Luckily, some smart teachers came up with a great solution: pizza boxes. Pizza boxes are a great vehicle to store your lil’ one’s (and your) favorite items from that year of school without taking up too much space everywhere. They also are fairly flat and can stack easily under beds, in closets, above cabinets, or behind couches when they’re not being used. If a pizza box is too big for the projects you saved or the storage space in your home, you can always do shoeboxes as well.

Decorate your pizza or shoe box on the outside to personalize it

First, have your lil’ ones decorate the box on the outside and inside with their favorite memories from the year, their handprints, signatures from friends and classmates, or any other creative way to help them remember that year in school.

Next, it’s time to fill your pizza box with projects and memories. Pick out your favorite art projects, papers, worksheets, and letters from the year and fill the box. Take the rest and throw it all out (your cluttered house will thank you later). If you choose items carefully, you won’t regret getting rid of the rest of the clutter.

Lastly, close it up with a piece of tape on the front so it can’t fly open when being carried around. Voila! Now you have a creative, cute, and efficient way of saving your lil’ ones memories and projects without taking over your home.

-Lauren grew up babysitting her neighbors and the kids down the street and now works in-house at BFC at the Creative & Social Media Coordinator. She loves creative, crafty projects… and pizza too

Happy Valentine’s Day!

• Googly eyes are always a big hit with kids! This cute card puts a whole new meaning into “Eye Love You”
•  Have any old crayons around the house? Put them to good use and make an awesome stained-glass heart card! Or create your own heart-shaped crayons for future coloring projects!
• We know you’re not supposed to play with your food, but sometimes veggies make great stamps! Makes some rose cards with celery and decorate with glitter or stickers.
• One really fun way to create a memory is to use hands and feet as stamps! Use your hands or feet to create letters by applying washable paint and than stamping!
• For a fun collage project, cut out different sized hearts from a variety of fabrics and patterned or solid-colored paper and layer them for a bright multi-colored heart! For expert crafters, these origami hearts are a really cool way to show your love!
• Heart Garlands are a festive and easy way to decorate for any party or special dinner! All you need are scissors and brightly colored paper!

Have a Happy Valentine’s Day with your loved ones!

-LLD

If you’re still looking for a V-Day activity for the kids, the Ottendorfer Library is having a Hearts and Flowers afternoon where heart-warming stories will be read to the lil’ ones while they make exciting pop up cards. Keep an eye out at New York Public Library’s website for more upcoming events at other public libraries all over the greater NY area. Don’t forget to follow them too @nyplkids!