You Want a Playroom? Fine. YOU Build It.

This weekend I began to tackle the playroom. I have big ideas for this space, ideas that involve the room looking picture perfect nearly all the time that will certainly be dashed to the ground unless the kids find the room utterly dull and never go in there. So far, though, that doesn't seem to be the case. This morning I found them in there, having liberated every single item that was once in a container of any kind. The goods were strewn about the room. Once I spotted the kids among them Kate gave me a dazzling smile. "We're playing with everything!" she said.

Anyhoo, I persist. I wanted a line of low book and toy shelves to divide the book nook from the rest of the room. I endured IKEA for a bit this past weekend but then began to panic and fled without making a purchase. Have you ever tried to flee IKEA? It's not easy, I kept ending up in yet another bedroom of some Swedish kid who liked only one book and had at least 15 copies. Throw in a midget and you've got the makings of a recurring nightmare.

Later, I was in Target because somehow I always end up in Target and I found myself staring at boxes of little cubes on sale. They looked to be just the right size... a passing fellow shopper saw me pondering and said "oh those are great, and really easy to assemble. A 2-year-old could do it!" I began to load them into my cart "I have one of those!" I merrily cried. I put the first couple together and decided it was, in fact, easy enough for Sarah to build. I set the parts out before her and gave her a screwdriver. "Get to it, youngin', Mommy needs a drink" I said and handed her the instructions. She figured out the mechanics of the work but I have to say, her craftsmanship was pretty shoddy. Eventually, I had to help her out. Not without a lot of complaining.



I still have the art space, lighting and chair rail that will act as chalk holder to install, but with Sarah's help, the room is really coming together. We've got the walls painted with chalkboard paint to chair rail height, the book nook is cozy, the kitchen is ready for cookin' and there's a little area for dressing up all gorgeous and what-not. It's annoying to me that I have to go back to work tomorrow instead of to Home Depot for chair rail. Work is pretty fun but this playroom stuff is way better. Way. Better. Here's how it looks so far: