Her Own Little Sink: Self-Care and Washing Up

Alleluia is old enough to wash her hands (including her nails), clean her face, and brush her hair with just a little help.   I set up her own little "sink" in part of my laundry room and gave her the tools she needs to be independent.  It's nice because--even if she's mostly playing in the water--I can fold loads and loads of laundry right next to her!  (This is sold as a Cloth Washing Stand by Lord Equipment.)

Especially after eating peanut butter and honey toast, the mirror comes in handy for checking if she's cleaned off all of the goo.

You can never have too many funnels or buckets, right?

The deep dish pans don't have drains and there's no running water, so I just give her as much as she needs in the large white pitcher.  When she learns to wash clothes and dishes we'll probably fill both pans with water.

This narrow strip of the laundry room is no bigger than 2 x 8 feet.  The dish strainer mounted to the wall is from Ikea, as are the funnels.

She has a doggie nail brush and a ducky one (hand-me-downs from her older sibs).  The ladybug pot scrubber is new and came from TJMaxx.  They sit atop a cheapy clearance wooden shelf from Michael's that was just the right height for a toddler.  Right now there is a sample tile purchased from a home improvement store (back when I thought we'd put "real floors" in the laundry room) on top of the shelf.  The little plastic bowls help her to remember to put the soap and nail brush away.  They came from Target's kitchen department.

This bunny comb and brush set was too cute to pass up!