Toddler Busy Box

Over the summer while I was helping with Vacation Bible School, a former coworker of mine gave Cai a little box filled with crayons, a little car, a pencil sharpener, and a pencil. She had noticed that he liked to draw and color (she was an art teacher, so of'course she noticed) and that I was working hard to keep him busy, and she thought this would help.

Her idea was brilliant! We have tweaked what we keep in the box a few times, and I try to rotate things to keep it fresh, but we keep the box in the diaper bag and use it at restaurants and church. I love it so much, I thought I'd share it, and the contents, with you all.

1. The actual box. I think she bought it at Target. It came with a key which I have actually used to keep Cai from dragging everything out of it at home.

2. Three books from the toddler kids meal at Chick-Fil-A. We love these, and they are the perfect size for the box. Cai likes to look at them, particularly in the car.

3. Crayons. The original gift included nice triangular ones, but Cai has a penchant for peeling an breaking crayons. :/

4. Tiny plush animals. These were a gift from my sister. She got them in the dollhouse section at Hobby Lobby. Cai loves them,and they fit perfectly.

5. A box of raisins.

6. Ninja turtles coloring sheets. These are from a kit that was on clearance at Target. It came with tiny markers, but after'a terrifying church service where I was afraid my clothes and the pew would be covered in blue marker, I switched back to crayons. Regular paper cut into quarters works perfectly too.

7. Plastic animals. Cai loves animals. The pig is from'a dollar store set and the horse is from his Mellissa and Doug horse farm.

8. Little people car.

9. Other little cars. I think these were from a dollar section somewhere. Target maybe? They were potty training prizes.

Everything you see there doea actually fit, but you have to arrange it perfectly in order to close it. I usually don't keep quite this much in it, I wanted to show how much would fit.

Do you have a busy box or bag? What do you keep in it?