Toddlers are busy people. Emptying boxes, filling boxes. Turning pages. Running, pushing, pulling. They are always going. Sometimes it's hard to find enough things to keep their little hands occupied!
Enter the busy board. You can buy these pre-made, but they'll run you at least $50 for a good-sized one.
I compiled several ideas I liked on Pinterest, and if you're interested, you can check out my Pinterest board to get some more ideas:
I chose to make my own. This can also be really pricey, especially if you buy everything new, but I managed to keep it pretty cheap. (Surprised? I didn't think so.) Here are some pictures of the board, and I'll discuss below each picture where I found all the parts. I believe anyone could make their own busy board for about $25.
The board is a leftover cupboard door from our old kitchen cabinets. I sanded it and painted it white. Then my mom helped me tape off chevron stripes, which I painted with acrylic craft paints (which we already had). (In case you're following along at home, so far my cost is $0.)
In the top left, I attached a drawer pull I found at Goodwill. On this I hung a bike lock, a lanyard, and a padlock, all from the Dollar Tree. ($4 for all 4 pieces)
In the top right is a little 'door' - this was originally a floating shelf that my parents weren't using. The cute little rose pull was also sitting around waiting to be used. ($0)
I attached the 'door' using a hinge I found at Salvation Army, and put a dollar store compact mirror behind it. For safety, I covered the screw ends and the edges of the mirror in cute duct tape. ($3, including tape)
I checked at our local thrift stores first, but I did end up getting several items new from Lowe's. The slide chain and hook-and-eye latch were each $3. ($6)
I sprung for the nicer swivel casters ($4 for the 2) and found the springy door stoppers on clearance for $0.50. The barrel bolt was $3. ($7.50)
At the bottom, I attached a cute little bucket from Goodwill, and a calculator and pill sorter from Dollar Tree. ($3)
Not pictured: push light from Dollar Tree ($1) - because it doesn't work. (And yes, I still haven't replaced it.)
Total: $24.50
Not bad for a completely customized (and very cute) busy board!
Josephine likes to peek at herself in the mirror (and give her reflection kisses).
It's also fun to hide toys in the bucket.
So far, we've chosen to leave it free-standing, so we can move it around, or put it away for a while to keep it novel.
Love and Rainbow,
Leah Joy
P.S. I also got to learn lots of new hardware terms!
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