Foresight......a forecast for fun!

I told you last week all about my dream of a family room, and I mentioned the Children's Craft Area- also known as the Children's Art Area. This area has been a dream of mine since the first time we looked at the house.

To get to the basement of our home, you go down some stairs and around a corner- no big surprise there. But there is. Around the corner at the bottom of the stairs is a large tiled laundry area. (to guess I think it is about 12'x6') As you can see, there is a very large window, it is south facing and lets in wonderful amounts of light. When I first saw this space I said "This is my Children's Art Area!"

The plan was always to get a table and chairs and have different types of art supplies available. I loved the fact that it was tile so that I wouldn't need to worry about liquid art supplies being poured onto carpet. You can also see my craft area there in the corner- so the kids and I can all work on our various projects together.

Now to the Foresight. We are lucky enough to live about 5 miles from Ikea, and so when we found out that we were pregnant I started to shop- well, pre-shop. I got online and found everything I would need to furnish our Childrens Art Area, I figured out the cost- including tax- and then decided how long I would give myself to save the money. It worked out to $5 per month, for 22 months. Ken and I have been very good at saving. I know myself and I would have spent that money if it had been electronic money- and so each month I ask Ken if he has any cash (he is my personal ATM afterall) and then I stash away said cash in a secret spot- somewhere no robber would ever think to look! We have decided that we will not stop at 22 months- the baby will only be 15 months old at the time and might not understand art yet, so we will continue to save $5 per month until christmas- and (don't tell the baby) give him these gifts plus art supplies to go with it.
The Easil ($20?)- one side is a blackboard, the otherside is a dryerase board, and you can also put a roll up paper in the middle and then drape it over the top. I Love It!

The Table($35?) and Chairs- I like the Square Table, we are also planning to get two round stools ($10 each) and two high back chairs($15 each).

OK, so this isn't actually part of the children's art area, but I think it is cute and will make a great quiet time area in the new family room as well as good sun shade should we ever go outside for a long period of time. As Such it also included in the purchase. It only cost $10!

Tomorrow I will show you the furniture I hope to buy for the Family Room.