  Instead of getting it out when a sibling is napping you could allow your little one to play with their box while you are making dinner or as a before bed time activity.