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Travel Size Busy Boxes

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busyboxMy children spend more time playing on my phone than I do! There is always some new app they want to fidget with or some show on Netflix that apparently looks much better on my tiny S4 screen.  I will admit, when we are out and about, I tend to give the kids my phone to minimize the bickering and the numerous “are we done yet” questions.  However, when I’m ready to use my phone, surprise, surprise, it’s dead!  I’m currently on strike and refuse to let them use my phone.  As an alternative to the phone, I decided to create travel-size busy boxes to keep the kids occupied when we are away from home.

Busy Boxes

A busy box is exactly what its name implies-a box that keeps kids (sometimes adults) busy. Although you can fill a busy box with almost anything, keep your children’s interests in mind. After all, you want them to engage with what you put in the busy box . For example, although some kids might find reading a periodic table a fun activity, I know mine wouldn’t. Your best bet is to have your child help you decide what to put in the busy box. After all, they will be the ones using it.

Busy box contents

Mini ‘I Spy’ Bottle

busy box
‘I Spy’ containers never get old. My kids are 10, 6, and 3 and they all love exploring their ‘I Spy’ jar. To make this jar educational in nature, the kids must hunt for letters, shapes, and colors. This one is a hit on car rides because the kids can all take turns using the jar. Feel free to check out the following post for directions on how to make color rice.

Mini mind jar

busy box
Usually the kids use their mind jars to calm down when their emotions get the best of them. My regular size mind jar is in a 32 oz Gatorade bottle and can be cumbersome to carry around. I filled this empty glitter tube with equal parts water and oil, glitter, blue food coloring, and mini pom pom balls. Even though it is much smaller than most mind jars, it is still just as soothing to look at!

Popsicle sticks puzzle

busy box
Popsicle sticks or craft sticks are fun to work with because they are inexpensive and with a little creativity, you can create many things to keep the kids busy, for instance, a popsicle stick puzzle. To create the puzzle, I painted a butterfly across several popsicle sticks. Once dried, I separated the sticks and voila, a nifty butterfly puzzle.

Popsicle flash sticks

busy box

Front side

busy box

Back side

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My daughter loves practicing with her number flashcards. However, the cards are a little big for her to hold and she tends to drop them a lot, especially when she is using them in the car. Since popsicle sticks are much easier for her to hold, I made her these flash sticks! They fit perfectly in the busy box and are great for traveling.

Pom Pom Tic Tac Toe

busy box
Again we found another use for craft sticks! This time I chose to make a tic tac toe grid with the sticks and use pomp oms for markers. The kids love playing with this when waiting for our meals to come when we eat out.

Creating a travel size busy box doesn’t only keep me sane, it also preserves the battery life on my phone. These boxes are great to use when you bring the kids out to eat, to doctor’s appointment, or if you are going to be out for a long time and need to keep them entertained. I would love to hear your ideas for other things to include in a travel-size busy box.

Brilliant blog posts on HonestMum.com

 

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Comments

  1. Lisa says

    February 2, 2015 at 8:03 am

    Great ideas! I will have to use some of them with my little ones 🙂

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      February 2, 2015 at 12:23 pm

      Thank you! I hope the kiddos enjoy

      Reply
  2. Life Breath Present says

    February 2, 2015 at 3:45 pm

    Wow! These all look pretty simple. yet so easy! I’ll have to keep them in mind to make for Baby Boy! 🙂

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      February 3, 2015 at 9:26 am

      They are very simple! Hope your little one enjoys.

      Reply
  3. Jamie says

    February 2, 2015 at 4:33 pm

    How fun – what a great thing to have for kids when you’re traveling, or just at home!! We paid a lot for an I-Spy game like that…should have just made my own! :p

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      February 9, 2015 at 9:19 am

      Lol! We live and we learn! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

      Reply
  4. Kelly @ Mum-bo-Jumbo says

    February 9, 2015 at 12:33 pm

    I absolutely love the popstick puzzle! I haven’t seen anything like it before, it is fantastic! I’ll be making one for my son. Thanks for linking up at Mum-bo Monday

    Reply
  5. Sian says

    February 21, 2015 at 5:21 pm

    Wow these ideas are brilliant! We have a long car journey coming up next month so I’m going to try a couple of them.

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      February 22, 2015 at 2:45 am

      I hope they keep the little one entertained!

      Reply
  6. Lysa from Welcome to My Circus says

    February 25, 2015 at 12:11 am

    What an incredibly clever idea! I wish I would have thought of something like this when my kids were still little. I’ll have to tell my son and my step-kids so they can make some for the grandbabies!

    We’re so glad you were able to make it over to the #BigTopBlogParty this week! Hope to see you again at the next Party Under the Big Top too!

    Wishing you a fabulous week!

    Much love,
    Lysa xx
    Welcome to My Circus
    #BigTopBlogParty

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      February 25, 2015 at 9:19 am

      I hope the grand babies enjoy! Anything to keep the little ones busy is a plus in my book!

      Reply
  7. Mary Burris says

    February 25, 2015 at 12:12 am

    I love this! We used to have games like this when I was younger… long before the cell phone was ever invented.

    Thank you for tossing your hat into the ring at the Party Under The Big Top! I hope to see you again next week!
    #BigTopBlogParty

    Reply
  8. Sharon says

    March 4, 2015 at 2:18 pm

    Really neat ideas here! Sharing! Thanks for sharing this at Totally Terrific Tuesday! I can’t wait to see what you have for this week.

    Sharon
    herorganizedchaos.com

    Reply
    • Yanique Chambers says

      March 4, 2015 at 3:27 pm

      Glad you liked it! I look forward to linking up this week:-)

      Reply

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