Vanessa's IT List: Beautiful Busy Bags!

Remember how I talked about my busy bag group I joined? (well if you missed it: click here)
I have been receiving tons of busy bags and wanted to share their awesomeness with you. So without further ado, here are some (but not all) of the amazing busy bags that I have either exchanged or received.

Chalkboards

1. Chalk Roll Up

I found some chalk fabric from my local fabric store and wanted to make place mats with them. Which is still might. But for now, I made these for my first busy bag exchange. Liana loved using it on our airplane trip when we went to the Dominican Republic. I did mine free hand but this pattern by Maggie Muggins Designs puts mine to shame: Chalkboard Roll

2. Popsicle Puzzles

Waiting for them to dry...

I saw this idea on pinterest and couldn't wait to try it. I wanted to use real animals so that they could not only have fun putting the puzzles together but also learn their animals along the way. I gave each person in my group a set of four. The only thing that I would mention is that you need to let it dry for at least 2 days and do one of the following:
a. paint a clear coat of acrylic over the top of each puzzle piece
b. dust each piece with baby powder
c. (if mailing it) place a piece of plastic in between each piece.
This will help it from sticking together.  Popsicle Puzzles by Motherhood on a Dime

photo by Beth Eckert

3. Mini Felt Board by Beth Eckert

I love this idea because Liana can play with it in the car. She took a small piece of cardboard and glue felt onto it. Then cut out pieces to make this cute scene.

Photo by Sarah Hull

4. Felt Heads by Sarah Hull
My daughter loves this one because she has just started to learn her body parts.

Photo by Lina McAndrew

5. Habitats by Lina McAndrew

She made a little book for every kid. The habitats were made of all felt and so were the animals. The kids can match the animal to their habitat. Here's a link to give you some more ideas on how to make habitats: Habitat Houses

photo by Willa Gray

6. Magnetic Discovery Bottles by Willa Gray

These are fun music makers too. Will entertain your little one for hours. You can put whatever you want in them. Place some small magnets in there and anything that are actracted to magnets.

Photo by Jill Rucker

7. Pom Pom Push by Jill Rucker
This is a great fine motor skill activity. Just cut a hole at the top of a box and get some pom poms and you are good to go!

8. Color Sorting Sheets by Karen Muskell
Laminated colored paper and different colored objects. You can use whatever you have around the house. My daughter enjoyed watching me tell her the colors and help her sort them.

Photo by Lina McAndrew

9. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Lina McAndrew
This is great. All the food is made of felt and can be taken off the ribbon (Caterpillar). So that while your kid reads the book, they can actually have the caterpillar eat the food.

Photo by Paul Michell-Bentley

10. Popsicle color sticks by Paul Michell-Bentley
The felt popsicle comes off and your child can match the words with the color. These are so cute. Liana likes to pretend to eat them. You can take felt and sew the popsicle top and either dye the stick or label it. Either way, they will enjoy it!






There are so many more where that came from. Maybe I will post some again soon. But right now I am busy kicking off my shoes and making more busy bags. I hope this inspires you to go out and either join our group or make some of your own. Happy May Day!