Easy Daysies: Family Routines Made Easy – and Fun!
Giveaway alert! Scroll down for details.
I have some pretty amazing kids. They are really outgoing and friendly, generous and caring. But my four-year-old is a bit on the sensitive side and my two-year-old is still learning the motions of routine. Each morning can be a bit of a battle, where my kids are wanting to get on the dress up, whereas we’re just trying to get them dressed and out the door. At night, I feel like I feel like I have a second profession as a negotiator, navigating through my kids’ incessant requests to do anything but get ready for bed.
Bring in Easy Daysies, created by teacher and mom Elaine Comeau. As a classroom teacher, Elaine would always have a visual daily schedule up in front of her classroom showing the children the shape of the day. “No matter what age my students were we would go over the daily schedule together as a class each morning and they loved it!” Elaine adds that the schedule made her students “feel safe, confident, and in control of their day.”
I know exactly what she means. My two girls are immediately curious as I’m opening the Easy Daysies Starter Kit, which features large, bright magnets with “play/free time”, “bed time”, “dinner” and other activities, along with kid-friendly pictures for younger children still learning to read. A blank magnetic tile is available for you to customize, although my package comes with the add-on Family Activity set that includes magnets like “playdate”, “party” and “doctor”. Additional packs are available for purchase. I see value in buying the Potty/Washroom Routine set when my toddler is at that stage and think that the magnetic board would be good to hang in the bathroom for this purpose.
The kit also comes with a magnetic board that you can personalize with your child’s name using the included dry-erase pen and use to track which activities are still “To Do” and which are “Done”.
My preschooler starts arranging our schedule in the “To Do” column. Being a Saturday, there’s lots to do and we quickly find out that the board is too small to accommodate our entire day. We move over to the kitchen and both of my daughters enjoy sticking them on the fridge – because of course, what child doesn’t like magnets?
Immediately we see results. My kids frequently check the board and take comfort knowing what is next. The morning goes more smoothly with both kids willing to get dressed. Later, there is no debate about turning off the television and coming down for lunch. I admit that I haven’t been bothering to brush my kids’ teeth in the morning (is that awful?) because the battle wasn’t worth it to me. My older one wonders why there are two “brush teeth” magnets and when I tell her the reason, both children started brushing their teeth in the morning without any fuss.
But the biggest benefit is really that Easy Daysies keeps my husband and me on track. I am not the most organized parent and this system helps keep both of us on the same page and communicating consistent messages to our children.
Easy Daysies
www.easydaysies.com | Twitter: @easydaysies | Facebook
Giveaway alert! Easy Daysies is offering a VancouverMom.ca reader a “Get Your Kids Organized” Prize Package worth over $50. Here’s how to enter:
- Visit www.easydaysies.com.
- Come back to VancouverMom.ca and enter your comment below, letting us know how your family would benefit from having Easy Daysies.
That’s it!
We have the every day kit and the bathroom kit already and LOVE them. My older son (soon to be 5) has some learning/memory challenges which we are currently in diagnosis for and easy daysies has made our lives so much easier!
We were at a complete stand still with potty training him until we got the kit. It seemed that these little magnets gave him just enough confidence and security to start trying things on his own. He would often refer to them for his next steps. it was amazing to see the changes (and great to finally have a child out of diapers!)
Next we are hoping to acquire the chores set to help set up some expectations, responsibility and success! I can’t wait!
I have 4 kids and an international student, her system would help us all stay on track. It would also help my 3 and 4 year old daughters to stay focused on their tasks. Anything for a little sanity around this busy household!
The restickables that help kids put away their clothes (and know what drawer to find them in when getting dressed) would be great for our family! Our little one is only 10 months old, so he doesn’t need them yet, but I need them for my hubby! I can never find where he puts anything because he can never remember where to put the clothes away. I figure if my little guy has these on his drawers, we’ll all know where to find his stuff, including him when he’s old enough.
Our daughter has a very bright, energetic two year old boy, with another on the way in 2 month’s time. I know these would be a great gift for them, as the 2yr old can ‘see’ how his day will ‘look’; know what’s happening and when, which should help avoid the the constant demands, particularly after mom has a c-section and newborn to contend with. This would be so helpful for all of them and make mom’s life so much easier!
What a great idea! As a teacher and mother as well, I see the value in having a visible schedule for kids to follow. Kids thrive on a routine and right now as I’m running my own business, it’s tough to stick with one. Easy Daysies would help keep me in check too!
I’ve wanted to get a set of these for awhile now. My son is just getting to the age where he’s asking “What are we doing now, mom?” so he would love to have his schedule laid out on the fridge.
I love the concept and have been contemplating getting some of the sets as I grew up always having the chore charts and think it’s a great idea as well I have a two year old that I am starting to get ready to potty train and would love to try out the training set and see if it helps.
Holy Cats..I cannot tell you how much this would help our family gone wild.
We have kids who seem to FORGET the basics every single day..which is leading to much yelling and fighting.
We have a son who doesn’t get the idea of chores and or allowance earning….so a VISUAL of how it all works would make a HUGE difference for us…
The chore chart, the organizer stickers…oh my god…
With a toddler, who is just starting to understand the concept of time and “first, then”, having a visual schedule for him to consult would be incredibly helpful! Pictures etc. are so useful for reinforcing routines for young children, and I can only imagine how this would help him to be able to predict what’s coming up (and perhaps avoid a hundred or so of those daily questions I get??), and further develop his language skills.