what we do when we aren't traveling

People are always telling us how productive we are and asking how we get so much done? Well here’s my secret...I don’t sit still and I’m a pusher just ask my husband! We are both very ambitious people who love setting goals for ourselves and coming up with new projects to complete. Once my mind is set on something I become obsessed until it’s done. This can be a good and bad quality, but hey it’s how I get things done! 

Two years ago we had an itch and decided to blow off the back of our house and do a kitchen Reno and add a first floor laundry room. At the time we had a 1 and 3 year old. Keith likes to save money so this project became a DIY as is every other project we’ve completed (basement, master bath, paver patio etc.) 

My goal is to always be maximizing the space we have. This is always changing as the kids grow so the projects are always popping up. 

Our latest project was a craft table.  If you haven’t heard we love ikea.  Our kitchen cabinets are from ikea.  Our living room built-ins are from ikea.  The craft table was no different.  We looked up some ideas on Pinterest and had our own ideas as well..  Settling on seating for four we figured we would need some sort of cabinet base to store supplies.  Our craft room isn’t huge so we decided to use ikea upper cabinets instead of base cabinets.  The depth of the upper cabinets is 15 inches compared to 24 for the base.  

Cabinet bases and wood frame

 Ikea cabinet boxes are very inexpensive but that doesn’t mean they are cheap.  They hold up to a lot of abuse.  Our 15 month old opens and slams the doors on our cabinet boxes all day and the still look brand new.  They also wipe off very easily.

We ended up buying 12x15x30 boxes for each storage cabinet.  These boxes also double as the supports for the table top.  We wanted to the table to be countertop height so we could stand and do crafts or puzzles If we wanted to.    To get to that height I ended up buying 4” furniture feet from Home Depot.  The rest of the height was made up of the table top and 2x4s which also doubles as the frame for the table.  

We searched and searched for a butcher block top for the table but it was cost prohibited.  The best price I could find for a 4’x4’ seamless piece was $300.  Instead we went to Home Depot and bought a 3/4” thick piece of high end plywood.  Since they come in 4’x8’ pieces we simply had them rip the sheet in half.  I screwed it together and sanded it.  Following sanding I attached it to the 2x4 frame and painted it.  Finally I used some water based sealer to make clean up easier.  

wood top painted and sealed. I also added clips to each side to hang projects from the day

All in all the table cost us $185 in materials not counting paint supplies we already had from previous projects.  And not including the stools which were $99 each from can u guess where?.... ikea! We spend a lot of time in here doing legos, coloring, puzzles and crafts. This has been a great addition to our craft room. On to the next project or trip!

I added a metal yard stick here for measuring fabric for sewing

Ikea stools that go up and down

The kids love the table! I left two sides open for completed lego displays

Our thoughts on Airbnb

Don't know these kids but wanted to show the possibilities

A friend recently reached out to me and asked if we had ever done and airbnb and if I had any thoughts on it.

I can say we haven’t done an Airbnb and haven’t really looked into it at this point with our age family. I feel like you don’t really know what you’re getting with it being a personal residence. They could be collectors of little glass items that your kids could smash to pieces. For me there is too much unknown and I’d be too afraid for my kids safety and the safety of their place. As for us when we travel we like convenience.
It’s nice knowing that with a hotel you can request cribs or high chairs and each room you know what you’re going to get. There won’t be a ton of high shelves the kids can pull down onto themselves or tricky staircases they could fall down. We have chosen to avoid these for now so I don’t feel like the best person for advice on how to book these.

But! We were able to come up with some good ideas on how to try and make their rental more child friendly. She had two little ones 2 and crawling I think. 


We found a twin air mattress that has side bumpers around it to help keep kiddos from rolling off. This one in particular comes with a hand pump which I assume makes the bag a little lighter and could also be used for camping. There is also an option
 to buy an electric pump too. For flying purposes I was trying to find light and compact options.

Travel kids mattress

Additional electric Pump

I also like the idea of the infant play yard I’ve used for the beach. This now gives you a safe play area you can set up and sleep area. Toss some blankets and maybe a sofa cushion in there and you have a nice little bed “crib” you don’t have to worry about them escaping. 

great place to sleep and no escaping!

Summer Infant Play Yard

I would also probably bring some baby latches for cabinets you can just pop on and off. You could lock off dangerous cabinets or store their breakables and lock it up. 

Cabinet Latches

And when all else fails get creative! Push furniture to block stairs and make beds with cushions, pillows and blankets.

If you ask me this sounds even more stressful than traveling with kids already is but hey to each their own!