Best Mommy Ideas

Hey C.! I don't think all of this will help because I have 3 girls and you have boys!

We used the girls little baby clothes as doll clothes. Bibs, baby toys, like rattles, and blankets are good for this, too. When kids outgrew diapers(like if there were a few size ones and we needed two's next) I saved them for the dollies. My oldest is 8 and her (unused!!) newborn diapers are still being used on the dollies. Since they have velcro, they have held up for that long! Diaper bags can also be recycled in this way. Basically, any baby item can be used for dollies. You can still do this with boys, though most people probably don't. If there are any little girls in your life, a diaper bag filled with baby clothes makes a great birthday or Christmas gift. You can also spend a dollar on a travel wipe container and remove the wipes (my Mom kept the wipes and let them dry out and then put them back in the container so I could use them for cleaning the dollies). You could cut little pieces of blankies and pass them off as wipes. Also...buy a set of doll bottles just to get the point across that this is for play.

We also keep all stained clothing. I sew, so I can use that fabric to make doll clothes. I got quite a few doll clothes patterns at Hobby Lobby (on sale for 99 cents!!!) and old clothes are perfect for that. The clothes don't supply enough fabric for anything else and they don't really do anyone very much good, so recycling the fabric works for the doll clothes perfectly. It's just enough fabric and you can avoid using the stained part. Also, it's neat because the kids end up with doll clothes that look just like their old clothes that they can't wear anymore!

I turn worn jeans into capris...sometimes the knees in the girls pants are so worn that patching them might not be an option. So they wearthe pants during the winter and as long as they will still fit someone in the house, I cut them and hem them into shorts or capris, depending on how far down the holes are. I am also stealing my husbands pants (that are torn and have holes)and I am turning them in to purses. In our case, the girls need something to hold their Bibles and "Bible Bucks" (pretend money they earn at church to purchase items from a store)so I am making purses big enough to hold all of that stuff. I will use ribbon remnants and sew those on to make them more fun. So even Dad's pants have a place!!

I keep birthday party things, too. Hats,gift bags(the little ones for the kids, the biggest ones to reuse for real gifts), small gift boxes, tissue, wrapping paper. My kids LOVE LOVE LOVE to play "birthday party". We keep the things in a box and they use everything as props for pretend play. There's always the problem with not having a cake (we don't have one in the pretend food) so I am going to make them a cake for Christmas using felt. For now they use pretend cupcakes. When things get worn out in the box, never fear, another birthday is on it's way!!! Just throw out the old and replace it with the new!

One more thing I can think of...we keep all baby cups, plates, bowls, and spoons. They make great, durable, and safe pretend place settings. My kids and play "kitchen" or "restaurant". That way you save money and don't have to purchase the "dinner ware" for a play kitchen. Just make sure that they are things you'd want the kids to play with...we don't use anything metal...just the plastic things.

I'm sure I have more things that I have used and reused! Maybe if I get another cup of coffee in me I can think of some more!!

Hope this gives someone some ideas! I usually just look at everything before I get rid of it and say, "can I use this is ANY way for anyone in this house now or in the near future".

Have a happy day!!

1 mom found this helpful

If you are looking to donate you things, there is a women & children shelter on 2844 lawrence called the sacred heart. These people can use cloths and baby gear
also; there is another place called birthline. They donate items to needy families from the crib to cloths. So they would appreciate it too.they are located on 2346 gilpin.
Phone ####-###-#### thank you for thinking of others who are in need and usually do without. Good luck and god bless

Its fun to make a blanket out of tee shirts that have cute things on the front. This works for a person of any age, by the way. cut out the fronts off the shirt, sew them together, put them on a fleece backing by sewing around the edges, and anchor them here and there with a few yarn ties. another thing you can do is give them away. Go to freecycle.com on yahoo. You can post things to your local area that you want to give away or things that you want to receive.

Check out zwaggle.com, you bless someone else with your unwanted stuff and then get zoints to get something you want/need! If you join (it's free), please say that I referred you. (____@____.com)

I sell all of my items at the Just Between Friends sale. They have sales in Longmont, Fort Collins, Denver, Broomfield, Highlands Ranch and Colorado Springs. It is an awesome sale and I not only get a big check at the end but I find great stuff for my kids for the next season. I usually outfit both my kids for the next season, plus a couple of toys for $200. Also, whatever doesn't sell at the sale, they will donate to a great charity for me. It is awesome! Their website is www.jbfsale.com and you can choose a sale. Good luck.

I make burp cloths into bibs. I take two clips and tie them on either end of a short piece of ribbon. I then use this to secure a burp cloth around my son's neck. Something similar to what dentist offices use. Burp cloths are long enough to protect a large section of my independent toddler's clothes.

Sell back to a second hand store (such as Once Upon a Child) or donate to someone in need (homeless shelter, domestic violence shelter, etc)

I usually find kids resale stores. If they take the stuff they will usually give you store credit or cash. Then you can buy what the child needs there. I hope this helps

C.,
What wonderful ideas you have so far! My son is only 8 months but Ive already thought up some ideas to reuse his belongings. I am saving my favorite pieces of clothing and at the end of the year my mother will cut them up and make it into a new quilt for his birthdays. I also found a consignment store near by to take his gently used clothing and toys. They give me store credit which helps save money. Best of luck to you!

You could donate your baby items to A Caring Pregnancy Center. Call them to see if they have any needs! This is a great way to help someone in need!

Making pillow cases out of crib sheets are great keepsakes and re-uses!

My former MIL, a talented quilter, converted baby quilts to twin size quilts by adding wide strips around the edges to boost it to the right size. I don't have a clue what you can do with bumper pads, though.

I think it is nice to keep a few baby things to give to your kids when they are older, I saved the first outfit that my babies ever wore, pus one newborn sized diaper, their first (or favorite) binkey, tiny hair bows, etc. in a pretty box, we have taken out their "baby boxes" to look at the contents for fun sometimes and marvel at how much they have grown! Both of my girls talk about how they will put their first outfit on their future babies!

I am glad that I saved outfits that I did not use as hand me downs or give away because that seems special to save it, most of their other clothes went through both of my girls and now have been given to friends of mine with baby girls!

see if you have a local freecycle group (check yahoo groups). i have been able to get rid of and receive so many things through freecycle. one freecycle member in my area uses old clothes to make rope/braided rugs. it doesn't matter if there are stains or holes because they get covered up.

Kid-to-Kid on Riverdale Road by Newgate Mall. You can trade in your old stuff; if it's in good enough shape, you'll get a credit to apply to purchases. They have a pretty large selection of used items to purchase as well.