Thursday, July 14, 2011

Sippy Cups, Storage, Slides, Snotty noses, and Sanitization

Here at Smart Sprouts our playspace sees up to 12 kids at a time and has taken some serious playtime beat downs by up to 21 kids in a day (our all time max so far!). Our toys, structures and products have to be built to last and to be easily cleaned. I have recommended the best products to many of our moms and I've made a list of the day to day things we can't live without:
*Side Note: If any products can be found on Amazon I will always link there. We are Amazon junkies! Heard of Amazon mom? Sign up and you can order products (at discounted prices) and set a schedule of delivery you don't have to think twice about. Diapers and wipes can come on a schedule of your choosing and are delivered to your door. It doesn't get much better than that!


Sippy Cups:


These cups are the best for us. Screw tops (minimizes leaking and childproof for toddlers' favorite game of take-apart), easy to clean, you won't stress out about leaving one at the playground because they are about 50 cents a pop, and our favorite feature is the range of colors to use for different kiddos. 




Storage:


IKEA, IKEA, IKEA. If you've ever walked into our space you'll notice it looks a bit like an IKEA showroom with some Melissa and Doug + Plan Toys thrown in. IKEA has a line called Trofast that comes in white and wood and we used those pieces to create our front desk and storage for toys/shoes/diaper bags. I can't say enough about how sturdy and practical these pieces are for kids. You can buy bins in a range of colors (white, blue, green, pink, red) and at the end of the day when the playroom is torn up it's as simple as tossing the blocks in one bin, puzzle pieces in another, etc. and the room looks cleaned up and put together. Plus the pieces are so affordable and have a glossy finish that is incredibly easy to wipe down. 


Sorry Nashville friends but the closest IKEA is in Atlanta. It took a suburban and a 12 foot U-Haul to get everything we needed (with another 2 trips later on). There is a company in Nashville called moderNash who does IKEA buying and has a retail store with some items they keep in stock


Slides:


This slide is definitely a favorite for kids of all ages at Smart Sprouts. It has a fun little crawl space underneath, a wheel for steering the "ship" to faraway lands, an easy to climb ladder and a slide that is fast enough for the big kids but safe enough for little ones. Also one full side is chalkboard!


This slide is by CedarWorks and is called the Rhapsody Solo. It came in pieces but was easy to assemble and pretty affordable for the price-per-play we've gotten out of it. Another great option for an indoor slide is their "Rhapsody Soloette" for $195. It doesn't have the underneath level but looks like it would be just as fun and take up less space. I can say this thing is STURDY. It is also easy to wipe down and clean and we haven't had too many head bumps or falls so in general it's very safe for all ages (our ages are 1-6). 


Snotty Noses:


Teething, allergies, and more produce little runny noses that never seem to stop. It feels like cruel and unusual punishment to rub a little red nose with yet another dry tissue. Answer? Boogie Wipes. 



Boogie Wipes are natural saline based wipes that are soft and gentle on noses. They can also tackle food smeared faces and hands in one wipe. We buy them in this giant canister and go through them like you wouldn't believe. They are also green and purple...our signature colors. It's a win win!


Sanitization:


This hand sanitizer stays on the counter and gets used all day long. It is alcohol free, kid safe, leaves a citrus-herb fresh smell and makes hands soft instead of dry. 


It comes in a foam, spray bottles and on-the-go wipes. It also claims "4X more uses per oz. than alcohol gel" and I have to agree. We have had a hard time getting through the bottles and we use it many many times a day.








Do you have a favorite product that you can't live without? We'd love to hear!


More posts to come on toys that have held up to hours and hours (and hours) of playtime as well as research on separation anxiety and more.


Thanks for reading!
Ann

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