Does anyone have a suggestion on how to best organize toys in the car? I'd like to come up with something that can sit in between two car seats, but also be reachable for the kids. They don't have a very far reach once they are strapped in. Any suggestions? Thanks.
get an adult sized back pack and buckle it in the seat between the children. Fill it with their fav stuff. change out the items every couple of weeks to keep it fresh for them...we have been doing this for YRS...
We got one of the canvas boxes at target (collapsable, usually where the hooks, etc. are) and put it between the seats. It's big enough that they can both reach it, and it hold enough that we have items for 2 different aged kids.
I think we spent $5.50 on the canvas box.
We also keep a canvas bag in the car with select today that we have on demand when going into restaurants, stores, etc. to keep them occupied and entertained (flash cards, duplos, crayons, cars, etc).
Hope that helps.
I would advise keeping toys in a secured holder. It is very dangerous to have loose toys, bins and totes in the car. Do you know that in a car crash, a small cell phone will fly through the car with such force, it can crack a child's skull? Not trying to scare you, but a lot of people are unaware of the dangers of unsecured objects in a vehicle. I know it seems like e live in our cars sometimes, but it's a vehicle, not a family room! Please use care!
I would look at onestepahead.com or the container store. Make sure that the thing is soft, and can be belted in so that it doesn't fly in an accident. I have seen some that attach to the sides of the carseat. Also, that it either secures the toys, or that the toys are soft. I think that we all get a little less than diligent at this after a time, but all the loose stuff can hurt them in an accident...that reminds me that I really need to clean out all the stuff in my car this weekend, and organize it better. Thanks for the tip/reminder.
At Target (and probably elsewhere) you can find collapsable, sturdy, fabric cubes. They make them to fit inside shelving units with cube-shaped openings. they come in many colors. They are generally about a 12" cube. We have one of these with toys in our minivan. It can sit on the seat between two car seats, it can sit on the floor beside one seat. It can be moved around or out of the van easily. It hold quite a bit and doesn't require things put back in a particular pocket or nook - which is nice for little kids.
Hope that works for you!
I used a plastic tub (with handles) in our car forever. It was big enough to hold several books, dolls, etc but durable so it wouldn't break. At first I tried a cheap plastic one with a lid and found that A. Cheap plastic breaks easily! B. I never used the lid. So I actually found one at my parents house - very sturdy plastic and used it until about a week ago when I received a Jeep backseat organizer (it goes on the back of the driver or passenger seat). You can look up Jeep Backseat Organizer on www.amazon.com.
Honestly, I do not think it's worth it for several reasons. First, even though the passenger seat is VERY far forward, my daughter's feet still end up basically 'sitting' on this when she's in her forward facing carseat. So she ends up kicking it becuase it's fun, thus getting her toys and the organizer dirty if her feet are dirty or wet. Second, she can't really reach anything in the organizer so it doesn't serve us any purpose. I think once she's out of her carseat and can reach further forward it would be good. For now, I'm going back to the plastic tub!
One Step Ahead/Leaps and Bounds sells a container just for this purpose. I don't know the details, but I know I've seen it. They are huge on safety, so I'm guessing it's well engineered.
I have a container that I throw all the toys into, can find it at any store (walmart, target and so on) either in the kids room decor section or container section. You can get a cloth one or I just got a rubbermaid plasitc one, I gluded some nonskidding fabric on the bottom of each corner to help it from moving around. To keep it shallow I put a folded balnket or small pillow in the bottom, that way the toys/books are up higher.
It really makes cleaning the car easier because you throw all kids items in there and easy to take them out.
I found a smaller tub that fits in between their seats. It worked well in our SUV. Now that we have a van, it's back to the drawing board...
