In preparation for our 4th child, some changes have to be made to accomodate the new addition. The first of which would be the dining area. Our table has the max capacity of 6 and with 4 kids and 2 adults in the future, we'll need every space on the table and every side available. Thus, we have to find somewhere else to put the children's dish rack and shift the table so that everyone has a place to sit at. We bought a kitchen trolley to put at a corner so that the dish rack, tissue and kitchen towel are within easy reach. Joash and Jayna are seated beside the trolley so they have an added responsibility of setting the table and getting those things for the family during mealtimes.
I originally wanted to get another toddler's chair from IKEA for Jayna since she has long outgrown the highchair. However, for some reason, they decided to stop producing it. The other alternatives are simply way too expensive. I tried looking for one elsewhere but they just didn't fit the criteria.
Inspiration struck me when I realise that Joash is only short of 2 inches to be ready for the normal stools and Jayna can take over her brother's old chair. I started looking for paddings for his stool but they were all not very stable. I prayed for an idea and one fine day, I realised I could stack another stool and use scotch tape to bind the legs tightly together. I have all along been using rubber feet to stabilise the stools so the whole contraption was really effective in resolving the issue. The amazing thing is I didn't even need to spend any money and the final product still blends into the dining set. Are you able to tell which stool has been modified from the above picture?
To make space for the mattress to be pulled from under the bed at night to sleep on, I had to move the children's table into the living room. Since Joram would be using the playpen for the first year of his life, the study area is too cramped for my liking. I'll just have to be patient. When Joram starts sleeping in the bedroom with the rest of the kids, I can finally give away the trusty playpen and revamp this area into a decent place for serious education. This is especially so when Joash goes primary school next year and he'll need a proper place for homework and revision.
With more kids, we need more space for bath towels. We bought another towel rack so that we can effectively dry them for the whole family's use. The empty bar at the back is happily waiting to greet Joram's towel when he decides to grace us with his presence. LOL
Our old laundry baskets had been with us for more than 6 years and recently I'd noticed that they were getting very moldy despite the fabric being water and odor resistant. It was high time we disposed of them and got new ones. I was looking for plastic laundry baskets with lids but they were either too expensive or made into odd shapes. I eventually found these IKEA boxes and they fit my needs perfectly. These are supposed to be for waste sorting but they are easy to clean, easy to use even for the kids and can keep the odor in before the clothes are due for washing. Best of all, they are really affordable. (Can you tell by now that I'm an IKEA fan? LOL)
Okay. This is not directly related to Joram but it has been bugging me for a long long time. In order to save money, I've always bought cheap floor mats. However, because they are of inferior quality, they are not exactly anti-slip nor absorbant or they tend to shed fibre despite multiple washing. With three kids walking in and out of the bathroom now, I keep having to remind them to be careful when using the floor mats in case they slip or scold them for playing with the flaking fibre or even the mat itself! Finally, I had enough of all these nonsense and used the cash vouchers my SIL gave me and invested in really good floor mats. Voila! All my problems are solved instantly! I kinda feel stupid for bearing with the inconveniences just to save that bit of money. Ah well... no point crying over spilled milk.
And yes, at long last, we bade farewell to the old moldy blue swivel chair the kids loved so much and got a plastic one to replace it. Unfortunately, it doesn't spin very well so they have one less thing to entertain themselves with. But they'll live. In fact, they stopped complaining about it within a week. *grin*
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