I have a lot of fun decorating our house for different holidays. But usually the festive touches are focused on the main living room and kitchen areas. This year I made a particular effort to bring the Christmas cheer to my preschoolers personal spaces.
Here are a few ideas on how to bring Christmas to the play room!
- Put the Dolls or Teddy Bears in Christmas Clothes – I suggest being on the look out all year at rummage sales and consignment shops for newborn and preemie Christmas outfits. They are often very cheap (especially out of season) and the small baby sizes tend to fit dolls and bears really well!
- Bring out all the Christmas musical/animated toys in a fun line – Our play room is upstairs, so I thought it would be fun to line up all her little guys so she could turn them all or off on her way upstairs. My sister in law does this with their animated guys too, and it always looks so cute! Another idea would be all along a window pane or filling a bookshelf!
- Find a creative way to have a Tree – Remember that decal Advent Calendar tree? I’ve got it stuck on the playroom wall, which is perfect because it takes up no space. But still brings the holiday cheer into the room. And the advent countdown part of it is a fun way to work on numbers!
4. Use Grocery Paper Bags to Decorate – You can cut them out into great shapes, our favorite is a Gingerbread man shape. I cute the shape out, and my preschooler decorates them. Then they go on the playroom window!
5. Basket of Christmas themed Books – I put all the holiday themed books away after Christmas, so when they come out each year with the Christmas decorations they are like new to my daughter. And while she has old favorites, they never lose their luster since they are available for only a short time each year. I put them in a basket in her reading nook.
Bonus Ideas…
For the Bath: What about making bath time extra Christmas-sy? Dump a couple of bags of rinsed cranberries into your childs bath! They float, and are lots of fun to play with! Obviously they are small edibles so only do this if your child is old enough to eat small fruits. And if they are… encourage them to snack on the berries if they wish! Its like being inside an edible sensory tub!
For their Room: Two easy ways to give their room extra holiday cheer is to change the sheets on their bed to winter/holiday themed sheets that only come out during the holidays! I found flannel ones with red snowflakes on them at a discount store for a steal! I also really love putting a mini tree in their rooms. This one has a battery operated timer, so at night it comes on automatically and glows on her nightstand and by the time its getting light outside, it clicks off. The tree glowing at night is super soothing and a great nightlight!
How do you bring the holidays inside to your children’s spaces? I’d love to hear your ideas!
About Shannon SchmidShannon traded in her sensible NYC TV producer shoes (they were best for taking the subway), for a pair of Texas Cowboy boots when she married her best friend! He's at fault for making this Yankee a Texan! Shannon writes about all things that make a house a home. Her chief blogging inspiration is being the proud & slightly neurotic mom of a preschool age daughter.
You can find Shannon on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and her new favorite place to hang out, Google+.
love the cranberries idea. (someday!)
D
Love it! I’m not the best at decorating, but you definitely got the skills!
I love all of it! Now I’m wishing that I kept the girls Christmas onsies to put on their babydolls. Oh well. I was thinking of getting each of my girls their own mini tree to put the Christmas ornaments they get each year on.
I am loving the dolls in their Christmas pajamas. Too cute!
What great ideas! I love the mini tree by the bed, and the cranberries in the bath. I have a whole bag left over from Thanksgiving – I think I know what my kids get to do this weekend 🙂 I also love the advent tree – super cute!
I love all of these ideas, especially putting the dolls and teddy bears in Christmas clothing – how wonderfully creative!
I love these ideas! I need to get more into decorating our house and bringing the holidays in.
Those are some great ideas!
I love these ideas!
My kids put a tiny tree in their rooms for Christmas.
What fun ideas! I love the cranberry one. I never would think to do that.
We don’t typically decorate anywhere but outside and in the living room but I love these ideas for spreading cheer all around the house.
What cute ideas! I love the gingerbread cutouts and the books. I loved reading Christmas stories with my kids when they were younger.
Cute ideas! We dress the dolls up in party dresses on Christmas Eve so that they are ready for the holiday too!
Fantastic ideas! Love them all 😀
What great ideas! I’ve always wanted to decorate a small tree in my son’s playroom but never have done it yet.
Love these ideas! My son has a miniature tree in his room with itty bitty ornaments.
These are all such adorable ideas! I love adding the cranberries to the water, how festive!
I have tons of holiday stuffed toys the kids have made and acquired over the years and I never thought to put them on the stairs. I am off to go do just that with the ones still in the bins that I had no room for.
Great ideas. I don’t have a little one anymore, but my 13 year old daughter has always had a small tree in her room that she decorates.
The cranberry idea is so fun for an older kid. GREAT idea!
Love all these cute ideas!