DIY cardboard mailbox for kids

diy cardboard mail box for kids What to do when a sturdy box comes my way? A diy cardboard mailbox was at the top of my list and here’s sharing with you why I decided to make this!

Now, as a child, I’ve always loved to receive love notes, even if it read ‘Do pages 20-26. Love, Mom’ and stuck on an assessment book. Yeah, I was silly like that. Truth be told, I even impersonated my mom and wrote notes to myself, signing off with ‘Love, Mom’.

Naturally, I grew up being a sucker for love letters too. Unfortunately, my hubby isn’t the romantic sort so I don’t have many from him.

Anyway, so I made a mailbox for my kids because I wanted them to have their share of love notes from us. And since my girl has begun to read and write, I thought writing notes and ‘posting’ them would encourage her to read and write more and also to show her the value of learning to read and write in life.

I used a sturdy box plus one more piece of cardboard to make the curved portion at the top and held them together using strong tape. For the two semicircles, I open up the two small flaps at the opening of the original box then cut a curve on both to make them both semicircles – you can place a bowl on the flaps to get a precise curve but I didn’t manage to find one that fit the box nicely so I just estimated.

After the two semicircles were up, I curved up the original flap of the box (the long side) but because it wasn’t long enough, I added one more piece of cardboard from another box and that’s it! :)

Then I cut out a rectangle at the front of the mailbox and three sides of a square at the back of the box (as shown in the picture above). For the opening at the back, I cut out a small square at the top so that it would be easier to open the flap.

Then what’s left was just decorating the mailbox with construction paper and washi tape.

Needless to say, there was much to look forward to the very next day when she received her first note from daddy!

The first thing she said that morning was ‘Is there mail from daddy?’ and she rushed to the mailbox in her pyjamas, barely awake.

DSC_0723-1

Look at her I-just-woke-up hair!

This may have taken up some of my time to make, but I think it’s worth it! Now which parent wouldn’t like receiving ‘I love you’ notes from their kids? That alone, is worth every minute spent making it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you like this post, please hop over to my Facebook page where I connect with my readers and I would love to have you following my newly set up social media accounts – Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram. 🙂

gumigem giveaway

Posted in Homeschooling, Teaching English | 4 Comments

Octoburst 2013

Octoburst 2013 is organised by the Esplanade and is dubbed the Children’s Day Festival as the events take place on 4-6 October.

octoburst 2013I was very glad to have had a sneak preview of one of the activities – Take a Walk with Me – conducted by one of my mom blogger friends, Sarah of The Playful Parents. We took a walk with her two Saturdays back and had a blast.

octoburst 2013The programme is recommended for children aged 6-9 so my girl was a little young for it and she took awhile to warm up to the activities and the rest of the participants but she still had a wonderful time.

I’m not going to be a spoiler here by telling you all that we did but I think I need to let you in on some of the exciting stuff you can expect from Sarah. She’s a fabulous story-teller and is bound to engage both children and adults with her stories of old Singapore told through storigami and other props. Discard your pre-conceived notions that art is only for artists or for the rich and join Sarah on an interactive visual arts and architectural tour around Esplanade as she shows how everyday places can hold opportunities for wonder, fun and art appreciation!

Here’s a short photo montage I put together with the photos I took with my iPhone – ahem, not the best quality but I hope you will enjoy it nevertheless! My first (very basic) photo montage on the blog so won’t you show me some love? 😛

Each family gets a special take-home activity kit full of ideas to help you continue the arts experience with your child anywhere and everywhere. There’s even a basic Masala chai recipe in the kit which comes with the dry ingredients all ready packed! I tried it and it’s not bad!

Octoburst – Take a Walk with Me by Sarah Lee-Wong

Recommended for children aged 6-9
Date: 5 October 2013 (Saturday)
Time: 10.30 am & 4.30 pm (1 hour 30 minutes, no intermission)
Venue: Various locations around Esplanade
Ticket price (excluding booking fee): $25 for 1 adult + 1 child, $30 for 2 adults + 1 child or 1 adult + 2 children
Book your tickets at SISTIC!

~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you like this post, please hop over to my Facebook page where I connect with my readers and I would love to have you following my newly set up social media accounts – Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram. 🙂

gumigem giveaway

Posted in Reviews | Tagged | 2 Comments