Family Forum / Parenting / Twins / January 2004

unless you are going to do a lot of messy gooey stuff, i'd def. go with
carpet for small kids.  perhaps, if you want an "art area" you could
tile/wood a small part of the room.

if you work out what works for storage of toys, let the rest of the world
know, would you?  i've tried shelves in closets, open shelves and bookcases
in the room, units with storage boxes on them, boxes with wheels under
playtables, rubbermaid totes on the floor .... the only thing that worked
for us so far is to spread the toys across 8 rooms so that the density
underfoot is bearable.  :-)

if you want them to be able to do art/clay/snacks in there, a built-in table
along a wall, preferably height-adjustable to turn into a study desk later,
would be great.  This would just be something like a long piece of
easy-clean smooth wood / plastic / whatever (well-supported of course).

for education (on the cheap) some of the school supply style toy stores
carry bright colored posters that can be replaced over time.  lakeshore
learning (lakeshorelearning.com) is where i got mine for just a couple $$
each.

a built-on chalk board, magnet board, white board  and/or pin board are
great (if you don't mind chalk dust and want them to have writer/markers in
there).

Shelves high enough up (or a lockable cupboard) so that they can't get into
certain stuff without adult supervision was key for us, too.

--Janet
Elliot, Hanna, Connor  (10/21/96)
and Holly  (4/4/01)

I'll try to be brief ;)

Flooring - We have one downstairs w/hard floor and one upstairs w/carpet.  We
prefer hard floor for cleanliness - esp. w/playdoh, paints, etc.  For hard
floor, we put down a puzzle piece mat.  You most likely have seen them.  They
are letters or numbers that look like large 10 X 10 foam square w/letters or
numbers that fit together to fit any space like puzzle pieces.  They are
amazing to clean, keep the floor in great condition, keep the floor warm in the
winter, provide soft spots for hard falls, and create a great color base in the
room.  They come in pastels, brights, and primaries.

Wall Decorations - downstairs is a schoolhouse theme.  I used all primary
colors w/framed learning posters found at teacher supply stores.  I got cheap
full-length mirrors and painted the trim in primary colors and put one
lengthwise on the floor for when they were just crawling.  One went vertical
for as they grew.  I also frame their own artwork to jazz it up.  It's mainly
our art area and education area.  So I also framed some book covers, drew their
names on the wall, etc.  It's mainly windows (should be a sunroom), so their
isn't that much wall to decorate.  Other than that, it's just bookshelves and a
toy box along w/their table and chairs.  We also have primary colored plastic
organizational units I found at Target to store all the stuff.

Upstairs is in pastels and it's more of a mini-house.  It's got the kitchen,
PBK table, chairs, bookcases, pull-out sofa chair, vanity, doll carriage & bed,
etc.  I have re-done the closet by taking off the doors and putting up drapes
and store all the organization bins, etc. in there.  I went w/a garden theme
(since it's the only thing I can draw) and drew grass at the bottom,
butterflies, some clouds, a growth chart, etc.  I also used some of that chalk
paint and created a huge chalkboard on one wall.  Rich ended up putting molding
around it and a molding "ledge" for the chalk.  It is a huge hit.  

The main tips I could take away would putting everything down at their eye
level - like a miniature room.  Our wall clocks are down low, the mirrors, etc.
The names on the wall, the mirrors, and the chalkboard have been the
consistent hits.  Except for the PBK stuff, it's all been really cheap.  The
downstairs room has been really helpful to their eduacational growth.  They can
look at everything on the wall and the repetition has helped them to learn how
to spell their names (verbally), tell time for lunch, nap, and bedtime, know
all colors, numbers, weather, etc.  I've changed it around to meet their needs
as they've grown.  All their books and flashcards are at their level and those
happen to be their favorites over any toys.  

HTH,
   
Missy in Indiana http://hometown.aol.com/mhrust/overviewforng.html
Morgan Olivia & Julia Lucille 4/28/01 (YAY!)

One thing I saw recently in a magazine that I was thinking about doing was
building a fort support. Basically they just used two by four lumber and
made a large rectangle (maybe 8 feet by 6 feet?) and hinged it to supports
(wood triangles already fasted to the wall) with lag/hex (?) bolts. It then
folded up and locked or folded down and rested horizontally because a chain
was attached to hold it there. The kids could then drape the frame with
blankets/sheets to create a fort. My explanation is pretty bad but the fort
was really cool. I liked that it folded up out of the way.
--
Erin
Morgan and Megan 2/15/97
Evan 5/14/00