A COLLECTION OF THINGS

Like many of your homes, ours is filled with an overwhelming amount of things that our children either make or bring home. What I have also realized is that everything is important to them — everything.  I am sure many of you can also relate to the overwhelming amount of guilt our children can instill in us if we choose to file something they have made into the “round” file, aka – the garbage.  I do know what is really important to my kids, and it is directly related to the amount of effort that they put into them.

First are the boys.  Each year, my boys are involved in a school Pinewood Derby competition.  This becomes the talk of the dinner table for weeks in advance.  I have one son who seems to have speed as his goal and the other is always striving for a creativity award.  These boys research what they are going to do, and of course, Andy and his tools enjoy getting involved too.  My guys have met some of their goals and they take such pride in their wins.  The question becomes, where do you put all of the former Derby cars?

Well, I was out shopping at Homegoods and found this beautiful display box.  I’m sure the original intentions of this piece were to display gorgeous antiques or jewelry.  But not in the Dietrich house!  This box has become home to the Derby cars…and I love it.  It is proudly on display in our family room on top of a round table.  The boys can open the top themselves and are quick to pull out cars of years past.

Second are the girls.  They too, have items they take pride in.  At school, they work hard on their behavior and if they are really good, they get a “blue” smiley face.  They are also able to “get on purple” if they are extremely good and help others that day.  Needless to say, “purples” are hard to come by, and the “blues” they are proud of.

Andy and I realized how much these little pieces meant to them, and honestly, we were finding them everywhere!  So, it was time to display.  The “blues” now have a home in a piece of ceramics that one of the boys made in art class, and we even have a “purple” that got displayed in a frame.  Our little ladies get an absolute thrill in filling up their jar!

Finally, all of the papers and artwork that come home have a tendency to pile up on the counters.  We love these 3 ring binders to organize the work the take pride in the most.  We certainly do not save everything, but the work that they have spent time on, makes its way into a binder and they end up on display on the bookshelves.  My little girls love to go pull their books off the shelves and flip through the pages of their work.

So make it a great day and celebrate functional solutions for all the treasures your monkeys bring home.

Have a great weekend!

Kellie