Hellobee Boards

@Looch this is amazing! The draw strings are so short and impossible to tie. this would be great!

@looch: do you have a picture of these in action??

Mine is for my potty trained preschooler. I layer her sheets, so it’s waterproof mattress pad, fitted sheet, flat sheet, then another full set of mattress pad, flat, fitted. That way when she does pee overnight I can just pull off the whole top set and have a clean dry set underneath, and we can all go back to bed.

@Foodnerd81: great idea for the sheets!

@looch: These are great! Not too interesting but I keep an empty sippy cup, diapers, wipes, a paci, a matchbox car or two, and a granola bar in the console of the car so I never have to pack a diaper bag for my two year old.

Nothing too snazzy, but a few things that do help me out!
-We use a regular backpack for daycare. It hangs nicely on her hook, holds all her winter gear, lunchbox and nap linens. Best of all, it keeps me hands free.
-Amazon Prime
-We buy multiples of everyday items. This means scouting out sales or spending a little more cash, but it makes our lives so much easier, especially our mornings. Travel coffee mugs, mittens, bento boxes, socks, etc. we have them in excess.
-OH! Probably my best true hack is this: Red tool box filled with children's Motrin, Benedryl, Zyrtec, Zarbees, ear drops, eye drops, thermometer and more. If we go anywhere overnight, it goes with us. It's great even at home in the middle of the night.
-There's a bin between the captains chairs in our car: roll of paper towel, Clorox wipes, bag of non-latex gloves, plastic garbage bags, jumper cables, first aid kit and emergency winter gear.

@Foodnerd81: great layering tip! I did this for blowouts and major spit up when DD was an infant and need to employ it again soon when we ditch pullups at night! Thanks for the reminder.

Another tip I find useful: I buy those white lingerie bags on Amazon. They have packs for cheap with varying sizes. We keep all sorts of things in them: Magnatiles, the Leapfrog toy that has all the letters of the alphabet, etc. I love that it keeps all the small parts together but I don't have the wasted space of a plastic bin.

I use gallon-size plastic bags for organizing supplies for day trips or weekend trips. Bag for snacks, bag for a change of clothes, bag for books and toys, bag for diapers/wipes. Using a plastic bag means that it is clear so I can easily see all the supplies. Then I put the Ziplock bags all in a cloth grocery bag or a backpack, or luggage if it's a weekend trip.

I have a craft supply box / fishing tackle box filled with all of our travel-size toiletries and travel-size meds, so whenever we go away on a trip I just grab the box.

Besides bedtime reading, we also do reading when he first wakes up because he's very calm then, and he always gets books in the car. These aren't really hacks, just ways to get more reading in.

We bought a cardboard banker's box / paper organizer to store all of his puzzles, because a lot of his puzzles don't fit in the standard puzzle racks and it was getting annoying.

@DesertDreams88: Yes, ziplocks for everything! I also use those free with purchase cosmetic bags when I want something more durable.

I buy a bunch of the same book/small toy each year and use them for all the birthday parties.

I make sure every new mom knows you can store pump parts in the fridge during the day and only wash at night.

Not ingenius but for the non-dangerous kitchen cabinets we just use the big plastic serving spoons between the two doors to keep dd out. It's free since we already have them, temporary, and easy to install.

ETA. Receiving blankets make the best burp rags, and as baby is older, booger rags.

We hated making LO's pb&j sandwiches every night for his school lunches so I discovered a way to make them and freeze them so that they don't get soggy with the jelly. Essentially, you spread a very thin layer of peanut butter (or sunbutter or whatever you use) on the jelly side before the jelly (and then on the other side in the normal quantity). This forms a barrier so the jelly doesn't make the bread soggy as it thaws. We make 2-3 weeks worth of sandwiches (my son asks for them every day!) and just toss one in to his lunch bag each day. This isn't earthshattering but it saves us a lot of time during the busy work week.

@SweetCaroline: I am taking two of yours!! Thanks!!

@RonjaL7: I dont even have a newborn, but I am going to tell everyone I know who is pregnant about this! Haha.

If your kid hates getting his clothes changed or doesn't like the feel of pajamas, just stick them in tomorrow's clothes overnight! Someone suggested that here as a way to speed up the morning routine and it has been amazing for my toddler.

Colorful plastic cutting boards to do puzzles on! This was an accidental find, but DS insists on doing puzzles on the floor and of course they don't snap together well on carpet He stole my new cutting boards from Christmas one day and never gave them back haha!

I didn’t read everyone’s yet so apologies if I repeat!
Socks are washed and dried in a mesh lingerie bag so that they all stay together and when I go to fold laundry I don’t hve to sort through.

Starbucks has a little lunchbox that is PERFECT for toddlers. Whole grain pbj, carrots, apples, cheese stick and a few chocolate covered raisins. Also milk and apple juice boxes. Any time we are out and about I know I can pop in there for a quick lunch if we have to. It makes outings so much less stressful to not bring food.

I buy socks all in one color. I HATE trying to find matches when every pair is a different color. So I buy a few packs of single color socks. DS has gray and DD has white.

Every time we size up DS's undies we buy a different pattern. That way we can easily identify if they're his current ones or ones that need to be retired.

I keep a tall garbage can in the kids' rooms for outgrown clothes. When I put away their laundry I toss clothes that are too small into the garbage can. When it gets full I pull the bag out and replace it and the full bag goes with giveaway stuff.

@SweetiePie: That ladybug is amazing! How bad would it be if that was part of my 3 year olds birthday gift?? How long have you had it? Wondering what the life is.

@SweetCaroline: If your 3yo likes ladybugs and is in a “I want to help” phase, this would be a great gift!
I had ours for over a year and the only reason the first one broke is that just last week my son dropped it HARD on our hardwood floor. It had been dropped previously and been fine, but this one was particularly rough. The switch to turn it on and off popped off. Otherwise it was fine.
But for $10 every year or two...not bad and it’s totally been worth it.
ETA: they also have it at BBB and have even more animals/bugs there. I think a bumble bee for sure...can’t remember what else. But could also use a coupon and get it for like $8.

I’ve been doing a lot of things listed as my DD just turned 7. But here is one for the future generation growing up! I have cutesy envelopes, fancy pen, stickers and small sized stationery in a box on her desk. I wrote a sample thank you letter on the same stationery and taped it on the inside cover of box. It has blank lines for where she is supposed to personalize. She has a separate list of people and gifts given. I add on to list anytime she gets a new gift. She has to write one thank you letter a day and then check it off. I will keep the list as a keepsake. When LO was younger, I used to just text cute photos with thanks. Then one year I wrote verbatim what she said when she opened her present. Now it is her turn!