Month: May 2022

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Building Blocks Play Mat/Storage Bag: Sewing Project

This easy building block play mat/storage bag sewing project makes a wonderful contained area to play and instant storage bag for those pesky building blocks that are a literal pain to step on!

This is an excellent beginner project and can be used for the larger Duplo style blocks as well as any type of smaller blocks (Legos, K’nex, etc.). Our middle grandson is just starting to show interest in the smaller Legos. He is not quite three. So naturally, no matter how hard mom and dad try, the blocks are spread out and get stepped on. Mimi to the rescue! I made him this simple building blocks play mat/storage bag with a drawstring so when the playing is done, it is easy to capture all of those little pieces.

What You Will Need for this Project

  1. 1.5 yards of a fun patterned fabric
  2. 1.5 yards of plain fabric (make sure they are similar width)
  3. Drawstring cord. Enough for the circumference of your circle plus 8 inches.
  4. Coordinating thread
  5. Eyelets (optional)
  6. Iron-on hem binding (optional)
  7. Fabric marking pen
  8. String

The How To

I started with a fun building blocks fabric from fabric.com. This fabric was 45 inches wide, so I decided that I would use the full width for the diameter of the circle. A white midweight cotton for the inside fabric works great. Plain white makes it easy to see all of those little blocks!

Simply lay both fabrics on top of each other and pin them together to secure. Cut a piece of string that is a little larger than the diameter of your circle. Tie a fabric marking pen to one end of the string. Find the center of your fabric and pin the string so that the center to the marker is the diameter of your circle. Carefully mark all the way around your circle being careful to keep the marker straight up and down and the string taught but no pulling in the center. After drawing the circle, pin inside the circle to hold both layers together and cut on your markings.

45 Inch Circle
Cut with Both Fabrics Together

With right sides together, stitch the circles together leaving a small opening for turning it right side out. Once turned, press it flat.

Opening for Turning

The Finishing Touches

At this point, I put eyelets in the patterned side of the fabric at the opening. This will be in the drawstring casing when the mat is finished. It would also work to use small buttonholes if eyelets are not available. Reinforce the eyelet or buttonhole area with a small scrap of the fabric. I used a small piece of iron-on hem binding to adhere it before attaching the eyelets.

Reinforced Area
Added Eyelets to Patterned Side
Eyelets for Drawstring

Stitch the opening closed at the edge. Then stitch approximately one inch from the edge all around the circle to create the drawstring casing. Cut the drawstring the length of the circumference of the circle plus a little extra so it doesn’t get pulled back in. Feed your drawstring through the casing.

Stitched Casing

That’s it, you’re done! Your little builder will now have a contained area to be super creative and mom and dad’s feet are safe. 🙂

For more great sensory play ideas for kids, visit our You’re Only Young Once page.

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Toddlers in the kitchen: learning through cooking

Let your littles be in the kitchen!! Mr. Man always wants to help cook and I always try and find something for him to do… I’ll be honest I’ve been PETRIFIED to let him near the stove or oven… but I pulled up my mom jeans and said it was time…

Sensory exploration: laying out bacon. Our toddler tower is so useful when it comes to him helping in the kitchen.

I took the time to lay the ground rules. We talked about hot and cold. I put warm water in a mug and cold water in a mug. He touch both to learn the difference. I showed him what the burner looks like when it is on (ours turns bright red so it’s easy to see). We talked about our safety messages like “stop”, “pause”, and “hands up”. I’ll be honest I probably went overboard but I knew as a mom, I needed this for my own comfort…

Cooking skills: rolling crescents

Mr. Man was in cooking euphoria. He was SO happy to be helping mommy cook the chicken. Even though he just sprinkled in the seasonings and while I stired. He followed all the rules and when his toddler impulses started to kick in he listened to the safety messages we had talked about before starting.

Life skills: cooking on the stove

He learned impulse control, following instructions, cooking and kitchen safety, hot vs cold, and stop/go. Most importantly, I showed him trust. It was such a valuable lesson I’m disappointed I didn’t do it sooner…. Bring on the mom guilt…

Memories made: cooking with Mimi

So my advice to you momma, get them in the kitchen. Let them cook with you. Teach them and trust them. Know that it will be valuable time that you share. Memories made for a lifetime.

Then they can also clean up 😉

Enjoy other sensory ideas with You’re Only Young Once, relax with Lake Life posts, or start a new hobby with a Sewing project.

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Spring Boat Cleaning

It’s spring boat cleaning day!!

Living on the lake is not all peaceful relaxation and boat rides. There is some work involved. This is the time of year when those living in the north are bringing their boats out of storage and prepping them for a summer of fun. Here in Florida, even though our boats are out year round, spring still brings the need for a deep clean.

We own a Sun Tracker 22 XP3 tri-toon. We absolutely love it! I will share another post all about this boat. But for this post, I am focused on what I have found super helpful for keeping it clean and in like-new condition.

Sun Tracker

Our property has cypress trees. They provide wonderful shade but they are messy. The little fronds attach to everything and are a pain to clean up. Not to mention, the nuts have a brown sticky substance that can stain if left too long. But the worst part of spring boat cleaning the boat for me is the spiders! So my first plan of attack is with the shop vac to suck it all up.

I have tried my canister vacuum and a big shop vac, but the one that I have found most helpful is the Home Depot Bucket Head. This little vacuum attaches to a five gallon pail. It is easy to maneuver and has lots of power which makes it perfect for cleaning the boat. But the best part for the boat, in my opinion, is the shape of the nozzle on the end of the hose. It is great for getting along the edges and in the crevices between the seat cushions.

Bucket Head Vacuum
Cleans the Crevices Along the Floor
Easily Cleans Between the Seats

After vacuuming all of the dirt and bugs, we used the power washer to clean it inside and out. It is amazing how much dirt was on the floor of this boat. But the power washer made quick work of cleaning the floor, outside walls, and pontoons.

Last step is to clean and protect the dashboard and vinyl seats. In order to keep your vinyl seats looking like new, it is vital that you clean and then treat the vinyl to keep it from drying out and cracking. Especially here in the intense sunshine of Florida! I have tried several products including dish soap, magic erasers, and Awesome to clean, but I recommend a three step approach to clean and protect your seats:

Clean and Protect
  1. Clean the vinyl and your dashboard with Fantastik cleaner (This cleaner was also recommended by our boat manufacturer). This is the best product I have found to remove bug stains, bird stains, tree stains and any other stains of general use.
  2. Once cleaned, protect your vinyl seats with 303 Protectant. In the intense sun of Florida, I apply this protectant every couple of months. A boat is too big of an investment to leave it unprotected!
  3. Finally, especially in the humidity of Florida summers, protect your seats from mildew with 3M Mildew Blocker. This stuff works!! Even through the rainy season of Florida with 90% humidity, we do not have a mildew problem on our seats . Again, I apply this every two months because our climate is so humid. Depending on where you are, you may not need to apply as often.

Please share any tips and tricks that you have for keeping your boat looking like new.

For more information and experiences about life on the lake, visit our Lake Life category page.

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Infant Sensory Mat Sewing Project

Mini Man on His Infant Sensory Mat

An infant sensory mat is a fun way for babies to stay focused during tummy time to build core, neck, and arm muscles while also making neural connections through stimulating visual and tactile experiences.

The joy of sewing for my grandsons is that it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be fun and functional. NO STRESS, only joy! I love that these projects allow me to be creative. There was no pattern or directions for this mat. I saw something similar on Pinterest and I wanted to take it up a notch. Based on how much Mini Man loves this mat, I think I nailed it…and you can too!

I decided to set my mat up in sections to look similar to a quilt pattern. But you could set yours up any way you want. A round mat may be just as functional as a rectangular mat!

Now comes the fun part! When creating an infant sensory mat, think about a wide variety of fabric textures and colors: soft, rough, bumpy, smooth, stretchy, beaded, etc. Be sure to incorporate different shapes to provide visual stimulation, but also vocabulary development as baby grows!

Next, I planned out the other sections of the mat. This is a great time to dig into your trims and accessories drawer(s), and of course, button boxes (yes, I have multiple boxes/containers of buttons 🙂 ).

Remember those old patches we used to put on our jeans? OK maybe you are not as old as I am! I had a cute sequin heart patch and a dinosaur patch that I just had to include.

I also found some soccer ball beads that I had from another project. Placed under some clear vinyl with enough room that a patting hand would make the beads move is tons of fun!

Mini Man Exploring How the Soccer Balls Move

I also have an eyelet kit. So I put a line of metal eyelets on a piece of teal cotton fabric for a colorful, textured strip. The idea is to be creative!

Finally, I just had to have the sequin flip fabric on one section. This is so much fun! If you rub the sequins in one direction, they are colorful. But if you rub them in the other direction, they change to a solid color. This piece was rainbow and silver. What great visual and tactile stimulation! It just had to be included!!

Sequin Flip Fabric is So Fun!

As I was finding all of these fun things to include, I was laying them out on my mat. I’ll be honest, my layout changed several times and that is OK! I pinned things on and moved them around until I liked the way it looked and it fit with the binding that I was putting on at the end. There is no pattern for this project because the idea is to release your own creativity. But the infographic below shows the steps to create a fun sensory mat for your little one.

For more information on sensory play ideas, visit the yoyoclub page on our site. Click here.

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Water Table Sensory Play

Water play is VITAL for child development, and Mr. Man doesn’t shy away from an opportunity to get wet and messy… This week is perfect for us to get outside and play at the water table!

Playing with water while our new water table is being put together.

Early on we exposed him to water play in the bathtub and again with a simple bucket. That exposure quickly grew into splash pads, sprinklers, pools, lakes, and, of course, a water table!

sprinkler
water table
lake

Scooping, dumping, pouring, sea life, pond life, and lake life all get explored with water play. His new favorite is a watering can. This is great since this summer we will be planting a garden; he can practice his watering skills at the water table.

“Look, mom, I made a shower!”

We love our Pump & Splash Shady Oasis (exclusive with Costco; This one is only available in-store. Click here for a smaller one). It has already given us hours of exploration and fun and I know it will serve us well all summer long.

Infant water play

Mini-Man is still a bit too little… and unbalanced… to sit or stand at the water table. So we improvised a bit. He has to be included in the fun!

Infant Sensory Play with a water tray
Mini-Man really enjoyed splashing and grabbing his rings from the water

It was easy to put him in his little seat, fill his tray with water, and add teething rings to grab. He had the same opportunities to splash and find things, just in a safer and more controlled space… Not to mention, CONTAINED. I didn’t have to keep my eyes on him every second. Give this momma a break!

What are your favorite summertime, water-based, play activities? Leave a comment and share your ideas!

Enjoy other sensory ideas with You’re Only Young Once, relax with Lake Life posts, or start a new hobby with a Sewing project.

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Sensory Bin for Spring: Birds

Spring has FINALLY made its arrival here at the club and what a better way to celebrate that than with fun spring-themed sensory bins! This sensory bin was so easy to make and provided hours of fun.

Mr. Man loves to watch birds. He will sit in a chair, on your lap, stand on the couch, etc. all to be able to see more birds. This provides an amazing opportunity to talk about our ecosystem, migration, types of birds, and all things nature. He asks so many great questions and makes adorable comparisons between himself and the birds. 😊

So to foster further learning, I decided to lean into his interests and develop a sensory bin with a bird theme perfect for spring.

To say it was a hit may just be an understatement… he was so engaged it was hard to clean up and be all done at the end of the night! He engaged in pretend play by having the birds eat the seeds, color identification and sorting, size identification and sorting, and generally messy, sensory exploration.

Sensory bin with birdseed. Mr. Man pretending that the birds are eating the seed.

Don’t worry, Mini Man got in on the action. He did some tummy time with the sensory material in a bag. This allows him to safely explore sensory stimuli while also working on his back, neck, and arm muscles. He’s a hoot making all his faces and slapping/grabbing the bag.

Although he did want to play more with big brother’s sensory bin…. Soon enough buddy… soon enough.

This bin was so easy to make and I have lots of materials left over to make many more bins. See below for the “recipe” and developmental learning card. Head over to Pinterest and Instagram to see more sensory bin ideas!

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Welcome to the club!!

Welcome to the club! the YoYo club that is… here we acknowledge that you’re only young once (yoyo) but play and fun are ageless! I am a working mom who is constantly learning how to balance mom life and work-life while optimizing my kids’ learning and play opportunities.

Me! The leader of this club 😊

Mimi is my mom, and we (my young boys, myself, and my husband) are her muses for all things sewing and fun. She has built this lake life and I made it an exclusive club for moms and dads of littles. By day I’m a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor with a specialty in child and adolescent mental health. I aim to bring my knowledge of development to all parents.

Mr. Man learning to fish 🎣 outdoor play is vital to overall learning outcomes.

Join our club to find all things sensory and play-based from my littles (Mr. Man and Mini Man). We make fun sensory bins and share budget-friendly ideas. Explore how these play ideas are supporting your child’s development. Hop over to Instagram @yoyoclubmn to see all the ways we learn through play and accompany me in the fun and adventure!!

Mini Man playing on his sensory mat

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Welcome!

Welcome to my blog! I am Mimi, so named by my second grandson, Mr. Man (click over to You’re Only Young Once to meet him). I am so excited to share my lake life passions with you.

Join me as I share our experiences of living on the lake, my passion for sewing, and wonderful early childhood activities in partnership with my daughter.

Please use the navigation menu above to read posts in each area. Then leave us a comment so that we can continue to add information of interest.