Organization!

I have gotten so sidetracked on getting things organized! And so I am especially pleased at the progress I made yesterday and today!

Besides not being able to find things grrrrr, my biggest stumbling block is keeping things accessible to the children, yet safe for the littlest ones.  And also keeping things manageable for all of us i.e. preventing materials from getting dumped, scattered and lost.

I also went through all our puzzles- there were ones that I forgot we had! :-)
We also have a model of the solar system hanging in the playroom- it's been in the closet for almost 2 years I think!

I am far from done, I have a closet upstairs, materials in the basement, the kitchen cabinets and furniture in the kitchen area, but I made a huge dent today!

I am so pleased with my accomplishments today that I must post the pictures :-)
And you get to see some more of what I have for the kids!

Montessori materials. This was a 500 dollar investment and that was on sale! Not everything is in this cabinet, (there is also the world puzzle, pink tower, brown stair, red rods, and counting rods). Pictured are: counting spindles, sandpaper letters, 3 color boxes, 4 knobbed cylinders, geometric solids, 4 knobless cylinder boxes, moveable alphabet and punching needle and felt.

Alphabet stamps, upper and lower case, seashells and flannel boards

This is "just for now" assorted papers, shells, starfish platter, eggbeater, magnifying glasses

The cabinet to the right of the fireplace

This was a nightmare previously:-) There are more books upstairs and in the playroom there is a large bin of board books, we also have a big basket for library books :-)

I love upcycling and these clementine boxes worked perfectly for the paperback books. Now I can just flip through them to find the ones I want- and so can the kids :-)

The lower area has the magnet set and assorted toys and games

The mobilio toy is in the white bin (formerly held modeling clay)

The fireplace mantle- less busy without the Montessori cylinders

The infamous playroom closet- I usually compare it to the PBS Zooboomafu show where they open the closet and everything falls out :-)

The diaper boxes are converted into pet carriers- they still need decorative coverings

Now I can find things!

The window seat fits the rest mats perfectly-- and they are toasty warm from the baseboard heat behind it!! :-)  Oh, and I ordered some foam so I can have the right size cushion for on top :-) And these cushions can go back to being the "jumping cushions"

Our atlases and maps tucked next to the Montessori cabinet